Readings for today: Leviticus 6:1-7:27, Mark 3:7-30, Psalms 37:1-11, Proverbs 10:3-4
C.S. Lewis once made this observation regarding Jesus. Either He is who He says He is - God incarnate - or He is the most evil man in history or He’s completely insane. You don’t really have any other choices. Now many will say Jesus is a good teacher but Lewis points out that this “good teacher” made all kinds of claims to be divine. Asked people to place their trust and hopes in Him. Demanded they leave their homes and livelihoods to follow Him. Required them to die to prove their faith in Him. Cast in this light, Jesus sounds more like a “cult leader” along the lines of Jim Jones or David Koresh. If Jesus is not God then He must be evil or insane or both. And certainly his contemporaries thought so. His own family thought He was crazy and sought “to seize him, for they were saying, "He is out of his mind." (Mark 3:21) The religious leaders were convinced He was evil. Possessed by the devil himself. “The scribes who came down from Jerusalem were saying, "He is possessed by Beelzebul," and "by the prince of demons he casts out the demons." (Mark 3:22)
So what do you believe? As Jesus will ask His disciples, “Who do you say that I am?” What do you do with Jesus’ teachings? No one I know believes they are the ramblings of an insane man. No credible scholar or philosopher has anything but the highest praise for the ethics of Jesus. What do you do with Jesus’ miracles? No one I know believes his acts of compassion on the poor, the leper, the outcast, and sinner mask a much deeper evil. In fact, Jesus’ example is often rightfully cited in support of social justice. What do you do with Jesus’ death and resurrection? Why is it we’re still talking about this guy after two thousand years? Certainly many other would-be messiahs were also crucified or executed in those days. Why does the name of Jesus still carry such freight while the names of these other revolutionaries have been forgotten? What keeps Jesus from being consigned to the dustbin of history?
Lewis rightfully points out that everything rides on what you believe about Jesus. If Jesus is who He says He is then this requires a radical re-orientation of our lives. We must seek to live as Jesus lived. Walk as Jesus walked. Love as Jesus loved. We must place our trust in Him. Accept Him as Lord and Savior. Allow His life to become the center of our lives. Define success the way He defined it. Use our time, talent, and treasure to serve His purposes. In short, it’s as if the center of our solar system changes. Instead of life revolving around me, it must revolve around Him. Instead of focusing on how the moon (life) rotates around the earth (Self), we have to focus on how the earth (Self) rotates around the sun (Jesus). How is your life - family, work, friendships, school, vacation, leisure - revolving around Jesus?
Readings for tomorrow: Leviticus 7:28-9:6, Mark 3:31-4:25, Psalms 37:12-29, Proverbs 10:5