"Blessed are those who are persecuted for my name's sake."
This was not spoken by a man who looked like a Hollywood star with great skin and long, flowing hair with a cool looking beard. Nor was it likely to get retweeted if Twitter was on the scene.
No, these were the words of a master leader; a savior; a man who knew the true meaning of sacrifice because He embodied it; the Son of God.
Not sure about you but I am uncomfortable when I read about Christ. He challenges me. He causes me to re-examine my complaints and my whining.
Philip Yancey in his work, "Unwrapping Jesus", says this: "Few people felt comfortable around Jesus; those who did were the type no one else felt comfortable around. The Jesus I met in the Gospels was anything but tame."
When we serve as missionaries in this barren land, we must maintain this sense of discomfort. Why? We remain dependent on Him. We stay desparate for Him. And that's the essence of serving strong - following the untame God who calls us and who is our strength.
Are you uncomfortable around Jesus?
I believe Jesus was an ordinary man, although a phrophet or a medium and healer...no more and no less......if we worship him or anyone or anything else then we lose our free will and we're unable to take responsibility for ourselves.
Posted by: Violet Kerner | February 10, 2010 at 04:59 AM
Violet, I appreciate your insight. Thank you for sharing it. I don't believe as you do but as Aristotle once said, "It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it." I pray sincerely for you and your household today. Jesus was more than a man and it was He who is the source of our free will.
Posted by: Scott Couchenour | February 10, 2010 at 06:32 AM