The Offensive Jesus

The other day I popped by a charity shop. I felt like a time traveler, stepping into years gone by and memories long-forgotten. The store was gigantic and overflowing with furniture, clothes, china, books, and CDs. All these things had at some point held a significance to somebody and now they didn’t. Among treasures and knickknacks was a neatly embroidered image of Christ. I was flabbergasted to see this very feminized, clean, slightly made-up version of Jesus. He didn’t at all look like how I imagine him from the descriptions in the Bible. My version of Jesus is somewhat less polished. A little rough around the edges, so to speak. A tad bit offensive.

One answer and many questions

Through decades we have heard that Jesus is the answer, which is true, but he sure leaves a lot of questions, too!

What kind of man asks his friends to leave their aging parents to follow him? Isn’t taking care of one’s family a good thing? Why would Jesus ask them to leave everything and everyone behind? But he did. And they followed.

For his first miracle Jesus turned water into wine. Quite a few Christians have taken offence at that, thinking that the party had probably had more than enough to drink already. Jesus didn’t think so; he even made a better wine than what was originally served! Why? Because there was a need and his character is that of extravagant grace. Besides, his mom asked him to. So, he did. I love that part!

The Pharisees were offended that he would eat and drink with sinners. Jesus weren’t troubled by it, what’s more, I think he enjoyed the company. After all, those were the ones that he had come for, right? He left his heavenly throne to share a meal and spend some quality time with the scum of the society. He laid down his life for the downtrodden.

Jesus didn’t mind getting his hands dirty. He stayed close to the untouchables. The annoying. The immoral. The downright disgusting ones. Thieves, murderers, the unwanted. Wherever there was a need, that’s where Jesus wanted to be. But he didn’t settle with being their benefactor or supreme master. He was their friend.

Whose friend am I?

Who am I here for? Do I know how to serve them?
And more importantly, am I offended by how Jesus served those who undoubtedly did not deserve him? As if I do.

How do we respond to those whose service takes place mainly outside of the church?
She spends so much time with those prostitutes, she really should be careful.
I hear he’s often downtown at night, I wonder if he’s backslidden?
Gossip and suspicion, conspicuously wrapped up in considerate concern with a bow on top.

I wonder how people expect their light to make a difference if they never find themselves surrounded by darkness.

There seems to be a confusion within the church as to what it really means to follow Jesus. We ignore the in this world, and make the not of this world-part our comfort zone.  Somewhere along the way, living a holy life came to mean never getting our hands dirty. We strive to live Teflon-coated, blameless lives, hoping that no sin or accusation will ever stick long enough to do lasting damage. And our love dies.

Our love for this world tends to end at the picket fence

This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, his one and only Son. And this is why; so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life. God didn’t go to all the trouble of sending his Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was. He came to help, to put the world right again. John 3:16-17, MSG

How does Jesus offend you? Do you find it hard to imitate Christ in certain areas of your life? Could those be areas that you need to bring before the Lord?

If he doesn’t offend you at all, is it possible that you never got the full picture of who he really is? Did you settle for a homemade, non-offensive, neatly stitched version of Jesus?

I don’t want to settle for anything less than the real Jesus. The undistorted truth about our Christ, our King, our Savior.  The #NoFilterJesus.

As he dwells in my heart, I want to be rooted and grounded in love, to comprehend the width and length and depth and height, that I may know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; and that I may be filled with all the fullness of God.

That’s what I would like to pass on to the world. While my hands get dirty.