Jesus the Intriguer

Man, those disciples and people living back in the day had no clue what Jesus was going to do next. One minute he's changing water into wine and the next he's feeding a ton of folks with a sack lunch! He was healing on the sabbath, hanging out with sinners and He was nothing like all their staunch religious teachers. The stir was abounding as people were constantly trying to get close to this "God man". They were intrigued by what He did and would follow Him around just to see what was going to happen next. Numerous times when the crowds were around, Jesus would teach them remarkable truths that would change them forever. He was God, for crying out loud, and people were changed by him. The disciples followed in His steps and the people never knew what they were going to do next. The disciples practiced all kinds of unorthodox/unaccepted stuff and the church grew daily by those who accepted this message.

God could have just sat up in heaven and had pity on us down on lowly earth. He could have said something like, "They'll figure out how to get up here". Praise God, He didn't just sit up there. He put on flesh and bones and lived among us. He ate our food, got our dirt in his hair, was bitten by our mosquitoes, got to know people, then proved His point. He took away our sins and has left us all reeling as to how that works.

Intriguing? YES. But can we expect people to just come sit down on our pews, listen to us sing, give in the offering and be drawn to Him? No/maybe. Is it wise to figure out ways to expose more people to this message? Absolutely! Churches, pastors and Christians are commissioned to connect with this culture in a way that draws lost and dying poeple into God's story.

Ernie