"entry 2"

The Phoenix, Resurrection of Christ, and Artemis II...

WHAT DOES THE PHOENIX HAVE TO DO WITH THE RESURRECTION OF CHRIST?

Well, I had fully intended on posting this ON RESURRECTION SUNDAY. Please forgive me… Good thing we can talk about the resurrection any day, any place, any time. In fact, this is one of the ways in which I was challenged during “Holy Week”. We ought to talk about Christ’s passion, crucifixion, and resurrection much more frequently… If you are “in Christ” I hope that you had a GLORIOUS Easter weekend.

I wanted to start out by saying this: In “entry 1” I talked about the “Sufficiency of Scripture”, it is incredibly important. Therefore, make no mistake, although Clement of Rome is a trustworthy source as a Church Father, what he writes is NOT scripture. He is traditionally understood to be a disciple of the apostles, often linked to Peter and Paul. In his letter to the Corinthians (often called 1 Clement) he uses the phoenix as a POWERFUL illustration of the resurrection. Many cite this text as one of the earliest Christian uses of this myth… except it wasn’t a myth. It was a real life example of God’s creation pointing to the resurrection in a profound way.

Throughout history, historians and writers across diverse cultures have recorded accounts of the phoenix; much like the widespread agreement among ancient societies on dragons, giants, mermaids, and other legendary creatures. Remember, the “pre-scientific”, “pre-enlightened” world was more “scientific” and “enlightened” than we can imagine. Now back to the phoenix… Greek historians like Herodotus describe how the phoenix appears every 500 years, though he admits he only heard reports of it. Roman writers such as Pliny the Elder and Tacitus also mention the bird, noting alleged sightings in Egypt. The phoenix even became a symbol of renewal on Roman coins under emperors like Hadrian. Finally, we see it mentioned in MANY ancient Egyptian writings. Through both literature and drawings it is evident that the ancient world believed the phoenix to be a real creature. Which brings us to Clements reference to the “sign of the phoenix” as a sign truly witnessed by people in centuries past.

Here is what Clement writes:

THE SIGN OF THE PHOENIX:

“1 Let us consider the strange sign which takes place in the eastern regions, that is those regions around Arabia. 2 For there is a bird which is called the Phoenix. This bird, being the one and only of its kind, lives five hundred years. And now having come to its dissolution to death, it makes itself a tomb out of frankincense and myrrh and other fragrant spices, into which, after fulflling the time, it enters and dies. 3 And from the rotting of the flesh, a certain worm is born, which, being nourished by the juices of the dead bird, grows wings. Then, having become strong, it takes away that tomb where the bones of its progenitor are and, carrying them, it continues from the Arabian region as far as Egypt, to the place called Heliopolis. 4 And in the daylight, being seen by all, lighting upon the altar of the sun it places them and starts back again, Therefore the priests examine the public records of the dates and they find it has come at the fulfillment of the five-hundredth year.” - Clement (The Apostolic Fathers, Rick Brannan)

The true purpose of this entry is not to convince you of the existence of the phoenix, it is instead to provoke deeper thought around the resurrection. Even with our utmost efforts, there are certain divine mysteries we will never fully comprehend, one is the intricacies of the resurrection of Christ. Clement’s “Sign of the Phoenix” highlights a few beautiful truths about the resurrection, and it ALL POINTS TO CHRIST. After all, the phoenix is a shadow… as scripture says, “The substance belongs to Christ.”

RESURRECTION IS WOVEN INTO CREATION…

As Clement points out, resurrection isn’t some random, isolated miracle… it’s a pattern God has already woven into creation itself. You see it everywhere. “Day gives way to night, and night gives way to day. Seeds fall into the ground, disappear, and what comes up is greater than what went down.” The sun sets into darkness only to rise again in light and glory. Winter strips the earth bare, but spring testifies that barrenness is never the final word.

“Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.” - John 12:24 (ESV)

“You foolish person! What you sow does not come to life unless it dies. And what you sow is not the body that is to be, but a bare kernel, perhaps of wheat or of some other grain. But God gives it a body as he has chosen, and to each kind of seed its own body.” - 1 Corinthians 15:36–38 (ESV)

This is why Clement uses the phoenix as a picture of life coming out of death. The idea is this… creation is constantly showing us that death is not the end, and this is another example illustrating that truth.

RESURRECTION IS BOTH “PRESENT” AND “FUTURE”…

There is this consistent concept in the Kingdom of God: “Already, but not yet.” God is not waiting to start bringing life out of death… He’s already doing it. Right now. Before we are in Christ, we are dead, completely… TOTAL DEPRAVITY. Think about it for a moment, marvel at it… dead hearts come alive in Christ. The final resurrection is coming… but it will simply be the full unveiling and materialization of what God has already begun!

“But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,” - Ephesians 2:4–6 (ESV)

“Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.” - John 5:24 (ESV)

Resurrection is not just something we are waiting for, it’s something we are meant to walk in now. What does resurrection life look like in your day to day?

THE RESURRECTION WAS THE GREATEST REVERSAL…

What looked like the Devil’s greatest win was actually his ultimate loss. The cross seemed to be defeat… Christ beaten, crucified, buried. But in that very moment, God was overturning everything. The weapon the enemy used, death itself, became the very means of his destruction. This is the upside-down victory of the gospel: God doesn’t just overcome evil… He uses it to accomplish redemption.

“The devil was defeated by his own trophy of victory. He rejoiced when man fell; yet by the very means of death through which he conquered man, he himself was conquered.” — Augustine of Hippo (Sermon 263.1)

“by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him.” - Colossians 2:14–15 (ESV)

“14 Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, 15 and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery.” - Hebrews 2:14-15 (ESV)

THE SAME DECREE THAT ORDAINED THE CROSS SECURED OUR RESURRECTION

The same sovereign decree that ordained the Cross, secured your resurrection. Clement makes this truth unavoidable, as does the written Word of God. This was never a reactive plan, it was not God scrambling to redeem a tragedy; it was his eternal purpose, unfolding exactly as He willed. The Cross was not merely the means by which sin was dealt with, but the very pathway through which life would be given. In the same act where Christ was crushed, our future was cemented; in the same decree that delivered Him over to death, our resurrection was guaranteed. This means our hope is not fragile, not dependent on performance, but anchored in the unchanging will of God. If the Cross was certain, then our resurrection is just as certain… this is our absolute hope in death.

“For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his.” - Romans 6:5 (ESV)

Death to sin and union with Christ doesn’t just make resurrection possible… it makes it INEVITABLE.

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For those who belong to Christ…

Death is not the end.

The grave is not final.

And what God has done in Christ… HE WILL DO FOR ALL WHO ARE IN HIM…

On a completely unrelated note…

ARTEMIS II IS SET TO “RETURN” HOME ON FRIDAY… WHICH, IS INCREDIBLY EASY TO PULL OFF WHEN YOU NEVER ACTUALLY LEFT…

How far down the rabbit hole do you want to go? NASA was established in 1958, during the Cold War… more coming on that…

Here is the REAL question:

What does the Bible say about the earth, and how much should the Bible shape our cosmology?

Maybe it’s time to truly unpack “A Biblical View of Cosmology”

Feel free to drop future content ideas in the comments.

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