It's so easy to take hold of the "image" of Christ: take a guy with a really nice demeanor, a smile on his face, and a normal figure, and you have the biblical Jesus, right there. Or, you could find someone who puts food on the table and heals your cat when she's sick and label him the "convenient" Jesus of the 21st Century. If we're not careful, we can slip into the habit of "worshipping" a makeshift Jesus, one who fits our images and our standards. It's then that we fall into believing lies that lead us into deep deception. We're not only fooling ourselves, but idolizing a creation of our limited, flawed human minds.
Psalms 115:1-8 reads:
"1 Not to us, O LORD, not to us
but to your name be the glory,
because of your love and faithfulness.
2 Why do the nations say,
"Where is their God?"
3 Our God is in heaven;
he does whatever pleases him.
4 But their idols are silver and gold,
made by the hands of men.
5 They have mouths, but cannot speak,
eyes, but they cannot see;
6 they have ears, but cannot hear,
noses, but they cannot smell;
7 they have hands, but cannot feel,
feet, but they cannot walk;
nor can they utter a sound with their throats.
8 Those who make them will be like them,
and so will all who trust in them. "
What happens when we live for a man-made "Jesus?" Psalms 115:8 makes it very clear that we become like that which we worship; the thing we attribute our attention and our affection to is the very being we emulate. Therefore, our one-dimensional, super-hero only "Jesus" will create a life lived in limited circumstances, based only in a faith during the "good times." This leads me to question and to evaluate one very important truth: Who is Jesus? And really, I want to know: who is my Savior, the One I worship? What a seemingly impossible task! How can I, in my already sinful, restricted mindset, understand a perfect and boundless God? Suddenly, the thought overwhelmed me: I can't. So how can I truly worship Jesus himself? Again, examining my flesh, it is so obvious the answer to that subsequent question: in my own ability, I fail at every attempt to please the pure God with my gray-tinted offering.
And here, at this point of humility and understanding of my weakness, is where the real Jesus is finally introduced.
This morning, as I was skimming through John, this beautiful truth caught my attention, leaving my eyes dead in their tracks. John 17:3 reads:
"Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent."
From that scripture, it is evident that the genuine knowledge of God and Jesus Christ is not something we can conjure up in our own strength, but rather it is a gift. In John 3:16, it is made clear that God gave as a gift his only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, that
"whosoever believes in him will not perish but have eternal life."
We could think for decades, or spend our years in philosophical inquiry, but never come close to completely understanding the Lord of the Earth. Wisdom, as we see through Solomon's desire, is given as a gift, as it is given without any obligation. Likewise, we can see that through salvation in Jesus Christ, we are alloted a free opportunity to know God intimately. Through prayer and reading the Scripture passed on for generations, we can know the God we worship, discounting the blind, mindless rituals of mere Christianity and engaging in a lively, personal relationship with the God of the universe! However, there is one requirement on our part: we have to put down the "god-shaping tools" and open our eyes to the Master in front of us.
As Jeremiah 29:13 says, "You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart."
So, my question now is this: are your eyes open? The real Jesus is right there. Let's throw away our efforts and be blown away by the truth we've been missing all along. Let's receive the true gift of salvation: knowledge of Jesus!
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