Jesus People--May 2, 2022

Jesus People--May 2, 2022

"Paul, called to be an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and our brother Sosthenes, to the church of God that is in Corinth, to those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, together with all those who in every place call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ." [1 Corinthians 1:1-3]

We are Jesus people.  And we are Jesus' people--with an apostrophe attached to Jesus' name, as in, "people who belong to Jesus."  Both are true at the same time.  In fact, the first is only true because the second is already true.  Because we belong to Jesus, we are being made more and more fully like Jesus ourselves.  In our words and actions, in our love and practices, and in our connections and our character.  We are Jesus people... because we are Jesus' people.

As we start a new venture into another book of the New Testament, that's where we begin.  It really is all about Jesus, the way he lives in us, the way he loves through us, and the way he speaks a surprising new word to the world among us.  Maybe it seems obvious to say that the Christian life is about Jesus, but maybe it's not as obvious as we might wish.  To be honest, a lot of the impressions folks in the watching world form about Christians have very little to do with us being Christ-like, and a whole lot more about how we fight and fragment away from one another, let ourselves become pawns for someone else's culture war, or use religion to reinforce our pre-existing prejudices.  It would be refreshing if everybody knew that being a Christian was really about becoming more and more like Jesus; honestly, it would be a great starting point if even we who sit in pews on Sundays would take that as our starting point.

But maybe, together, we can change that.  We can start, here and now, you and I, to walk alongside our older brother in the faith Paul, and to learn from his insights about how God is making us to be Jesus people... because we are Jesus' people.  For one, just notice how many times in just this opening greeting Paul refers to Jesus specifically.  He calls himself an "apostle" (someone who is specially sent) of Jesus, and he is writing to people who are being made holy (which is what "sanctified" means, after all) in Jesus, and he notes how people in places all over the world call on this same Jesus as Lord.  Jesus defines us; Jesus us shapes us; Jesus sends us.  

And if that's where we start, then maybe the question to start with on this new day in this new devotional venture is simply this:  "How will others see Jesus through me today?"  The people around us are watching.  They will know and sense when our actions are out of sync with the One we claim to follow.  They'll see when there is something compelling in the ways we take time with others, make room for others, and open up to others that makes them think, even if for just a split second, they are in the company of Jesus himself.  And they'll know when our priorities and our actions are out of step with this One we call Lord. 

Like James Baldwin said so clearly in a 1987 interview: "I take my cue from Jesus Christ, really, who told me and told all of us to love each other, clothe the naked, feed the hungry, and visit those in prison. If we can’t do that, you’re not a believer, I don’t care what church you go to." As we'll see, the further along we go through this letter of the New Testament, that really is the hallmark of being Jesus people: our lives will reflect his kind of love, even when it seems countercultural and at odds with the powers of the day... even when it would be easier to bicker and bail out on one another because we can't agree on fine points of theology.

Today, let's start with the open question: How can we let Jesus be embodied in us? I have a hunch it will have everything to do with how we love.

We pray:  Lord Jesus, you have claimed us as your own already. Now make us more fully a reflection of your face for the world around us.