Becoming God’s Epic ... by Billy M. Murchison, Jr

Human history is full of epic tales. Every group of people throughout history had them. The overwhelming majority were told orally, but a few survived from antiquity, such as Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey. Since the advent of the printing press, many epics have been written to the delight of millions. With the advent of motion pictures and later television, epics have become a mainstay, not only in American entertainment but global entertainment.

These stories, no matter the form, reach a part of the human psyche that longs for meaning, purpose, and even adventure that is in stark contrast to a drab, dull, and often meaningless existence. Every hero in every epic had a purpose, goal, or task that needed to be completed. This purpose was something greater than themselves, something worth living and even dying for. This type of purpose answers the question, “Does my life have meaning?”

The Bible is the ultimate epic. It has the ultimate hero, the Lord Jesus Christ, who has the ultimate purpose of bringing lost humanity into a relationship with a holy God, fighting an ultimate enemy, Satan, who seeks to destroy humankind. However, within its pages, “minor epics” are told stories such as those of Noah, Abraham, Rahab, and Deborah. Its pages are full of epics accomplished by ordinary people. These people had vision, a vision of who God is and the unique purpose He had for them.

Vision and purpose are a powerful, interlinked duo in the life of an individual, group, or even nation. Look at the United States just before the start of World War II. It was still fighting the effects of the Great Depression, which wrecked not only the American economy but also the American vision. A nation born and built on dreams and visions had lost this capacity on the altar of survival. However, once Pearl Harbor was attacked, and the Nazis declared war on the United States, there came a common vision to win. This became the purpose of the nation and its citizens. The “national” or collective vision inspired many individual visions. Most were within the “national” vision.

When you look around our society today, you see a definite lack of collective or individual vision. It seems like everyone, or every group, is focused on their own goals and agenda, most of which are driven by selfishness and/or greed. While we should be thankful there is no crisis, such as World War II, to force a shared vision upon us, we should at least have a shared vision to inspire us, the way putting a man on the moon inspired us in the 1960s.

We also see this lack of vision in the church of the Lord Jesus. Now, if any group of people has a shared vision, it is us! The greatest corporate vision of all is to bring people into a right relationship with God through Jesus Christ. If any group of people should be full of dreams and visions, then it is those who name the name of Christ. We are part of the ultimate saga! Each of us has a role, given to us by God, to play in it. Our lives are to be mini-epics placed within God’s epic. We need to understand and embrace this fact.

However, most Christians do not differ from the rest of society, focused on their own goals. Practically speaking, there is no vision from God either corporately or individually. God still gives dreams and visions, but most Christians do not know that dreams and visions are even possible. Because of this lack of knowledge, these Christians are not reaching their potential for the Lord Jesus Christ. They are stuck in the mire of a dull and mediocre Christianity.

Ignorantia juris non excusat is the Latin phrase from which we get the expression “Ignorance of the law is no excuse.” From a very early age, we learn the basic laws and rules that govern the society in which we live. We are taught these by our parents or caregivers. As we mature, we are responsible for learning other laws and rules. In order to drive an automobile in the United States, we need to be at least sixteen years old and learn the basic traffic laws and rules of the road. If we do not learn them, then we will pay the consequences. The next time you are stopped for a traffic violation, try using ignorance as an excuse. It will not work!

Ignorantia legis neminem excusat Dei is a variation of the above Latin phrase. It means ignorance of God’s law is no excuse. Once we are “born again” by the Spirit of God, we are to learn the basic laws of His kingdom. While it would be ideal for the new Christian to have spiritual parents, the truth is that God puts His law into the heart of every Christian.

“This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them;”

Unlike physical growth, in which we have no choice, spiritual growth is a choice. There is a conscious choice to grow in grace and knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ. Then there is acting upon this choice by practicing Christian disciplines to help you grow spiritually. (Are these the reasons some people have been Christians for ten to fifty years and are still babes in Christ?) The disciplines include things such as regular church attendance, time spent in prayer, and Bible study!

Editor’s note: This is an excerpt from Becoming God’s Epic: Fulfilling Your Purpose in Christ by Billy M. Murchison, Jr.

Billy Murchison, Jr

Billy M. Murchison, Jr. is not your average Christian author, as he is not a celebrity, athlete, theologian, or preacher. He is an ordinary Christian with a zeal for an extraordinary God, His Word, and His people. Billy uses his gift of writing to be a blessing, challenge, or encouragement to fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. He recently published the second edition of his book, Becoming God’s Epic: Fulfilling Your Purpose in Christ.