He Lives in You!! The Gospel According to The Lion King

I love movies.  I especially love Disney movies.  I also love the Gospel.  I'm talking about the real good news, the freedom from sin that we have in Christ, not the knock off legalistic version that has been popularized in evangelicalism and found lacking, but the true Gospel, the one that frees us from our shame and bondage and allows us to walk confidently in communion with our Lord.  I often find myself combining these two loves of mine by looking for reflections of the gospel in movies.  So surely a movie with themes of the true king, of an unjust death, and a turning point hinging on the recognition that "he lives in you!" is going to have some allusions to the redemption story.  Here are some of my favorite scenes that hint at the glory, goodness, and freedom of our Lord.

When learning about the shadowy place beyond the borders, Simba is lured to where he ought not go by his uncle Scar, who is a wonderful representative of the devil - the prince of this world and the father of all lies.  Not long after checking out this elephant graveyard Simba and Nala find themselves surrounded by the hyenas, representative of demons carrying out the bidding of their master.  Now the law and legalism would say that those two cubs lied and disobeyed, therefore deserving to die at the hands of the hyenas.  But what happens instead?  Simba's loving and all-powerful father shows up and rescues them both.  Simba is weak in his own roar, but when his father's roar coincides with his, the hyenas fall back from their attack.  Simba did not have to face the hyenas alone and battle in his own strength, just as we do not need to face our demons alone in our own strength.  And just like how the hyenas followed the command of Mufasa, the demons must follow the command of our Father.  We do not fight alone, but the mighty Lion of Judah fights for us, sometimes even when we are not where we are supposed to be and when we have not even asked for His help.  Mmmmm.  I just love that scene.  Reminds me of the lyric, "the God of angel armies is always on my side."

After Mufasa dies in the gorge (spoiler alert) Scar, the devil, accuses Simba of killing Mufasa.  Though we all know that this accusation is ridiculous and that Scar is really responsible, Scar takes advantage of Simba's youth and emotional state and twists the truth to the point that Simba is ashamed and runs away.  Though he is found by friends who revive him and help lift him from his despair, they impart a laissez-faire philosophy on him which helps him to carry on, but doesn't alleviate him of the burden of the shame that he carries for what he believes he is responsible for.  When Nala appears on the scene he is afraid to tell her why he hasn't returned, much to her disappointment and frustration.  Who among us has not carried the burden of a sin or indiscretion that we thought was so horrible we could not confess it for if we did we would lose the love and affection of all of those around us?  But freedom comes to his tortured soul when he finally confesses and steps into reconciliation with his father and his ordained purpose.

But how was he able to move toward confession and have the confidence to assume his role as king?  This is my favorite part!  Because he embraced his true identity, his identity as the son of his father.  He is loved, accepted, and chosen by nature of his relationship to his father only, not by what he has done or what he will do.  Likewise, as followers of Jesus, we are loved, accepted, and chosen by our Lord.  We do not, nor could we, earn our status with Him.  Hallelujah!  And when we get that truth, truly internalize it, we are freed from our labors to try to curry favor with the Lord.  We are freed from the bonds of sin, and can move forward in enjoyment of Him.  And what does Rafiki say about Mufasa?  That he lives in Simba.  When Simba recognizes this we hear Mufasa from the clouds tell Simba to remember who he is and that Mufasa is with him.  Remind you of anything?  Our Lord Jesus has ascended but He sent the Holy Spirit to live within us when we come to faith in Him.  The Holy Spirit is in unity with Jesus and the Father (the trinity) so we have a piece of God living within us, regenerating us, interceding for us, and comforting us.  He is "with us always, to the end of the age."

Like Simba, our lives can turn dramatically if we can embrace these truths.  Our identity is secure.  We do not need to keep striving and following after ambitions that ultimately do not satisfy.  We have a direct connection to our Lord and the power through Him to live lives full of love for Him and for our neighbor.  And yes, we will in our flesh still mess up, but we continue to be accepted by Him.  There is no need to run away as Simba did.  We will find a special sweetness in our confession to Him that builds and strengthens our intimacy, ultimately propelling us forward to continue in good works for His name sake.

So there you have it:  The Gospel According to the Lion King.  What other glimpses of the Gospel have you seen in films recently?