The New Creation in You
Some years ago, our son Sam and his wife Abby adopted a cute little Chihuahua-Pekinese-mini poodle mix named Sage. Sage is cute as she can be, all 4 pounds of her. But she had a problem when they first got her. She was covered with fleas. The poor dog was absolutely miserable. She looked frightened, cowering, and much smaller than her 4 pounds would indicate.
I suggested Sam should go get a flea and tic shampoo so we could kill the fleas and wash them away. Sam got a flea shampoo. It smelled really nice, but it claimed to be a repellant, not a killer. And it didn’t seem to bother the fleas at all. So, I ran to the store and grabbed the right product, came back and we washed her. The second bath killed all the fleas.
The change in Sage was abrupt and complete. She immediately became joyful. She couldn’t stop smiling and as soon as we got her mostly dry, she started bounding all around greeting everyone. It was quite a transformation. Sudden. Complete.
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The Gospel Truth
Not long ago a very experienced, committed and devout Christian friend was excited to tell me about an article he’d read by a Jesuit priest, which he summed up by saying, “You can reduce the Gospel to five words, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.”
He was very pleased. He found that very comforting and it sounds like a badly needed tonic for this era of social media and 24-hour news, rife with political opinions, which I suppose it is.
That was very well-intentioned, but made me cringe.
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God stooped down.
Palm Sunday, just a few days ago we had our own Procession in remembrance of Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem. That day, 2000 years ago, marked the beginning of Jesus’ final days, walking this earth as fully human. Jerusalem was in turmoil, everyone in the crowd had their own reasons for being there. Some were there for the Passover, some hoping to see a miracle, some simply wanted to get a glimpse of Him, some looking for the opportunity to get rid of him. Some were hoping that this was the arrival of the long-awaited Messiah. They had their ideas of how He would arrive; many expected Him to arrive on a white horse, flashing a sword, as the conquering king. Jesus, however demonstrated something totally different, His authentic humility. Yes, a conquering king, riding on a donkey demonstrating His true humility right up to the end. Isn’t it interesting that this was also the day that lambs were selected for Passover? “Lamb Selection Day” (MORE ON THAT LATER)
Jesus in His earthly ministry, with the clarity of BOK Tower’s Carillon Bells made clear who He was, In His “I am” statements in the Gospel of John ring out His identity. “I am the bread of life” (John 6:35); I am the light of the world” (8:12); “I am the gate” (10:9); I am the good shepherd” (10:11); I am the resurrection and the life” (11:25); I am the way, the truth, and the life” (14:16); and “I am the true grapevine” (15:1).
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