Sharing in Christ's Butter

This week, we were switched to a new class as we began Phase 2 of our language school. Our class consists of us and two teachers from the local K-12 MK school. One is a female elementary school teacher whose bubbly personality definitely fits the stereotype for that job. The other is a laid back French teacher who has a quick wit. Both are about our age. It has been fun getting to know them in class, knowing that studying a foreign language together requires vulnerability with each other and the ability to laugh at one’s mistakes. This morning’s class was a perfect example of language mistakes that resulted in the whole classroom bursting into laughter.

As we were learning the letters/fidels of the alphabet, we were studying the letter “ke” (each letter/fidel represents a syllable, not just a single sound). So, as an example of this letter/fidel, our teacher said the word “kibe” (pronounced “kih-bay”). The elementary school teacher then blurted out “Oh like in the song we sang in chapel.” “Oh no,” the teacher replied “that’s kiber which means ‘glory’, this is ‘kibe,’ which means ‘butter’” At this point, our faces cracked smiles and the jokes started to flow. Imagine one of us preaching in church as we pound the pulpit and passionately proclaim: Jesus revealed the butter of God (John 1:14) but he also came that he might bring butter to God (John 14:13). Christ is the radiance of God’s butter (Heb 1:3). Jesus prayed “Father, butter-fy me in your presence with the butter I had with you before the world began” (John 17:5). Moses was allowed to see the backside of God’s butter. The blind man in John 9 was commanded to “give butter to God” for his healing (John 9:24). We bring butter to God through our obedience. According to the Westminster confession, the chief end of man is to butter-fy God and enjoy Him forever (kinda like popcorn?). Finally, one day the Son of Man will come on the clouds with power and great butter (Mark 13:26), at which time those who had shared in Christ’s suffering will also share in his butter (Rom 8:17).

It took a minute or two for us to settle down and get back to work. But nevertheless, we learned very well the importance of differentiating kibe and kiber and we definitely had fun doing it.