Category: Jesus

“I wrote many novels without being aware that they reflected my quest for meaning in a world without God.” But after deciding later in life that Jesus is who He says He is, Anne Rice dedicated herself entirely to Christ. “Now what happened in 2002 was this: I was praying, I was talking to the Lord, I was discussing my writing with Him, and what came over me was the awareness that if I believed in Him as completely as I said I did, I ought to write entirely for Him. Anything I could do ought to be for Him. I told Him so. I set out to put this into practice. The day I told the Lord I’d write for Him, and Him only, I now see as the most important single day of my entire life. Truly not the simplest things have been the same since.” These words come from the Author’s Note at the end of “Christ the Lord – Out of Egypt,” Anne Rice’s first novel about Jesus. Before reading it, on the long flight from Washington D.C. to Johannesburg, I read her second book of this series, “Christ the Lord – The Road to Cana.” These books, written from Jesus’ perspective, are quite remarkable… and powerful.

As a writer, Anne Rice is not only known for telling great stories, but for being historically accurate in the details of setting, culture, and community. We all know Jesus grew up in Nazareth with His mother, Mary, and her husband, Joseph, a carpenter. What we rarely think about, because of Scripture’s silence, is what exactly Jesus did from age twelve to thirty.

In Namibia I met someone that made me think of Jesus, the Carpenter. His name was Stephen and he was a brick mason. We helped him build a wall and after two days of working with him, I thought to myself, “I’ll bet this is the way Jesus worked.” Stephen worked from 7:30 am to 5:30 pm in the hot African sun without complaint and without fanfare. If he knew I was writing this, he would probably laugh and say, “I just worked the way I always do.” He was honest; he was diligent; he did excellent work; he did not desire any glory… he was just determined to do a good job.

I don’t guess this is an overly fascinating point, to focus on an unknown laborer on the opposite end of the earth… except to remember that that’s what Jesus was for most of His life. Aside from the three years of ministry, His death, burial, and resurrection (the Gospel), we know about Jesus’ birth and an episode at the Temple. Everything else is hidden. But we know Jesus’ character, so it is not hard to propose that He simply worked hard every day of His carpentry career… except on the Sabbaths and festival days, since He was a Jew. Do you think Jesus complained? Do you think He loafed? Do you think He cheated His clients? We would never consider these possibilities. I wouldn’t be surprised if, every now and then, He talked to His Father in Heaven about God’s plans… but not in a wrong way. “Father, how long until Your reason for sending Me unfolds?”

We may ask similar questions about God’s timing and purposes… I just need to learn to humbly accept His answers. “Keep working with your dad on earth, Jesus. Work hard and do a good job. Treat people right and reflect Me. When its time for bigger things, I’ll let You know.”

“Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who being in the very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made Himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to death – even death on a cross!” Philippians 2:5-8

“I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand. When I awake I am still with you.” Psalm 139:14-18

When things go wrong in your body you gain a deeper appreciation for the magnificent creation of a human being. Over these last several years I’ve learned more than I’ve wanted to about white blood cells, red blood cells, platelets, plasma cells, stem cells, wanted proteins, and unwanted proteins. How can one conclude this all came together by chance? The child of God not only knows he is created, he knows he is created for purpose. And the One who created us holds us together. God knows every day we will live and he loves us with an everlasting love. He is not against me… He is for me! How precious are his thoughts!

“From heaven the Lord looks down and sees all mankind; from his dwelling place he watches all who live on the earth – he who forms the hearts of all, who considers everything they do. No king is saved by the size of his army; no warrior escapes by his great strength. A horse is a vain hope for deliverance; despite all its great strength it cannot save. But the eyes of the Lord are on those who fear him, on those whose hope is in his unfailing love, to deliver them from death and keep them alive in famine. We wait in hope for the Lord; he is our help and our shield. In him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in his holy name. May your unfailing love rest upon us, O Lord, even as we put our hope in you.” Psalm 33:13-22

Our oldest daughter Kinsey gave me a great present for Christmas. It was a DVD of an event she attended in Atlanta a little over a year ago. Song writers Chris Tomlin and Matt Redman led worship and speaker Louie Giglio pointed to our awesome Creator. He told this story. After an event in Tyler, Texas, a molecular scientist introduced himself to Louie and shared about a protein in our body that has a special purpose. ‘Laminin’ is a cell adhesion molecule similar to glue that holds our body together. Louie confessed he didn’t understand the big words the scientist used, but he promised to ‘google’ the word ‘laminin’ when he got home. After clicking ‘image’ in his search, this picture appeared:

Did the Author of Life put a cell in our bodies that points to the sacrifice offered on our behalf? He holds all things together… what Good News for the New Year!

“He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.” Colossians 1:15-20

In different times and different places, the Holy Spirit gave David, John, and Paul revelation that would encourage God’s people until all are raised in the last day. Praise God for the WORD, the LIGHT, and the LIFE. Praise God for His Spirit that guarantees what is to come. May we live by faith until we are at home with the Lord. (In the Scriptures below I have capitalized the three words above and put one comment in parenthesis.)

“Your WORD is a lamp unto my feet and a LIGHT for my path.”

“In the beginning was the WORD, and the WORD was with God, and the WORD was God.”

“I am the LIGHT of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the LIGHT of LIFE.”

“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 the glory of God 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 be revealed in our mortal body. So then, death is at work in us, but LIFE is at work in you.”

“Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”

“Now we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands. Meanwhile we groan, longing to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling, because when we are clothed, we will not be found naked. For while we are in this tent, we groan and are burdened, because we do not wish to be unclothed but to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by LIFE. Now it is God who has made us for this very purpose (to be swallowed up by LIFE!) and has given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.”

“Therefore we are always confident and know that as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord. We live by faith, not by sight. We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord. So we make it our goal to please him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad. ”

(Psalm 119:105; John 1:1; John 8:12; II Corinthians 4:6-12; II Corinthians 4:16-18; II Corinthians 5:1-10)

Immediately after telling the story of the Pharisee and the tax collector praying at the temple, Jesus said, “Everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.” We see this truth revealed in Jesus’ own life as he “humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death – even death on the cross” after which “God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name.” Of all the characteristics of our Savior, his humility reveals most about what leads to a life that pleases God. How did he do it? What path did he take that he calls his disciples to travel? The familiar passage in Philippians 2 reveals a couple of things: Jesus “made himself nothing” and Jesus took “the very nature of a servant.”

The humility of Christ stands in stark opposition to the spirit of the world. Who wants to become nothing? Who wants to be a servant? Who wants to be last? Who wants to be least like a little child? Who wants to consider others better than self? Who wants to wash feet? Who wants to be humiliated? In a society that prides itself on being proud, we are taught to strive to become important. Those often viewed as successful are served and they are considered successful because they are first. To be least equates with failure and to consider others better than myself would make me dishonest… for deep down I know I am better than most 🙂 . The practice of washing feet has little meaning and humiliation is reserved for fools.

The path of humility is the way of the cross. Jesus said, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.” Andrew Murray, the South African pastor who ministered during the mid 1800’s and early 1900’s wrote, “This is the true self-denial to which our Savior calls us: the acknowledgment that self has nothing good in it except as an empty vessel that God must fill.” Perhaps this is what it means to become “poor in spirit” – to realize there is nothing good in me apart from God. No one can admit such a thing without His help, but once we see our sin and our need for repentance, the gospel reveals hope. “What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God – through Jesus Christ our Lord!”

True humility does not come from focusing on our sin but by focusing on the One who delivers us. He paid the price and he invites us to come learn from him, for he is “gentle and humble in heart.” As he emptied himself and lived a life full of his Father, he beckons us to empty ourselves and live a life full of him. As we clothe ourselves with Christ, we clothe ourselves with “compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience.” How different the humble will look in this world!

“All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, ‘God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.’ Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.” I Peter 5:5-6

When he had finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes and returned to his place. “Do you understand what I have done for you?” he asked them. “You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am. Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you should also wash one another’s feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. I tell you the truth, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.” John 13:12-17

The Person called the “Prince of Peace” said, “Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword.” When Jesus was born, Herod decreed that all male babies who were two years old and younger be put to death. We know this was an evil decree related to the spiritual battle described in Revelation 12. The words of Jeremiah the prophet were fulfilled: “A voice is heard in Ramah, weeping and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted, because they are no more.” Jesus did not desire innocent children to die because He came to earth. He does not wield the wicked sword of murder and mayhem. So what sword does Jesus carry and what peace does he oppose?

There are many today who seem perfectly happy without caring at all about God or his Kingdom. Some live without a care in the world with every part of their lives in seemingly perfect order. It is a false peace that Jesus comes to disrupt. Confidence linked to pride will eventually crumble; peace dependent upon this world is no peace at all… so Jesus carries a sword that is sharper than a surgeon’s knife. “For the Word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.”

Multiple myeloma is a systemic disease. Since it is in my blood, this cancer invades my entire body. When I was first diagnosed we quickly discovered its destructive activity. Too many plasma cells had already gathered in various places in my skeleton and destroyed my bones. X-rays revealed tumors within my ribs, but no operation could remove them. My bone marrow, the liquid substance in the bones which manufactures blood cells, was greatly damaged. This disease destroys from within and as of yet there is no cure. But Jesus possesses a sword so sharp and powerful that he can do what doctors never dream of doing. This sword can separate joints and marrow. Our Great Physician can even use his sword to operate on the soul and spirit, parts of the human no x-ray can detect. Jesus also has the power to heal damage experts label as irreversible. Though I’ve had quite a few powerful drugs flow through my bloodstream over the past six years, nothing can match this sword the Son of God possesses.

In his radical instruction to the disciples in Matthew 10, Jesus mentioned things we often associate with peace: friends, family, and worldly comforts. Our King knows true peace is found only when he is the center of everything. Oswald Chambers wrote, “Jesus Christ came to send a sword through every peace that is not based on a personal relationship to Himself.” Even those who believe in him may be confused at times. I don’t think John the Baptist expected his faithfulness to land him in jail to await execution. He sent messengers to ask, “Are you the one who is to come, or should we expect someone else?” When an evil sword is at our throat, Jesus says, “Blessed is the man who does not fall away on account of me.” Outcomes might not be what we predict, difficulties may seem more numerous than victories, clouds may prevent us from seeing clearly, but Jesus says, “My holy sword is at work. I am giving sight to the blind. I am letting the deaf hear. I am healing those with incurable diseases and I’m raising the dead. Give up your self and trust me and I promise you’ll find true life.”

“And when I turned I saw seven golden lampstands, and among the lampstands was someone ‘like a son of man,’ dressed in a robe reaching down to his feet and with a golden sash around his chest. His head and hair were white like wool, as white as snow, and his eyes were like blazing fire. His feet were like bronze glowing in a furnace, and his voice was like the sound of rushing waters. In his right hand he held seven stars, and out of his mouth came a sharp double-edged sword. His face was like the sun shining in all its brilliance. When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. Then he placed his right hand on me and said, ‘Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last. I am the Living One; I was dead, and behold I am alive for ever and ever!’” Revelation 1:12-18