jordanabina
Feathers of the Phoenix | Copyright @jordanabina 2021
FEATHERS OF THE PHOENIX – Found in the ancient stories of Greek mythology is the legend of the fiery phoenix. The phoenix, a bird that lives out a cyclical life of death and rebirth. In some legends, the bird will simply die and decompose, but the most popular telling of the story is of the winged creature that rises from its own ashes after combusting in a display of furious fire.
From the ashes, a fire shall be woken, A light from the shadows shall spring…
J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring
The phoenix and its legend have brought hope to generations of people who have had to navigate through difficult circumstances and sorrow. For multiple generations, the phoenix has represented a chance at a new life and hope. Much like a forest that burns to ash and grows again, the phoenix, although destroyed in a wild blaze, returns with and new and vibrant beauty.
I too have been fascinated by the beauty represented in the image of the phoenix. As a follower of Jesus, there are many words that Jesus chose that speak about a re-birth, a different life rising from the former.
Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.
Jesus, John 3:3 NIV
Born again. It seems, there must be death to have new life. Is it not the teachings of Jesus that lead us to consider who we are, what we do, and what we’ve become and to consider letting those things die in order to experience life? Was it not the death of Jesus that led to His resurrection and saving work? Is it not the words of the Apostle Paul that echo this reality?
As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.
Paul, Ephesians 2:1-5 NIV
Death is necessary. Death seems to be a vital part of new life. The phoenix, although just a story, gives a beautiful image of what must happen for newness to come. The bird lives a life, however long, in a beautiful display. But as the hour draws near to her fiery departure, the bird begins to change, begins to look, act, and feel as one does when something powerful looms on the horizon.
And then, without warning, the moment comes. The phoenix is gone. To those who don’t know her, she’s gone forever, but to those who know her story, they wait for something special to happen. Some wait with expectation to see the numinous, others wait in sorrow and try to understand what’s happening to this wonderful creature.
There is a question that I have wondered ever since I first heard the legend of the phoenix and it has led me to think of this majestic bird during the times we’re in. My question is this, when the phoenix returns, is she the same bird?
My question, however elementary it may sound, is when the new bird emerges from its ashy womb, is it a new bird with a new mind and memory? Does she remember her former self and her life before? As I studied history and different writings about the phoenix, the answer is not easy to find. Besides, maybe that isn’t the point of the story. But nevertheless, this remains the question of my present thoughts.
The year 2020 was the start of something unique and the era that follows will be years that are written about for ages to come. We will analyze them, argue over them, and make factions from them. People will always say the statement starting with the phrase: 2020 was the year that…and the rest of the words will change via the orator behind them. And this is rightfully so. We should talk about the season that sent much of our norms and practices into a blender. Everything we knew was turned upside down and many of the aspects of life that brought us peace were stripped.
This is true for many different pieces of the human puzzle, but the piece that interests me is what was revealed about the Church.
For many believers, this wasn’t just a trying time financially or physically, it was most trying spiritually. As we ventured towards another Easter, we found the doors to the church closed in what felt like a blink of an eye. In the year that many said, including myself, would be a year of 20-20 vision, we found ourselves blinded by the events unfolding around us and unsure of what to do.
There are churches that closed their doors in 2020 that will never reopen again.
In addition to that, there are people who may never find themselves in a church again. What do we think about that? What does that mean? What does it say about the Church?
In many ways, the Church has found itself at the end of an era. A season has passed. Like the phoenix, what was once a beautiful and dependable pillar of life, has now been fractured and in need of rebirth. But these were always trying times. For some of those on the front lines, it cost them everything. This isn’t new to church history, there have been many moves of the Spirit of God to drive out the old and give birth to the new. I believe we are at another one of those moments.
And now, we must ask the question, when the phoenix rises from its ashes, is it the same bird?
I believe the answer is, no.
It may remember moments and instincts; it is undoubtedly a different bird. New life is just that, new. While the bird grows into something beautiful and into the phoenix as it was created to be, it grows new feathers and experiences life as a new bird. The phoenix does not regrow the feathers that burned but allows the creator to reshape, remold, and redesign.
She is both new and original.
In this moment of Church history, God is at work in His church. In many ways, this last season and even now have felt like we’ve burned into a pile of ash. The heap of ash contains hopes and dreams, methods and philosophies, and successes and failures. But the breath of God is blowing. His creative word flows through His people even now; fix your eyes on the working hand of God.
He is doing a new thing.
We must allow God to bring new life into His church. There are feathers of the Church that must not grow back. We need to make room for God to change our desires and to begin to make our hearts ready for His new work. We must face the reality that Jesus wants to clear His temple over and over and over until it looks like the house of God.
This should be something we welcome, however uncomfortable it may be. Who else but God could sanctify His Church?
Would we be willing in this season of resurrection, to reflect on the Church we were and to ask God to show us the Church He would like us to become?
Another day is dawning for the Church, and much like the phoenix, we aren’t going to be the same old bird. There are just some feathers, some parts of who we were, that we simply cannot afford to let grow back. But even more than that, there are new feathers, new ideas, and designs that God wants to fan into flame.
As I write this, I write this as a man who is broken over the state of our world, the paralysis of believers, and in the division, I see in the Church around us. I spent all of the year 2020 in the United States and now find myself living and serving the Church in the country of France. Across land a sea I’ve discovered something, the need is the same.
We need a new work of the Spirit and a unified work in the Church. I do not believe that time is going to make things better, instead, it will only become more difficult. There will never be an easier time to do ministry than it is right now and I believe God is stirring his Church for a move of the Holy Spirit, but not just for churches, but for everyone.
There are six short chapters that follow this brief introduction, six feathers, if you will, that must change as we seek to regain our footing as the Church of Jesus Christ. Some are personal changes, others are changes the Church as a whole must be willing to grow in. Authenticity is key. A real life changed by a real Jesus will be the only type of Christianity this world will accept, everything else is ash and we must leave it there.
The moment for stepping into God’s plan is now. Do you sense it as well? Not just for church leaders and ministers, but for you and I. God has filled you with His Spirit for more than just our personal devotion, He is up to something much bigger than that.
The Church that rises from this won’t be the church we remember from before, instead, it will be a Church that the Spirit has blown new life into.
May she rise with such beauty that the world sees Jesus in all His glory.
For those of us who have felt hopeless and defeated this last season, have felt our heart break watching churches crumble and people walk from Jesus, do not fear. Something stirs in the ash below, light is breaking through, Jesus is breathing new life.
