A Personal Gospel
Hello everyone!! Now that we are officially moving into a time when the core team that is taking this journey with me is beginning to develop, I wanted to start adding some substance to the discussion of this blog. I think that we should start with what I think is an important point that begins with a story......
I was in Borders with some friends one evening when we were confronted by two people who really did not have anything nice to say about people who follow Jesus, or anybody who is part of some type of organized religion for that matter, but mostly just followers of Jesus. One of them made a statement that I think is vital. She said that the problem is that the Gospel of Jesus is too personal.....
That is an important point. Our Gospel is personal. Have you ever stopped and thought of the implications of that? John 1:14 says that the word came and dwelt among us. Jesus walked through this world and suddenly, God got very personal. Granted, the Bible is filled with accounts of God getting personal with people. But has anyone ever stopped to think of the implications of that personal encounter that we call in church speak "the Incarnation"?
Did Jesus ever have bad breath? How about body odor? Did he ever burn a meal?
Did he ever pull a practical joke on one of the disciples?
If Jesus ever took time to daydream, what would he have thought about?
These things might sound kind of strange, they may even make us uncomfortable because we like to keep Jesus distant. We are not cool with the divinity thing, but sometimes we lose the humanity side. We forget that the God we serve, sent his son to live like us. Granted, Jesus was without sin, so let's not forget that, however, he lived like us. Think about your life, the details of it that get lost in actually living. The wonderful complexity of the human body and mind, the details of human relationships, the grandure of creation. All the things that we do not pay attention to because we are too busy to stop and notice. I think that Jesus understood these things better than anyone. Yes because he created them, but also because of something more...
In light of these kinds of thoughts, I like to think that long before Jesus ever taught people anything, performed a public miracle, had disciples, or went to the cross, he livedthe Gospel.
Today, we are no different. long before we ever go public with our faith, it must become a personal thing. Carrying the message of Jesus, and according to the Bible, having Jesus in us (Revelation 3:20), it should alter the sum of all that we are. The details of our lives should start to change, so as we begin this process, let the Gospel be personal and live it. Enjoy the Journey.....
PJ
I was in Borders with some friends one evening when we were confronted by two people who really did not have anything nice to say about people who follow Jesus, or anybody who is part of some type of organized religion for that matter, but mostly just followers of Jesus. One of them made a statement that I think is vital. She said that the problem is that the Gospel of Jesus is too personal.....
That is an important point. Our Gospel is personal. Have you ever stopped and thought of the implications of that? John 1:14 says that the word came and dwelt among us. Jesus walked through this world and suddenly, God got very personal. Granted, the Bible is filled with accounts of God getting personal with people. But has anyone ever stopped to think of the implications of that personal encounter that we call in church speak "the Incarnation"?
Did Jesus ever have bad breath? How about body odor? Did he ever burn a meal?
Did he ever pull a practical joke on one of the disciples?
If Jesus ever took time to daydream, what would he have thought about?
These things might sound kind of strange, they may even make us uncomfortable because we like to keep Jesus distant. We are not cool with the divinity thing, but sometimes we lose the humanity side. We forget that the God we serve, sent his son to live like us. Granted, Jesus was without sin, so let's not forget that, however, he lived like us. Think about your life, the details of it that get lost in actually living. The wonderful complexity of the human body and mind, the details of human relationships, the grandure of creation. All the things that we do not pay attention to because we are too busy to stop and notice. I think that Jesus understood these things better than anyone. Yes because he created them, but also because of something more...
In light of these kinds of thoughts, I like to think that long before Jesus ever taught people anything, performed a public miracle, had disciples, or went to the cross, he livedthe Gospel.
Today, we are no different. long before we ever go public with our faith, it must become a personal thing. Carrying the message of Jesus, and according to the Bible, having Jesus in us (Revelation 3:20), it should alter the sum of all that we are. The details of our lives should start to change, so as we begin this process, let the Gospel be personal and live it. Enjoy the Journey.....
PJ
posted by PJ | 6:21 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home