This week’s reflection is by Chris Dodd, thank you Chris for sharing this with us and being open with your own journey and image of Jesus.
The older I get, the less I know, the less I understand, the less I am sure of. When I was younger I was raised expecting to believe the whole deal.
- Jesus was the literal son of God.
- He did miracles.
- He raised people from the dead.
- He died for our sins.
- He rose from the dead.
- He ascended into heaven and one day He’ll come back again.
But these days, I find a lot of that does not sit comfortably with me. I have no experience of the supernatural and I have found I have no need of it for Jesus to be meaningful to me. In fact, the more fantastic the claim, the more it makes me uneasy.
So I have cut Jesus back to bare bones.
- He was a really good and wise man.
- He saw it all so differently, so new, so fresh.
- In a violent and brutal world He taught about love, faith and hope.
- The early writers may have chosen to express this in mythical ways, but behind it all is this really meaningful and worthwhile way to live life.
- A life of love.
- A life not being controlled by base impulses of revenge and hate, which never ends well.
- A life of inclusiveness and acceptance.
- A life that acknowledges that God embraces us, works with us as we are, and it’s not up to me (or anyone else) to decide who’s in and who’s out.
Whether all the miraculous things are true or not doesn’t bother me. The life described above is sufficient, and if I’m wrong I’m prepared to take the risk.
Ponder:
Spend some time today reflecting and writing what makes Jesus meaningful / important to you today