Jesus, My Rosebud
by Bro. Craig Amenell
05/28/2023
Luke 2:28-30 - “Then took he him up in his arms, and blessed God, and said, Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word: For mine eyes have seen thy salvation,”
In Orson Welles’ cinematic classic Citizen Kane, it is 1940 and we find Charles Foster Kane, one of the richest of his day, who on his deathbed with his final breath whispers, “Rosebud”. The remainder of the film is spent trying to determine what that word might mean. A word that so confounded the world in which he lived and came to identify and mark his remembrance, but what or who was it?
At the end of the film (Spoiler Alert: although I don’t feel the least bit rotten as the movie came out over 80 years ago) it is revealed that “Rosebud” was simply the name of his childhood sleigh. We find it to be the representation of the only time in his life when he was truly happy and at peace. When he perceived he had both what he wanted and needed, nothing lacking! The remainder of his life was spent subconsciously trying to reassert what he experienced in that brief moment of childhood. You see, as a young boy he was sent away to school as his mother fell into an unexpected fortune and soon thereafter died leaving him without any family. His fortune was all he was left with, and what miserable company it proved to be as he withheld nothing from himself. Despite the amount of his vast wealth he spent procuring treasures untold, he was left feeling unsatisfied, empty, and alone. Perhaps the next purchase or conquest would make him feel something he longed for, but what?
Many poor souls spend their lives trying to build up a wealth of what they believe one day will bring them to that place of satisfaction. For some it is a certain dollar amount in the bank, for others, it is a certain number of followers; still, for others, it may be a particular percentage of the existing collectible that they are obsessed with. Regardless of what it may be, they all get to a point where they say, just one more and I might feel satisfied and complete.
For some it is them looking back and wishing for a return to a moment in time where they thought they had it all. Perhaps it was in the innocence of childhood when they were carefree, or a time in their adolescence when they remember being more than they probably were due to their naivety, or in their young adulthood when they looked a certain way that got the attention they thought they deserved.
All of these things will never bring a lasting sense of fulfillment and completion that every human heart is longing for. The wealthiest man that ever lived withheld nothing from himself and all he found was “...vanity and vexation of spirit,” (Ecc 2:11). What or who then will leave one feeling as though they have all they want and all they need, nothing lacking? Rosebud where art thou?
The Lord Jesus alone can and will make any and every empty and longing heart complete in Himself. “For in him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily. And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power:” (Col. 2:9-10). The best part is once you have Him, you have Him forever. There will be no hunting and searching for Him as He is the one that found you and will abide with you always and leave you never. No more looking back to a certain time or looking forward to a certain amount. Once He dwells, He is all. All you need, and if He has His way, all you want. He is the only thing of any eternal value. His name is worthy of every last breath. Jesus! The only name that will allow a servant to truly die in peace, for He is salvation.
05/28/2023
Luke 2:28-30 - “Then took he him up in his arms, and blessed God, and said, Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word: For mine eyes have seen thy salvation,”
In Orson Welles’ cinematic classic Citizen Kane, it is 1940 and we find Charles Foster Kane, one of the richest of his day, who on his deathbed with his final breath whispers, “Rosebud”. The remainder of the film is spent trying to determine what that word might mean. A word that so confounded the world in which he lived and came to identify and mark his remembrance, but what or who was it?
At the end of the film (Spoiler Alert: although I don’t feel the least bit rotten as the movie came out over 80 years ago) it is revealed that “Rosebud” was simply the name of his childhood sleigh. We find it to be the representation of the only time in his life when he was truly happy and at peace. When he perceived he had both what he wanted and needed, nothing lacking! The remainder of his life was spent subconsciously trying to reassert what he experienced in that brief moment of childhood. You see, as a young boy he was sent away to school as his mother fell into an unexpected fortune and soon thereafter died leaving him without any family. His fortune was all he was left with, and what miserable company it proved to be as he withheld nothing from himself. Despite the amount of his vast wealth he spent procuring treasures untold, he was left feeling unsatisfied, empty, and alone. Perhaps the next purchase or conquest would make him feel something he longed for, but what?
Many poor souls spend their lives trying to build up a wealth of what they believe one day will bring them to that place of satisfaction. For some it is a certain dollar amount in the bank, for others, it is a certain number of followers; still, for others, it may be a particular percentage of the existing collectible that they are obsessed with. Regardless of what it may be, they all get to a point where they say, just one more and I might feel satisfied and complete.
For some it is them looking back and wishing for a return to a moment in time where they thought they had it all. Perhaps it was in the innocence of childhood when they were carefree, or a time in their adolescence when they remember being more than they probably were due to their naivety, or in their young adulthood when they looked a certain way that got the attention they thought they deserved.
All of these things will never bring a lasting sense of fulfillment and completion that every human heart is longing for. The wealthiest man that ever lived withheld nothing from himself and all he found was “...vanity and vexation of spirit,” (Ecc 2:11). What or who then will leave one feeling as though they have all they want and all they need, nothing lacking? Rosebud where art thou?
The Lord Jesus alone can and will make any and every empty and longing heart complete in Himself. “For in him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily. And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power:” (Col. 2:9-10). The best part is once you have Him, you have Him forever. There will be no hunting and searching for Him as He is the one that found you and will abide with you always and leave you never. No more looking back to a certain time or looking forward to a certain amount. Once He dwells, He is all. All you need, and if He has His way, all you want. He is the only thing of any eternal value. His name is worthy of every last breath. Jesus! The only name that will allow a servant to truly die in peace, for He is salvation.
Posted in Living for God
Posted in Luke 2, satisfaction, wealth, fulfillment, complete, peace, Salvation
Posted in Luke 2, satisfaction, wealth, fulfillment, complete, peace, Salvation
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