Author: Bro. Joel Tucker

Bro. Joel Tucker, Ordained by the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in 2017, has been in ministry since 2001. He recently retired from Senior Pastor at Guyton (GA) Christian Church, where he served for 7 years, after 17 at Tropical Sands Christian Church, Palm Beach Gardens, FL. He holds a bachelor's degree in Journalism from Auburn University and a certificate of pastoral ministry from Lexington Theological Seminary. He entered ministry after 20 years in corporate communications and five years of computer programming. You can support Bro Tucker at http://PayPal.Me/JoelTucker or Venmo: @Joel-Tucker-20.

2018 Sonnet One

Perhaps if all of us in sonnet speak,
To share in meter, rhythm, train and rhyme,
Of ways to find the lost and help the weak,
We’d love them more because we took the time

To force linguistic structure on our thoughts,
Perchance to leave less room for doubt and hate.
Perhaps it’s worth a shot, as Jesus taught,
To humble down ourselves and elevate

Our sisters, brothers, strangers, enemies,
To where the Good Lord said that they should be,
Ahead of me in my priorities,
Where hate enslaves, pray love will set us free.

This might be just a useless exercise,
But this, like coffee, serves to open eyes.

 

All in the Family

Then Jesus’ mother and brothers arrived. Standing outside, they sent someone in to call him. A crowd was sitting around him, and they told him, “Your mother and brothers are outside looking for you.”

“Who are my mother and my brothers?” he asked.

Then he looked at those seated in a circle around him and said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! Whoever does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother.”

Mark 3:31-34

At Mark 3:20, we learn that Jesus and His disciples had entered a house, just after Jesus appointed 12 as apostles, and the crowd that gathered was so thick that the He and his disciples could not even eat. His family went to take charge of him and they said, “He is out of his mind.” Apparently, the crowd was so thick that Jesus mother and brothers could not even enter the house.

This was an example of Jesus seeking first the Kingdom of God. He wasn’t interested in eating. It was not that He never got hungry, but Jesus knew that God would provide. Jesus was practicing what he preached in the Sermon on the Mount. Don’t worry about your life, what you will eat or drink. (Matt. 6:35) Jesus knew that there would be time to eat after the crowds went away.

There is a law in the book of Leviticus that says the Israelites are to farm the land for six years, then let it go unplanted and unharvested in the seventh year. God promised a blessing in the sixth year that would get the children of Israel through the seventh year. Orthodox Jews are adamant about keeping the Sabbath – performing no work on the seventh day – for the same reason. They do no work on the seventh day to demonstrate that God ultimately, God takes care of us, even when we exert no effort.

It’s also worth noting that Jesus and the disciples are in a house. They are not in a Synagogue or a Temple. In a synagogue and in the Temple, men had authority over women, Jews over Gentiles, and Priests over laity. In a house, there is no such restriction.

Consider what Jesus says in our scripture. There are many places in our Bibles where “brothers” is translated “brothers and sisters.” That’s appropriate because it actually meant all siblings, or everyone of the faith, and not just male believers or siblings. The same problem arises with “deacons”, which is always masculine but meant both. In Paul’s letters, the King James translators used “minister” where it referred to men and “servants” where it referred to women. Today, we might use “deacons” and “deaconesses” to make the point that women are included. But the very reason we debate this is that in Paul’s letters, men and women ARE included as deacons, or ministers, or servants, or whatever you want to call them. We are not doing something weird by including women in church leadership – they have always been in church leadership.

But here, we don’t have to politically correct the translation. In the original manuscript, Jesus actually says “mother and brother and sister”. He didn’t say father, because as he had taught, “you have one father, even God,” and that’s certainly how Jesus identified Himself. But the inclusion of “mother” and “sister” in this scripture is from the lips of Jesus, and not some modern addition by the translators. I’m certain that Jesus looked out over the crowd in that house, saw many women, including women followers, and spoke about what he saw. He intentionally said that those who do the will of God “ARE my mother AND my brother AND my sister.”

I believe that the Bible is the inspired Word of God. That means that I am not going to take what it says lightly, and I try not to spin it to personal advantage. We all know that there are denominations who read the translators instead of the word being translated, and by doing that, women are barred from leadership. I think we also go wrong when we read the culture instead of the message. In so many places, the culture of the Bible says that women and gentiles and persons with physical disabilities are less than holy. But in many other places, the Word of God breaks through the culture of that day. We read at Pentecost how the prophet went out of his way to say “sons AND daughters”, “servants, both male AND female.” And if you read Paul to restrict women, then you also have to read how he said that in Christ there is neither slave nor free, Greek nor Jew, male nor female.

The stories of Jesus dining with sinners, calling tax collectors, healing Gentiles and including women are not beside the point; they ARE the point. The Bible sets the scene of a society where normal is one way, then God intervenes to break out of that mold.

Before our scripture today, Jesus has designated the 12 apostles, and we all know that they happened to be men. One was a traitor too, by the way, so we know better than to think that Jesus was selecting the holiest of people. He was choosing those who could move freely in that day, across boarders and into the synagogues and the temple. But at the crucifixion, in Mark 15:40-41, we read this: “Some women were watching from a distance. Among them were Mary Magdaline, Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joseph, and Salome. In Galilee these women had followed him and cared for his needs. Many other women who had come up with him from Jerusalem were also there.”

In Luke 8:1-3, after the story of the woman who anointed Jesus feet, we read this: “After this, Jesus traveled about from one town and villagte to another, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God. The Twelve were with him, and also some women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases: Mary (called Magdalene) from whom seven demons had come out; Joanna the wife of Chuza, the Manager of Herod’s household; Susanna; and many others. These women were helping to support them out of their own means.”

Please don’t think I’m trying to be feminist or politically correct. What I’m trying to say is we accept women as equals not because it is politically correct, but because it is ACTUALLY correct. Because in the text of a male dominated religion from a male dominated society, scripture written by men has to report on women in leadership or fail to tell the whole story.

This is not about women. When Jesus healed ten lepers, He marveled that the only one who returned to say thanks was a Samaritan. When a Roman Centurian asked Jesus to heal his beloved servant, Jesus praised him as having greater faith than all in Israel because that Gentile came with humility and believed that Jesus could heal without even coming into the house. When Jesus called the first disciples, he didn’t call priests and politicians, but fishermen and tax collectors. Sages from the East followed a star to the newborn Jesus, but the Angels in Heaven appeared to unclean, common shepherds.

There are a lot of scripture that talk about being separate – separate from the world, separate from gentiles, separate from nonbelievers. There are scripture that say touch no unclean thing, and I know we all have heard that the “holy” means “set apart for God.” My grandfather was taught that these scriptures meant that people of different races, nationalities and denominations, and he didn’t shake that until very late in life. He didn’t reject scripture, but he did study it for himself and made up his own mind. Jesus didn’t break the Sabbath and dietary laws; he just took the true meaning of scripture instead of what everyone else said it meant.

My point is not to sow seeds of doubt in the Bible. As I’ve said before, I bow to no one in deference to what scripture says. But I do emphasize what it actually says, and not what people think it says. If you use a scripture to make your point, you have to know and understand all the verses that make the opposite point. And in the end, we have to be humble enough to say that we don’t know everything about the Bible.

Last week, we talked about how God looks beyond outward appearances, how God sees the diamonds while we see the Dixie cups. The Bible has a lot to say about those Dixie cups, but the important part is what it says about those diamonds in the Dixie cup. Peter said scripture is spiritually discerned

The Bible is the story of the family of Adam, then the family of Abraham, then the family of Israel, and finally the family of God. The first three families were by birth, but the last is by faith. Jesus was the son of David and the lion of Judah, and he rightfully claims both titles from his family lineage. But here he tells us that those titles won’t get us into heaven, or keep us out. “Those who do God’s will are my mother, and my brother, and my sister.”

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, may we all be accepted as brothers and sisters of Christ by doing the Father’s will: Working together, loving one another and walking humbly with God.

Amen.

Diamonds in Dixie Cups

For what we preach is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ.

But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that his life may also be revealed in our mortal body. So then, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you.

2 Corinthians 4:5-12

Earthen vessels. Jars of Clay. Mason Jars. Dixie Cups. Plastic bags. The definition of cheap, temporary, fragile containers changes over time. Jars of clay and earthen vessels are fragile; they were once common and cheap. Mason Jars were once disposable and common; now they’re collectors’ items. It is probably about right to say, “We carry diamonds in Dixie cups.”

This verse has so many layers of meaning. The God who said, “Let light shine out of darkness” has made the light of the Gospel of Jesus Christ shine out of the darkness of the human heart. There are diamonds in the Dixie cup, and there’s a priceless treasure hidden in the most ordinary looking people. But Paul is not saying that something precious is hidden in something common. Paul is saying that something precious is displayed against something common so that its beauty is so much more obvious.

There are people of other faith traditions who think it is absolute blasphemy to say that God had a Son, or that God lived as a human being. Humans, they say, are just too weak, too dirty, to contain the glory of God. But Paul says that’s precisely the point.

In his letter to the church in Philippi (Philippians 1:5-11), Paul quoted what seems to have been a popular hymn in the early church. “In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:”

Who, being in very nature God,
Did not consider equality with God
Something to be used to his own advantage;
Rather, he made himself nothing
By taking the very nature of a servant,
Being made in human likeness,
And being found in appearance as a man,
He humbled himself, by becoming obedient to death –
Even death on a cross!
Therefore, God exalted him to the highest place
And gave him a name that is above every name,
That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
In heaven and on earth and under the earth,
And every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord,
To the glory of God the Father.

The hymn says Jesus had the very nature of God but put on the nature of a servant. God accomplished more than one thing by doing that. For one, God came and talked to his creation face-to-face. Two, by taking on flesh, God revealed Himself to be humble – that is, to be willing to stoop to our level to be with us. Three, Jesus is exalted for this sacrifice, and in that way is the picture of God for all time, a picture not of the angry Father, but of the self-sacrificing Son. God might not make sense to a lot of people, but Jesus is easier to understand.

And now it falls on us to continue the ministry of Jesus. We do not have the very nature of God, as Jesus did. Still, Jesus set the example that we are to follow. “Have the same mindset as Christ Jesus.” Jesus had the nature of God but humbled himself. We get a little taste of the power of God through the Holy Spirit, and if we aren’t careful, we can get puffed up over it. God has blessed a lot of people with the power to preach, but some of them have used that power to line their own pockets. Paul had that gift, and the power to heal as well, but he talks about the thorn in his side that God gave him to keep him humble.

In our scripture today, Paul points out why God works through ordinary, humble people. “We have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God, and not from us.” He then goes on to show how he and his companions have been humbled, and how their weakness and imperfection is on display. “We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our bodies the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body.”
Were were made in the image of God, but that image has been smudged by life in this fallen world. As people, we seem to be common, a dime a dozen, taking on chips, cracks and stains until these vessels finally give up.

We’re carrying diamonds in Dixie cups, the Holy Spirit in ordinary human bodies. But that means that we are more than Dixie cups, and more precious to God than ordinary clay jars. Later in this letter (2 Corinthians 5:16), Paul says, “from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come. The old is gone, the new is here! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them.”

Paul calls this body a shell, a tent, a garment, and a body of death. It is temporary, but diamonds are forever. I’m sure you’ve all had the experience of trying to make that Dixie cup last, so you could use it over and over. That cup starts getting soggy before long. If you work at it, if you keep it dry and don’t bend the paper, you can make it last for a while, but eventually, it falls apart. It isn’t made to last.

These bodies we live in – these jars of clay, mason jars, Dixie cups – aren’t made to last. But the Gospel says that we are more than these Dixie cups. To God, we are pearls of great price, a diamonds in a Dixie cup. God wants us to take care of these bodies, but they aren’t designed to last forever.

So what does this mean to us as a church? Do we regard each other from a worldly point of view? Is anyone too old, too young, too heavy, too thin, too masculine, too feminine, too loud, too quiet? That’s what we see from a worldly point of view. But in Christ, we are a new creation. What matters is what we are becoming. You can’t be too old, to young, too heavy, too thin, too masculine, too feminine, too loud or too quiet to love others, or to serve the church, or to witness to what Christ has done in our lives. In fact, the love we have for each other, and our service to the church, is that much more impressive because it cuts through our physical limitations. Our bodies and our world work against us doing good and loving each other, so if we live like Jesus, it has to be the power of God, and not our own power.

Without Jesus, we can’t do anything. Without Jesus, we’re just empty vessels. But thanks to God, we carry diamonds in dixie cups, and what we seem to be is not what matters. What matters is God’s love for us and how we share it with each other.

When the LORD sent Samuel to find a new King for Israel, He saw David’s older brother and said, “surely the LORD’s anointed stands before me.” God said, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.” (1 Samuel 16:6-7) God is looking at our hearts, those diamonds in these dixie cups. I hope we can learn to look past outward appearances and treasure what is in the heart.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.

Children of God

Therefore, brothers and sisters, we have an obligation—but it is not to the flesh, to live according to it. For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live.

For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.

Romans 8:12-17 NIV

On this Memorial Day weekend, it would be natural to quote a different scripture: “Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.” That’s John 15:13. It’s an appropriate scripture, but today, I want to consider what all those men and women were fighting for. What motivates us to put our lives at risk for a country?

Today’s scripture would be considered radical in many countries. There are very religious societies that consider calling Jesus the Son of God blasphemy deserving of death. Today’s scripture goes a step further. In this passage, WE are encouraged to see OURSELVES as sons and daughters of God. Some societies would forbid such a thought on religious grounds. Others just don’t want ordinary people to elevate themselves like that.

Say what you will about our society, but let’s confess that we are free to make both of these radical statements: That Jesus is the Son of God and we are children of God. We are free, in this country, to call God, “Abba! Father!” These are not required beliefs, but they are not forbidden. Indeed, they are common, and they are concepts worth fighting for.

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” That’s what the Founding Fathers believed, and that’s worth fighting for. If we are sons and daughters of God, then we are inherently important and equal. The Declaration of Independence goes on to say that the only proper role of Government is to secure those rights.

The United States is not officially a Christian nation, but our founding principles absolutely borrow from Christian values. We are a living, growing nation, and when we change, we change in support of those values. At first, all White Men were considered equal; then all men; then both men and women. It does not matter what race or gender, what religion or nationality, what language we speak or what culture we practice. Somewhere deep inside we accept that everyone is equal in the eyes of God and should therefore be equal under the Law. When Peter was sent to the Gentiles, he said, “I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism but accepts from every nation the one who fears Him and does what is right.” (Acts 11:34-35) As God does not show favoritism, our Government’s goal is to practice equality as well. That is worth fighting for.

We read about King David, called “A man after God’s own heart,” overly blessed and surely favored by God. But God didn’t let David get away with having Uriah killed in battle and sleeping with Uriah’s wife. Because of that sin, David was to be at war the rest of his life, and he was not allowed to build the Temple. Everyone is equal under the law. (2 Samuel 10) That is worth fighting for.

We are allowed to believe and teach things that some people consider wrong, unholy, or even blasphemous. We teach that everyone is welcome to take communion. We teach that we have no creed but Jesus, the Christ. We teach that our leader is Jesus Himself, and no one else.

Having said this, we remember and believe that all people are equal under the law. That means that they, too, can preach and things that we don’t believe in, that we consider blasphemous and unholy. We can’t force anyone to believe like we do. That would be illegal, and it would also go against the teachings of Jesus. Jesus praised Samaritans and Roman Centurians, whose religion was not Jewish and not Christian. Paul reasoned with Greeks and Jews alike, without condemnation. There were people in Jesus’ day driving out demons in his name, even though they were not his Disciples. The apostles complained, an Jesus said leave them alone. “Those who are not against us are for us,” He said.

Here’s what Paul said about people who don’t believe and practice exactly like we do: “Who are you to judge someone else’s servant? To their own master, servants stand or fall. And they will stand, for the Lord is able to make them stand.”

There are a lot of people we disagree with, but if we convince them they are wrong, then we are responsible for the result – and we better not be wrong. It’s better to demonstrate our own faith, to show our loyalty to Christ by obeying the teachings of Jesus, than to insist on our own version of doctrine and orthodoxy.

In America, we have the right to disagree. We have the right to walk away from a debate, and to stop the debate in our own homes, in our own churches, or at our own places of business. We have the right to stand up for our rights in the public square – which means that others can stand up for themselves as well. These are principles worth fighting for.

We have every right to call ourselves Children of God. A lot of people have died to defend that right, and the rights of all others to express their own opinions and to worship according to their own consciences. So we are free to accept the teachings of Paul in today’s scripture, and I heartily endorse these teachings.

Let’s hear them again:

“Therefore, brothers and sisters, we have an obligation—but it is not to the flesh, to live according to it. For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live.

“For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.”

I pray that we will receive this teaching. We are children of God. We have received not a spirit of slavery, but the Spirit of adoption. We boldly cry to God, “Abba! Father!” Paul told Timothy that God didn’t give us a spirit of fear, but of power and love and discipline. God has given us the freedom to come boldly to God’s throne. We live by the spirit, not by the flesh, and our brothers and sisters in the military have sacrificed to protect both the spirit and the flesh. I do honor those who have given so much to secure our freedom. But in that Spirit of boldness that God gives us, let’s express our gratitude by living in freedom, not as slaves, but as children of God.

In the name of our Father, and His Son, and the Holy Spirit …

Amen.

 

 

 

Breath of Life

The hand of the Lord was on me, and he brought me out by the Spirit of the Lord and set me in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. He led me back and forth among them, and I saw a great many bones on the floor of the valley, bones that were very dry. He asked me, “Son of man, can these bones live?”

I said, “Sovereign Lord, you alone know.”

Then he said to me, “Prophesy to these bones and say to them, ‘Dry bones, hear the word of the Lord! This is what the Sovereign Lord says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life. I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin; I will put breath in you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the Lord.’”

So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I was prophesying, there was a noise, a rattling sound, and the bones came together, bone to bone. I looked, and tendons and flesh appeared on them and skin covered them, but there was no breath in them.

Then he said to me, “Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to it, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Come, breath, from the four winds and breathe into these slain, that they may live.’” So I prophesied as he commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet—a vast army.

Then he said to me: “Son of man, these bones are the people of Israel. They say, ‘Our bones are dried up and our hope is gone; we are cut off.’ Therefore prophesy and say to them: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: My people, I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them; I will bring you back to the land of Israel. Then you, my people, will know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves and bring you up from them. I will put my Spirit in you and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land. Then you will know that I the Lord have spoken, and I have done it, declares the Lord.’”

— Ezekiel 37:1-14

A lot of people think Ezekiel is talking about the end times, and that may very well be. He talks in detail about the Temple even though it has been destroyed and the people have been taken captive. He talks about Israel possessing the land when that honor belongs to whichever army is winning at the moment. In Ezekiel’s time, Israel was the battlegroundfor Assyrians, Babylonians, Medes, Egyptians and Persians. Jerusalem fell in 586 BC, about halfway through Ezekiel’s ministry. He writes about the restoration of Israel and Jerusalem while he is still exiled into Babylon. In that way, he teaches that God is sovereign and with God’s people even when they are not in Jerusalem or running the Temple.

Ezekiel’s vision of the Dry Bones is a story of resurrection, not just of Israel, but of all God’s people. The dead are not just dead – they are skeletons, dried bones, beyond repair and redemption. So when God asks if the bones can be brought to life, Ezekiel says, “LORD, only you know.” The story is a setup for God doing the impossible with people.

The interesting thing about scripture is this word “wind” or “breath”. In the Hebrew, he word for both is “Ruach”, so that translators just have to pick one based on the context. In the Greek, it’s “Pneuma”, and translators have the same problem. It’s no accident, and I think God invites us to try both out in this passage.

Ezekiel preaches his heart out to the bones, and it does a little good. They come together, regain their moisture, take on flesh and start looking like people. But they are still not alive. So God tells Ezekiel, “Prophesy to the breath… ‘Come from the four winds, o breath, and breathe into these slain, that the may live.” Or, is he preaching to the Spirit? Jesus said the Spirit will come when we ask for it. Jesus said the spirit was like the wind, coming and going in a mystery, and on the day of Pentecost, the disciples heard the sound of a rushing wind before the Holy Spirit came into the room.

On the day of Pentecost, the disciples were maybe a few dozen in a room. Before the day was out, they had won 3,000 converts. Peter said it was a fulfillment of the prophet Joel: “In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy. Your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy.” That’s all inclusive; all ages, all genders, all peoples, slave and free. And if Peter was in the last days, what days are we in now?

Sometimes preachers think they’re talking to dry bones, pouring their hearts out and nothing happens. Sometimes our prayers don’t seem to go past the ceiling. But sometimes the bones rattle and come together, take on flesh and start looking almost alive. The last step is for God to pour out his Spirit. That is what we pray for.
Have you ever heard your sons and daughters prophesy? I have. They have a great understanding of scripture, and some great ideas about how to spread the gospel. I’ll try to encourage them to share that with you.

I’ve heard the visions of your young men, and the dreams of your old men. I don’t know which side of that divide I fall, young man or old man, but it doesn’t matter. Young and old alike, men and women, EVERYBODY has a dream, a vision, a prophesy when God pours out the Spirit on all flesh.

I suppose I’m wearing the mantle of Ezekiel at the moment. The bones have come a long way, coming together and taking on flesh. The discouragement that swept over Israel after so much was is starting to fade. The smoke is clearing from the field of battle. The only ingredient we need to become a vast army for the Kingdom of God is the wind, the breath, the Spirit. We have the words of life, the Gospel of Jesus Christ, who says that God will generously give the Holy Spirit to all who ask for it. Well, I’m asking. I invite you to be asking, too. Let’s pray:

Gracious God, we have spent too much time in the valley of the dry bones. We have been tossed about by conflict and confusion. But you are not the author of confusion. You have been rebuilding us, putting flesh on the bone, and now we cry to you to breathe on us with that life-giving Spirit. Make us an army for your Kingdom, winning souls for Jesus Christ by sharing the Good News of salvation, forgiveness and love. Fill us with your Spirit, Lord, as on the day of Pentecost so long ago.

In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.

Turn On the Power!

In my former book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and to teach until the day he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen. After his suffering, he presented himself to them and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God. On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”

Then they gathered around him and asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?”

He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.

They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. “Men of Galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.”

Acts 1:1-11 NIV

Next Sunday is Pentecost, a celebration of the descent of the Holy Spirit on the church. Our scripture this week is about setting the stage. We see in this passage how unprepared the disciples were and how Jesus was preparing them for an event that would be almost as earth-shaking as the resurrection itself.

It starts by securing faith in the physical resurrection. Jesus “gave them many convincing proofs that he was alive.” Appearing, teaching, even eating, and for 40 days. Moses was 40 days on Mount Sinai receiving the Law. Jesus was 40 days in the wilderness after his baptism. And now the post-resurrection Jesus spends 40 days with the disciples.

“Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?” Without the Holy Spirit, the disciples were still looking for some political or financial benefit to everything they had been through. They still didn’t understand that Jesus’ kingdom was not of this world, as He said to Pilot (John 18:36). Today, we’re still looking for Jesus to restore the kingdom to Israel.

Jesus wanted the disciples to keep their eyes on the ball, which was spiritual, not political. “It is not for you to know,” He said, “… but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” This sentence is an outline of the whole book of Acts.

Some people want to call it “The Acts of the Holy Spirit.” That doesn’t work for me. It tells about the Actions of the Apostles in establishing the early church. Their work is done, but the Acts of the Holy Spirit continue to this day.

As an aside, let’s consider what they did after Jesus ascended into heaven but before the Holy Spirit came down. They decided to name a replacement for Judas, rolled the dice and picked Matthias – and that’s the first and last we hear about Matthias. Did you ever think maybe Paul was supposed to be the replacement? It doesn’t matter, but I think it’s important to remember that the Bible reports things that happened even if they weren’t supposed to happen like that.

Let’s not forget the meaning of the word “Acts” It is about things done, and it doesn’t sugar-coat the story. What are the Acts of the Apostles? Peter goes to the Gentiles, against every religious principal he has been taught, but Paul tells us later that Peter still had not gotten over his tendency to look down on them. (Galatians 2:12-13) The early church fought over which widows deserve church charity, and who would do the visitation. (Acts 6:1) Paul and Barnabas split up over John Mark. (Acts 16:37-39) Paul gave a sermon so long that a young man fell asleep and fell out the window. (Acts 20:9-10) There’s a lesson for all of us there. Yours is, “Don’t fall asleep during the sermon.” Mine is,” Try to stop talking before they start nodding off.”

I do notice the mistakes and wrong turns that people make in the Bible, and here in the book of Acts. It matters to me because I know that if God can use them, God can use us, too. I also know that if you try, you will make mistakes, but God will find a way to bless those mistakes. Peter didn’t like Gentiles, but he did go to the Gentiles. They fought over widows and shut-ins, but they did take care of widows. Paul and Barnabas split up over John Mark, but they covered twice as much ground that way, and Paul did take Mark back into his good graces. (2 Timothy 4:11) Yes, Paul did preach too long, but at least he was preaching!

The ending of our passage today should give us a lot to think about. First, Jesus was taken out of their sight. And for us, it is not important what Jesus looked like, how tall He was, what his complexion was like. These are things we will never know and don’t need to know. But the disciples kept looking, trying to get one last glimpse, when the angels said, “Why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus who has been taken from you into heaven will come back in the same way … “

Jesus is coming back, but that doesn’t mean we should spend our time looking into the sky, trying to figure out the times and seasons. Our job is to act! Until we receive the Holy Spirit, we are to prepare, pray, and gather together, just like they did in the Book. Then, when we receive the Holy Spirit, we are to get on with the business of building the church. We are to go and make disciples, go and care for widows and shut-ins, go and preach.

Jesus told many parables about the Landowner leaving town and coming back. Good things happened when He caught the tenants working and taking care of His business. God is the landowner, and we are the tenants. It isn’t enough to adore the landowner, to say good things about the landowner, to watch for the landowner coming home. The task is to take care of the Landowner’s business!

You know how I love bouncing around in Bible translations. The Message translation is not my favorite – but Eugene Peterson, who wrote The Message, is first a pastor, then a Bible scholar. His introduction to the book of acts is a good summary of what I’m trying to say:

“Because the story of Jesus is so impressive … there is a danger that we will be impressed, but only impressed. As the spectacular dimensions of this story slowly (or suddenly) dawn upon us, we could easily become enthusiastic spectators, and then let it go at that. … The story of Jesus doesn’t end with Jesus. It continues in the lives of those who believe in him.”

The key word is “Acts,” which is doing the work of God. There is not a lot in the book about worshipping Jesus, but there is a lot about working in the power of the Holy Spirit. Next Sunday is Pentecost, celebrating the descent of the Holy Spirit. We will know that Spirit is in us, that the power is turned on, when we see ourselves doing taking care of the Landowner’s business, daring to do things that we know we can’t do except by the power of the Holy Spirit.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, pray for that Spirit to turn on the power in our lives. Amen.

Abiding in Christ

For most of my adult life, I was not a practicing Christian. I have made no secret of that. From my early teens into my thirties, I was a cult chaser, a new-ager, a rebel against the faith of my fathers. When I became a father, I returned to Christianity – but I still wasn’t very active in the faith. It was 25 years ago when the news of the day finally drove me to read the Bible, cover to cover. My life was never the same. This is that Bible – a simple King James Version, $10 brand new.

Now, I know that the King James is not the favorite translation of many people in this church. The language is dusty, the translation sketchy, and the motivation of the translators was to justify the Anglican Church status quo. But it does contain the unvarnished Gospel, and that is what changed my life.

So I beg your indulgence as I use this Bible for today’s message. My scripture is John 15:1-5. I invite you to read along in your favorite translation:

I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman.

Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit.

Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.

Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.

I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.

Your New International Version reads a bit differently. I’m not talking about the ye’s and the –eth’s. Today, I want to focus on the word “abide.” In the NIV and other translations, it’s “remain”. NIV is a great translation, the one I usually use. But “remain” implies an effort, something I hold onto, as when we remain steadfast. “Abide”, on the other hand, sounds like resting, remaining still. It’s a subtle difference, and it might be all in my head, but “remain” or “stay” sounds like something I do, whereas “abide” feels like somewhere I am, or something God lets me do.

The faith is confusing is you take scripture in bits and pieces. Paul says it’s faith, not works, that save us, while James says that faith without works is dead. It sounds like a conflict, but it isn’t. I think that Paul would agree that true faith is active and alive, motivating us to do God’s will. I also think James would agree that we are saved not by works, but by faith in Christ. I think we need both perspectives to understand what Jesus was about.

We all know about the many times Jesus told His disciples what to do. He instructed them, and us, to take action in order to demonstrate our love for one another. But here, we see where Paul got his doctrine of faith not works. Here, the apostle John remembers that Jesus said we should simply abide in Him.

The branches do not try to bear fruit, and nobody asks for pruning. We don’t do the work of bearing fruit. Rather, it is the natural result of being well connected to the vine. Paul obviously knew these sayings of Jesus because he talked about our being grafted into the vine.

Abiding in Christ means staying connected, resting in Him, and letting Jesus do His work in our lives. Jesus said the work of God was to believe in Christ, and here, He says that we will bear fruit by simply abiding in Him.

This was the Gospel that saved my soul. I was a workaholic, all about performance, always trying to get better, to do more, and never satisfied with myself. I thought I could never be good enough to enter heaven. I kept looking for that narrow road. But when I finally read the Bible for myself, I found that narrow road. It is Jesus, plain and simple. It is abiding in Him, plain and simple. It is loving Jesus, learning Jesus, and being satisfied with Jesus. The Gospel is simple. Jesus is the Gospel. He called himself the gate to the sheepfold. He said, “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life.” I had been fighting to find another way, when all along, Jesus was saying, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30)

Can it be more obvious than that? Jesus Christ, the One we call Savior and Lord, the Son of God, says, “Strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.” (Matthew 7:14) But He also says it is an easy yoke and a light burden. Few find the narrow way not because it is difficult, but because it is narrow.

I stuggled to have faith, and I could not force it on myself. I let go and let God, abiding in Christ, and my faith began to grow. I worked to please God and found no peace; I settled into God’s arms and found acceptance and joy. I discovered that Jesus told the truth, and that Paul understood it. The key to bearing fruit is remaining attached to the vine. The key to the Christian life is abiding in Christ.

Obvious, we in the West are hooked on performance. We set high standards for ourselves and hold others to high standards as well. Sometimes, intentionally or not, we preach that salvation comes through effort, through good works, or even through the hard work of holding specific doctrines and beliefs. When we do, we are wrong. It is not about performance; it is about love. It is not about generating activity; it is about bearing fruit, and that only comes from abiding in Christ.

I appreciate that some people reject Christianity outright. I believe that it is usually because of those who are miserable in the faith, holding others up to standards that they themselves can’t live up to, either. Jesus knew that we can’t save one another by judging one another. In fact, we can’t save one another at all. All we can do is abide in Christ, and share the joy of that experience with others.

So to those who are working so hard to please God, I say give up. God’s will is that you fall in love with God’s son, because Jesus reminds us that God is love; God wants our love; and God wants to share God’s love with us as we share that love with one another.

You think it can’t be that simple? It really is that simple. If you don’t believe it, read the book for yourself, and remember that the cornerstone is not Moses, or Paul, or Abraham. The cornerstone is Jesus. It won’t make sense until and unless you abide in Jesus.

May you simply abide in Christ.

Regarding Scripture Translations

I love the King James Version of the Holy Bible. I also love the New International Version, the New Revised Standard Version, the Good News Translation, the New Living Translation, and The Message. But I first read the King James Version, and I love antiques, to the KJV has a special place in my heart.

Some say the KJV is the Gold Standard of scripture, and others say it is the only legitimate English translation. Still others say it is a deeply flawed and outdated translation that has no place in the church today. I think we can benefit from knowing a variety of translations, but the KJV is foundational to our language and our culture. There is much to recommend the KJV. But we have to accept that, in addition to its arcane language, the KJV also has an intentional bias imposed by King James VI – that it should better support the Church of England’s structure and its restriction of authority to ordained male clergy.

Many in the KJV-Only crowd say that modern translations have softened the message, tending to deny the Deity of Christ or the specific church doctrines surrounding His birth, ministry and resurrection. I do not believe this has been done intentionally, if at all. More to the point, I think that all subsequent translations have so honored the KJV as to promulgate its misogyny and other flaws that are not so prevalent in the original languages.

However, as evidence that the NIV has not intentionally softened anything, I note a passage in which the NIV has “hardened” church doctrine while remaining faithful to the historic manuscripts.

According to Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, the Greek word “archegos” can be translated “prince”, “author”, or “captain”. In Hebrews 12:2, both the KJV and the NIV translate the word as “author”, as in Jesus is the author and finisher of our faith. In Hebrews 2:10, the word becomes “captain” in the KJV but “pioneer” in NIV. In that verse, the KJV says that Jesus is the Captain of our salvation, thus being in charge of it. The NIV is saying that Jesus is the Pioneer of our salvation, as in the first to discover it. That is the kind of softening that leads the KJV-Only crowd to reject the NIV.

However, at Acts 3:15, the KJV translates “archegos” to say that Peter called Jesus is “the Prince of Life.” In this instance, the NIV translates it as “Author.” Thus Peter called Jesus “the Author of Life,” indicating that Peter already agreed with John 1:3 – “Through him all things were made(NIV)/All things were made by him(KJV).”

For all the complaints about the NIV (from the KJV crowd), I’ve never heard a complaint about this passage. I think it is because the NIV translation is more supportive of the Deity of Christ than is the KJV translation. Even so, I see nothing in these various passages to indicate which meaning – prince, captain, author, perfecter – best represents the intent of the original speaker or writer. If we take their shared meaning, which I might translate as “primary driver”, we lose the royalty of Prince, the authority of Captain, the pre-eminence of Author and the immediacy of Perfecter.

It is a shame that we cannot have all these meanings without having to select one for English translation. In the original language, there is no requirement to narrow it down. All of these possible meanings are existent in the word “archegos”. Sometimes a word represents a feeling or sentiment in one language that simply has no equivalent in another language. Language is a synthesis of the shared history, mythology, art and education of a given culture. We don’t share those things with ancient Greeks, Romans or Hebrews, so the best we can hope for from many words is an educated guess.

This essay will probably have readers who insist that the KJV is a perfect translation, and others who think that it is outdated and seriously flawed. The truth, I believe, lies somewhere between those two opinions. I think we should accept that the shortcomings of modern translators were probably shared by KJV translators as well.

I am grateful that God has enabled so many translations of scripture to exist, by inspiring people of goodwill to take on the task of translation. But in doing so, I think God has also revealed the imperfection of all people, in every generation. In this digital age, we have every resource we need to consider various translations, the original languages, the cultures and sects that generated each translation, and the hazards of expecting one language to replace another, whether of a different culture or of a different time.

Rather than elevate or vilify any translation, we should consider more than one and pray for insight to find the truth. More importantly, we should accept our own flawed view of God’s Word and that of others as well. We are encouraged to have mercy and to love one another – and that’s a message common to every translation.

 

 

Oh, Save!

The next day the great crowd that had come for the festival heard that Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem. They took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting,

“Hosanna!”
“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”
“Blessed is the king of Israel!” 

Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, as it is written:

“Do not be afraid, Daughter Zion;
see, your king is coming,
seated on a donkey’s colt.”

At first his disciples did not understand all this. Only after Jesus was glorified did they realize that these things had been written about him and that these things had been done to him.

— John 12:12-16

This account of Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem quotes Zechariah 9.9. The Septuagint, a Greek Bible translation that was common in Jesus’ day, says, “Behold, a King is coming to you, Just, and a Savior. He is meek and riding on an ass, and a young foal.”

People who knew the details of this prophecy surely understood the details. Zechariah was written during the many battles of Alexander the Great. This was the fall of the Holy Land to what would become the Greek Empire, later to be taken over by the Romans. The King’s entry on a donkey was appropriate. The very next verse refers to the war-horses, but entry on a donkey was a sign of a peaceful entry.

“Your king is just (or righteous),” unlike many of the traditional kings of Israel, and he was a Savior (or “having salvation” NIV). The very phrase “Jesus Saves” originates from verses like this. The word “Hosanna” is Hebrew for “save”. The cry of “Hosanna” was like crying, “Save us!” In Zechariah’s time, the King would save the people from the bloodshed so common under Alexander the Great. In the New Testament, people likely considered this salvation as liberation from Roman occupation.

After Jesus was glorified, the disciples understood this and other prophesies. But given that the Roman occupation continued and grew worse, they must also have understood that this salvation was spiritual, not political. Jesus saved them not from the troubles of this world, but from the troubling sins and doubt that curse every human.

For the most part, the New Testament writers are giving account of a journey, in which Jesus’ companions change and His nature is revealed in people and events He encounters along the way. Jesus goes from Bethelehem to Egypt to Nazareth to Capernaum through Samaria to Jerusalem and ultimately to Galgotha. We see the journey from infancy to childhood to submission to John, then on to His ministry as Messiah and Savior of the world. And in these encounters, as Jesus blesses a Gentile leper, a Roman centurion, a Samaritan adulteress and a condemned thief, we learn that Jesus came to fulfill the prophesies of Israel, but to bless and save all of humankind. Or, as Zechariah 9:10 proclaims, “He will proclaim peace to the nations.”

We shouldn’t get too cocky about those in history who expected Jesus to be a warrior or a literal king. Jesus enters our lives on a donkey, low and humble, with more fanfare than force. We have our own expectations of Jesus. We may expect Him to grant us riches, or perfect health, or some advantage over nonbelievers. We expect Jesus to make a path for us, when scripture says instead we should be clearing the path for Him.

So what good is peace in the midst of war and conflict? What is healing in a body that remains vulnerable to disease and age? How are our enemies defeated when to the naked eye they appear to remain in power? What is salvation, anyway?

In Romans, Paul had much to say about this “body of death” in which we live. We sin against our own better judgment. We are easily led astray. We fail to follow Jesus then cry that we are lost. Most of our wounds are self-inflicted, the result of a flawed human nature straying from God’s will for our lives and our world. It does little good to save us from war, poverty and suffering if we continue to harm ourselves and others by taking the wrong path and making bad decisions.

It is from that Body of Death that we are saved. We are saved from our own tendency to make wrong choices that hurt us and others. We are saved from the condemnation that we deserve for making those choices. In short, we are saved from ourselves. We die to self and live for Christ, and in doing so, we follow the only One who was without sin.

As we understand the humility of Christ, the peace of His reign and the nature of His kingdom, we start to lose our expectations of comfort in this life. The mature Christian is revealed not in our freedom from suffering, but in our integrity and faith in the midst of suffering. If we expect a material advantage from the Lordship of Jesus, we are as wrong as those who expected Him to conquer the Romans and drive them out of the Promised Land.

Once, when a brother asked Jesus to tell his brother to divide the inheritance, Jesus said, “Who made me judge over you?” Jesus did not come to mediate between fallen people – for all of us have fallen short. Rather, Jesus came to make us new creatures, and in doing so to make us a new family in God through Jesus.

The followers of Jesus are not divinely blessed with an advantage in this world. The advantage comes from Jesus saving us from the Body of Death, inspiring us to die to self and live for Him. These advantages are freely offered to everyone.

A caged bird might still be a bird, but it does not fly. When we clip its wings, we remove a part of its essence. Some of us see Christianity as a cage, a set of rules telling us, “Don’t fly. Don’t taste. Don’t touch.” But what if the cage is our own fallen selves, our tendencies to face the bars when we could as easily turn and fly through the door? Jesus came to set the captives free! We are held captive to our own appetites, misunderstandings, temptations and greed. If the Son has set you free from these, from that cage that we build around ourselves, then you are free indeed.

Jesus descends from the Mount of Olives, meeting us where we are in this dark valley of death and sin. He is humble, riding on a donkey, but He is righteous, and His offering to us is salvation. Jesus weeps over our stubborn Jerusalem hearts when we fail to see the great gift He offers. He also rejoices with all of Heaven over each sinner who accepts the gift with repentance and thanksgiving.

Save us from what? You know from what! From ourselves, and from the lie we have learned from this fallen world. As we enter Holy Week and march to Resurrection Sunday, I pray that we might all die with Christ and rise with Him into that newness of life He came to provide.

From Out of Nowhere

Jesus is the ultimate outsider – adapted by foreign cultures, rejected by His own, at conflict in His day with Pharisees, Sadducees and Zealots – translate as the radical, establishment and rebellious branches of Judaism. And with every new generation, Jesus is adopted by traditionalists and progressives alike, each convinced that His true teaching agrees with theirs.

Jesus is a religious outsider. According to Hebrews 5, Jesus is “a priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek.” The first mention of any priest in scripture is a reference to Melchizedek, King of Salem (“peace”) and Priest of the Most High God (“Elyon El”). Melchizedek came from out of nowhere. “Without father or mother, without genealogy, without beginning of days or end of life, resembling the Son of God, [Melchizedek] remains a priest forever.” (Hebrews 7:3)

The people of His day expected the Messiah to be a King, not a Priest. Melchizedek was both, the first of his kind and honored by Abraham, father of Israel and many other nations. Through Joseph, Jesus’ lineage was accepted as in the house of David. With the virgin birth, that lineage is cast into doubt. And Jesus could not be a traditional priest because he was not a Levite, the priestly tribe. “For it is clear that our Lord descended from Judah, and in regard to that tribe Moses said nothing about priests.” (Hebrew 7:14)

Wrong place, wrong time, wrong people, friend of sinners and the outcast. In Him the Gentiles place their hope. Jesus was, and still is, the ultimate outsider.

In the late 1960s and 1970s, boys could be expelled from school for wearing their hair too long or growing facial hair. In response, we all pointed to Warren Sallman’s “Head of Christ”, the iconic Jesus image with shoulder-length hair and that perfect beard. The painting sold more than 500 million copies, and that Jesus was also featured in other Sallman paintings. With that, our parents were forced to admit that “we don’t actually know what Jesus looked like”. That, in turn, opened the door to even the even more radical possibility that Jesus was more Middle Eastern than White.

Still, each generation tends to see Jesus as looking like themselves – in opinion and morality, if not physically. In 1939, German theologians established the Institute for the Study and Eradication of Jewish Influence on German Religious Life. It’s purpose was to remake Jesus in the Nazi image, the perfect Aryan who started Christianity to oppose Judaism. The notion turns history on its head, and yet it isn’t so different from many anti-Semitic, Aryan groups that exist even today.

In Matthew, Jesus sent out the twelve disciples, saying, “Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel.” (Matt. 10:5-6) But the people Jesus healed were largely Gentiles and Samaritans. And at John 12:21, the Greek visitors seeking Jesus during the festival was taken as a sign that Jesus’ ministry was nearly done. (“The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.” 12:23)

This outsider status of Jesus has spiritual significance. None of us can claim to possess Jesus; we are either grafted-in Gentiles to a Jewish Rabbi or descendants of His people who rejected Him. Jesus does not mimick our looks, our politics, our morality, nor anything else about us. He possesses us, not vice versa, and He is the cornerstone to which we must square our lives – not vice versa.

It is tempting to remake Jesus into our image. But Jesus knows no political party, because the parties hold the moral high ground like the gambler holds cards – some good, some not so much. All have sinned and fallen short of the Glory of God – and Jesus is the standard by which that is determined.

This outsider status is also a tool for evangelism. “But you were raised Christian; I wasn’t.” Jesus was not raised Christian! “If I was blessed like you, I’d be a Christian, too.” Jesus was a blessing, but few people would describe Jesus as “blessed.” “I just don’t fit in; I’m not like you.” Jesus was not like anybody. He was unique, from out of nowhere, after the order of Melchizedek.

In short, Jesus comes from somewhere else, from outside of our world, our opinions, our viewpoints. We are equally challenged by the life of Jesus, and we all fall short. We can’t use Jesus to control others – indeed, we can’t use Jesus at all! Rather, Jesus uses us to forward His kingdom. We pray for God’s will, not our own, and we see Jesus as the ultimate example of one putting God’s will above His own.

Jesus comes from out of nowhere. When we embrace that concept, we empower the Gospel story to bring eternal life to whoever believes, from all nations, cultures and generations. Remake Him like us, and we take Him away from those who are different. A Jesus who is more like us is less like Jesus. God forbid that we should compromise the Gospel to fit our agenda, regardless of which direction it leans.