“I AM: The Jesus We Think We Know”
Part 4 – Jesus to the Rescue
NewSong Church – 08/12/07
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**NOTE: THIS IS A CONCEPT OUTLINE FOR THIS MESSAGE, NOT THE FULL MANUSCRIPT. GRAPHICS AND MULTIMEDIA ARE AVAILABLE TO SUPPORT THIS SERIES.
Video Clip - “Jesus Condemns You”
[full clip]
The Jesus We Think We Know
This morning we continue our series, “I AM: The Jesus We Think We Know.” We can find many misconceptions about Jesus concerning his identity, and this video illustrates a very common perception of Jesus. Many people believe that Jesus came to earth with one goal in mind: to tell me how much of a loser I am.
If you have ever read Douglas Adams’ “Hitch hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy,” you may recall a character named Wowbagger the Infinitely Prolonged, an immortal being driven by one goal: to insult everybody in the Universe, alphabetically. In the story, the main character, Arthur Dent, has been stranded in the prehistoric earth era when a spaceship appears, lands and a tall figure strolls out, looks at Arthur and says, “You’re a jerk, Arthur Dent. A complete kneebiter.”
Jesus Condemns You
This is often the idea that some have created about Jesus. They don’t see Jesus, the Son of God who came to earth because of love. They don’t see Jesus, the miracle-worker, healing the sick and ministering to people in need. They don’t know Jesus, the Savior of the World who died for the sin of all humanity in order to make us right with and acceptable to God. They aren’t aware of the Jesus who works within us and is returning for us.
But they have heard of the Jesus who condemns them. They know all about the Jesus who looks at them and says, “You’re not good enough.” They have experienced rejection from the Jesus who is too busy, too important, too holy.
For many people, their understanding of Jesus is that he came from God or somewhere in order to tell us how much wrong we’re doing, to highlight the failures and flaws in our lives, and to guilt-trip us into doing something good, usually for a church.
Perhaps you’ve even experienced these feelings? Maybe the last time you failed in something, came up short in some area of your personal life – you know, those areas where we find ourselves involved in something that we know we shouldn’t be involved in, and we get caught up, and afterwards we sit there feeling angry with ourselves, or disappointed, or guilty… and what is our view of Jesus at that moment? Do we think of Jesus beside us, hand on our shoulder saying, “it’s gonna be ok, I understand”? Or do we have the more common view – that Jesus is looking down from heaven, going “Tsk, tsk, tsk,” or shaking his head in righteous disappointment, or just sitting there watching and muttering, “I’m gonna get you for that. You are gonna pay, big time.”
People have a messed up view of Jesus.
This view, this “Jesus Condemns You” mentality is not even close to the truth about Jesus Christ. In fact, we have Jesus’ own words, found in John 3:16-17 “For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. I have come not to judge the world, but to save it.”
But people hold on to it – and it keeps them from experiencing any kind of relationship with God. Even when confronted with Jesus’ very words of love and forgiveness, some people refuse to accept them. Why?
Represent
In this case, the root cause is usually Christians. We’ve all heard of the phrase, “holier than thou.” We use it to refer to people who are “too good” to participate in some activity that we are doing, people who hold themselves to a higher standard than the one we’ve set for our own lives. And usually, the attributes we associate with these type of people (besides an infuriating arrogance and sickening smugness) is that they are always quick to judge. They are always ready to criticize. And their lives are always perfect and our lives are always full of problems, according to them.
Remember what I said in the first week of this series – image is important. Impressions are important. No matter how open-minded we may be, we still form them and images and impressions drive our decision making process. And because these people claim to be representatives of God, followers of Jesus, people see their actions and believe that is what Jesus is like too. It is a point for us to remember – that if we tell people that our lives are modeled after Jesus, how we demonstrate our faith and our relationship with Christ will create in people images and impressions about who Jesus is.
If our lives are filled with love for those around us, if we spend our time with the poor and give to those who have fallen on hard times, if we care for the sick and are concerned for the lonely, if we challenge injustice and speak out on behalf of the oppressed and forgotten – people will be lead to believe that Jesus is not just concerned about well-off business people who can give large financial gifts to religious organizations; he cares about everyone in all walks of life.
However, if we present a Jesus who is a snob, or if the image we convey is that you have to be of a certain social standing, or economic standing, or spiritual standing for Jesus to be interested in you, then we have created a false Jesus who condemns seekers rather than saves them. We have formed a Jesus who looks at one person and says, “I’ll accept you,” and then at another and says, “You’re not good enough for me.”
The Good Shepherd
People need to hear the truth about Jesus; and we are part of that proclamation of truth. Because this is who Jesus really is, and this is what he is all about: saving people who are lost, seeking relationship with God, people who are wandering and searching and longing for purpose in life. Jesus is all about the salvation of humanity. All of humanity. You. Me. His one goal was to provide you and me an escape from the deadness of our current spiritual lives. To fix what was broken in our relationship with God. Jesus said in Luke 11:10, “Salvation has come today… for I have come to seek out and save those who are lost.”
And he makes a beautiful statement in John 10:11 and it is this statement that we can focus on and learn from today. Jesus is talking to the groups of people who have been following him, and trying to give an illustration of how much he loves them and what he is willing to go through in order to rescue them from their sins, he looks at this group of village-folk and townspeople, religious leaders and disciples and he says:“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd sacrifices his life for the sheep.”
I’m not sure that in our modern culture we can appreciate the imagery that Jesus is conveying to his listeners. I know for myself, when I think of the Good Shepherd, I get an image of Jesus holding a little lamb and looking peaceful. But the meaning of “Good Shepherd” goes much deeper than that. What Jesus is saying is that he is willing to live life with us, to not only guide us, but to take personal care of us. To give us a life that is rich and full of blessing because he is part of it. He is also offering us security and protection – to trust in him and allow him to watch over us and provide for us.
Jesus is saying that he is committed to us. That as a shepherd owns the sheep and is therefore invested in their well-being, Jesus is invested in who we are and how we live. Jesus is not just merely doing a job – he is prepared to give up everything for us so that we can live. He will rescue us. He will save us. And He does it all because of his great love for us.
Rescue Me
Love is the great motivator.
It is because of Love that God views us worth redeeming and sent his Son to do just that. It is because of Love that Jesus lived his life among the poor, the outcast, the needy, the hurting, the desperate, the lonely. It is because of Love that he brought his life into connection with their reality – providing for their needs, healing their hurts, and reaching into their isolation.
It is because of Love that Jesus chose the Cross, condemning himself to death - payment for our sin, atonement for our fallen state, resolving our fractured existence. It is because of Love that Jesus staged the Great Rescue – the process of bringing all of creation into right standing with the Almighty God.
Jesus came to rescue us from our present condition of sin and separation, from the brokenness of our world, from the brokenness of our very own lives. Douglas John Hall, Professor of Christian Theology at McGill University wrote in his essay, “We Would See Jesus”: “Love doesn’t just accept everything. If it’s love, it cares about the real condition of the beloved…"Jesus loves me" does not mean that Jesus likes me, accepts me, and makes no great demands upon me. Jesus loves me--therefore I had better be prepared for some embarrassing moment of truth and some hard work! And Jesus, we say, is God’s eternal pledge of love for the world (John 3:16). The Jesus who is not ready to accept me just as I am is not ready either to accept the world, our world, just as it is. If we can trust any of the illustrations of God’s love for the world that we find in the continuity of the two testaments, we most conclude that this love, far from accepting the status quo, wills to alter it drastically--and especially amongst those whose economic and physical well-being makes them prone to believe they are already the accepted and approved of God!”
Faith like a Sidekick
Jesus does not want to just meet us where we are and then stay there with us as we live our lives the same way, going through the same motions and fulfilling the same routines. He wants to bring us into a new kind of life, a life lived in a relationship with him, filled with his blessing and promise, a life that becomes more like him with each day that goes by. He invites us to live a life of freedom, free of sin, free of condemnation, free to experience everything that God has to offer. We read Psalm 23 earlier, and I will repeat it; listen to it again in light of the truth of Jesus the Good Shepherd who loves us so dearly:
The LORD is my shepherd; I have all that I need. He lets me rest in green meadows; he leads me beside peaceful streams. He renews my strength. He guides me along right paths, bringing honor to his name. Even when I walk through the darkest valley, I will not be afraid, for you are close beside me. Your rod and your staff protect and comfort me. You prepare a feast for me in the presence of my enemies. You honor me by anointing my head with oil. My cup overflows with blessings. Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in the house of the LORD forever.
Jesus does not condemn us.
Jesus loves us. He has come to save us.
Jesus is committed to us.
And this morning he invites us to accept him and challenges us to follow him.
I want to encourage you to live a life that presents an image of Jesus Christ as the Jesus who loves people and desires to restore a relationship with them. I encourage you to discover this Jesus who gave it all for you. I challenge you to be committed to Christ as he is to you, and to allow Jesus to transform you to become more like him.
