WandaVision!

I’ll admit that this devotion is not an entirely original thought. Actually, it was inspired by a probably semi-sardonic tweet by Larry Marshall (@larzmarshall on Twitter) and then a bet with my friend Raven. So, for both of you (whether Larry reads this or even wants it), here it is: a devotion inspired by WandaVision! (Please start humming that iconic WandaVision theme song from Episode 2 in your head now. I’ll wait. ...Ready? Okay, here we go.)

(Spoilers ahead, just in case you want to turn back now.)

In the last episode of WandaVision, we’re put through the wringer. Wanda, who has had everything stripped away from her throughout the movies—her parents, her brother, her lover—makes a heroic sacrifice. In it, she willingly gives up her husband and sons to right the errors that she made. And as Larry so eloquently (and sarcastically) pointed out, this is so similar to what God does for us.

Both God and Wanda had to make the ultimate sacrifice to fix those mistakes: they had to sacrifice their respective (S)son(s). (Did that make sense? Capitalize Son for Jesus, plural lower-case sons for Billy and Tommy? Good? Got it? Okay.) Just like the people of Westview, we find ourselves trapped in a nightmare with no way to get out. We are doomed for Hell unless Someone steps in and saves us. We cannot save ourselves, just like the lowly citizens couldn’t. It takes someone bigger, someone stronger, to step in and save the day, huge CGI-battle optional.

Our situation can feel quite hopeless as well. Our lives can be filled with anger. Despair. Turmoil. We all face hard choices and there are moments when we don’t know if it’s all worth it; if we will ever escape. No matter how good this life may seem (just like Wanda’s sitcom-reality may have seemed all rosy and perfect on the outside), we all have something inside of us that makes us yearn for something more. We spend our whole lives trying to fill it: with ourselves, with others, with entertainment, with anything we can to stop the ache. We stuff the gap full of everything except what will fill it...Jesus.

Now, here’s where Wanda and God differ (aside from, you know, the clearly obvious things that I shouldn’t have to state in a devotion that’s an extended metaphor). Wanda created the problems in Westview by her uncontrolled power, so, in a way, the sacrifice at the end had to come from her. She had to fix her mistakes.

But God—and Jesus—are perfect. They have never made a mistake. But They see ours, and because of this, we are separated from them. Just like the Hex separated Westview from the rest of the world, our sins separate us from God. We can never make it into Heaven by ourselves. We can’t glimpse God’s holiness. We are filthy, unworthy, sinning creatures.

And we made the mistakes. We lied. We committed murder. We stole. We committed sexual immorality (even if we just thought the thoughts—Jesus calls out lust in all forms!). We gossiped. We were jealous. All these—they’re all equal. Even if you go your whole life and only tell one little lie, you know what? It’s enough to separate you from God completely. (But congratulations on only messing up once, y’know? It’s a feat I’ve never been able to accomplish.) You’re trapped in Westview until further notice, so please stand by.

Justice decrees that there must be payment for our mistakes. But what happens when you can never, ever pay it? What happens when you can never earn your holiness back, or fix the sin that you committed? What then?

That’s the dilemma we find ourselves in. And in an effort to solve this dilemma, God stepped in.

He did not have to. He could have left us alone after Adam and Eve sinned and declared His new creation an abomination. But He knew all along that we would sin, and He had planned for it right from the beginning. But it was a hard plan. So hard that even Jesus begged that the cup would pass from Him in those final moments (Matthew 26:39). It was so hard that Jesus actually started to sweat blood (Luke 22:44), a condition called “hematohidrosis,” a condition so rare that it only occurs when you are under extreme physical, emotional, or mental anguish. The sacrifice is never easy, and let me reiterate once more—God and Jesus were under no obligation to make it. Imagine if, when things were at their hardest, and Jesus felt the most despair and anguish, He suddenly backed out.

What if He suddenly decided that He couldn’t do it?

What if the strain was too much?

We would never have any hope whatsoever. But God and Jesus would be none the worse. We would suffer for our mistakes. But out of His eternal, unconditional, astounding, love for us...Jesus did go through with it.

Wanda had to sacrifice her sons to save people from herself. God had to sacrifice His Son to save people from themselves. But both did it, because there was no other way to save everyone.

Another line strikes me as particularly poignant. In the after credits scene, Monica approaches Wanda as the latter is leaving the city, hated by all her former prisoners.

“They have no idea what you sacrificed for them,” Monica says.

“It wouldn’t change how they see me,” Wanda replies.

This exchange is packed with so much meaning in multiple ways. For Wanda, it means that she’s accepted that, even if it was accidental, she has hurt people. Subconsciously, I think she believes she is no longer worthy of their forgiveness—but she’s not wallowing in self-pity. She knows that the people of Westview will never be able to see past her mistakes and her history, past the torture she unintentionally put them through as her own pain manifested itself. But Monica tries to focus on the fact that, at the end of the day, Wanda is the hero. Wanda sacrificed her entire family to set those people free. She’s now all alone again, but she’s made it through the 5 stages of grief and has accepted it. She has overcome her breakdown for the time being and has a fresh start. But she refuses to tell everyone, to get any glory for herself, because that’s not what the hero does. A hero doesn’t ask for accolades, especially when they know they’re just as human as everyone else. Especially when they know they’ve made their own mistakes and are just trying to right them.

But if we apply this to God, this sucker punch of dialogue takes on an even heavier meaning.

As I’ve stated before, God, unlike Wanda, did not make any mistakes. He is not to blame for the torture in our own Westview. He stepped in to set all things right, and yet…

People mock Him.

People refuse to accept Him.

People hate Him.

People scorn and jeer at Him.

People killed His prophets.

People killed His Son.

People still kill His followers.

At the end of the day, there are still people who refuse to see the sacrifice that God has made for them. They are too concerned with filling up that hole in their lives with every other manner of distraction they can find. They are too busy with themselves and the world. They are too busy having fun hating God to ever acknowledge the sacrifice He made for them.

Imagine an angel or someone standing before God, staring at the chaos on Earth and vitriol people have for God. Now picture them turning to God, knowing the truth, and saying Monica’s words: “They have no idea what you sacrificed for them.”

Because, even as Christians, we don’t truly know all that God sacrificed for us. I personally believe that we can’t fathom how much He loves us and how much He would and has given up for us. And God has already told us a small smidgen of what He’s done for us in the Bible. (Actually, it’s a whole honkin’ lot, but, you know.) And even knowing this…

It doesn’t change the way people see Him.

Imagine God turning to the angel and saying Wanda’s words: “It wouldn’t change how they see me.”

This is heartbreaking. We have the knowledge. We have the Bible. We know what God has done for us, even on just a superficial level. But people don’t care. People treat it as if it’s worth nothing. Like it didn’t happen. Like it has no implications or holiness whatsoever. And even then, it doesn’t change the fact that some people still run away from God or besmirch His Name and love.

Let’s not be like the citizens of Westview. Let’s not take for granted the sacrifice given to us. Because we will never comprehend the full depths of what was sacrificed while we are here on Earth. And even if we could, would it change how we view God? When He’s already told us that He saved us from Hell, and yet, we take that for granted?

No. We need to express gratitude. We need to realize the gift that has been given to us. We need to appreciate the depths of God’s love for us that while we were still sinners, He sent Jesus to die for us (Romans 5:8)! There is no greater News that than. There is no more wonderful sacrifice than that.

So, thank you, Larry and Raven, for inspiring this blog post. I’ve never experienced such a range of emotions while penning a devotion before, and it was fun.

But most of all—thank you, God. Because I never want to take the sacrifice you made for me, personally, for granted, ever again.