“Moments Frozen” – thanks, James Long

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a provocative analogy, bruised reeds, Frozen moments, James Long, Jesus - the husband, rotting skin, smoldering wick, the whole spectrum of emotions

One analogy used to describe Jesus was that of being a husband. The apostle Paul likens Jesus’ wife to those who believe in Jesus (Ephesian 5.25). The husband image is striking in that Jesus in actuality, was celibate. But, Jesus as if a husband is the context for the following self-reflection provided by James Long. For personal reasons that some of you may know, I feel very deeply the sentiments expressed in the following paragraphs.

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I looked around my living room, seeing reminders of the relationship my wife and I share. I reflected on just how much I love this woman, and I reminded myself of my desire to be all she needs in a husband. That’s when this question occurred to me: What kind of husband would Jesus have made?

I flipped through the gospel of Matthew with the image in mind of Jesus as a husband. “He will not quarrel or cry out; no one will hear his voice in the streets. A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out.” (Matthew 12: 19-20)

It was an image of strong gentleness. I thought of Jesus taking time for the children; patiently instructing his followers, though tired and hungry; touching the rotting skin of outcast lepers; weeping over a city’s waywardness; calling even his betrayer “friend.”

This Man felt the whole spectrum of emotion, yet always maintained self-control. He experienced success without it degenerating to egotism. He faced reversal without turning bitter. He endured temptation, but did not yield to its pressure. You could freeze any moment of his life in time and he would have no reason for regrets or embarrassment.

I realized that in a sense, every moment of my life is a moment frozen. An expression of who I am, in that instant. And I decided to devote myself to piling up moments and memories that will give my wife some small glimpse of Jesus in my life. (1)

 

 

(1) James Long. “Jesus the Righteous Husband,” in Couples Devotional Bible NIV, Zondervan Publishers, 1994. Available in Calvin Miller’s The Book of Jesus, Simon and Schuster, 1998. Page 193.

 

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Fear, what fear? Why? Why not? – – – Thanks, Billy G.

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Billy Graham, No fear, no fencing himself off, no pettiness - no viewpoints, not afraid to associate with anyone, the most open and all un-compassing mind, Unto the hills, willing to talk and exchange ideas with anyone

Is fear natural? Is fear normative? Does Jesus give us an idea about fear?  What says the fellow who faced hundreds of thousands, and still hasn’t stopped.   He says this:

“Jesus wasn’t afraid to associate with anyone! One of the things which the scribes and Pharisees criticized bitterly was His willingness to help and talk to and exchange ideas with anyone, be they publicans, thieves, learned professors or prostitutes, rich or poor! Even His own followers decried some of the people with whom He was seen in public, but this did not lessen the compassion that Jesus felt for all the members of poor, blinded, and struggling humanity.

“Jesus had the most open and all-encompassing mind that this world has ever seen. His own inner conviction was so strong, so firm, so unswerving that He could afford to mingle with any group secure in the knowledge that he would not be contaminated. It is fear that makes us unwilling to listen to another’s point of view, fear that our own ideas may be attacked. Jesus had no such fear, no such pettiness of viewpoint, no need to fence Himself off for his own protection. He knew the difference between graciousness and compromise, and we would do well to learn from Him. He set for us the most magnificent and glowing example of truth combined with mercy of all time, and in departing said, “Go and do likewise.” (1)

— Billy Graham. Unto the Hills. Word Publishing. 1986. Pp. 123-124.

(quoted in The Book of Jesus by Calvin Miller, pg. 170.

(1) Luke 10:37)

 

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Too easily pleased. . . desiring too little – – Thanks, Phillips and Lewis

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"J B Phillips", C S Lewis, desire, half-hearted creatures, Kant and the Stoics, The Weight of Glory, Your God Is Too Small

Your God Is Too Small (1) was the verdict rendered by J.B. Phillips. Was he thinking of those who projected God as a huge snuggly and non-threatening teddy bear, or a super human law enforcement officer whose beat was the world, or the ever available bell hop in the hyper elegant resort fronting the idyllic seashore, or even the oversized dragon whose idea of fun was to devour helpless victims? Perhaps. In fact, probably. It wouldn’t surprise me. These and similar views of God are too small!! They ultimately fail when we face life’s dilemmas.

Because our view of God frequently is too small, so also is our view of desire. This is how C. S. Lewis describes the situation in his “The Weight of Glory” (2):

The New Testament has lots to say about self-denial, but not about self-denial as an end in itself. We are told to deny ourselves and to take up our crosses in order that we may follow Christ; and nearly every description of what we shall ultimately find if we do so contains an appeal to desire. If there lurks in most modern minds the notion that to desire our own good and earnestly to hope for the enjoyment of it is a bad thing, I submit that this notion has crept in from Kant and the Stoics and is no part of the Christian faith. Indeed, if we consider the unblushing promises of reward and the staggering nature of the rewards promised in the Gospels, it would seem that Our Lord finds our desires, not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.

True freedom in Jesus is a consequence of desiring ultimately only what the “not too small” God provides. (VC)

(1) J. B. Phillips. Your God Is Too Small. 1961.  (available as a PDF file at http://thecommonlife.com/files/books/Your_God_is_Too_Small.pdf)

(2) C. S. Lewis, “The Weight of Glory”. Preached originally in the Church of St. Mary the Virgin, Oxford, England on June 8, 1942 (available as a PDF file at http://www.verber.com/mark/xian/weight-of-glory.pdf)

 

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