On "Not the Jesus I believe in"

There is common reminder that Jesus was not the messiah they expected to see, but not much has changed in history. So many people have an idea of what they think a king, a god, a messiah should look like and do.

Even while Jesus hung on the cross in Matthew 27, people passed by "hurling abuse at HIm, wagging their heads and saying, 'You who are going to destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save Yourself! If You are the Son of God, come down from the cross." So when Jesus is doing all those things in a different way than they think He should, they deny Him as king and true God.

IT is still the same today. They mock and ridicule Jesus for not being what they assume He should be. We do not get to define what Jesus should be or do. Yet, this is what believers and non-believers alike will consistently do. We need only accept Christ as He has presented himself to us in Scripture.

Most important question

I am more and more convinced the very most important question everyone and anyone has ever been asked and needs to answer is "Who do YOU say [Jesus] is?" We have to make account for what we do with Jesus. It does not matter what other people do with Him. It does not matter what other people say of Jesus. What matters with a weight I cannot possibly measure is what do I do with Jesus Christ.

Who do I say Jesus is? Is he Christ, Messiah, Savior, and Lord? Not just the words, but who I, in my heart of hearts, know Jesus to be? 

At the heart of my answer lies salvation and peace, but also conflict and opposition to others. Before you answer that question, it is important to know regardless of your answer you will directly oppose someone. You either oppose people and the norm or you oppose the Son of God.

There are consequences to both oppositions. You oppose men and you will face ridicule, persecution, and possibly death. Oppose the Son of God, and you will face death (crazy, we ALL face this one), or the pain of Jesus being ashamed of and separate from you (Mark 8:38).

Suddenly one consequence seems far less horrible than the other.