Many of us have done a disservice to Jesus Christ.
Not only do we tame and soften Him, we also understand His message to be addressed primarily to our needs of comfort, safety and convenience. We have been telling people that if they come to Jesus they will live a safe and comfortable life: “He’ll be your rock and fortress, and He’ll protect you from the dangers around you.” Some even insist that Jesus wants nothing more than to heal you, bless you financially and make your life carefree.
Jesus does heal, of course, and bless us financially. But that is not even close to what it means to follow Jesus. If you follow Jesus, you follow the most radical man who ever existed. He marches into the world with kindness, peace and love, and offers people a whole new way of looking at the world and living within it. He turns everything upside down and calls us to do likewise. Jesus is not vitally committed to our comfort and safety; He is committed to the advancing of His kingdom revolution in the hearts of people everywhere.
In talking about what His kingdom is like, Jesus announced, “From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it.” (Matt. 11:12 NIV) In other words, God is doing something so powerful and dangerous that only those who are willing to embrace it with violent intensity may take hold of it.
The revolution of Jesus isn’t for the faint of heart or the middleof-the-road. It isn’t safe. It isn’t comfortable. It costs us a great deal to say yes.
There is a church near me that promotes itself with this invitation: Biblical Principles to Maximize Your Life and Living. I’ve got nothing against biblical principles. If we all followed biblical principles, we would surely be better off. My beef with this slogan is that it does not come close to the invitation of Jesus.
If you are content with your life and comfortable in this world, then I suppose biblical principles will suffice. I guess that’s why we have so much teaching and reading of the
three-steps-to-a-better-marriage or five-principles-of-success variety. Jesus supposedly makes me a better spouse, child, friend or coworker. According to this view, He enhances my life.
But for those of us who see the darkness in our souls and the wickedness in our hearts, who feel the desperation and pain of this broken world, biblical principles aren’t enough. I don’t need enhancement; I need a new heart and a new mind. I need Jesus to invade my life and take it over. I don’t want principles or religion or piety; I want Him. I’m desperate, I’m empty, and I am not content simply to be my same old self “new and improved.” I want to be something else entirely.
What keeps us from a life of such faith is that we have become very good at assessing and minimizing risk. Our culture is all about risk management. We want to hedge our finances against future market downturns, and we have home insurance, life insurance, car insurance, fire insurance, flood insurance and earthquake insurance. Athletes and entertainers can insure parts of their bodies against injury. We have health plans to protect us when we are sick. We wear seat belts and helmets.