2 posts tagged “report”
Are you the one who was to come, or should we expect someone else?
John the Baptist asked this question of his cousin Jesus. It was an important question to John, because he was at the moment a prisoner of King Herod. He was waiting to see the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel and his liberty.
Go back and report to John what you see and hear: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor. Blessed is the man who does not fall away on account of me.
Jesus preached the same message as John, but with an important twist. Oh yes, Jesus called for repentance, just like John, but He also preached that salvation was possible for all, even sinners, tax collectors, and their loathsome Roman overlords.
Jesus surely cared about his cousin John and wanted to free him from King Herod's prison, but He did not intervene to do that. Oh sure, He could have, but Jesus did not work that way. His kingdom was not of this world. His kingdom would come by invitation and response, not by His own divine power and might.
Take for example Jesus' encounter with the rich young ruler. Remember how He said the man lacked one thing? He told the man, Go, sell all you have, give it to the poor, and follow Me. Sadly, the man, who was actually a pretty good guy otherwise, could not do that. So the man walked away, unable to part with his riches and to enjoy being the 13th disciple of Jesus.
Did Jesus then run after the man and let him keep his materialistic god? No, he did not. He just let him go. He simply let him make his own decision. He respected his free will. Jesus did not really care about the man's money, but he did care about the man. He knew that the man's riches had a hold on him and he offered him a once in a life time opportunity to have true liberty!
I like the term being a non-anxious presence. To me it means what Jesus did here, addressing an issue but also showing he cared about the man. He cared enough to offer him a place in His own troupe of disciples. How sad that this man missed his opportunity for real liberation.
There are many who are weak and poor and need rescuing, but this man was not one of them. He was bound in a prison of his own making. He was possessed by his possessions.
How about you, my friend? Are you generously opening your hand to the poor at this Advent Christmas season and throughout the year? Are you still thinking that you can take it with you? Or, are you dedicating all that you are and all that you have to the Master who still invites you to follow Him today?
Jesus is waiting for you to make your choice.
Do it today.
Philippians 2:1-11 NIV:
Verse 5: Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus.
Attitude is everything sometimes.
A few years ago two laity and I went from our church to a pre-conference briefing early on a Saturday morning. It was held in the rural western region of our conference, far away from the Conference Center in affluent Columbia, Maryland.
As we drove to the briefing, I suggested that we adopt a different attitude as we sat through the reports that were to be presented all morning. Usually such meetings consist of two groups of people: the presenters, who never know how they will be received, and those who come to be briefed, never knowing what we will hear and see.
"Let's all sit up front and smile at the presenters, as if we are really glad to see them here. And, after each presenter is introduced and again when they're done, let's clap to show our appreciation," I told our little threesome.
So we did. Sat up front. Smiled at the presenters. And when they were introduced and when they were finished, we applauded.
When we changed our attitude about giving up our Saturday morning to drive to a briefing to hear reports, we changed the meeting itself.
When we smiled, we saw the presenters brighten and smile back at us.
When we applauded at their introduction and their conclusion, we found that everyone behind us also did so.
We left the meeting convinced that attitude is everything.
Or at least that having a positive attitude can result in positive things happening.
I don't know if Jesus would have done what we did. I don't know if He would have been smiling at every report and applauding at any of them.
But I do know that Jesus had a great attitude.
Change your attitude. Change your life. Change your world.
We should have the same attitude that Jesus Christ has.
Do you believe this?
I do.
