Tag Archives: jesus

“Gracious Impatience”

While in a Christian book store recently, looking over a table with various books scattered and piled on top of it, with a sign saying the books had been greatly reduced, one particular book caught my eye.  I picked it up and noticed it had been reduced from $15 to only $3.  Since it had a recent publishing date, I figured it must either be poorly written, or impractical to be reduced that much so quickly.  Reading a few sentences on several pages, it seemed the book was very well written; I also did not see anything unscriptural or impractical in the book.  I decided the book did not sell because of its title:  “Jesus, Mean and Wild.”

People see the title and they don’t even want to think of God or Christ in such a way.  In fact, we all would like to think of God as having infinite patience and tolerance with our sinful life-style.  “God should be infinitely tolerant of my pet-sins” —  “God should be infinitely patience and tolerant while I live my life the way I want to!”  —  “God should be infinitely loving even though I worship only whenever I want to, and however I want to!”  What such an attitude exhibits is this:  (1)  Us creating God in our image, rather than the other way around.  (2) Us commanding God, which is impossible — Romans 9:20.  And, (3) Us setting ourselves up in the temple of God (our hearts), as God, which is a sign of the coming “son of destruction” (2Thessalonians 2:4).

The Bible does tell us that, “The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in mercy” (Psalm 103:8).  But it also says in the very next verse, “God will NOT always strive with us, nor will He withhold His anger forever.”  Does anyone really think they can ignore God, ignore Jesus, or ignore the blood-bought Body of Christ (the church), and still have favor with God on Judgment Day?  How could Jesus possibly say to such a person, “Well done thou good and faithful servant?” (Matthew 25:21).

In Mark 9:19, Jesus said to a multitude, “You faithless generation, how much longer must I be among you?  How much longer must I put-up with you?!”  That’s not exactly a side of Jesus that we like to think about, is it.

Many cannot handle the often depicted angry and vindictive God of the Old Testament; the God who is described as a “consuming fire” (Deuteronomy 9:3); the God who flooded the earth, and later incinerated Sodom-Gomorrah.  They cannot connect the “meek and lowly Jesus, who “loves all the little children of the world,” to the God of the Old Testament.  But what happens when we learn that “The Father of the Old Testament” and the “Son of the New Testament are One? (John 10:30).  What do we do with the spiritual truth that the Father and the Son are in perfect unity?  (John 17:21).  And, what do people do when they learn that the Son is subject to the Father?  (1Corinthians 15:27-28).  Paul tells us what they do:  “They suppress the Truth” (Romans 1:18), to their own destruction.  Such an attitude leaves us with an incomplete picture of Jesus, thinking He loves us so much that He will let us live our sinful, irreverent lives, and save us anyway.  But is that what the Bible is teaching?  Or, is that what the majority of pulpits are teaching?

Toby Miller

Sufferings faced by Jesus

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Jesus died an awful death.  Ruthless assassins, terrorists, sadistic and serial killers, and perverted criminals all have received much more humane treatment.  What Jesus endured at the cross can only be described as vicious.  Consider the violent aspects of His crucifixion.

THERE WAS PHYSICAL TORTURE.  He was scourged, beaten with a jagged whip (Mt. 27:27).  He was fitted with a crown of thorns (Mt. 27:29).  He was hit on the head repeatedly with a staff (Mt. 27:30).  The soldiers struck Him with their hands (Jn. 19:3).  He carried His heavy cross until it fell on Him (Jn. 19:17).  He was nailed to a cross (Jn. 20:25).

THERE WAS MENTAL ANGUISH.  His countrymen hatefully yelled for His death (Mt. 27:25).  Soldiers mocked Him and pretended to worship Him (Mt. 27:29).  People hurled abuse at Him (Mt. 27:39,40).  Religious leaders mocked Him (Mt. 27:41-43).  The thieves on the cross insulted Him (Mt. 27:44).  The Heavenly Father left Him alone (Mt. 27:46).  His disciples followed Him, mourning and wailing (Lk. 23:27).

THERE WAS SOCIAL EMBARRASSMENT.  They stripped Him (Mt. 27:25).  He was spit upon (Mt. 27:30).  The soldiers gambled for His clothes (Mt. 27:35).  He was watched like a sideshow (Mt. 27:36).  They jokingly put an elegant, purple robe on Him (Lk. 23:11).  He endured great shame (Heb. 12:2).

The sheer brutality of the crucifixion tells one how serious sin is!  The proposal from heaven is, “Stop sinning and serve the Savior!”  In the light of the cross, examine Heaven’s every demand, command, and reprimand.  What expectation from the Father or requirement from the Son is too great?  Before answering, look back at the cross!

Neal Pollard

A stupendous, incredible, world-shaking event

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WHY TELL PEOPLE to keep quiet about the most stupendous, incredible, world-shaking thing that had happened in their lifetime–that God had come down into human flesh and lived among them like a typical man…?

Because it wasn’t yet Jesus’ time to die: His ministry was not yet complete.  And He knew how the jealous religious leaders would react–precisely the way they did: they sought to kill Him.

You see, Jesus’ identity was the stick that broke the camel’s back for the people who most wanted Him gone (cf. Matthew 26:59-68).  His statements that He was the Son of God were what the Jews decided was the final proof of Jesus’ guilt before the Law: they claimed He blasphemed (“cursed, derided, slandered, and libeled”) God by claiming to be the Messiah, the Son of the living God.  They could not deal with.  He was everything they believed the Messiah wasn’t.  And he was nothing they thought the Messiah should be.

Nothing inspired more derision, hatred, and revulsion toward Jesus than His claim to be God incarnate.  And nothing brings greater disdain than that claim today.  You can call Jesus a good man, a great prophet, a fine leader, perhaps the greatest man who ever lived.  But utter the words “He wasn’t just a man, He was God,” and you may be in for a fight.

When Jesus asked His disciples, “Who do you say I am?” they answered the expected ways: “a great prophet, Elijah, etc.”  But Peter said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (cf. Matthew 16:13-16).  Jesus then told Peter this was the “rock” on which He would build His church.  The “rock” wasn’t Peter himself, but rather the confession of Jesus being the Son of God.

THOUGHT: Ultimately, that’s the line of demarcation for everyone.  “Whom do you say He is?” is the question each of us must answer.  How we answer determines where we will spend eternity.  (Mark Litteton)

He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” (Matthew 16:15).