I really liked something in the sermon Sunday. The preacher said that he was helping someone who said that they wanted to be a disciple of Jesus, but they were not even considering letting go of their right to continue sinning. The preacher said that this man had a problem with Jesus, not just with sin. That really resonates with me. When I don’t want to do what Jesus taught, what the Bible teaches, I am running into a collision with the God who made the universe with a couple words from his mouth. When I read the Bible and don’t like what it says, it’s up to me to seek to understand and seek grace to conform to his revealed will for me. The preacher’s example was about sex, but it applies to all my sindencies (new word meaning sin tendencies) as well. Sometimes I don’t want to be generous. That is a strain on my relationship with Jesus—not only did he tell us to give our coat and shirt to a man who asks for our coat, Jesus gave his blood and body for the whole world. Sometimes I want to hate my enemies and curse them. That presses on my relationship with Jesus. Jesus told us to love our enemies, to pray for those who are jerks to us, and he proved it all by asking forgiveness for the people who crucified him. I could go on.
Yesterday evening I spent some time talking with friends about the beginning of Matthew 8. Jesus touches and heals a lepper. From our perspective it seems like the most normal thing in the world for Jesus to walk over and touch this untouchable person and heal him, but if anyone was watching this happen, it would have seemed ridiculous. You don’t touch those people. Neither can a man just walk up and say, “You are clean.” Jesus challenges us with his words. He leads us into impossibility by his example, and he takes every step with us. Hallelujah!
