BEGINNING AGAIN WITH JESUS

A look at Jesus and His relationship with me in various stages of my walk with Him.

The Prodigal

The Doubter

The Radical

The Husband

The Servant

The Big Brother

The King (not finished)

The Prodigal

To appreciate the relationship I have with Jesus Christ, I often remind myself that it is a daily process of beginning again—each day.

Maybe I am slow or just plain stubborn, but if I do any other thing, I find myself in a mess. I do what I want. I get out in the world, getting my feet dirty, wallowing around in the mire of willfulness. Eventually, I begin to long for the comfort and protection of my father’s house. Maybe comfort is the wrong word—safety and security would more correctly describe just what it is that I long for. Being in my father’s household is absolute knowledge that for the moment, nothing can get to me. If any trouble comes my way, I know my daddy will protect me. That is how God’s love for his children is. I feel secure, protected and cared for in my father’s house.

I often mentally return to my youth when I worked on construction projects with my dad. Some work was dangerous and required skill and caution. Other work was boring and repetitive. The beauty of our accomplishment was a house. The smell of new houses under construction always draws me into the work. There is a clean fresh smell of new wood and sawdust, drywall mud and plaster, freshly mixed cement and new concrete blocks. All of these remind me of newness—cleanness that I associate with my father’s house.

In beginning again daily with Jesus, I often think about the chaotic state in which the disciples were left when Jesus was crucified. It was as if a storm utterly destroyed what they had built from scratch. How could they trust or even believe that God was really there and that they had really been called to serve the Messiah? What were they feeling? Isolation, grief, anger—The questions: Why? What went wrong? Did we fail? Must have come up repeatedly.

Yet in the midst of this desolation the living Lord appeared to them. He showed his scars to them and reminded them of the resurrection that he told them would surely take place. He even came back a second time just for Thomas who did not believe the others. Finally, he reminded them that they had to pick themselves up from their despair and begin again after they were clothed with power.

It was true: The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, His mercies never come to an end. They are new every morning, Great is thy faithfulness, Oh Lord!

The Drama:

Luke 24:49-52

We read the scriptures often without feeling the drama of the moment. Maybe we get more excited about a good novel or T.V. program. But what is related here is the story of Jesus the Son of God as told by men who were there. This is an eye witness account of what occurred some two thousand years ago. Did it really happen? How do we know this is what really happened? That is where faith comes in to the picture.

To begin here, Jesus the risen Lord is returning home to His Father. He accomplished his task and is preparing to ascend into heaven. He is about to turn the business of the kingdom over to his followers. They have instructions from their risen Lord to wait in the city in prayer. He always gave them simple instructions.

We must pretend to be Thomas, Peter or Philip for a moment. Jesus an itinerant preacher, a rabble rouser, a carpenter was killed by the Roman authority because the Jews did not like him. He was killed because some Jews were looking for a military king to run the Roman garrison out of Israel. Jesus lineage was known. He was in the line of David and had the charisma to attract huge crowds. He was a threat to civil order. Primarily, he countered the hypocrisy of the Pharisees and Saducees. Jesus confrontation of the Jewish hierarchy and tradition caused jealousy and fear among the Sanhedren. He did not argue with them, he spoke with authority regarding the scriptures. Who did he think he was?

Again, we must allow ourselves to trust Him completely, though we cannot see Him. Realizing that we have been running buddies with the Son of God should have quite an impact on our daily life. He has handed us the wheel, and He expects us to drive the car.

Husband

Scripture: Revelation 19:7-9

To appreciate this beginning, I must think of Jesus at Passover. He offered his cup around the table—a proposal of marriage in Jewish tradition—Each of the disciples drank from the cup thereby accepting the proposal (except one. Were they thinking of the tradition at this time, or were they so in awe at his words that they overlooked the symbolism? They were Jews, they knew what Jesus was doing. Did they see themselves as His in a binding contract? When did Jesus drink the cup to finalize the contract?

In Jewish tradition, the engaged woman is treated as married. She has certain duties and obligations toward her future spouse. She must forsake all others, keep herself pure and undefiled; she must also be a skilled house keeper and trades woman (Prov. 31) in order to build up her spouse.

The engaged man had the responsibility of going away to build a home for the two of them, usually an addition to his father’s house (Interesting parallel) Then when the house was completed, he would return for his bride.

The two families would celebrate long and loud at a wedding banquet. No one could enter the dwelling after the bride and groom sat down to eat for two reasons: 1) there could be an attack from a jilted lover, and 2) a tardy guest would draw attention away from the honored parties.

Think—Am I a bride of Christ? When He returns can I present myself before Him with a heart and eyes only for Him? Have I truly forsaken all others? Can I go away with Him with no lingering business?

Servant

Scripture John 13"3-5

Whose feet have I washed lately? Jesus gave us an example to follow. What does it mean now in 1997 when foot washing is a ceremony or something done in more "primitive" religious groups?

Jesus washed the feet of his disciples as a head of house would wash the feet of his guests. He took the role of servant in a very real, daily task to show His followers how to be like him. Do whatever your hands find to do. Do it well, do it for our Father’s glory. Just do the work.

Of course I always try to remember that Jesus was a carpenter before power tools were invented. He was no stranger to hard and heavy work. He also grew up in a household that did not have much in the way of material riches. He was not too proud to do whatever chore was required of him. He just looked around the room and realized the task at hand required a person to do it. Jesus exemplified good manners.

Status means nothing if all our hay lies rotting in the field and we’re too good or proud to go out and pick it up!

So, whose feet have I washed lately? How have I forgotten myself and served my fellow man without honor or glory? How can I do this—become a servant and honor God?

Big brother

Scripture: Romans 8:17,34-37

As I begin to look at Jesus in this passage, I see my elder brother talking to my Father on my behalf.

I never actually had a brother, but I had male cousins who stood in that capacity for me. They interpreted my parents to me. They also attempted to interpret me to my parents. (For me the trials of adolescence were intense, and I was a rebel.) I wanted to see truth and justice in the world of the 1960’s when Viet Nam and the racial injustices were so intense. I watched on television as John and then Robert Kennedy were assassinated. Then Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated in my home state. I thought my parents were just clinging to their traditions without bending.

Years later, I found out that my father was just as against the war as I was and that he despised racial inequality. He did not see all of the social upheaval as a reason to forsake his Christian values and ethics. Many youth of this country became slaves to awful vices such as drugs, spiritual experimentation, and sexual experimentation as a direct result of their youthful rebellion. (The consequences of the generation gap will continue for some time to come.)

My older cousins would often convince my dad to allow me to do something that maybe I was too young for. They promised to look after me and stay with me. At times my dad would show up where we were, eventually a trust was established between him and my cousins. Then, through my cousins, I began to speak for myself. I learned to follow through, to be where I was supposed to be, and to be doing the things I was supposed to be doing. None of this was easy, but I learned accountability, not just to my cousins, but to my Father.

Through this familial interaction, I learned that my dad wanted good things for me. He of course wanted me to be safe, and protected. He valued me. I discovered that he always had my best interests at heart even though at times he seemed unapproachable. I discovered that my dad was a vast storehouse of knowledge. I also discovered that I liked my dad and enjoyed his company even when I wasn't asking for some privilege.

Jesus is our elder brother making a way for us to converse with God, Our Father. First we ask for what we think we need. As we gain confidence, we find that we just want to talk to our Father—to be in his presence is really what we’re after.