I had a real good, close friendship with a guy that I used to work with a few years ago. The friendship that we had started as casual acquaintances and turned into a relationship that was fun and meaningful. He is such a great guy!
During the course of our friendship, our relationship changed and I am sure that it was to his disliking. I changed. I noticed that I was invited less to hang out. I noticed that he felt a bit uneasy around me. I changed but yet did not. He was struggling with who he thought I was and who he thought he had to be around me. He did not feel he could be himself around me any longer. I never once articulated anything to him that would imply this thought but his words and actions confirmed it. That was discouraging. I accepted him as is; no strings attached. After all, I knew him before I changed.
Here is some back history.
I started following Jesus when I was seven. I grew up in a conservative, God-centered home and went to a conservative, fundamental church. I learned and grew in my relationship with Jesus and God.
However, I have mentioned in previous writings that I am a bit of a rebel (a tame rebel, but still...). As a creative person, I believe that it is written into my DNA that I push back. I am not sure why but it just seems to happen.
I rebelled in High School; not that this was the first time but just the most noticeable. I was always pushing the envelope for "acceptable" hair length, "acceptable" side burn length and don't even get me started about chewing gum in class!
All the while, I was encountering a growing love and knowledge of Jesus. What I discovered as I studied the Bible completely turned my white-washed, sanitized view of Christianity completely upside-down.
Here is what I mean.
Throughout Jesus' life, He interacts with the sick, hurting, destitute, diseased, poor, crooks, laborers, prostitutes, murderers and uneducated. He engages them with passion and love. He asks them to follow him into a new way of life.
Here, consider this:
"When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, "Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and 'sinners'?
Here read it for yourself:
"Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples: "The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat. So you must obey them and do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach. They tie up heavy loads and put them on men's shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to move them. (Matt 23: 1-4)"
Jesus goes on to list seven different "woes" about this group of religious teachers and experts of the Jewish law. Let's not dwell on kicking them with Jesus. Rather, let's take a look at the lesson we can learn from what Jesus is trying to convey to us, today. Jesus is communicating that these teachers appear to "have it all together" but in reality their hearts are distant from God. Yet, in stark contrast, the "sinners" have hearts yearning for God but they are messed up and don't "have it all together."
How can we apply this to our world now? What does this say about the people we interact with?
Let's go back to the friend of mine that I mentioned earlier.
After college, I lived for my own will- doing what I wanted, when I wanted. It was not very Jesus-like. During this "my way" period of my life, I encountered my friend. He got to know the most selfish version of me. Then, six years ago, I chose to come back to my first love, Jesus. I was baptized and started living my life as I had learned since I was seven. Most people would probably say that this was a good thing. I became more giving, more loving, more compassionate, more self-less, I stopped smoking, I stopped swearing and I drank alcohol less (and with more restraint).
However, in my friends opinion (which he articulated on a few occasions), he could not be himself around me. I invited him to some of the gatherings that we had at our church (called eleVation) and he actually told me he didn't think he could go. Here is kinda how our interaction went down (I have changed his name to Diego):
"Hey Diego, you should check out eleVation tonight. I am playing drums and would love it if you could be there. Think you can make it?"
"I am not sure I would fit in," Diego said bluntly.
"What do you mean?" I replied.
"Well, it's at your church, right?"
"Yeah..." I said as I waited for his response.
"Well, I'm not that great of a person and lightening may strike me if I step in the door!"
He was serious! He ended up coming that night and commented a bunch on how he shouldn't be there because he wasn't good enough. It killed me inside. I was so sad to see a friend who I dearly loved struggling like this.
See the part of Jesus' message that He did not understand is that Jesus accepts us as is. That is called grace. God does not expect us to come to His Son, Jesus, all fixed up and "perfect" so that we can then gain admission into His favor. God's expectation is for us to come willingly to Him by giving up our way for His way and this is accomplished through trusting His Son, Jesus.
I heard John Burke put it this way once that nobody looks at a great work of art covered in mud and dirt only to reject it as garbage. Instead, they help carefully clean away the dirt and mud to help reveal the beautiful masterpiece that lies beneath the muck. Well, that's the gist of what he said anyway.
This is true of all of us. We all have dirt. The good news is that God still wants a relationship with us in spite of our short comings.
I tried to show him this truth. I tried to live this out in a tangible, authentic way. I am sure that in my own imperfection, I screwed up a bunch but I am convinced that even in my screw ups that I did not mess up what God was doing in my friends life. My friend needed to be willing to hear and see the truth of Jesus at work in his life. I can only point him to the truth; he must accept it.
So, here is the invitation and it goes out to all people... Jesus accepts us as imperfect people and leads us into a new way of life that is characterized by our willingness to love God and love people. The Way of Christ heals the brokenness in this world and unleashes us into living a life of purpose and meaning.
During the course of our friendship, our relationship changed and I am sure that it was to his disliking. I changed. I noticed that I was invited less to hang out. I noticed that he felt a bit uneasy around me. I changed but yet did not. He was struggling with who he thought I was and who he thought he had to be around me. He did not feel he could be himself around me any longer. I never once articulated anything to him that would imply this thought but his words and actions confirmed it. That was discouraging. I accepted him as is; no strings attached. After all, I knew him before I changed.
Here is some back history.
I started following Jesus when I was seven. I grew up in a conservative, God-centered home and went to a conservative, fundamental church. I learned and grew in my relationship with Jesus and God.
However, I have mentioned in previous writings that I am a bit of a rebel (a tame rebel, but still...). As a creative person, I believe that it is written into my DNA that I push back. I am not sure why but it just seems to happen.
I rebelled in High School; not that this was the first time but just the most noticeable. I was always pushing the envelope for "acceptable" hair length, "acceptable" side burn length and don't even get me started about chewing gum in class!
All the while, I was encountering a growing love and knowledge of Jesus. What I discovered as I studied the Bible completely turned my white-washed, sanitized view of Christianity completely upside-down.
Here is what I mean.
Throughout Jesus' life, He interacts with the sick, hurting, destitute, diseased, poor, crooks, laborers, prostitutes, murderers and uneducated. He engages them with passion and love. He asks them to follow him into a new way of life.
Here, consider this:
"When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, "Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and 'sinners'?
On hearing this, Jesus said, 'It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. But go and learn what this means: 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice.' For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.' (Matt 9:11-13)"
Here read it for yourself:
"Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples: "The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat. So you must obey them and do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach. They tie up heavy loads and put them on men's shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to move them. (Matt 23: 1-4)"
Jesus goes on to list seven different "woes" about this group of religious teachers and experts of the Jewish law. Let's not dwell on kicking them with Jesus. Rather, let's take a look at the lesson we can learn from what Jesus is trying to convey to us, today. Jesus is communicating that these teachers appear to "have it all together" but in reality their hearts are distant from God. Yet, in stark contrast, the "sinners" have hearts yearning for God but they are messed up and don't "have it all together."
How can we apply this to our world now? What does this say about the people we interact with?
Let's go back to the friend of mine that I mentioned earlier.
After college, I lived for my own will- doing what I wanted, when I wanted. It was not very Jesus-like. During this "my way" period of my life, I encountered my friend. He got to know the most selfish version of me. Then, six years ago, I chose to come back to my first love, Jesus. I was baptized and started living my life as I had learned since I was seven. Most people would probably say that this was a good thing. I became more giving, more loving, more compassionate, more self-less, I stopped smoking, I stopped swearing and I drank alcohol less (and with more restraint).
However, in my friends opinion (which he articulated on a few occasions), he could not be himself around me. I invited him to some of the gatherings that we had at our church (called eleVation) and he actually told me he didn't think he could go. Here is kinda how our interaction went down (I have changed his name to Diego):
"Hey Diego, you should check out eleVation tonight. I am playing drums and would love it if you could be there. Think you can make it?"
"I am not sure I would fit in," Diego said bluntly.
"What do you mean?" I replied.
"Well, it's at your church, right?"
"Yeah..." I said as I waited for his response.
"Well, I'm not that great of a person and lightening may strike me if I step in the door!"
He was serious! He ended up coming that night and commented a bunch on how he shouldn't be there because he wasn't good enough. It killed me inside. I was so sad to see a friend who I dearly loved struggling like this.
See the part of Jesus' message that He did not understand is that Jesus accepts us as is. That is called grace. God does not expect us to come to His Son, Jesus, all fixed up and "perfect" so that we can then gain admission into His favor. God's expectation is for us to come willingly to Him by giving up our way for His way and this is accomplished through trusting His Son, Jesus.
I heard John Burke put it this way once that nobody looks at a great work of art covered in mud and dirt only to reject it as garbage. Instead, they help carefully clean away the dirt and mud to help reveal the beautiful masterpiece that lies beneath the muck. Well, that's the gist of what he said anyway.
This is true of all of us. We all have dirt. The good news is that God still wants a relationship with us in spite of our short comings.
I tried to show him this truth. I tried to live this out in a tangible, authentic way. I am sure that in my own imperfection, I screwed up a bunch but I am convinced that even in my screw ups that I did not mess up what God was doing in my friends life. My friend needed to be willing to hear and see the truth of Jesus at work in his life. I can only point him to the truth; he must accept it.
So, here is the invitation and it goes out to all people... Jesus accepts us as imperfect people and leads us into a new way of life that is characterized by our willingness to love God and love people. The Way of Christ heals the brokenness in this world and unleashes us into living a life of purpose and meaning.
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composed by
dave
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