“These all died in faith, although they had not received the things that were promised. But they saw them from a distance, greeted them, and confessed that they were foreigners and temporary residents on the earth.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

It’s hard to work at one thing for a long time. It’s especially hard to do that nowadays when our attention spans have been shortened so much by television and smart phones and a digital media culture that gives preference to the quick glance over long engagement. It’s almost impossibly hard to do when we don’t ever see the end result of our efforts. Achieving that sort of thing takes vision; powerful vision. I’ve just finally finished watching the latest Star Wars property on Disney+. The second and final season of Andor is all about having just such a vision. Let’s talk about why you should watch it.

The shortest answer to that question is that it is good. Really good. In my opinion, Andor season 2 is the best thing Star Wars has released since Return of the Jedi. Honestly, it’s even better than that. It may be the best Star Wars property…ever. Maybe it’s just because I’m still on a high from having just finished it last night, but It will take a while to convince me there’s something better out there. If you are interested, here’s my review of season one.

The whole series is a prequel to the Star Wars movie Rogue One. Rogue One was released as the first in what were initially planned to be a whole new series of Star Wars films that were essentially side stories to the nine main canon stories. Although there had been some animated series released exploring the broader Star Wars universe at that point, Rogue One was the first side story told as a major theater release.

Although it never got a ton of love from fans, I always thought Rogue One was easily as good as any of the original trilogy. It told the story of how the plans for the Death Star were obtained and shared with the rebellion. It ended right where A New Hope began. Essentially, it answered the question of what it took for the plans of the Death Star to be given to Leia so the rebellion could destroy it. It was an absolutely gripping story that ended with every single main character dead, having willingly sacrificed their lives to achieve this greater goal.

The series Andor is essentially a side story of that side story. It is a prequel to the film and explores how Cassian Andor became the man he was in the movie. We follow Cassian over the period of several years as he gradually grows to hate the Empire as he experiences personally its evilness. At just the right moment, he is invited into the rebel movement that is still in its infancy. The series ultimately ends with the movement gaining the knowledge of the Death Star’s existence, knowledge that comes at great cost and after year’s worth of patient, dangerous, secret labor.

From a review standpoint, the creators of this series do just about everything right. The pacing is phenomenal. They are willing to allow the story to unfold over the span of years rather than trying to cram everything into a tight window that is impossible to believe. They basically tell the main story in eight three-episode vignettes. Each vignette is set about a year from the last. There are hints of a great deal more action in those intervening periods, but they let those hints be enough and stay focused on the main story.

The acting is incredible. The series should definitely win some Emmy’s, although it probably won’t. The cinematography is excellent. They actually filmed on location rather than bringing everything in via CGI. Where they did use CGI for some backgrounds it was really clean. The script is terrific. The whole thing is nuanced in the best ways. The action is compelling, but isn’t the thing that drives the plot. Some of the most gripping scenes in the series had the least amount of action. They really let the exceptional acting carry the day. And it worked. There were several moments I found myself unable to turn away.

I could keep gushing about it, but I’ll stop on this point: This series is worth whatever it takes for you to be able to watch it. It’s that good. Even if you don’t like Disney, give them the $10 to get a month of Disney+ and binge it. You’ll be glad you did.

I think one of the things that made the series so compelling to me is how committed all the characters are to the vision of the rebellion. Their sacrifices to see that cause advanced are real and feel meaningful. The Empire has taken much from all of them. They have all seen how evil it is. They have known personally its blatant disregard for human life in pursuit of its goal of controlling every aspect of life within its borders. They have caught a vision of bringing it down with the understanding that it will take everything they have to give and they may not see the end of their efforts in their lifetimes. They are working toward something bigger than themselves.

Now, the comparisons here with the Gospel aren’t perfect. The rebellion is not the church, and its members don’t come close to living up to the standards of the character of Christ, but their commitment to opposing evil at great cost, of pursuing a vision bigger than themselves, is soaked in Gospel concepts.

When the writer of Hebrews was celebrating the faithfulness of God’s people in the past, essentially giving readers a run down of the narrative of the Old Testament, he paused after several stories to offer a mid-narrative reflection. “These all died in faith, although they had not received the things that were promised. But they saw them from a distance, greeted them, and confessed that they were foreigners and temporary residents on the earth.”

The people God called to follow His lead in carving out a path to reclaim creation for His kingdom, to oppose and overthrow the powers of this world, committed themselves to His plans at great personal cost. There were blessings along the way, but so also were there sacrifices. They gave themselves to the vision God cast of a world redeemed and free from sin, where His blessings flow in abundance, even though they didn’t experience the end of that vision in their lifetimes.

As followers of Jesus, we are heirs to their faithful labors. We are pilgrims on the same journey, traveling toward the same kingdom. There will be joys along the way, but there will also be sorrows and sacrifices. We acknowledge that we are indeed foreigners in a land that is not our home. We experience and create echoes of home—God’s kingdom—but we look forward to the full and final arrival of that kingdom on Christ’s return.

In between now and then, we labor with patience toward that end. Our ability to do so faithfully will be directly connected to our ability to receive and hold the vision the New Testament authors beautifully spell out for us in their writings. When we know and trust that Jesus really is coming back to bring the full blessings of His eternal kingdom to all those who have been willing to accept that He really did rise from the dead and that He really is Lord, we will be willing and able to endure all manner of trials and tribulations we experience along the way.

Critics will tell us we’re stupid or wrong or even downright evil, but we can see what they can’t; what they don’t; what they have willfully blinded themselves from being able to see. We respond with the character of Christ and keep going. We let our application of His love reveal how utterly silly their criticisms are. And we keep moving forward, day by day, toward His coming kingdom. We keep heading toward home. Let’s journey together.