Radical Jesus

(This was written back in January.)

Right after Christmas our family was having a devotion and my dad said something that made me think. He said that we as Christians spend a lot of time focusing on the manger and a lot of time focusing on the cross, but that we tend to overlook a lot of what went on in the middle. Yes the Christmas story is miraculous, and yes the cross is central to everything we believe, but in between those two things was a man who lived and breathed and taught things. And when we do remember to talk about this man, we often have the wrong idea. We tend to think of Jesus as something I like to call Hippy Jesus. Everything is all about peace, love, and happiness. We talk about Jesus as this kind, loving man who spent His life walking around talking about loving everybody and how nice it would be if we all got along and how wonderful heaven will be. But it wasn't like that. Yes Jesus loved people and cared for them, and yes he taught that we need to forgive. But that wasn't all. Jesus was not some Jewish hippy. In fact, quite the opposite. As teenagers we like to throw around words like "radical" and "intense". You want to see something really radical? Look at Jesus. Seriously. This guy was so radical that the people of His day didn't even know what to do with Him! But before we start talking about the radical side of Jesus, we need to get some things straight. Picture Jesus in your mind. What do you see Him looking like? I'm going to go out on a limb here and assume that most of you have an image of a white man in a spotless white robe with brown hair. I can pretty much guarantee you that Jesus didn't look like that. So let's fix that image. First look at His sandaled feet. After walking around on the dirty, dusty streets all day everyday those feet are going to be caked with dirt. And while the robe may have been white, it was probably pretty dusty too. Now look at His hands. They aren't spotless either. And they're hard, covered in callouses from years as a carpenter. Next take His brown hair and make it darker until it's black, or something close. The same with His white skin. It would have been more brown. And there was probably a lingering smell of fish, thanks to His disciples. Look at the man in front of you now. He looks like a typical Middle Eastern carpenter. And yet He's so much more. He did and said things that made Him impossible to forget. Things that were radical.

The Jews of Jesus' day were waiting for a messiah, someone they expected to rise up and lead them, someone who would help them push the Romans out of Israel and set himself up as their king. Jesus was the total opposite of what they expected. They wanted to fight the Romans. Jesus taught to forgive. They hated. He taught that they should love their enemies as themselves. Have you ever tried to forgive someone who has hurt you terribly? It's not easy. In fact, it's incredibly hard. A lot of times we get angry over things that are small. The Jews actually had a reason to be angry. The Romans made their lives miserable. When Jesus told them to forgive their enemies, He wasn't just talking about forgiving friends who had said the wrong thing. He was telling them to forgive the men who slaughtered their animals and stole their crops, the men who burned their homes and taxed them within an inch of their lives, the men who raped their daughters and killed their sons. The Jews were not only supposed to forgive the Romans, they were supposed to LOVE them! When Jesus taught love and forgiveness, it was not easy hippy stuff. It was hard work. And it didn't end there. Jesus also taught to be kind to others even when you don't feel like it, and to serve them to the point of becoming like a lowly servant. This part in particular did not sit well with the religious leaders of the day. Not only that, but Jesus refused to back down before them. He told them to their faces what they were, and they couldn't stand it. He devotes the entire 23rd chapter of Matthew to telling the people just what the Pharisees are. This was no hippy "peace, love, and happiness" Jesus. This was a radical teacher with a power unlike any the Jews had ever seen. This was the man who went into the temple, made a whip, and drove out all of the people who were making money there (John 2:13-16). This was the man who told a giant storm to "Be quiet!", and immediately the wind died down (Mark 4:35-41). This was the man went into the desert for 40 days without food, and at the end of those forty days was able to battle Satan and win (Matthew 4:1-11)! This was the man who could heal the sick (Luke 17:11-19) and the crippled (Luke 5:17-26), give sight to the blind (Mark 8:22-26), hearing to the deaf, a voice to the mute (Mark 7:31-37). This was the man who could leave the Pharisees speechless every time he spoke. This was the man who drove out demons (Mark 9:14-27) and turned five loaves of bread into five thousand (Mark 6:35-44). This was the man who went His entire life without sinning once. This was the man who always had enough time to serve others, and was even willing to wash His disciples' filthy feet (John 13:1-17). This was the man who suffered death on a cross, the most painful death of the day, with the weight of the sin of all of humanity weighing on His shoulder. And this was the man who rose again three days later, having conquered death for all of eternity!! If that isn't radical and intense, I don't know what is. Check out Michael W. Smith's song "Secret Ambition" for a really good look at this radical Jesus. This man was INCREDIBLE. And He left behind an incredible example for us to follow. There is so much we can learn from His life, and His Word. Lessons of love and forgiveness, of grace and service. Things that, despite their hippy appearance, are in fact incredibly tough. And radical. I’m going to challenge you guys to get into the Word and re-discover Jesus for yourselves. Really get to know this Middle Eastern carpenter, this radical leader. Study his life, turn His teachings inside-out, learn what He stands for. Because when you really get to know this Jesus and really start to understand what he taught, your life will begin to change. So let's dig in and get to know this AWESOME Savior together.