Jesus Collective Blog

Joy has a name — Jesus Christ knows what he’s talking about when he says, ​“It is better to give than to receive” and I’ve experienced that. In his presence there is fullness of joy. I could say that as a twenty-one year old kid when I first gave my life to Jesus. I can say that now as a forty-two year old man. I pray that I can say that as a sixty-two year old grandfather and perhaps as an eighty-two year old man that is going to face his maker soon. That, no matter what is going on in life, in his presence there is fullness of joy.

Peace has a name, and – as so often – the children are right. In its truest and fullest sense, that name is Jesus. He is the source. But as a simple servant of the King, and in my small corner, perhaps peace has another name: mine.

Hope has a name, and as followers of Jesus, we know it to be His. But in a recent deep dive into the book of Hebrews, I found that Hope is not only rightly named, it is so clearly defined that to miss it would be, well, hopeless.

Tomorrow? The truth is we don’t know what happens tomorrow. It feels uncertain. Yes, we’ve weathered this season and are feeling the affects, the wounds, the division. It has all been a devastating disruption. It has been a shock to our system.…..The invitation waits. What will we do today? Will we turn to Jesus? Will we continue to heed his words? Tomorrow and everyday after will we receive the invitation from Jesus to journey with him on the narrow path? Yes, these days are shocking. The wounds are real. Yes, these days may be ridden with fear. Yet, the invitation awaits.

This is not new, but we have a problem with power. Everyday we see stories of power being abused and misused…In a world where forgiveness was inaccessibly expensive for most, a forgiveness scam, Jesus came to establish a whole new forgiveness economy, for the everyone and anyone…Be people of peace. Be people of hope. And love courageously.

“The phrase ​“Jesus-centered” describes an approach to life and faith in which every belief
and practice is oriented according to Jesus as the North Star. Jesus is the yardstick
against which every truth-claim must be measured.”

“I am drawn to the actions of Jesus who responded to the violence of an occupying super power, not with violence or rage, but with forgiveness and an invitation to be healed.”

Rather, Jesus said that the kingdom of God advances through prayer, good deeds, preaching the gospel and laying our lives down in self-sacrificial love. The outcomes of listening and following the Spirit will look like Jesus.

Today, this process is continued by the Jesus-shaped Spirit. Spiritual formation is ​“cross-shaped” — the Spirit speaks to nail our sin and selfishness to the cross.

Though the process varies, the goal remains the same. Lives that reflect the nature of God in Christ. Mission that echoes the ways of Jesus. And communities where the kingdom of God is seen in the lives of others.