WHAT IS SO SPECIAL ABOUT JESUS?

(Preached on Sunday, October 8, 2006)

He is the reflection of God=s glory and the exact imprint of God=s very being, and he sustains all things by his powerful word.                          -Hebrews 1:3

 

What is so special about Jesus?

Well, there are three good arguments that Jesus was Jewish:

  1. He went into his Father=s business.

  2. He lived at home until he was 33.

  3. He was sure his Mother was a virgin and his Mother was sure he was God.

But then there are 3 equally good arguments that Jesus was Italian:

  1. He talked with his hands.

  2. He had wine with his meals.

  3. He used olive oil.

But then there are three equally good arguments that Jesus was a Californian:

  1. He never cut his hair.

  2. He walked around barefoot all the time.

  3. He started a new religion.

But there are also three equally good arguments that Jesus was an American Indian:

  1. He was at peace with nature.

  2. He ate a lot of fish.

  3. He talked about the Great Spirit.

Of course, there are also 3 equally good arguments that Jesus was Irish:

  1. He never got married.

  2. He was always telling stories.

  3. He loved green pastures.

But the most compelling evidence of all are the three good arguments that Jesus was a woman:

  1. He fed a crowd at a moment=s notice when there was no food.

  2. He kept trying to get a message across to a bunch of men who just didn=t get it.

  3. And even when he was dead, he had to get up because there was work to do.

 

But seriously, what is so special about Jesus?

The way of life Jesus taught is extremely difficult, idealistic, and contrary to the teachings of worldly common sense.  Jesus was counter-cultural in his day and he is still counter-cultural today.  His teachings all sound good and wonderful, but we all know the real world is a place where you have to be tough and a little cynical to survive.

So, while Jesus calls us to care for the creation, we all nod our heads and agree that clean air and water are nice, but they must be balanced against jobs.  While Jesus calls us to care for others, especially the poor, we smile because we know that is nice, but such assistance may well take away their motivation to find a job.  While Jesus teaches us to love our enemies and pray for them, we all know that we can never really trust our enemies to ever stop preparing for war.  So really, no serious, sane person would take this man seriously and follow his teachings and expect to survive in the world today, would they?

 

But there is something special about him  Special enough that his story, and his crazy teachings, have survived for 2,000 years.

The author of the Book of Hebrews attempts to put into words what is so special about Jesus.  And this author makes high claims for his identity.  But to make those claims the author begins by pointing out that God has been speaking to human beings since the beginning of time in many and various ways.  One of my favorite films of all time, based on the novella by Norman Maclean is A River Runs Through It.  It=s the story of a strict Presbyterian minister in Montana and his relationship with his two sons.  Early in the movie there=s a scene where the father takes his two young sons to their favorite river to fish.  One of the boys finds a fossil and brings it to his dad.  The father says, ABoys, this river flows through the land over the rocks to the sea.  The rocks are half a billion years old, and show the marks of raindrops that fell long eons ago.  And underneath the rocks are the words of God.  Listen.@  They lean over and listen to the gurgling river.  Underneath the river and the rocks is the Word of God.  That Word runs through all things and holds all things together. 

That is what the author of Hebrews reminds us about.

God has spoken through many and varied persons, prophets, kings even.  But now God has spoken to us through someone special, through one who reflects the glory of God and bears in his being the exact imprint of the nature and being of God.

 

ADeoxyribonucleic acid@ C a big name for a little thing C that minute strand of molecules that we know as DNA.

DNA is the building block of living organisms.  The molecules on the DNA strand have a unique sequence, which acts as a code to signal a cell how to reproduce itself.  In the cells of higher living organisms, like a human being, there will be multiple strands of DNA clustered together in chromosomes.  These chromosomes, because of their unique combination of DNA strands, will determine the particular characteristics of the organism.  DNA testing is so specific that it can be used in a courtroom as testimony about the identity of an individual, based on the evidence of a blood sample or a piece of hair.

The author of Hebrews says that Jesus Abears the very stamp of God=s nature.@  In a sense, Jesus is the DNA fingerprint of God in the world, especially in the human experience.

 

That is what is so special about Jesus.

Those who came to know him came to understand that when they looked at him, when they watched his life, they were experiencing the presence of God in the world in a most profound way.  When they listened to his stories and his teaching, when they watched the way he dealt with people, they began to really understand what God wanted for all people in the world, how God wanted them to live.

It was not a life based in fear; it was not a life based in greed; it was not a life centered on themselves; it was not a life filled with hate; it was not a life filled with lust; it was not a life spent grasping for power.

It was not a life lived the way most ideologies, religions, man-made systems of belief and thought, said life should be lived.

 

It is a life lived for others.  It is a life of love, compassion, mercy, forgiveness, turning the other cheek, sharing what you receive with those who need it as much or more than you.  It is a life that is vulnerable, appears weak in the eyes of the world, but require tremendous strength to live it out.

It is a life of sacrifice and a life the world never quite gets.

 

But for those who embrace it, it is a life with true power.

The power to face the realities of suffering and death without despair, or fear, or disillusionment. 

This past week one community of people who have embraced this approach to life have provided a powerful witness to its validity.

The Amish are an anachronism in our world.  They are a curiosity even to other Christians, for they persist in living what they believe to be the most biblical lifestyle they can in a modern world.

This past week one of their communities in Pennsylvania was violently assaulted as a lone man invaded one of their simple one-room schoolhouses, sent the boys and the adults running and barricaded himself in with 10 girls.  He then shot the girls, killing 5 of them, then turning the gun on himself and taking his own life.