Jesus One-on-One

John the Baptist's ministry was to announce the approaching Messiah who would make a way to reconcile the lost world to himself. As John himself encounters Jesus, he discovers Jesus is infinitely more transcendent than he expected and yet, Jesus lowered himself far lower than John could ever have imagined by coming in the form of a common man. John's mind is blown!

People started out skeptical of the claims Jesus was the Messiah. But spending time with Jesus quickly changes people's opinion of him. Something about Jesus makes people want to show him to others. All we really have to do is share what we know with who we know.\r\nGod knows us as we are. Because of Jesus Christ, he accepts us before we even show up. He has a plan and a vision that perfectly fits our life. Our only role is to come and see.

One might suppose the Samaritan woman at the well would be the least likely person to ever follow Jesus. She is the wrong gender, race, religion, and morality. The barriers are numerous. Yet, Jesus pursues the unlikely, like this sinful woman who doesn't even know she is thirsty. She learns she is very thirsty, and the only thing that will quench that thirst is a relationship with God. Jesus has removed every barrier to receiving the living water he offers.

In John 3, John describes an encounter with Nicodemus, a Pharisee, a leader and teacher to the Jews. Nicodemus visits Jesus under cover of darkness. He is a man of power and commands great respect in his community, unlike the woman at the well from last week's teaching. John has these two very different encounters back to back perhaps to contrast Nicodemus' apparent righteousness and the woman's obvious sinfulness. They both need God's forgiveness. Nicodemus could never be righteous enough to earn entrance into heaven on his own and the woman is not so far down the road to sin that God can't forgive her, too. Both are equally under judgment and both are equally offered forgiveness.

When Jesus encounters the rich young ruler, he seems to deal with him differently than the others he has interacted with. Here, he seems to be pointing him back to the Law as the way to inherit eternal life. But in reality, he is pointing out to the young man that he is attempting to keep the law by watering down the requirements of the Law. He thinks he has kept them since his youth but Jesus shows him the Law requires perfection and he does not live up to that standard. Instead, he must receive the kingdom of heaven as a child receives a gift, with no expectation of deserving the gift.

The story of the woman in the crowd who had a bleeding disorder demonstrates that Jesus is a man of compassion, the healer of hopeless situations, the inviter of outcasts, the rewarder of faith, and that Jesus' power is absolutely adequate. Sickness and death are symbols of our alienation from God. Jesus' power over them is proof he has the power to fulfill his mission to reconcile us. All of us will encounter hopeless situations at some time. When that happens, Jesus invites us to put our faith, however small it might be, in him.

God wants us to be people who give thanks to him specifically. God wants us to live in reality. The reality is God is deserving of our thanks and gratitude is good for us physically, spiritually, mentally, and relationally. Gratitude does not ignore trials but places them in the proper context of reality. It is our inherent tendency to focus on the one thing that is not good in a situation rather than the 99 things that are good. The reality is even trials are a blessing from God.

Peter's three-fold denial of Jesus was a failure of faith. As fallen humans, we over-estimate the strength of our intentions and faithfulness. Jesus anticipates our failures but has a vision for us beyond our failures. He forgives our failures and restores us relationally. He refines our character through our failures and redeems our failures.

When John meets the risen Jesus in Revelation Chapter One, he falls face-down like a dead man. Jesus's appearance was so brilliantly different from the man he knew during Jesus' earthly ministry that John was awe-struck. Can this be the same man? Is Jesus the gentle lamb who is relational and approachable? Or is he the fearsome lion of Judah who will judge the earth? Is he immanent or transcendent? The answer is he is both! He is both king and friend which qualifies him to be our savior.

The story of Saul's radical transformation from an enemy of God who persecuted the early church with vengeance to his becoming the foremost evangelist who died proclaiming the Good News is a showcase for how God's grace and mercy can change anyone, even the one who is least likely in our eyes. Sometimes our spiritual passions are misplaced and don't align with God's plans for us. God's mercy and grace is nothing short of scandalous. No one is too much an enemy of God to be accepted by God. His invitation stand today for each and every person.

The lesson we can learn from Jesus' interaction with Zacchaeus, the tax collector, is if you are lost, Jesus is seeking you. The way Jesus initiated with the this most hated man is typical of his posture toward all people. He showed him mercy, grace, honor, and acceptance, as well as included him in the family of God. Jesus' only prerequisite is to acknowledge your "lostness." Being "found" by Jesus dramatically changes the course of people's lives just as it did with Zacchaeus, who made four-fold restitution and gave away half his possessions after being "found."