Monday, November 13, 2006

What the ??? Who are these people and where do they come up with such bizarre portrayals of Jesus? The Lord of Life reduced to a knick-knack? Never! As hard as some Christians have tried to restrain, contain or constrain him, Jesus doesn't fit into any of the tiny boxes we have created for him. In his book, Pagan Christianity, Frank Viola writes: "In Jesus, we have a Man who refused to bow to the pressures of religious conformity. A Man who preachd a revolution. A man who would not tolerate hypocrisy. A Man who was not afraid to provoke those who suppressed the liberating gospel He brought to set men free. A Man who did not mind evoking anger in His enemies, causing them to gird their thighs for battle. What is my point? It is this: Jesus Christ came not only as Messiah, the Anointed One of God to deliver His people from the bondage of the fall. He came not only as Savior, paying a debt He did not owe to wash away the sins of mankind. He came not only as Prophet, comforting the afflicted and afflicting the comfortable. He came not only as Priest, representing man before God and representing God before man. He came not only as King, triumphant over all authority, principality and power. He came as a Revolutionary, tearing apart the old wineskin with a view to bringing in the new. Behold your Lord, the Revolutionary!" Wow! Now that's the Jesus I will forsake everything to follow. -- Bob