John 6:66-69 (The Message)
66-67 After this, many of his disciples left. They no longer wanted to be associated with him. Then Jesus gave the Twelve their chance: “Do you also want to leave?”
68-69 Peter replied, “Master, to whom would we go? You have the words of real life, eternal life. We’ve already committed ourselves, confident that you are the Holy One of God.”
Jesus Christ could be an offensive person. For he came to create change in our lives; changing us from living for ourselves to living for others - living a life of the Spirit, a life full of “compassion (that) produces a harvest of good deeds; free from prejudice and hypocrisy...” as James says. (3:17)
This is no easy task! Especially if we are religious!
For it is easy to get locked into our beliefs and refuse to open our eyes to anything which may challenge us to change the way we see things.
Such as these words from Brian McLaren which identifies what it means to
change the emphasis of our following Jesus from what we believe to what we live.
“More than ever before in our history, we need a new kind of personal and social fuel. Not fear, but love. Not prejudice, but openness. Not supremacy, but service. Not inferiority, but equality. Not resentment, but reconciliation. Not isolation, but connection. Not the spirit of hostility, but the holy Spirit of hospitality….
Old markers of gender, religion, culture, and class must recede: “There is neither Jew nor Gentile, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus” [Galatians 3:28] . . . [and] “the only thing that counts is faith working through love” [Galatians 5:6]. Where the Spirit is, love is. Where the Spirit teaches, people learn love.
Will we also go away?
Or are we open to Jesus way as our way, because he was and is indeed the Holy One of God!
Not prejudice, but openness.
Not supremacy, but service.
Not inferiority, but equality.
Not resentment, but reconciliation.
Not isolation, but connection.
Not the spirit of hostility,
but the holy Spirit of hospitality….
Prayer thought for the week:
“Lord help me to remember that it is not enough to believe that you are my Savior, unless I also believe that you want me to be your Servant in your Kingdom on earth. “
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