iCrucified

Wrapping it up: 40 Days Living the Jesus Creed [Days 36-40]

LtJC – Days 36-40:

The way of Agape is not easy. More often than not, it is love that is dispensed and manifest in the faces of the unloved, in the lives of the broken, and in the hearts of the hateful…when those who are the loving are persecuted, despised, maligned and martyred. The way of Agape is selfless, sacrificial, and serving…the way of Agape is the highest calling of all. The way of Agape begins with loving God with all our heart, all our soul, all our mind, and all our strength. The way of Agape ends with loving our neighbor as ourselves. Anything in between those two points is a distraction…

The final 5 days (leading up to Palm Sunday) were focused on living examples of Jesus Creed love (days 36-40). The first example given (mentioned in my previous entry) is support. Support is evidenced in many ways not the least of which is our finances. It can be seen in other ways as well; for instance, the sharing of material resources, time, and serving with our gifts and abilities. The bottom line is love for Jesus supports his teaching and his kingdom.

Example number two is serving. The most exalted form of love is service. Hear the words of Jesus:

“Even the son of Man came not to be served, but to serve others and give his life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45).

This is something that could be talked about at length, but the point is this: To understand and follow Jesus in the way of Agape is to serve humanity. (Matthew 20:25-27)

The third example of Jesus Creed living is extending “affirming love” to our Christian brothers and sisters. Dr. McKnight writes the ultimate form of this expression can be found through the exercise of spiritual gifts in the Christian church. I really liked his reminder; “we each bring something to the table but, while at the table, we receive the benefit of the gifts of others.” The thought that occurred to me from this point is that the gift-sharing-benefit-experience is the manifestation of fruit coming from God’s gift to us in the form of community.

Example four teaches us that Jesus Creed love speaks for Jesus. The scripture reference points to John the Baptist who said, “He must increase, but I must decrease.” (John 3:30). This affirms my personal revelation of the “I”crucified life. McKnight shares that the best way to be a voice for Jesus is to begin with learning about Jesus… The next step is to enter into relationship with Him. This is best accomplished by entering into the story of the gospels. I found this particular point delightful in scope and imagery:

“The Christian philosopher Paul J. Griffiths says this so well in his book Religious Reading: In religious reading we ‘Read as a lover reads, with a tensile attentiveness that wishes to linger, to prolong, to savor, and has no interest at all in the quick orgasm of consumption.’ Religious reading wants not only to learn about Jesus but also to meditate on Him so much that He enters into the soul and sinews of who we are and how we live. To use an image of another writer, Eugene Peterson, a faith-shaped reading reads in order to Eat this Book.”

A Jesus creed love will always exalt the name, person, and kingdom of Jesus Christ.

The fifth and final example of Jesus Creed living comes to us in the form of Jesus Creed grace. The greatest point of this example is the reminder that even when we are following Jesus we sometimes will make mistakes…not because we are following him generally or wrongly, but because we sometimes fail to understand or we act out of fear, or we simply make a wrong choice. In any event, sometimes we mess up. The thing to remember is that Jesus wants us to succeed. He will, and does, discipline those he loves…and he will, and does, restore the frail…restore the broken. Our response to him is to simply love and obey…loving him with all our heart, all our soul, all our mind, and all our strength. Then, we extend that love to include our neighbor; loving them as we love ourselves. This is the Jesus Creed.

Mark 12:29-31 [Amen]

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