Blocking the Door... the Christian Pharisee

Blocking the Door… the Christian Pharisee

"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the kingdom of heaven in men's faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to.”  (Matthew 23:13  NIV).

“Woe to you experts in the law, because you have taken away the key to knowledge. You yourselves have not entered, and you have hindered those who were entering.”  (Luke 11:52 NIV)

While basking in the sweet embrace of the Gospel message over the last thirty years, there remains yet one recurring experience which continues to bring a deep sense of remorse and a lingering frustration.   It is that of attending a Christian church service no matter what the denomination.  Practically without exception, the minister will deliver a message which sets forth ample Biblical evidence for a belief in the steadfast love of the Father for all His children.  Right on cue however, lest the congregation be left in a Gospel induced state of rest, he feels duty bound to drop one or more of the counterweight verses which serve to completely pull the rug right out from under any eternal security one may have inadvertently absorbed from the previous exhortation.  And if by some oversight he does not provide these balancing scriptures in the last half of that sermon, he will certainly make up for it with a vengeance in the following Sunday’s message.

One way or another the message gets conveyed: “Make no mistake about it folks, God does love you but his patience is wearing thin and is liable to give way at any second, sending the likes of failures such as yourself tumbling down to the place of eternal torment of which you so richly deserve.” 

Now to hear God’s eternally longsuffering nature profaned at a Hell’s Angels convention would be relatively easy to take.  It’s expected.  Even in a religious service outside of Christianity I would understand in advance that the Gospel could not be proclaimed in its fullness since the Author of that fullness is unknown there.  But when it comes to a Christian Church service it is always so difficult for me to accept that the Gospel will once again be denied a hearing.   The preachers come so close to it, even at times reading the very words which clearly proclaim it and yet through their lack of understanding, end up missing it by a million miles.   You know, just when it gets to the “happily ever after” part of the story they quickly punctuate it with an outburst of… “psyche!”… “just kidding folks”… “it really doesn’t mean what it says there, that would obviously be just too good to be true… and here’s why…”

These very same preachers however, seem to have no problem pointing out the tragic narrow mindedness of the Pharisees in failing to allow for God’s grace to extend beyond the bounds of their own elite group.  Yes, the Pharisees are regularly blasted from Christian pulpits, and rightly so, for following the letter of the Law only, while neglecting the “weightier matters”, thus laying an impossible burden on the people of Israel that even they themselves could only pretend to carry. 

They relished their position as guardians of the door to the Kingdom which was meant to be opened to all.  Being the semi self appointed gatekeepers that they were, they had determined that only those of the Jewish nation were deemed eligible even of consideration for entry through that door, and then only upon evidence of a solid track record of strict adherence to the Law.  They had lost sight, whether purposefully or not, of the ultimate inclusive nature of the promise handed down through their father Abraham.   Blissfully unaware that they had not been chosen for any exceptional performance or inherent good on their part but rather only to be a channel of blessing to all nations, they proceeded to promote and to proclaim an exclusive Israel-centric club mentality to the world at large, all the while believing their blood line to be by its very essence, superior.

After a thousand years or so of living under this illusion, along came a Jewish Rabbi who, unlike the Pharisees, was recognized by the people to have spoken with intrinsic authority.  And from that place of authority, he often made reference to the “expansion” of God’s favor to the Gentile peoples of the world.  On more than one occasion he even pointed to examples of where the faith or virtue of those outside of Israel had risen above that of the Jewish people.  Of course, nothing incensed the Jewish leadership more than the hearing of these generous concessions made to the undeserving Gentile dogs.  Consequently, it was primarily towards these same self righteous leaders that Jesus would direct the focus of his own wrath throughout the course of his entire ministry on earth. 

Unable to stop him by any other means, they eventually had him hung on a cross, thinking finally to put an end to the steadily growing throngs of followers attracted both to his person and to the “blasphemous” message he proclaimed.    But as history has amply borne out, just the opposite effect on the Christian movement was achieved by this heinous crime.  Upon news of his resurrection, the new Church multiplied at an “alarming” rate as his followers risked life and limb to obey his imperative to “… go unto all the world and preach the Gospel… to the Jew first and then to the Gentile”.   

Now fast forward 2000 years and what do we find the current state of the Christian church to be in regards to their calling to lift up Christ so that He may “draw all men unto Himself”?   Well, the faces have changed along with the robes, but human nature has not.  What we witness is an organization which once again lifts up the faithful, that elite group of -- in this case, Christian -- soldiers who supposedly have stood steady to the end in adherence to the new Law of obedience to Christ.  What in essence gets lifted up is not Christ at all, but rather man’s volition and will power as the ultimate saving power in the universe, second only we are told, to the destructive power of Darkness itself to which most of us will ultimately succumb.  

Where the Bible plainly states that all sheep will be brought in to the fold, the Christian leadership says it really means some or worse yet, few.  Where it states clearly that nothing can separate us from His love, they say that our choice to the contrary will nullify such a promise.  Where it proclaims that it is His will to save everyone, they lament that it is our will, not His, which will ultimately triumph.  (see blog posting:  Our Freedom of Choice is Sacred and Absolute—ly Limited)  At every turn, like their counterparts of old, they not only refuse to accept God’s gracious message themselves, but effectively deny even the possibility of its very existence despite all Biblical evidence to the contrary, thus blocking the way for any who would gladly accept it if only they would be allowed that opportunity.

It is this ‘sacred’ free will, they claim, that stands immune to the draw of Christ’s living demonstration of unconditional Holy Love.   God’s will thus not withstanding in this man-centric model of reality, it is the overpowering attractiveness of Satan’s lure, not Christ’s, which will eventually bring the surrender of most of humanity to their own subhuman lusts.

Do understand that this misrepresentation of Good vs. evil as being some sort of cosmic contest whose outcome is uncertain, was not always in vogue.  Some of the writings of the early Church fathers from the first few centuries clearly demonstrate their grasp of the reality that God is the only sovereign in the universe and would one day win the hearts and souls of all mankind.  Even over the succeeding millennia at least a small remnant has managed to maintain that testimony, although not being well organized under any particular group affiliation.   What has been widely promoted from the Christian pulpit in its stead, however is a teaching which only a Pharisee would perceive as “good” news.  And so it has become that the new Pharisees have once again hidden the Gospel behind the veil, and truly… “few there be that find it”. 

Each branch or denomination of Christianity has developed its own prescribed set of hoops that must be traversed in order to enter the Kingdom.   By definition, these unnecessarily tack on a second participant to the unilateral promise of God.    Salvation in this vein usually consists of some combination of verbal proclamation of faith in Jesus Christ along with some form of subsequent expectation of reasonably consistent acts of allegiance to said profession.   A few examples here will suffice:  the confession of faith must be public, or it must include baptism; perhaps it requires belief in Christ but with no subsequent denial, or it must be followed by some semblance of regular church attendance perhaps further confined to those services which occur on the authorized day of the week or within the correct building, with the right name over the entrance where the “one and only true” doctrine is taught and the correct form of the Lord’s Supper is practiced… and don’t ever forget the admonition in the Book of James that “faith without works is dead”.    Others claim you must tithe at least 10% and nearly all would agree that there cannot exist any “repetitive” indulgence in partying, pornography, extramarital sex, lying,  or envy and by all means no striving with the Holy Spirit (that elusive “unforgivable” sin), etc, etc., ad nauseam!

Don’t get me wrong.  Most of these admonitions are good and honorable and even necessary perhaps (see the “No Cheap Grace, Reaping What You Sow” blog posting) but only within the over arching context of the truly unconditional nature of salvation.   Otherwise these conditions simply boil down to an updated version of the Old Testament Law, nullifying the unilateral promise to Abraham.  The guaranteed fulfillment of that promise is as misunderstood today by the current Christian leadership as it was by the Pharisees in the first century.   In fact, there exists a close parity in the attempts by those leaders of old to stone Jesus for his speaking favorably of the “un-elect” of his day to what is figuratively practiced by members of the Church today.  Just try mentioning to a modern Christian even the possibility of the salvation of Judas Iscariot for example (or some other ‘Judas’ they may know of such as Hitler or Manson or their ex-wife) and then duck if you would avoid having your head verbally severed by the sharply hurled slew of Bible verses to the contrary.    

Unfortunately it is to the new self appointed ‘keepers’ of the book, the Christian Church – the new gate keepers – that the revelation of God’s intention to save all of humanity has by default been entrusted.   But instead of gratefully embracing it and then spreading this world-transforming Good News to the ends of the earth, thereby actively facilitating the fulfillment of its predestined purpose to reconcile all things in Christ, they not only have flatly rejected it themselves but have taken all measures necessary to scare the Hell into anyone who might somehow otherwise manage to just accept it at face value… you know… as a child would!  

And may God be merciful to those that would lead such a child astray!

Jesus had this to say about those who would hinder such simple faith:

      ...“If anyone causes one of these little ones -- those who believe in me -- to stumble, it would be better for them to have a large millstone hung around their neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.  (Matthew 18:6 NIV)

Is there mercy for available for men such as these?  Of course, just as for any other type of sinner, however God does have a special way of healing the self righteousness attitude of the Pharisee whether it be found in a Synagogue, in a Church, or in the world at large.  It is in the parable of the Good Samaritan that we find Jesus delivering the recipe for its cure.   (see future blog post: Thou Shalt Love Your -- Samaritan -- Neighbor...)

In a nutshell, it involves getting so hopelessly stuck in one of life's ditches that the Pharisee has no alternative other than to accept help from one whom he despises and to whom he feels vastly superior.  There's just nothing quite so humiliating as accepting help from those whom we detest.   But by the same token, when we stand in judgement of others, neither is there anything quite so effective at getting our feet (or rather our face) back on the ground.

Of course, for those who somehow manage to make it to the end of their life never having come face to face with their own "better than thou" attitudes, ample opportunities to do so will no doubt be  provided on the other side.  In that new dimension for anyone who remains a good Pharisee, the idea of a millstone around their neck at the bottom of the ocean may suddenly seem preferable to the horror now appearing before their eyes on that somber Day of Judgement as they realize that it is they, the chosen ones, who have been "weighed in the balance and found wanting".   Yes it is them, and not the "unwashed" masses who are feeling the spine tingling chill from having that very same Kingdom door over which they used to stand guard, now slammed shut in their own self righteous faces, and by none other than God Almighty himself.  

Sitting there as it were at the "bottom" of the bottomless pit in utter darkness they must remain in solitude for what might seem an eternity.  Who can even hear them, let alone respond to their pitiful cries for help?   Certainly not God, for he is the one who has just prosecuted their case.  Certainly not Satan for he is too busy rejoicing.   And certainly not the "Samaritans" who even now can be seen across the gulf having already been brought into the Heavenly fold, for why would they show mercy to those who had once unjustly excluded them?

Only when all hopes have been completely dashed, will they be ready for the salvation which was prepared especially for them from the beginning.   What follows will be their most excruciating, yet exquisitely redemptive torment of all as the painful reality begins to sink in that the crowd of people now seen bursting joyfully through the gates of hell with arms open wide to greet them are the last people in the universe from whom they would ever want to admit needing help, let alone to accept it -- those despicable Samaritans.

Suddenly engulfed in a flood of emotions ranging from utter humiliation and embarrassment to unspeakable gratitude and ecstasy, they will tearfully accept the warm embrace of their new brothers in Christ.  Looking up they now see for the first time the smiling face of the Master, who has long been waiting to welcome them through that Door they once concealed...  and as it was written, the first shall be last and the last shall be first, amen.

Our Freedom of Choice is Sacred... and Absolute--ly limited

Our Freedom of Choice is Sacred... and Absolute--ly limited

“FREEDOM!!!”... bellows the soulful cry of Sir William Wallace in the epic story “Braveheart” as he accepts certain death in preference to bending a knee to tyranny.  It is primal to the human experience, this innate passion to be free, to control one’s own destiny as the master of one’s fate.  This sacred desire is embedded in the core of our being and is rightly affirmed if we are to be other than an indistinct extension of our Father in heaven.   To be fully human, freedom of choice must stand inviolate… but not without bounds.

As has been said of fire, freedom is a dangerous servant and a fearful master.  When prematurely granted in measure beyond that of the requisite wisdom to use it properly, it produces only chaos and destruction.   Metered appropriately though, it becomes an essential stimulant not only for human development but for the growth of all living things.  No one would argue that a firm grip on a young child’s hand is necessary to avoid disaster when crossing a busy highway.  By the same token, a young seedling’s movement must be limited by the stake until the wind tested strength of its inner fiber grows to render such external restraint unnecessary.

Clearly we must all be allowed a certain amount of slack in the tie that binds us to our Father in Heaven, but never should we imagine that this protective leash would be irresponsibly loosened beyond what is helpful to our progress.  And who among us can honestly say even after a long lifetime on earth that we are truly ready for the rope to be severed completely? 

The need for age appropriate freedom in our physical and emotional maturity may be self evident to most but when it comes to our spiritual development, the widely accepted conventional Christian wisdom of our day would have us awash in unlimited freedom right out of the chute.  We are somehow deemed capable from birth or certainly by the ‘age of accountability’ – age nine-ish, or so – of making right choices regarding all things spiritual, up to and including where we will spend the rest of eternity!  

Worse yet we are taught that all we have to do to get God to leave us alone completely is to just repeatedly ignore His voice when He comes looking for us.  “Behold, I stand at the door and knock…”, we are reminded in sermon after sermon as the preacher rightly extols the virtue of Christ’s gentle approach in wooing us.   So far so good, but then comes the pitifully inadequate conclusion which renders God’s will for us completely ineffectual.    As I was told in one Sunday service years ago,  “Out of respect for our individuality and for our sacred freedom of choice Jesus will not barge into our life uninvited.   His polite display of good manners in the courting of our souls is akin to that of a ‘perfect gentleman’.    And if rejected one time too many, He will walk away sadly and never bother us again.   For him to insist on a relationship, the preacher howled, would really amount to nothing short of spiritual rape!”

How strange it is that in numerous other sermons given by the same preacher it had been rigorously explained that the man on the other side of that door to which Jesus is rapping his knuckles is blind, or at least “sees through a glass darkly”.  He is “ever hearing” but not understanding… has been consigned by God Himself to disobedience… and really for all practical purposes is dead (in sin).  In other words he is truly incapable of responding.  Yet the “Savior” timidly waits for the dead man to respond, as though He were totally unaware of the condition of the poor wretch.

For argument’s sake, however, let’s assume for the moment that the man in question (really a child in God’s eyes) is completely capable of answering the knock, perhaps marginally incapacitated by his sinful nature but in no way prevented from rising to the occasion.  His refusal to do so should then rightly be viewed simply as an act of rebellion.  But even in this context, with the eternal stakes being so high, is it right that the Savior would allow such behavior to continue to its logical conclusion through His own refusal to intervene?  Could we imagine even an earthly father waiting for a child’s permission to apply corrective action in such a case?   Or would he not be expected to proceed straight away to “violate” the kid’s freedom of choice, knocking down the door if need be and using to righteous advantage his parental authority in rescuing the clueless child from his youthful ignorance of what is good for him? 

It would be unimaginable for us as parents to give our consent, whether passively or actively, to our children’s acts of self destruction no matter how much they begged for the freedom to do so.   And yet, constrained as we are by our mortal limitations, we may indeed be forced to let go of them entirely when they come of age and choose to leave home against our better judgment.    However, this is a parental impediment that does not exist for our Heavenly Father.  Not only is He never forced to release control, but unlike an earthly father whose influence on the child is at best a mixed bag of blessing and curse, God is the perfect Father whose imminent presence is not only completely beneficial to us but absolutely essential to our well being and spiritual development.

Knowing therefore that an intimate relationship with Him is the only “thing” that will truly bring satisfaction to our souls, how is it to be imagined that Perfect Love’s response to our continual ‘turning away’ could ever come to be one of resignation, saying in effect… “Oh well, I guess you must just want to be miserable after all”.   Why would He who has the ability to win even the most obstinate soul back to perfect union, set an arbitrary time limit (life on earth) that would ensure His eternal separation from most of His kids?   Why would He do so when allowing just a few more moments (on the time scale of eternity) for the complete unfolding of His impeccable parental strategies would result in none being lost to the guiles of Satan?   And what wayward children wouldn’t be glad in retrospect to have had the premature granting of their independence averted by a loving father intent only on ensuring the realization of all the desires of their heart? 

Thankfully the Bible is sufficiently clear on the Gospel message to leave no doubt that God has no intention of standing by idly while His children (any of them) ignorantly choose a lesser path for all eternity.   How shamefully twisted is the widely held view of our God that while He insists that we approach Him as a child, totally trusting in His ability to care for our needs, in reality He will abandon that trust in a heartbeat when the time of His longsuffering comes to an end.   How wonderful it is to understand this to be nothing more than a gross misrepresentation of His true nature.   We can in confidence come to Him as a child, cashing in on His promise of rest for our weary souls.   He is the Love from which nothing can separate us, and that which He wills for us will be accomplished, for there is none able to oppose that will.

And unlike our neurotic earthly parents, our Father in heaven will never give in to the bratty ranting of His children.  He will neither grant that which is being demanded nor by knee jerk reaction lash out in anger with that which the child “deserves”, but rather will always patiently provide exactly what the child truly needs.   The story of Helen Keller in “The Miracle Worker” portrays a wonderful example of the inner beauty awaiting release in us all if only someone would dare give us what we need in spite of what we ask for.

Obviously our Father in Heaven carefully monitors our activities, and must at times directly overrule our “sacred” freedom of choice.   To think otherwise is to recklessly impugn His parental skills to a level below that of the proverbial deadbeat dad.   And how arrogant it is to reckon our own will as possessing not only equal authority to that of the Almighty, but greater!   For it has become a staunchly defended pillar of the faith to profess that, where our will to destroy ourselves stands in conflict with His will to restore, it is our will absolutely which must  preside, even to the point of eternal separation and damnation.   As Jesus rhetorically recanted such thinking, “Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? ¹⁰ Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? ¹¹ If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him?” (Matthew 7:9-11 NIV) 

Away with such aberrations of an impotent idol made in our image, so pitifully incapable of raising His children up to freely love him in return.  Where our earthly parents have let us down, He will not.  “Though your mother may forget you, I will not”  (Isaiah 49:15 NIV)   “If you make your bed in Hell, behold I am there.” (Psalms 139:8 KJV).   He started the ball rolling without seeking our consent…  “Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation?” (Job 38:4 NIV)… and He will finish the task in like manner, although progressively gaining our total consent in the process.   His parenting skills are above reproach and, of all the children He has sired, He will lose none.   All will freely choose to take their appointed place in the Holy (whole-y… whole-some) family, eternally grateful that their sacred freedom of choice had been absolute--ly limited.

I Am the Way: exclusively inclusive

I Am the Way: exclusively inclusive

In this politically correct 21^st century world in which we live, there exists a strong tendency to prohibit discrimination of any kind.  We are taught to celebrate all viewpoints and all lifestyles as equally valid.  All truth is subjective.  After all, who’s to say that the path one person chooses to take should be assigned more or less value than another.  Our own direction may well work better for us but it is considered secular heresy even to suggest that it may work best for all.   Not only are all people created equal but so must their choices be considered equal as well.  Those who would propose otherwise are labeled intolerant or even hate mongers.

This passive mode of discussion is presented as being “progressive” although its effect on the course of human development really turns out to be rather “regressive” and even repressive.  Rather than encouraging a healthy exchange of alternate or opposing perspectives to be contemplated in a search for what is transcendent, a stagnation of thought is promoted resulting in a bland mish mash of passionless dialogue where any assertion of excellence (excel-lence) ascribed to one idea as compared to another is regarded simply as too narrow minded.   

Be it known that I’m not here speaking in defense of rigid or mindless adherence to a particular train of thought.  Obviously, the thrust of my blog stands in stark contrast to such mental inflexibility.  However, in this particular discussion I am suggesting the need for a certain balance in this regard lest one fall prey to the ill effects of the opposite extreme.  As I often have told my children, “it is good to keep your mind open, but not so wide that your brains fall out”… or for that matter, your common sense!

Unfortunately, religious dialogue often degrades into one of these two extremes.  One side takes the stance of total flexibility in esteeming all spiritual paths equally, and the other assumes absolute rigidity in granting no value whatsoever to any other path than its own.  The problem with the first group, as I will explain shortly, is in their failure to recognize the presence of a single God-given preeminent revelation, and with the other group in their misunderstanding of that revelation, ignoring its ultimately inclusive essence while clinging rigidly to its temporally exclusive aspect instead.

In reference to the Christian faith, the two sides shape up something like this:  the more liberal seeker may ask -- why should we grant the Biblical description of God’s nature more credence than that of any other holy book?  Can we not attribute the differences in religious viewpoints merely to divergent cultural histories or simply to personal tastes or fantasies?  If God is actually to be found at the end of all paths as Hinduism asserts, then who can say that there is one religion superior to the next?   All the great prophets should be revered equally and the person of Jesus Christ viewed as just one among many more or less equal peers – to which the Christian conservative might respond by pointing to Jesus himself who in no way condoned such a flat assessment of the veracity of other spiritual paths.  He declared himself not only to be a better way to God, but the only way when he stated, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6 NIV)

In this paper, I will attempt to show that it is only through a synthesis of these two divergent views that the whole truth of God’s intentions can be understood and that the Bible when taken as a whole does support just such a paradoxical union.   It proclaims both that Jesus is the Way and that all men will find that Way… or better still, that the Way (The Good Shepard) will find all men (His lost sheep).

On the face of it, it would appear contradictory to claim that God will “find” all men and bring them in through The Way when the Bible clearly states that most of mankind will follow that “broad road” to their final destruction.  How can we square such prophetic descriptions of the demise of the human race with the ecstatic outbursts of ultimate reconciliation found in Paul’s letters?  How can both ultimate destruction and ultimate reconciliation both be true?

Like so many other seeming contradictory messages in the Bible, this is really not so hard to understand when one places each in its proper context.   That is, we must not lose sight of the grace-enhancing message found in the big picture while dealing with the grace-constraining realities of the small picture.   Limited as it is by the bounds of our short lives here on earth, the small picture clearly catalogs the overwhelming failure of most people to find The Way.  The big picture, on the other hand, includes opportunity for growth in the ages to come and describes a final outcome of unequivocal victory. 

Furthermore the big picture strips us of any basis for establishing a permanent division of mankind by forcing us to take an honest look at all of our own miserable scorecards in regards to this temporal existence.   Paul sums it up like this in his letter to the Romans: “There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God.   All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one.” (Romans 3:10-12)   Then continuing on, lest we despair, later in that same letter he concludes the matter with a statement of the big picture: “For God has bound all men over to disobedience so that he may have mercy on them all.” (Romans 11:32 NIV)

In other words, God’s intention to reconcile all creation to Himself will not in any way be thwarted by our human inability to seek Him properly.   From God’s perspective, no one genuinely dedicates their lives to Him, whether through Christ or otherwise, at least not to the extent deemed worthy of some elevated status before Him.  While it is true that our return to God’s presence must be routed through Christ, when all is said and done, that’s exactly what none of us will have done, at least not in this lifetime.  However, within the ages to come, that’s precisely what will be done in all of us… “Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”  (Phillipians 2:9-11 NIV)

In this way the Gospel may rightly be deemed exclusively inclusive.  This dual nature of God’s election has been manifest even from the beginning, starting with God’s acceptance of Abel’s form of worship and rejection of Cain’s.   From that time until now, God’s selective way of dealing with mankind has been nearly universally misunderstood by those called to partake in it.  Take for example the story of the Israelites who had been chosen exclusively as the people of God as it were, quite in spite of themselves and primarily for the expressed purpose of spreading God’s favor to the Gentile.  They were to be a blessing to all nations but instead became enamored with their own self righteousness and were quite impressed with the great wisdom of God in choosing them alone.  So incensed were they by the gracious attitude of Christ towards the Gentile “dogs” that on multiple occasions they were ready to stone him.   Having thus failed miserably in delivering on the broad scope of their calling, the task of bringing God’s blessing to the world then fell upon the followers of Christ.

Well it is plain to see how well that has gone.  In spite of the many great acts of compassion delivered by the Church over many centuries, Christians have wasted no time in falling for the same self centered delusion regarding their own election, not recognizing their tenuous status as but “wild grafts” onto the olive tree of God’s “native” family.  To paraphrase Paul’s no-holds-barred reminder to the Christian Church regarding a tendency to take it all for granted, he said… “You can be replaced!”     But in spite of warnings such as this, rather than learning to fulfill their calling as “first-fruits” brought forth in His ministry of reconciliation to the whole world, they have been lured into thinking themselves somehow worthy on that final Day of Judgment to be declared the “only-fruit”.     And so today, it is widely, nay almost universally held by the Christian Church that the grace of Christ must be limited to those who properly respond to it in this present age alone.  Having swallowed this great Devilishly inspired error hook line and sinker, they remain by and large satisfied to leave most of the sheep outside the fold...forever!  

Thankfully, the fulfillment of God’s will on earth does not depend on the degree of faithfulness of any of His chosen groups to their calling.  It is based solely on God’s desire and promise to bring us all back home -- and surely, “…our faithlessness will not nullify His faithfulness”. (Romans 3:3-4 NIV)

Why is it then that Christ refers to himself as the only Way?   What is it about God becoming flesh that is so vital to the restoration of our sin-sick souls?   Why should we concede an elevated status to the life and message of the person who, though claiming equality with God, lived so simply and died so tragically?  A closer look at the unique impact of the Incarnation may provide the answers.  

Of course there is validity in other philosophies and religions, but while all of them speak of the need for spiritual union or reunion with the Creator, the onus for such personal development always lays squarely on the created.  Christianity bears a stark contrast to this otherwise universal man-seeks-God paradigm wherein all must struggle up the ladder of virtue if they are to ever reach the heavenly abode of the hands-off Deity, where only the “worthy” and the successful may abide.

On the contrary, in Christ we find the “unworthy” being exalted ahead of the rest and the unsuccessful seated at the head of the banquet table.  In this singular exception among the religions of man, it is the Deity who does the seeking, thus guaranteeing the finding.  Inserting Himself directly into the flow of history, He actively acknowledges the need for His passionate participation in the healing of the breach.  He guides without coercion the destiny of man in such a way as to leave us free to choose while yet ensuring the consummation of all things according to His will.  (See future blog posting:  Our Freedom is Absolute---ly limited)

Until confronted with the Cross, the concept of unconditional Love is –well, just a concept, a fantasy with no foundation in reality, perhaps flowing from some imaginary fountain but with no apparent source.   Such love cannot exist, we lament, at least not for us who have wandered so far from home.  Certainly a being who sits on a faraway heavenly throne, aloof from our pain and indifferent to our destiny, could not be expected to deliver such nourishment to our souls…    then it happens.  The veil is torn in the temple and God’s true nature revealed.  Not only is He found to possess this kind of love for us, He is this kind of love.  For the first time, our eyes are opened to a suffering Father who is intimately involved in our struggle and totally committed to restoring our communion with Him.   Even as we beat Him and hang Him to die on a bloody cross, He proclaims forgiveness for all and turns our violent rejection into a triumphant resurrection, thus revealing a glimpse of the prize that awaits when all creation is made new.

Nothing short of that will do the trick.  There is no substitute.  It had to be an actual demonstration in time by the One who started this whole thing, showing that He too has more than just a little skin in the game and that His love for us knows no bounds.  Not only that, but the pain that we ourselves must suffer in this life, whether of our own doing or at the hands of others (or at the hands of God for that matter) had to clearly be shown to be both necessary and well worth enduring.   It is the acceptance of this revelation of God’s nature and our responsive participation in the spreading of that love in both word and deed which will bring about the eventual reconciliation of all people and all things in Heaven and Earth.

So assuming for the moment that the Creator of the universe did take physical form in the person of Jesus Christ, and if the crux of the message delivered by Him was one of infinite unconditional love for all mankind, then how pitifully poor is the man who attempts to live a “good” life of love towards his neighbor while remaining ignorant of, or disconnected from, the source of that love.   How pale by comparison are all the philosophies and religions based on man’s attempt to find God but which deny the most powerfully significant event in the history of the world – God made man… or God made Lamb!

Awareness of that love, and the actual personal experience of the same, will provide the reserves and inner peace necessary to effortlessly turn the other cheek, to return good for evil and love for hate.   Heartfelt practical kindness can then flow naturally to those who by their calloused contempt or ungrateful attitude are least deserving of it.  Sure, progress can be made toward this end without direct knowledge of God’s supreme act of love but it will always run out of steam at some point in the struggle unless firmly grounded in the Source.

Will all accept Christ in this age within their lifetime on Earth?  Of course not, but many are likely to at least begin the passage through that “narrow gate” perhaps without even knowing its identity.    In other words, many will accept the implicit message of the Gospel of Christ in life’s experiences and be transformed by the power of His Unconditional Love without ever hearing the name of Jesus mentioned.  For example, it may come disguised in the form of undeserved mercy from a friend or family member.  Or “worse” yet, recall in the parable of the Good Samaritan the deep impact resulting from having to accept mercy from one who is despised.  A person thus affected will never be the same and will to one degree or another begin living the ministry of reconciliation without ever hearing of any Biblical reference to the same.   (See blog post: "Love Thy (Samaritan) Neighbor")

While all paths may not lead to God, and certainly all paths are not “created equal”, nonetheless they thankfully do all lead to The Way to God.   No matter where our life’s choices have taken us, eventually Christ will find us there and draw us into communion with the Father, whether in this age or in ages to come.  As is always the case with our big-picture-God, whenever He establishes a separation of people, it is only on a temporary basis and is always for the expressed ultimate purpose of permanent restoration.  In the short run a separation of lifestyles is produced between those in alignment with God’s ways and those who choose otherwise.  In the long run though, it is the consequent contrasting outcomes themselves which become a critical part of the growth process that eventually steers all people back together into harmony with the best.

May we therefore continue to put forth the best that we know in a spirit of healthy debate, holding together “in the unity of the Spirit… until we all reach unity in the Faith” (Ephesians 4:3,13 NIV).   In other words, total agreement will come later.  The Spirit of brotherly love is available here and now and is enough to keep us on the same team if we would only allow it to be so.   It is central to the Gospel message that we are all in this together and that only together will we reach the other side.   Christ will have His whole body restored, not just part or even most of it. 

May God hasten the day when we all begin to act like the holy siblings we are.  And in that day though some may have worked in the Master’s Vineyard from dawn to dusk, they will no longer seek out a greater reward but will grace-iously and wholeheartedly embrace the late arrivals as their equal.   And together joyfully we will include those who have been excluded and will celebrate with those who were last even as they are made to be first… amen!

From the Gospel According to Willy Wonka... a new twist on Satan

From the Gospel According to Willy Wonka…
                                                                                              a new twist on Satan

A Gospel message in a whimsical children’s story... what kind of nonsense is that anyways? Have I completely lost my grip on reality? No, actually it is the central reality of this world in which we live that the Gospel may be found everywhere, in every nook and cranny, and under every rock. It is woven into the tapestry of life, the very fabric of the universe. And so it should come as no great surprise to discover it embedded in this simple story of a chocolate factory, that is if you have eyes to see and ears to hear. Jesus once declared on his triumphant march into Jerusalem that if the crowds were silenced, the very rocks and trees themselves would start to sing His praise, joyfully proclaiming the Good News of the coming of God’s Kingdom.

 I am not here asserting that any deep philosophical or theological message was intended either by the author of the book or by the screenplay writer of the movie (the one starring Gene Wilder). Neither is the Gospel message explicitly or fully communicated in this story by any means. It is however, subtly infused throughout the film in three distinct ways: first of all in the firm but gracious way that Mr. Wonka deals with the failures of the four errant children, secondly in the final windfall of blessings bestowed upon the one guileless child who proved himself consistently oblivious to his own innate goodness, and lastly in a way that stretches the frontier of the Gospel’s reach to a point where few would imagine possible.

 It is primarily for this third manifestation that I consider the movie to be especially noteworthy and for which I would implore the reader to temporarily suspend judgment. An allegorical reference to Satan is made which suggests the possibility of a different purpose and a more grace-full destiny for the fallen archangel of evil. Specifically the concept is played out in the surprising role reversal of Wonka’s supposed antagonist, his arch enemy and competitor, Arthur Slugworth of Slugworth Chocolates Inc. Even if you have already seen the movie you may want to take a second look at it after considering the real life implications suggested by such a clever masquerade.

 Let me be clear from the start that attempting to understand the purpose and fate of the Devil, whomever or whatever he is, is not really of central concern to this blog’s discussion of God’s plan for the salvation of all mankind. In fact, it is a matter for which I am quite content to defer settlement to that final Day of Judgement. Clearly the focus of my writing is and will remain the universal fulfillment of God’s glorious purpose in all of our individual and collective human lives, a subject with which I am much more intimately acquainted. As far as angelic beings are concerned, I have little personal context from which to even speculate, let alone draw definite conclusions.

 On the other hand, the more that I allow this particular topic to filter through my understanding of the Gospel, the more I am inclined to believe that the Biblical statements concerning the reconciliation of all things in heaven and on earth really do refer to all things. And I am compelled to ask -- would that not necessarily include all angels? If not, why not? Why should any part of God’s creation be lost to His immeasurable redemptive capabilities?

 I find that a full embrace of the Gospel leads quite naturally to a view of evil as… well, “a necessary evil” without which God’s wonderful purposes could not be fulfilled. While evil is most definitely to be loathed and certainly best to be avoided at all times, it is nonetheless a part of the plan. The God who created evil, and who creates nothing in vain, will proceed to use its evil effects to His glory. As Isaiah writes, “I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things.” (Isaiah 45:7 KJV) As a chisel in His hands, evil will be used in the sculpting of a new Heaven and a new Earth, and like a fire in their purification.

 So kick back and relax as we pull back the covers on this classic children’s tale to take a second look. Let us begin with a quick summary of the plot…

On the surface, the story is told of an eccentric chocolate manufacturing mogul, Willy Wonka, who devises a scheme for selecting an heir to his chocolate dynasty in consideration of his approaching retirement. It must be a child, he surmises, one that could be trusted to follow his guidance in remaining true to the original recipes. For Wonka believes, much like another great teacher of old, that you must “become as a child” in order to inherit the (chocolate) Kingdom. And so he hides the true intent of his search within the guise of a simple promotional ploy wherein he offers a complimentary tour of his factory along with a lifetime supply of chocolate to the first five lucky children who find a Golden Ticket in one of his Wonka chocolate bars. Unbeknownst to them, however, based on their behavior during the tour, Wonka intends to select one of them upon which to bestow a grand prize of much greater consequence.

 The search for the golden tickets proceeds without a hitch, that is, except for the unscrupulous meddling of Slugworth who “introduces” himself to each child soon after their fortunate discovery of a golden ticket. He stealthily approaches them one at a time to whisper in their ear an offer far exceeding that of Wonka’s if only they would agree to reveal the secret formula for Wonka’s Everlasting Gobstopper candy after leaving the factory. Slugworth is convinced that this revolutionary jawbreaker will skyrocket his candy sales and he desperately needs to get his hands on its formula in order to continue to compete with, or rather to crush, Wonka’s business. Charlie, the one decent kid in the bunch, is the only one to display any sense of uneasiness as Slugworth craftily delivers his tempting counteroffer.

 Finally the day arrives when all five children are allowed through the gates to embark on the magical tour. Upon entry, the kids are immediately required to sign a contract which rather obscurely lays out the terms and rules of the tour. Before the day is through, all of the children have clearly violated one or more of these rules and in so doing have forfeited their claim to the lifetime supply of chocolate, according to the contract. All of them except Charlie were caught in the act at the scene of their trespass and were immediately whisked off through some side door where their self imposed condition could be dealt with properly. In the end they would all be completely restored to their former terrible selves except perhaps a bit “wiser for the wear”.

 Each of them had become ensnared it seems by a temptation which had been intentionally prearranged to play upon their individual weaknesses. Their resulting maladies were simply the natural consequence of their own poor choices – choices for which none of them displayed any true remorse. Actually, quite the contrary, right up to the moment of their apprehension and subsequent ejection from the tour, they remained fully intent upon total compliance with Slugworth’s unscrupulous request to reveal the secret formula of the Gobstopper… that is, if they could ever get out of the factory alive.

 Interestingly, while Charlie was not explicitly caught with his hand in the cookie jar, he had nonetheless given in to temptation just the same, as Wonka was secretly aware. So at the end of the tour, Wonka harshly reprimands Charlie for his own transgressions and informs him that he too would receive no chocolate whatsoever upon exiting the factory. But unlike the others, Charlie did not think to get even with Wonka (as his grandfather immediately vowed to do), but rather he humbly accepted his fate and proceeded to return his Gobstopper sample to Wonka before leaving the office.

To this, Wonka mutters under his breath, “So shines a good deed in a weary world”. He then leaps from his chair and spins Charlie around in his arms while excitedly exclaiming, “Charlie, my boy, you did it! You won! I knew you would do it! ...Forgive me for putting you through this.” And then from out of the blue, just prior to explaining to Charlie all the wonderful details of his bright future at the factory, Wonka drops the bomb concerning Slugworth. He opens the back door to his office and says, “Charlie, meet Mr. Wilkinson”. Charlie gasps in utter disbelief as he clearly recognizes the man standing in the doorway to be the one who had offered him the bribe. “Slugworth?” he says, and then Wonka continues, “No, that’s not Slugworth, he works for me. I had to test you, Charlie.”

 And there you have it, the wretched Mr. Slugworth (actually Mr. Wilkinson), had been in the employ of Wonka all along. So, does the analogy ring true? Just like Mr. Wilkinson, the Devil brings custom made temptations to us which are essential to God’s purpose in the creation of free willed beings. I would ask the reader then to consider the proper fate of such a creature. Would God create a being, an angel who, after performing the essential role of temptation in the creation drama, would be found to retain absolutely no redeeming value, being fit only for an eternity of suffering? On the other hand, if all of us human beings who have fallen to such temptation (and actually committed the evil deeds themselves) are found to be ultimately redeemable, then why not this angelic “servant” as well??? Anyway, I will devote another blog posting to a more thorough shake out of the ramifications of this prospect, entitled: “Good versus Evil: or God uses Devil”. For the time being I will leave it for the reader’s own private contemplation and once again suggest a re-viewing of the film.

Returning now to the more light hearted ambiance of the movie itself, let’s explore the various Gospel-like quips to be found sprinkled throughout the dialogue of this most delightful story. Following each reference will be a brief statement of its significance in life and perhaps a connection (albeit loose?) to the Scriptures. Here they are, more or less in chronological order as they appear in the movie:

• After doing everything he could to find a Golden Ticket, the fifth and last one was finally found by another child, and Charlie lost all hope of ever seeing the inside of the chocolate factory. It was just then that he stumbles upon a coin in the gutter and decides to buy a Wonka bar, this time just to enjoy eating it. After gobbling it down he chooses to buy one more for his grandpa Joe. Then immediately upon exiting the store he learns that actually one ticket was still outstanding. He opens the wrapper to find the last Golden Ticket …As Paul reveals, quoting Isaiah: “I was found by those who did not seek me.” (Romans 10:20 NIV)
• Charlie bought the lucky chocolate bar not for himself but for his disabled grandpa. …“It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35 KJV) 
• Slugworth promises “bread and clothing”…“you and your family will want for nothing” if only you will serve his evil purposes. …Likewise in the familiar Biblical story, “…and Jesus was tempted again by the Devil who offered him everything if he would just bow down and serve him.” (Matthew 4:4 KJV)
• Upon entering the factory, Wonka provides “little surprises around every corner but nothing dangerous” …God too provides a life full of little (and big) surprises but nothing that will harm us… in the long run anyway, and on the contrary, all “surprises” will end up working out for our own good… and for His.
• The contract that Wonka has the kids sign prior to entering the factory floor is only partly legible and barely comprehensible, but sign it they must if they want to see the factory. …Isn’t life on earth that way for us human beings? We can’t really be held completely responsible for our participation in this experience called life, first of all, since our consent is tenuous at best. Yes we have been infused with a piece of His Spirit (awareness of right and wrong) and therefore are accountable (as if to a contract) for our actions to some extent, but since we yet “see but through a glass darkly”, even Jesus himself is compelled to cry out on the cross, “Father forgive them for they know not what they are doing.” (Luke 23:24 KJV)
• Charlie’s grandpa is the only one to support the signing of the contract. He says, “Sign away Charlie, we’ve got nothing to lose.” …and so we’ve got nothing to lose in life when we submit ourselves to His will, and moreover, everything to gain!
• When the path of the tour becomes a bit frightening and confusing, a few members of the group try to exit back through the entrance. Wonka then points out that “There’s no way out of the factory by going backwards… you’ve got to go forward to go back.” …Our first parents, Adam and Eve, strongly desired to get back into the Garden after their acts of transgression, but God placed a cherub with a flaming sword to guard the entrance. (Genesis 3:24 NIV) There’s only one way through life, and that is forward. There’s no climbing back into the security of the womb, or of the Garden. God asks that we trust Him in His ability to get us through, one moment at a time, to the end of our life’s journey on earth and beyond.
• To the perplexed look on their faces as they witnessed yet another one of the wild things Wonka had up his sleeve, he quipped, “Never ever doubt what no one is sure of.” …and so it is with faith which is vital to the development of our relationship to God, that is, believing in what no one is sure of. (Hebrews 11:1 KJV)
• Wonka repeatedly feigns grave concern over the bad choices in behavior that the children are making, and yet clearly is not the least bit interested in taking any credible action to stop them -- such as when Augustus is being sucked up the pipe after disobediently drinking from the chocolate river. Wonka merely yells in a greatly subdued tone of voice, “Murder… Help, police!”, or when Violet is about to put the Full Meal chewing gum in her mouth, he softly quips, “I wouldn’t do that… I really wouldn’t!”, or once again, when Mike Teevee jumps into the Wonka-Vision machine, Wonka practically whispers, “Stop, don’t… come back!” Lastly, when Verruca is flushed down the egg chute, Wonka matter-of-factly states that “she was a bad egg” and explains to her father that she is headed for the incinerator, but not to worry as she has at least a fighting chance of survival since that one is only lit every other day. …God knows the end from the beginning, and he knows it to be good for all concerned. So He is neither frantically trying to prevent our misbehavior nor the bad consequences which naturally follow such behavior, knowing full well that allowing these experiences to be carried out is essential to our personal growth and development.
• Yet one more instance of this seeming ambivalence regarding the misbehavior of the children was displayed when Augustus was impatiently yearning for the chocolate. Wonka chides, “Don’t lose your head, Augustus, we wouldn’t want anyone to lose that… yet!” …Isn’t it like God to understand that – rebel we will, rebel we “must" -- and yet remain calm through it all as though in complete control of the outcome?
• To reassure Augustus’s mother that her son would be okay after getting stuck in the chocolate processing pipe, Wonka remarks, “Across the desert lies the promised land.” …And so it was for the Children of Israel as it will be for all of us children. We must cross the desert of life’s trials and consequences before reaching the Promised Land.
• In a song, Wonka refers to the factory as a “World of my creation” and continues with: “Anything you want to, do it… you can change the world, there’s nothing… to it.” Immediately after singing this verse about doing whatever they want, he warns Augustus Gloob, the glutton, not to swim in the chocolate river -- “no one must touch my chocolate river.” …and so it was that God told our first parents to eat freely of all that they found in the Garden, and then followed with, “except the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.” Genesis 2:16,17 NIV)
• As shown in multiple instances, Charlie is the only one on the tour to show faith in Wonka’s incredible statements and in his marvelous inventions, such as when Charlie views the chocolate river and declares it to be “amazing” as opposed to Mr. Salt who simply refers to it as “industrial waste”, or when Mike Teevee was asked to pick up the candy bar off of the Wonka-Vision screen, Mike rebuffs Wonka by saying that “it’s only an image”, whereas Charlie immediately reaches out and snatches a three dimensional bar from the two dimensional screen. …Jesus said that to enter the kingdom you must become as a child, fully trusting in your Father’s desire and ability to care for you. (Matthew 18:3 KJV)
• The rules are clearly stated upon entering the Invention Room that the kids must not touch anything and must not tell anything that they see to anyone else. Of course each one of them wastes no time in breaking the first of these two rules, and all but Charlie fully intend to break the second rule as soon as they leave the factory. In each case their crimes are directly related to their own personal vices and in each case it was clear that their doting parents were in full compliance with their deviant behavior. For Augustus it was overeating, for Violet it was nearly continuous gum chewing, for Mike Teevee it was incessant television viewing, for Verruca it was wanting virtually everything to be given her, NOW!!, and for Charlie I guess you could say it was just his fun loving curiosity that got him into trouble. …So it is for us as we travel down the road of life; we are repeatedly confronted with opportunities either to overcome our unique individual weaknesses and shortcomings or to give in to them. And clearly, our parents play a definitive role in the formation of our neurotic/sinful weaknesses, this being most poignantly portrayed in the Oompa Loompa song about the source of Verruca’s bratty nature:

      “Who do you blame when your kid is a brat
       Pampered and spoiled like a Siamese cat?
       Blaming the kids is a lie and a shame
       You know exactly who's to blame: The mother and the father!”

       The Lord says He will “…visit the iniquity of the fathers upon
       the children, and upon the children's children, unto the third
       and to the fourth generation.” (Exodus 34:7)

•  From the beginning, only the Oompa Loompas are allowed in the factory as they are essential to the day-to-day production of chocolate. However, when the children arrive, under Wonka’s directive the Oompa Loompas take on the additional task of assisting with their corrective/disciplinary processing as each of them fall to temptation. …In the same way, in the beginning only the angels were allowed in heaven and perhaps they were instrumental in the physical creation as well. When we humans were created, whatever their responsibilities were previously, they were expanded to include assisting us in our navigation through life.

• When Charlie’s “crime” is exposed, Wonka again references the original contract to justify the penalty by stating that: “…the contract signed by you was crystal clear!” when actually it was anything but clear. In fact part of it was completely unreadable and elsewhere it contained arcane strings of Latin that no one outside of a graduate law school could decipher, let alone a child. …Again I find there to be a dual reality we live under here on earth where seemingly we are to be held entirely accountable to the guidance offered by that “still small voice” and yet at the same time deemed to be completely incapable of hearing it. We are characterized as being blind or even “dead in sin” and therefore cannot be expected to see, let alone follow the path of righteousness being set before us. It seems therefore that it must fall upon the Creator to assume overall responsibility for the conception and the ultimate fate of His creation -- and indeed He does!… “But the pot he was shaping from the clay was marred in his hands; so the potter formed it into another pot, shaping it as seemed best to him.” (Jeremiah 18:4 NIV), and “For God has bound everyone over to disobedience so that he may have mercy on them all.” (Romans 11:32 NIV)
• Charlie always shows concern for others ahead of himself. At home he turns over his paper route money to his mom so that his disabled grandfather can continue to finance his one treat in life, his tobacco habit. When he is told that he had won the grand prize, his first concern was directed towards the four bratty kids who had not won. Finally, when he is informed that in addition to having won the life time supply of chocolates, he would also be given control of the entire factory which would be his new home, once again his first response was: “What about the rest of my family?” …Of such concern for others is the Kingdom of Heaven built and the reconciliation of all creation realized.
• And what is Wonka’s reply to Charlie’s selfless concerns about the others? He says in regards to the other kids, “My dear boy, I promise you they’ll be quite all right. When they leave here, they’ll be completely restored to their normal, terrible old selves. But maybe they’ll be a little bit wiser for the wear.” And in regards to the rest of his family, “Of course, they can live there in the factory too.” …Likewise in our own lives, God uses all means available, from loving correction to loving compassion, in order to ultimately bring all of His children into intimate communion with Himself. “Hand this man over to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, so that his spirit may be saved on the day of the Lord.” (I Corinthians 5:5 NIV) and “…will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off?” (Matthew 18:12 NIV)
• In the final scene before Charlie’s redemption, Wonka is busily taking care of neglected priorities after “a whole day wasted”. Every object in the office appears as only half an object. There’s half a desk, half a clock, even half a sink, etc. …Whereas Christ has already triumphantly declared that “It is finished!”, 2000 years ago on the cross, the actual working out of the creation drama is in some sense still to come. All is really only half-finished from our perspective. Meanwhile, “… the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed.” (Romans 8:19 NIV)
• Based on a strict observance of the rules (The Law) as spelled out in the signed contract, no prize should have been awarded to any of the children, as all had failed to comply. In the end, however, it was by grace that Charlie (and the others by implication) would be given access to the factory (the Promised Land).
• Last of all (and my personal favorite) comes the grand conclusion of the movie and the allusion to our collective destiny. After Charlie has been informed of the fabulous future that awaits him and his family (and by inference, ultimately for the rest of the children as well), Wonka poses one last foreboding question which understandably throws Charlie for a loop. He says, “But Charlie, don’t forget what happened to the man who suddenly got everything he ever wanted!” …a painful pause follows as a distressed look spreads across Charlie’s face, and then with a big beaming smile, Wonka continues, “…he lived happily ever after!” 
• …and so it will be, amen.