Seeing Jesus Clearly
Up until my 7th-grade year, my brother and I had attended larger public schools, and then we had a short stint of homeschooling, which was probably more traumatic for my mom in the long run than for either of us. Halfway through my 8th-grade year, my parents enrolled my brother and me at a small Christian private school. They probably figured that we needed all the help we could get! I spent the next four and a half years there with teachers who daily encouraged us in the love of Jesus. I am grateful for those years and relationships. One person, in particular, was my sophomore year Bible teacher, Mr. Rosio. He was a pastor of a small church and was on the board for the school. I don’t remember much from his class except two questions; he always seemed to fit into any and every discussion. They are: Who is Jesus? And, who is Jesus to you?
Redemption, restoration, and renewal are found in Jesus and Jesus alone.
Truth be told, Mr. Rosio was on to something; these are quite possibly the two most important questions for all of humanity. Yes, I know that is a BIG statement. But, Jesus makes an equally BIG statement in John 14:6, “Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” That is quite the statement. And, if we believe that it is actually true, it means that we believe something about Jesus that is very significant. We believe that he is God and that he alone holds the keys to victory over sin and death. In other words, we believe that Jesus changes everything. We also know that if this is true about Jesus, that he can change everything, then he must require something of me. In his book, The Signature of Jesus, Brennan Manning expresses that truth this way, “And Jesus demands nothing less than the placing of our own egos and desires on the Cross.” If Jesus can change everything, then he can change me. That should come as both exciting and sobering news. It is sobering because I am not complete in and of myself. And, I can’t complete myself. However, it is exciting because I do not have to stay in that place of incompletion or un-doneness. Redemption, restoration, and renewal are found in Jesus and Jesus alone. That is why it is critical to see Jesus clearly. So, who is Jesus? And, who is he to you?