Why
I Love Jesus?
I have been a follower of Jesus for many years, almost 4
decades. It has been a relational journey filled with all the things that make
up relationships – love, intimacy, talking, sharing, fighting, yelling, hurt,
distance, forgiveness and reconnection. My relationship with Jesus is, by far,
the deepest and most intimate relationship I have. I know this might sound
weird to some people, to talk about Jesus this way, but this is how I know him.
Jesus is not a religious exercise or duty to me, neither is he an out of sight,
out of touch figment of my imagination. He is a real, authentic person that I
walk and talk with every day.
In recent days, I have been struggling in my relationship
with Jesus. I feel out of touch with him, despondent about what I perceive as a
lack of impact in the world, angry about how he is represented by others on
social and news media and mostly ashamed at how I have failed to live and act
the way he wants me to live and act. He is my Lord and Savior, and I love him.
But recently, I have been asking why?
This is my answer to that question, in no particular order.
I love the strength of Jesus.
He had physical strength. He was a carpenter by trade.
Carpenters in Jesus day did not walk to the local wood store to get wood but
had to source it from trees in their area. They cut the trees, framed the wood,
created planks, working the wood down to its usable essentials and then
compiling the products they needed for their homes. This required physical
strength, wisdom, insight and dexterity. He had physical strength to overturn
tables and throw out money launderers and their guards when he discovered their
duplicity in the temple. Jesus was strong. But, his strength was deeper than
physical.
He had emotional strength. His capacity to speak to anyone,
from enemy to friend, from family to stranger showed a strength of emotional
capacity that captivates me. He spoke to all sorts of people - women, children
and men; people of power and insignificance, of wealth and poverty - with an
ease and welcome that made them all feel included and accessible. His emotional
strength allowed him to express emotion visibly without shame or fear. He
expressed struggle, hardship, joy, laughter, sadness and amazement
authentically and freely. He had emotional strength.
He had principled strength. He stood before kings, rulers
and authorities, endured their questioning, answering clearly when it was
needed, resisting answering when the questions were traps or ignorant. He faced
the wisest of his day and showed wisdom. He faced the powerful of his day and
showed humility and gentleness (which is power under control). He faced the
weak and showed compassion. He faced the poor and showed grace. He faced the
demanding and showed restraint. He faced accusers and showed patience. Above
all, Jesus died for his convictions. He had principles strength.
So, I love Jesus because he is strong.
I love the courage of Jesus.
He showed courage, again of conviction. He stood before the
religious rulers and called them out on their failures. He challenged their
thinking, their rules and their systems. He was a revolutionary, who resisted
the governments and institutions of his day with a courage that takes my breath
away. His courage wasn’t rash or brazen, it was clear and wise.
His courage brought him to cross gender, class and ethnic
boundaries. He spoke to Gentiles as a Jew, women as a man, conquerors from a
conquered people, abusers and the abused as a victim himself. His courage knew
no limits, even when it cost him the dearest relationship of his life, the
relationship with his father. His courage is astounding.
His courage went beyond standing against those who did what
was wrong. His courage caused him to stand against his own friends, especially
when they sought to dissuade him from his purpose in life. Somehow, he was able
to say the hard truths to his friends, courageously, in such a way, that while
they were dismayed or angry at first, they soon came back and desired a
reconnection with him. His courage was born not just of conviction, but of
truth in practice and love in life.
His courage even brought him to stand up to his family.
When they sought to stop him, he challenged them. His courage, and probably
more so, his love, won them over so that they were present at his death, and
his own brother committed to his vision and purpose, calling him not just
brother but Lord and Savior too.
I love the courage of Jesus.
I love the compassion of Jesus.
Jesus was a man of compassion for all. His compassion, even
now, brings tears to my eyes as I think about it. He had compassion on
children, on the sick, on the weary, on those in hardship, on those seeking
help in faith, on his enemies when they came with questions, on the rich, on
rulers, on individuals and on masses. His compassion was clear, direct and
thoughtful. His compassion meant he took people’s shame away or hid them in
plain sight from those seeking to embarrass others. His compassion took small
gifts and turned them into powerful illustrations.
Two incidents of compassion stand out in my mind. Jesus,
when confronted with an adulteress woman, who was dragged before him, showed
compassion. First, he drew in the sand, distracting everyone, making them look
at him, rather than at the embarrassed woman. His compassion was shown in this
smallest detail as he honored the dignity of someone who was being treated as
undignified. His compassion went further
when he knew the law, and knew the consequence, but disregarded it in favor of
forgiveness. His act of compassion continues to this day as we talk about not
“casting the first stone”. His compassion caused the accusers to walk away, but
the shamed woman to remain and then, he spoke to her…with love and compassion
and then encouragement that she could be better. Oh, his compassion is amazing.
The second incident is on the cross. As nails are driven
into him, as people make fun of him, as soldiers gamble his clothing away, he
speaks to those next to him, gently, endearingly and lovingly. He goes further,
and forgives those killing him, as they are doing it! In the midst of failing
strength, his compassion stands strong. Oh, how I love him.
I love the compassion of Jesus.
I love the love of Jesus. Jesus was filled with love. His
love is evident in everything and everywhere he goes so it is very hard to
capture it in a few sentences. He loved children and played with them. He loved
his followers and taught them. He loved the sick and touched them. He loved the
discarded and spoke to them. He loved the rich and invited them to join him. He
loved the poor and served them. He loved the religious and challenged them. He
loved those closest to him and shared that love in the deepest and most
meaningful ways possible – he washed their feet, he ate with them, he
commissioned them and he died for them.
His powerful message to them is the most powerful message
for me. Jesus, who had surrendered heaven and divinity to come to earth, called
those he created his friends. This is incomprehensible to me! God calls us, his
creation, friend! God calls me, his creation, friend!
I am God’s friend. And that is perhaps the greatest reason
why I love him. He wants me as a friend. Me! Someone with so many flaws, so
many failures, so many faults, so many mistakes; someone who has raged at God
in anger at his laws, failed to live according to his design, freely pointed
out what I see as God’s faults, someone who hurts his creation, who lives
self-centeredly and selfishly, yet he calls me friend. More than calling me
friend, he wants to talk to me, listen to me, give to me and welcome me to be
with him forever.
Why do I love Jesus…because he loves me!
And then I came across this picture. I don’t know who
painted it (it says Kero in the corner), and I don’t have permission to use it!
Please forgive me. This picture captures for me the very emotion I feel about
seeing Jesus one day. The face of the person who is embracing Jesus captures at
once the sheer joy and exuberance of meeting this Savior of mine and at the
same time the immense pain and hardship this life and being apart from him
means. To whoever painted this picture, to Mr/s Kero, thank you!
I would love you to meet the Jesus I know, to experience
his love first hand. I would love you to feel his presence and experience the
wonder and love I feel. I hope you will consider that offer and if you want to
know how to meet him, ask me! I would be happy to share with you. In fact,
later this year I will be participating in a new campus of Faith Community
Church, opening in or around Framingham. This will be a community seeking to learn
and share the love of Jesus in remarkable ways. Maybe you could join us!
