But they don't know that.
We're so quick to defend ourselves like crazy to defend something that is probably true to defend our name for 70-100 years until we die and no one remembers us, but we don't care. We are so desperate to make sure people know the real us.
Let me talk to you about someone named Jesus. This man knew who He was so much and so securely that He spent a ridiculously small amount of time defending Himself, as we often do. He used that time, rather, to help other people be the best version of themselves.
Maybe we can learn something from Him. Maybe.
Here's the kicker: He was born 2,000 or so years ago, yes. But people have been talking about Him since way before He was born. Like the time of the prophets. Like the time of David.
Still, He knows who He is.
Do we?
Before I became a Christian about 3 years ago, I knew Jesus... I think. Well I heard something once and then I remembered that He flipped tables in the temple so He must have been hella reckless, and then He gave the guy on the cross another chance, so He must have not been so bad... but in reality, I didn't take time to get to know Him.
I know that so many people have firm beliefs based on what other people say. I can't tell you have many times I've been to parties in the past that people have actually said to me, "You know, I didn't like you because like I heard you were a (not nice person) and I heard rumors that you (did a thing), but you're like so awesome you're literally my spirit animal I love you."
I want to introduce you to the Jesus OF THE BIBLE, not the one that the world makes Him out to be, this Jesus-type guy who cares about your money and sexual orientation. He had bigger things to worry about, like, loving you way too much to not offer you freedom.
- Jesus is a game changer.
For a long, long time, the people in Jesus' time had heard the law, "You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy."
And Jesus was like, no.
"But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who SPITEFULLY USE YOU and persecute you." Matthew 5:43-44.
- Jesus had a serious grip on the giving thing.
This isn't even about money. It's about love, freedom, forgiveness and grace.
Jesus is sending out His 12 disciples to do the same things that Jesus had done for them, find the lost, heal people, and love people.
"Give as freely as you have received!" Matthew 10:8
This also says that He stopped at nothing to freely give things to His disciples.
- Jesus is not afraid to get down and dirty to make you look a little better.
In one of my favorite stories in the bible, Jesus is just literally hangin' out in the temple like it's no one's business and suddenly a group of big, strong, religious men of every age come, dragging this poor woman, naked, to the feet of Jesus. She was just caught in the act of adultery.
So they drag this chick to His feet to trick Him and to sum it up, they say, "Hey, Jesus, the law says that we have to throw stones at her until she dies because she was caught doing this heinous thing. What would you say?"
Jesus. Literally. Ignores. Them.
He gets down in the dirt and starts drawing in the sand, the bible says, "as though He did not hear."
The bible never tells us what He writes. All I know is two things:
First, He got down in the dirt with this woman in the worst moment of her life.
Second, His response was all those religious men were after. So His drawing in the sand? He could have been playing hangman... But who cares. His goal was accomplished: to get the attention off of her and take the shame onto Himself.
The same reason He was nailed to that Cross naked.
- Jesus will always look at the possibility of your freedom with love and forgiveness.
Since Jesus started His ministry, the healing, the preaching, etc, He has talked about having to die. He knew the future, He knew it all.
So, of course, He knew that one of His disciples would be the one to turn Him in to the religious men. You all know the story. Judas. Yeah, that guy. Hung out with Jesus for 3 years.
But, unlike us, Jesus didn't treat Him differently.
Right before Jesus is about to die at the hands of a "friend's" betrayal, He does the most humbling thing a KING could have done. He washed His disciples' feet. I mean it's the Middle East, and they wore sandals and walked everywhere and there was dirt and dust and sand. We get it. But the lowest form of a slave was the one to wash feet.
And He washed e v e r y o n e ' s feet...
Including Judas's, knowing what he was going to leave that dinner party and do.
And even just as Jesus is about to be betrayed, He looks at Judas and says, "Friend, why have you come?" He calls him friend.
Jesus was always looking ahead past the pain He was caused with love and forgiveness and I like to think, hope that one day they will turn away from those things and have freedom.
I mentioned before that we are so desperate to make sure people know the real us. Jesus wasn't in His time on earth. His only desperation lies in us knowing Him. And to do that, the real Him is what has chased us from the beginning.
In reality, Jesus spared absolutely NOTHING in His search for us. Then He got desperate. He gave His life. Now He has that desperation for us to not be so entangled in religion and what religious leaders are doing in the name of Christianity. All He wants is us to know who He is, not who religions make Him out to be, not who the world says He is. But who He is.
And He is a man that gave up everything He had so you would have the option to be free.
No wonder they call Him savior.