May The Force Be With You - Episode II - Obi-Wan, Philip, A Eunuch, and Luke: Lessons In Following Directions

In my last post, I made the connection of the Force from Star Wars to the Holy Spirit of the Christian faith, in an attempt to better understand the Holy Spirit, by discussing the way they both guide their respective believers down the paths on which they need to be going. In this post I want to build on this idea of their similarity by discussing their ability to instruct those who will listen.

Obi-Wan, Philip, A Eunuch, and Luke: Lessons In Following Directions

I want to start this discussion by directing you to the account of Philip and the Ethiopian Eunuch which can be found in Acts 8:26-40. Here we follow the travels of Philip as he goes about preaching the good news of Jesus in Samaria. Philip is given his first direction in verse 26. He is told to go to the desert road which leads from Jerusalem to Gaza. Upon following this order from the Lord, Philip meets the Ethiopian Eunuch, who happens to be unsuccessfully trying to study the book of Isaiah. A second order is given by the Spirit here. "Go to that chariot and stay near it." As we read on we see how Philip is able to help the Eunuch to understand the things that he is reading and studying. A third command is followed in this story, though the command itself is not expressed in the account. As we come upon verses 36-38 we see the Eunuch obeying the Spirit's command to be baptized.

We see this same story in the climactic battle of Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. We find ourselves gripping the edge of our seats as the forces of the Rebellion take on the seemingly impossible task of destroying the Empire's ultimate weapon: the Death Star. Swarms of Y-Wings, X-Wings, Tie Fighters, and Tie Bombers fly through the narrow corridors of the surface of the Death Star. The target of the Rebellion, and their only chance of defeating the Empire, happens to be a thermal exhaust port that is only two meters wide. Our hero, Luke, finds himself within shooting distance, and his computer guided targeting system is locked on the target. Just as Luke is about to pull the trigger, a familiar voice speaks to Luke. "Use the Force, Luke. Let go, Luke. Luke trust me." The voice is Obi-Wan's, but we all know that he has become part of the Force. Luke turns his computer guided targeting system off and does as the Force has instructed. The proton torpedo goes straight down the exhaust port and the Death Star is destroyed.

The idea here is that only by following their directions were the three men able to accomplish their missions. We get the sense that the Death Star would not have blown up had Luke used the computer guided targeting system instead of the force. We also get the sense that Philip would never have helped the Eunuch had he not gone down the road he was told, or gone to the chariot as he was instructed. And the Eunuch could not have been saved from his sins without following the command to be baptized.

The Spirit instructs us every day. Some would call this our conscience. We all have that voice inside our heads that tells us when we should do this thing, or when we should not do that thing. It is imperative that each one of us should follow those instructions so that we can accomplish our ultimate mission in life; to know and be known by God. Caleb Grimes describes it this way in his book Star Wars Jesus, "Like Luke in the trench, however, our abilities will always be limited. We must use the Force to 'practice being sure of what we hope, and certain of what we do not see' (Hebrews 11:1)" (pg. 72). Grimes also uses the words of God in Proverbs 3:5-6 to equate to Obi-Wan's instruction to Luke: "Lean not on your own understanding, in all your ways acknowledge me, and I will make your paths straight." Not only is it important for us to listen for the guidance of the Spirit in our lives, but we must also follow the instructions which the Spirit gives us if we are to accomplish that which is impossible by our own doing.

May The Force Be With You - Episode I - Old Ben (Obi-Wan), R2D2, C3PO, and Jesus: Adventures in the Desert

So I didn't expect to take so long between these blogs. Anyways, here's the first installment of my comparison of Star Wars and the Bible. As the title implies, I want to focus on the Force. This will actually be my main focus, and through it I will make a few comparisons of elements from the movies and the Bible.

Through the reading of Star Wars Jesus by Caleb Grimes, and an study of the Holy Spirit at church, I happened upon an epiphany: The Holy Spirit is like the Force! The Holy Spirit is always a tough topic in church. More often than not, we tend to shy away from talking about it because we have so much trouble understanding it. When we do talk about it, the discussion tends to go in all sorts of directions and so we really never pin down a better understanding of what the Holy Spirit is. The Force however, is easy to understand. If you've seen the movies at all you have at least a basic understanding of the Force. Well if you think about it, The Force and the Holy Spirit are really along the same lines. And, at least for me, the Holy Spirit becomes a little easier to understand. Consider this as we compare the two.

Old Ben (Obi-Wan), R2D2, C3PO, and Jesus: Adventures in the Desert

After being jettisoned in an escape pod from a Rebel ship, R2D2 and C3PO are found wandering through the desert in an attempt to locate a man by the name of Obi-Wan Kenobi. Their mission seems hopeless (as C3PO is more than happy to point out) and once the Jawas appear, our droid friends seem done for. However, the Jawas, somehow, bring the droids to exactly the right person to help them find Obi-Wan. It seems like coincidence, but when you consider that the Force is involved, coincidence looks more like design. Following the droids purchase by Luke Skywalker's uncle, R2D2 shows his loyal determination to his mission, and runs off into the desert of Tatooine. The following morning, Luke sets out to find the lost droid, and gets himself into some trouble with some Tuskin Raiders. Just as it looks like the end for our future Jedi, a man named Old Ben miraculously appears and scares the Tuskins away. This again may seem very coincidental, but let us not forget the role that the Force plays in the Star Wars universe (let alone the major role it plays in the life of a Jedi). It would seem more as if the Force had led Old Ben into the desert, and directly to Luke and R2D2. These events seems oddly familiar to the story of Jesus and his journey through the desert.

Found in Matthew 4, Jesus is led into the desert by the Spirit following his baptism, much like Obi-Wan. On his journey through the desert, Jesus encounters Satan, an encounter that would mean doom for any other human (mirroring the arrival of the Jawas on the droids' desert journey and the Tuskins attack on Luke). Through the guidance of the Spirit, Jesus overcame the temptations of Satan and sent him away defeated (and I would argue that Satan left a little fearful, much like the Tuskins ran away after the arrival of Obi-Wan).

Much like the Force guides characters in the Star Wars universe, the Holy Spirit is a guide to our world. It guided Jesus through the desert, Paul on his missions to preach to the Gentiles, and leads us today in our walk with the Lord. In his book, Caleb Grimes states "Coincidences, as we perceive them, are often the way God brings about the possible"(26). In the next entry, Grimes says "Being mindful of a succesion of events, or things perceived as coincidence, is a good way to listen to God and become wiser; to learn to take those paths that He is directing you to take"(28). It's all about letting the Spirit work through you, and guide you along your path to an eternity in heaven.

My next entry will go a little deeper into this idea of the Holy Spirit being like the Force by looking at the way they instruct and perform. Until then, May the Force be with you.