Skip to main content

Waxing Eloquent


“Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world. Righteous Father, though the world does not know you, I know you, and they know that you have sent me. I have made you known to them, and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them.” (John 17:24-26)

          When we’re excited about something, we tend to wax eloquent and repeat ourselves. In the literature and culture of Jesus’ time, repeating something, or repeating it with a slight variation, was considered a proper means of emphasizing the matter. It was even viewed as poetic. So while I’m saying, “Yeah, Jesus, You already said that…can we move on to the next point?” his disciples are saying, “David! Solomon! Shakespeare!” and, I think Jesus is saying, “Yes, but did you get it? Do you understand how huge this is? Really, did…you…get…it?”
          He knows the answer. He knows that if we say “Yep, got it!” we still don’t. We’re either mistaken or we’re lying because it’s so much more, and so much bigger than we can fathom. So, one more time. Jesus wants the Father’s love for Him to be shared with us. He wants the Father to have a relationship with us that is closer than a good marriage. 
          Scripture says that God is love, and that He so loved the world…. But the Father’s relationship with the Son was such that if asked to choose between the world and Jesus, He should have chosen Jesus.  The fact that He didn’t actually doesn’t elevate us. It further glorifies Jesus, because it honors Jesus’ decision to be the Sacrifice that satisfied the Father’s anger. In truth, when offered either…or, the Father’s answer was, “Yes” meaning “Both!”
          But some people claim that Jesus’s death was unnecessary, because our access to Him (and to heaven by extension) is based on whether or not we do good works. And some go so far as to claim that everyone will go to heaven, regardless. What an insult to both the Father and the Son, who, if they are right, gave His life needlessly. I digress.
          Jesus wants us to experience that love. He also wants us to demonstrate that love to others, but unless we’re experiencing it, we can’t. I guess that’s important enough to repeat a few times…and maybe even to die to demonstrate.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Think About These Things

                 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. (Philippians 4:8) This passage is a major challenge for me. Like everyone else, I struggle to keep my thoughts from wandering off into the weeds, then wondering what possible benefits those weeds might have… Sigh. But as a writer, I have to delve at least a little into the ignoble, wrong, impure, unlovely, and debased. After all, there’s no story if everything’s just as it should be and everyone’s happy. As Christians, there are times when we need to deal with all the negatives, but that makes it even more important that we practice turning our minds by force of attention to what is noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, and praiseworthy. It’s just too easy to get stuck in a swamp. With my...
1 comment
Read more

Higher Thoughts

  “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the  Lord . “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. (Isaiah 55:8-9)           The person with the Spirit makes judgments about all things, but such a person is not subject to merely human judgments,   for, “Who has known the mind of the Lord      so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ. (I Corinthians 2:15-16) If you read about the ancient gods of the various peoples, you’ll find that they think just like people. In fact, they think just like the sort of people we really wouldn’t want to be around. They think like the most corrupt Hollywood producer or, like hormone overloaded teens with no upbringing.   It’s embarrassing to read. I have a friend who argues that because God is not just like us, He is so vastly dif...
2 comments
Read more

Pure...

            The goal of this command is love, which comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. (I Timothy 1:5)   I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. (Revelation 3:15-16) I’m probably cheating - or mishandling the Bible, but earlier I was thinking about love being pure and purifying. And hatred being pure and purifying. And anger…joy…patience… fear… jealousy… courage…lust… and other strongly felt feelings, attitudes, and beliefs. Today’s verse brings purity and love together, so it’s the verse of the day, but it’s not really the focus. That means my motive for sharing it with you probably isn’t pure. As you read through my list, you   probably thought, “Yeah” about some, and “What’s she on?” about others. But consider how much hatred, a...
Post a Comment
Read more