“When he said this, all his opponents were put to shame; and the entire crowd was rejoicing at all the wonderful things that he was doing.”
Tradition tells us that Luke the evangelist was a physician. He could have had a career as a political publicist – in both his gospel and its sequel, the Acts of the Apostles, he often gives these summaries that tell us how Jesus just won the latest debate, and how enthralled the populace is.
I don’t think Jesus was all about putting his opponents to shame, though he gets in quite a few “gotcha” moments in the gospel accounts of his life. And as we see that story play out, we know that the “entire crowd” didn’t stay rejoicing for long – soon enough, they were calling for his blood. Jesus was not out to win popularity contests, then or now. Jesus was about proclaiming the Life of God released in and among humankind, and about demonstrating that Life in healing, forgiving, calling out corruption and injustice, and setting people free from the forces of evil, however that evil was being manifest.
And that’s exactly what he invites his followers, then and now, to join him in. What if the statement was, “And the entire crowd joined him in all the wonderful things he was doing?” Following Christ is not a spectator sport or an academic pursuit – it’s an invitation to full-on engagement in heart, in body, in mind, in spirit. We don’t have to argue against the opponents of the Way of Christ; we just have to live out that Way in fullness, and let others see for themselves why we choose this God who has chosen us.
Mahatma Gandhi is famously quoted, when asked why he “rejected Christ,” as saying: “Oh, I don’t reject Christ. I love Christ. It’s just that so many of you Christians are so unlike Christ. If Christians would really live according to the teachings of Christ, as found in the Bible, all of India would be Christian today.”
I believe following Christ is more about becoming conscious of His Spirit in ours in relationship than merely following his teachings, but I do not argue with the premise of that statement, whether or how Gandhi said it. We are invited to live this Love we have received and to share it liberally in the world. Many of you have already stepped out further this week, in offering parts of yourself for healing, in praying for and with others more boldly. THAT is how the Life of God spreads throughout the world. That is how many can rejoice in all the wonderful things Christ is doing even now, through us.
What are you finding your spirit rejoicing in today? What joy is burbling up from deep inside you?
What longtime sufferer are you being invited to bring a touch of healing grace to?
Ponder a moment and see what names come up in your mind. Bring them to Jesus in your imagination. That’s a start. If you’re supposed to pray with them in person, the Holy Spirit will give you that nudge.
Keep looking for signs of God-Life around you this weekend. The more we look, the more we see. The more we see, the more we rejoice!
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