Why I Love Jesus

I recently read on a friend's blog, and was "tagged" to answer the question why I love Jesus. Seems like such a simple, basic question. Maybe it is all the soul searching I've been doing this year, but I didn't want to give a quick answer without having really thought it through. I have been raised in the church, and I'm finally getting to the point where I want to start over and look at things with greater passion. It seemed when I would ask tough questions growing up, or my heart was aching, I was so often given a pat answer like "let go and let God." So often we can answer something quickly because we've been taught what to say, but maybe we haven't taken the time to digest it and consider it anew.

What follows is a list of some of the things that ran through my mind as I pondered the question. I spent some time considering what I remembered from the gospels and could see in the life of Jesus on earth. This exercise brought a lot of joy to my heart to be reminded of even just some of the things that Jesus means to me. What a great thing to spend time reflecting on! I have added scriptures for my own benefit, but also if anyone wants to do a little digging themselves. In many cases, there would be countless examples found in the scriptures, but I just found one or two that would help make the point.

I hope and pray this might spur someone else on to share their love for Jesus too. If there are things you want to add, or scriptures that speak so pointedly, please add to them by posting some comments. It would be a pretty cool drum roll for Jesus if we keep the adoration for Him going.

Why I love Jesus… I love how he pursues us uniquely, individually, and relentlessly…

• I love the way he shows up where people least expect him, and he kind of waits to let them figure out he’s been there all along… walking on water to get to the boat (John 6:19), at the tomb (John 20:14), the road to Emmaus (Luke 24:15-16), and making breakfast at the beach (John 21:4,12). Even when we don’t realize it at first, he is there – pursuing us, causing us to wonder and grow into more of him. He doesn’t throw himself on us, but creates a bit of a hunger and awe about him.
• I love the way he calls out our name, when we didn’t realize he even knew we were there or who we were. And yet, he knows. Mary (John 20:16) Zacchaeus (Luke 19:5) I love how he knows more about us than we even know about ourselves. Nothing is hidden from him. (John 4:17-18, 39)
• I love his heart for people and how he wants to hear their stories (Mark 9:21) and lets them share their heart (Matthew 20:32).

I love his authenticity and depth…

• I love how he goes boating and spends time on the sea, and how he isn’t afraid of a storm. I want him with me when the waters rage. (Matthew 8:23-27)
• I love that he knows how it feels to face rejection (Mark 6:4), and yet he shakes the dust off his feet and presses on in kingdom living (Matthew 10:14).
• I love how he shares even the hardest of emotions – he cries (Luke 19:41, John 11:35), he gets angry (John 2:15-16), he knows anguish (Luke 22:44), he feels forsaken (Matthew 27:46), he has been overwhelmed with sorrow, deeply distressed and troubled (Mark 14:33-34).
• I love that he has walked painful times of suffering because I know he can handle mine. He isn’t afraid of hard times. (Matthew 4:1-11)
• I love the way he chooses the road of obedience, even when it is the greatest sacrifice (Luke 22:42).

I love when he shows us some of his heart…

• I love how he draws near to people and he isn’t afraid to touch lepers (Luke 5:13).
• I love how tender he is when he gets close and takes the children in his arms (Mark 10:16).
• I love how he takes care of his mama when he knows her heart is hurting (John 19:26). I love that we can adopt each other and call each other family (Matthew 12:49-50).
• I love his heart to forgive, even when someone doesn’t own up to what they’ve done (Luke 23:34).

I love the way he turns things around….

• I love his heart for redemption and how he restores our brokenness (John 21:15-17). When we feel like we’ve lost it all, he renews our hearts and brings us back into ministry (Luke 22:32).
• I love how he turns grief into joy (John 16:22).
• I love that with him we can do impossible things (Luke 5:4-6, John 21:6).
• I love that he understands our doubts and longs for us to believe (John 20:27).
• I love the way he spends time with broken people, and the people who were so comfy in their religion he causes them to question if they are really as close as they thought they were (John 8:1-7).

I love the things about him that are somewhat shocking…

• I love his heart to get involved in people’s lives even when it is dirty (John 13:5).
• I love that he prioritized and valued a woman’s heart even when society thought less of her (Luke 7:36-47). Women were among those who followed him and cared for his needs (Matthew 27:55), and the first who saw that he rose from the dead (Luke 24:1-2, 10). The Risen Christ spoke first to Mary (John 20:14-17).
• I love how his teachings turn our world upside down (Luke 5:44, Matthew 20:16, 26). He takes us out on a limb, but for our stretching and depth and growth.
• I love how he isn’t afraid to call things as he sees them, stirs things up and makes people uncomfortable (Matthew 7:5, Matthew 16:23, Matthew 10:34-35).
• I love that even though it may have seemed his time was cut short, his purpose was fulfilled (John 19:30). It reminds me that even if things happen differently than I thought they would, his purpose prevails. He is intentional in the way he works in my life too, even when it is beyond my capacity to understand.

I love how he teaches me…

• I love how he teaches in somewhat mysterious ways, where the depth and meaning unfold over time (Matthew 13:34-35, 15:15-16).
• I love how Jesus is the fulfillment of what we learn in the Old Testament. He ties it all in together. (Matthew 5:17, 2 Corinthians 1:20)
• I love that he paints a picture for us so we can grasp a little more of him (John 10:14).
• I love how he doesn’t get caught up in things where some people miss the whole point. He knows what really matters. (Matthew 9:10-13, Matthew 12:12)

My heart thrills in my relationship with Jesus…

• I love how he gets away for times of solitude and connection with his maker (Mark 1:35). I love how he calls me away to be with him too (Mark 6:31).
• I love that he reminds me of things when I forget (John 14:26). Whether it is bringing to mind a scripture I need or telling me something we need from the grocery store, I am certain that Jesus is the one who is right there to help me remember.
• I love that he specializes in finding lost things (Luke 19:10). Most importantly, he comes after our wayward souls, but I’ve also known him to help me find my missing car keys.
• I love that I don’t have to have a lot to give him my all (Mark 12:43).
• I love that he is my constant companion and closest friend (John 15:15).

Incarnational

The kids were invited last week to come to a friend's house to swim. It was a hot day, and they were thrilled for the opportunity. I gladly supported the event, even though I sat this one out and just watched. Our older three kids are capable of swimming solo, or at least with the help of a noodle in the deep end. Madison was the one who would need a buddy.

Frank took all the safety precautions -- got her in a life preserver, and put a rope across to divide the shallow end from the deep. Pam came along and sat by Maddie at the step, and they talked and played for a bit. Before long, Pam went and got her suit so she could help Maddie in the water.

I had no idea the full extent at the time, but what unfolded before me was a beautiful picture of tenderness. I began to embrace the idea of coming alongside someone. We need each other. At various stages and seasons of our life, we may be the one who is in an unfamiliar place and afraid and in need, or we may be the one who has walked it before and can help someone else.

In Donald Miller's book Blue Like Jazz, it says, "There is this lie floating around that says I am supposed to be able to do life alone, without any help, without stopping to worship something bigger than myself. I need someone to put awe inside me; I need to come second to someone who has everything figured out."

I've come into a spacious place this year. A place where the more I get to know of my own complexities, I realize the bigger God is. I am learning to rest in not having closure on everything, not understanding all of the answers, and living with ambiguity. God Himself has everything figured out. He didn't make us to live this life alone. We are to be about the work of incarnational ministry -- God in the flesh -- God in you ministering to me, God in me reaching out to you.

What occurred to me with Pam and Maddie was so simple, but so foundational to us as Christians if we want to be a part of this incarnational, relational connection to other human beings. Pam was able to help Maddie because she had been in the water before. Perhaps at one time she had to face her own fears of the water, or learn how to swim. But in her own growth and experiences, she was better equipped to reach out and help another.

I guess I wonder if believers today are really willing to go to deep places. Not just reading a book or taking a Bible Study, but open to being changed and stretched far beneath the surface of appearances. Are we willing to ask hard questions that we don't have answers for? Are we willing to search our own heart and get to the root of our unrest? Are we willing to own up to our personal fears, doubts, and pain? Because if I were Maddie, I wouldn't want to be getting in the water with someone who has never been there themselves. If I am going to go deep in my walk with Christ and really live the thing, I want to find someone else who is willing to go deep too. If I am suffering, I want to know someone who has endured a seasaon of suffering and has come through stronger and better for having been through it.

"The great illusion of leadership is to think that man can be led out of the desert by someone who has never been there." (Henri Nouwen, Wounded Healer)

The gift God has for us, the way He created us for, is shared life. Coming alongside. Not alone. This doesn't come through surface relationships. We can't know more of ourselves or more of each other by keeping at a distance. Shared life comes as we are willing to get to know what is in ourselves and then intentionally connecting with others. The more we know of ourselves, the more we will grow in intimacy with each other. God in us and between us and surrounding us -- He is in the midst of it all -- teaching us, growing us, healing us -- primarily and foundationally in the context of relationships with one another. God intends for us to be connected.

I heard a sermon that ministered to me as it spoke about being very present and available to each other. "We are called to be a priesthood -- a priest mediates the divine. We need someone to join us. We need someone to walk with us. A divine reminder that we are not alone. God has not abandoned us. God is with us. God is here." (Brad Gray)

As we allow ourselves to be fully engaged in who we are, and are willing to connect into meaningful relationships with others, we open ourselves up to more of God too. We see Him in each other. We hold His hand or feel His embrace through each other. He teaches us as we come alongside and share and dialogue together. But even in this divine beauty, there is enormous risk. Are we willing to open ourselves up to be known or seen? Are we willing to be vulnerable and risk being hurt? Are we willing to sacrifice what it takes to be available to another?

Jesus was and is incarnational. "The God that Jesus points us to is not a god who stands at a distance." (Rob Bell) Let the body of Christ rise up and come near.