Magnum Opus

Magnum Opus…literally translated from the original Latin means – Great Work. This term has been used countless times through generations of artists, poets, musicians to describe the pinnacle of their careers. Even less frequently to scientist, mathematicians, and Laureate seeking politicians.

To you and I, it would be our greatest life achievement…our greatest work. Something that stands ever so slightly, or grandiosely above all else as a testament in time. Something that will endure long after we’re gone.

It would be Beethoven’s 5^th, Mozart’s Requiem, Walt Disney’s Magic Kingdom, or Neil Armstrong’s “one small step”.

It would be the work, the hook of mastery by which you would hang your legacy.

For our purposes, it will be where the journey begins. For you see, every journey must have a starting point…a giant X that marks the spot from where we choose to launch. Before direction…before movement…comes a beginning.

And our beginning makes all the difference…

Having an opportunity recently to speak to a group of college students, I took a bible and opened it to the book of Genesis. I posed a very simple, yet complex question: “What is the theme of Genesis chapter one?”. There was no surprise in the unison answers – quickly offered, by the way, as if I had insulted their intellect with remedial kindergarten queries.

“Creation”…“Man”…”Woman”…”Me”.

An obvious answer, repeated a thousand times. Genesis is about creation: the world, the stars, the beast, the foul, the fish, the seas, the mountains, man, woman. Genesis is about beginnings.

And so, we start at the beginning of the Bible with the beginning of us…me and you.

Yet unfortunately…this beginning, this giant X…is where so many lose their way. Let me explain:

Genesis 1:1 – “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth”

Do you see it? Let’s try it this way.

“In the beginning God…

Yes he created. But before creation, before time was set in motion…there existed an omnipotent, omnipresent, uncreated God. But as it happens, we skip over the infinite to reach the finite…for we see ourselves in the picture.

The first chapter of the bible…the first chapter of any of it’s books…in any translation, is about God. His story.

As I made this revelation to the students…there was a quiet, mystical hush. As if everyone suddenly had a sinking “how did I miss that” feeling.

We have chosen to make ourselves the centerpiece…the grand beginning from which all paths have their origin. We have become the starting point masked as a convenient Christian theology. Yet herein lies our greatest detour and ultimately leaves us holding an empty orthodoxy and fruitless, nonbinding religion.

Let’s instead seek out the true starting point from which our journey should begin. Let’s not skip over the “God” to get to the “created”. Let’s tune our ears to God’s spirit by choosing the path He has laid for us.

God’s Magnum Opus lies hidden in plain sight as drops of ink before us. Yet, let us not consider them as mere words penned so long ago to communicate the story of God. Instead it contains ancient revelation that brings understanding, wisdom and light.

We must see it in color:

The infant earth was but a few days old. The moon, stars, and planets perfectly formed… perfectly placed reflected the new sun as it brought both light and life to all that soaked in its radiance.

The seas teemed with life, the sky filled with perfect air, was inhabited with every sort of bird and flying creature. This newly created world was art to the one who painted it upon his celestial canvas. God had created a new world…inhabited by new creatures…in a new domain. Close, yet worlds apart from the heavenly domain of the living God. Time had been put in motion.

“…and the Lord saw that it was very good”. Genesis 1:31

God stepped back, took a deep sigh, and what he saw pleased him. The perfection of the moment was not lost on Elohim. Yet, he chose not to stop there. He could have…but he didn’t.

Maybe in that moment of sheer beauty God longed to share it. Maybe he desired one who would stand beside him…walk with him…. and understand. True beauty longs to be shared. So share he would.

Taking a smidgen of dust from the ground he forms the perfect body of the first man. This body was the ultimate accomplishment of his creation. Yet with it’s perfection, a mystery was concealed in the truth that this was nothing short of a royal storehouse. A box of human flesh that would house the greatest gift ever given…

Watch carefully…for if you blink…you’ll miss it:

“Then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and BREATHED into his nostrils the BREATH OF LIFE. Genesis 2:7

The Magnum Opus – there in the quietness of the newly formed earth. No great hoopla…no angelic orchestra…no drum roll.

God leaned over this new living creature and breathed himself into this chest of flesh. He placed himself…his breath…his spirit within the depths of man and gave man a destination found uniquely in two worlds. God placed a fraction of himself in Adam…and every Adam and Eve born since.

It’s amazing to think that the Magnum Opus was not creation…but creator. It’s not found in flesh, blood or bone. It’s not found in the capacity of our brain. No, instead it’s found deep in the hidden place of our soul. It’s the spark of God…the spirit.

I can’t help but wonder what God saw in Adam. We don’t know…but we do know he saw a little bit of himself. No…we don’t have our father’s eyes, nose, teeth…. for God is Spirit. And we are made in his image…spirit housed within flesh. Both physical and spiritual intended to live in two worlds. The body in this world…the spirit reaching for the father.

Reminds me of one of my favorite movies growing up. Remember E.T. (Extra terrestrial)? Our first loveable alien that found itself stranded on earth. Watching again recently with my 7 year old son, I was explaining why E.T. wanted to “phone home”. And during his plight…as his space ship traveled further and further from him…his “heart-light” drew darker and darker. Until, ultimately he died…but not really. The ship was coming back to get him and that little light flickered and grew. And with all happy endings, E.T. is rescued and goes home after a nice Hollywood moment.

We have that same type of ember within us. It’s a flicker…a spark that grows in radiance as the father draws near. Yet different from E.T. – we control it. Not it’s ignition, but instead it’s flame. We either respond to the spirit, or we ignore.

He didn’t create robots…but he did create us to need him. To be with him.

To walk…listen…do…be…with Him.

The Magnum Opus. That’s our starting point. As Believers, as devoted followers of Christ, we must understand our reason for existence. And we must comprehend, ever so slightly, the treasure within. And we must understand the desire…the longing, to sense the fire ignited by God’s Spirit and abiding in our lives.

You and I are made to worship. We’re made to walk with God. We’re made to love as he loves. We’re made to soar as he soars. We’re made to thrive in this world…and abide in the next.

The Magnum Opus…God’s great work. Not body…not flesh.

The Magnum Opus – without it there is no need for redemption…no grace…no mercy…no cross.

The Magnum Opus is not me or you. It’s God…His Spirit…in us…in all of us!

Brought to life only one-way…His presence…His voice…His word.

It’s your spiritual ears tuned only to His voice. And it takes only a whisper to ignite and burn.

How long has it been for you? How long will it be?

The moment is now…allow god to stir the embers of His breath within you. Only he can ignite them…and only you can allow Him access.