“Sleeping on a dragon’s hoard with greedy, dragonish thoughts in his heart, he had become a dragon himself.”
In the Narnia series book, The Voyage Of The Dawn Treader by C. S. Lewis, the boy Eustace is confronted with “himself.”
Having become alone on an island, he’s cornered by a hideous creature. It has awful claws for hands, scales for skin, breathes fire … you name it. Never did a young man face something so terrifying.
If you’ve read the book you know this creature is a dragon. The problem for Eustace is: It’s him. He’s the dragon. Eustace has become on the outside what he is on the inside.
It’s God’s hand of mercy to see ourselves as we really are. We like to believe we’re such good people, and the world around us reinforces our not needing God, but the Bible says something quite different. “There is none righteous, not even one” (Romans 3:10) and “‘No one is good except God alone” (Mark 10:18) are just a couple of places where we’re confronted with ourselves.
The truth is we’re all sinners (including me) on the road to hell. (Matthew 7:13; Proverbs 14:12) To say anything less is a lie. (1 John 1:10) Some of us would rather hide in our own supposed “righteousness,” but others of us want to know reality ~ and will be rescued to eternal life because of it. (1 John 1:9)
And Eustace is rescued in The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. It happens when the great Lion, Aslan, appears and, with his claws, strips away his dragon scales and Eustace becomes a boy again. It’s a picture of the salvation experience the Bible talks about. (John 3:16)
Only Jesus can rescue us from ourselves. (Ephesians 2:8-9) And He will do it ~ if we let Him.
“‘Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden (with guilt and sin), and I will give you rest (forgiveness).'” (Matthew 11:28)
“Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.” (2 Corinthians 5:17)
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Lewis’ description of Aslan tearing away the layers of dragon skin from Eustace is one of my favorite ways of picturing the process of crucifixion, repentance, and renewal to which we are called to submit at the hands of Christ.
I like your reflection here.