A Good Word
A Ministry of Encouragement
editors
Julie Stephens
Sherryl Myrick
Proverbs 12:25
Anxiety weighs down the human heart, but a good word cheers it up.
For more lessons of ecouragement, order the book.
Copyright © 2003-2010 A Good Word, Inc.
a bad man; a mad man; a rad man
Each year at this time I get a little depressed. I love the Christmas season so much, I seem to go into a small tailspin each year in January. The crazy thing about this is that it begins in the afternoon of Christmas Day. I have to remind myself that Christmas will come again next year, and I can again go through all the excited anticipation of the approach of Christmas morning. I don’t think I can change this annual emotional swing, but I have decided to view my circumstance of the days after Christmas in a different Light.
The Christmas songs that I love so much all speak about the coming of the new Baby. I start preparing for this birth each year in November in anticipation of the December 25 celebration. We love to celebrate the birth, but where do we go from there? I think about the Wise Men from the east: “Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold , there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him” (Matthew 2:1-2 KJV). There are only thirteen verses in the Bible about these magi, and the last we ever hear about them is: “And being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way” (v. 12). Here we have men that have devoted their lives to studying all they can find about the announcement of the birth, they travel across many miles of deserted land, see the Baby and give Him gifts, and then they just go home back to their own country. I wonder: Did they stop their worship and excitement after the birth? Should our worship and excitement end on December 25?
There are very few people who doubt the birth of a baby who was named Jesus. Most accept this as a historical fact, but there are many who question whether He is worthy of our worship. So I ask you, who is Jesus to you? The answer is: He is a bad man, or He is a mad man, or He is a rad man. The word rad is an adjective found in the dictionary as defined as short for radical. Radical is defined as being very different from the usual. In other words, Jesus is very different than a usual (normal) man. If I asked everyone that I come in contact with to choose one of the answers above describing their view of Jesus, most would choose rad as their answer. This answer would be a “safe bet” and allow the person to think they are giving a good answer. They would acknowledge that there actually was a man named Jesus who was born, and that He was different than most men. But if I asked this question to you, I wouldn’t let you off easy here because I care for you. I would ask you more questions, and your answers may lead back to the current belief that He was a bad man, or a mad man, because my next question would be: Do you worship Him?
Now don’t click away from this lesson if I’ve struck a nerve, because it is not me who struck the nerve. You see, I had this same nerve struck a few years ago. I didn’t want to share my personal relationship with Jesus with anyone, and I certainly didn’t want anyone to share their personal relationship with me. Most of us guys (men) fit snuggly into this category, because talking about Jesus doesn’t seem very manly. It seems that our business relationships are too important to jeopardize being an outcast. Have things changed much in the last 2000 years or so? I don’t think so. The Bible says, “Many people, including some of the Jewish leaders, believed in him. But they wouldn't admit it to anyone because of their fear that the Pharisees would expel them from the synagogue. For they loved human praise more than the praise of God” (John 12:42-43 NLT). I understand, because I was there! If you are like I used to be, you may think, “Robby, I don’t really worship Jesus as you may think of worship, but don’t place me in the category describing Him as a bad man, or a mad man.” If that is your answer, then let me ask you a few more questions:
Do you believe in a heaven and a hell? Jesus speaks about hell about sixteen times in the Bible, and in the book of Matthew alone heaven is mentioned around sixty five times. Jesus tells us: “Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 7:21 NIV). So if you’re not too sure about a heaven and hell, then perhaps you may think Jesus is a bad man for making up this “fairy tale?” You may tell me that you believe in heaven. I ask you: Do you believe that there are many ways to get to heaven, as long as your good deeds outweigh your bad deeds? Jesus says, “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish” (John 10:27-28 NIV). Jesus says He gives eternal life, if this is not truth, then He is a bad man for telling us this.
There is an article posted today on the Internet by the Associated Press. It is coverage about the new governor of Alabama who recently made this statement in a church: “Anybody here today who has not accepted Jesus Christ as their savior, I'm telling you, you're not my brother and you're not my sister, and I want to be your brother.” This comment seems to several people as the talk of a bad man. Here is the response posted to the governor’s statement by the president of the local Islamic Society: “Does he want those of us who do not belong to the Christian faith to adopt his faith? That should be toned down. That's not what we need.” The people of the Islamic faith are very religious; do they truly need to be a brother or sister in Christ? On the outside they certainly seem to be much more religious than most, so one may think there must be many ways to God. But there is a radical statement made by a radical Man in the Bible that no man of any other religion made: Jesus said, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6 NIV). So if you believe that many religions have access to the one true God, then Jesus was a bad man for saying this.
I have come across people who say that Jesus was not a bad man, but a good man whose words were inspired. I would certainly have to agree here that His words, “Lazarus, come out!" were truly inspired. If I were one of the many witnesses in John 11 that day who saw a man after he was dead for three days come out of the tomb alive again, I would be inspired! There are religious cults who may seem to be Christian because they will talk about Jesus, but their faith does not include the worship of Him. Some may say that Jesus never asked for worship in the Bible. They may point out that Jesus Himself says to Satan, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: 'Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only'” (Matthew 4:10 NIV) Where do you stand? A good answer would be, “What does the Bible say?”
I’ve already written about the Wise Men from the east above. What did they do when they found Jesus? The Bible says, “On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold and of incense and of myrrh” (Matthew 2:11). Why did they worship? Because they had been studying and watching for the coming of the One the prophet Isaiah spoke about hundreds of years earlier: “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6). I would think the four titles that Isaiah gives to Jesus above qualify Him as worthy of our worship. Isaiah called him Mighty God, but what does Jesus say about this? He tells all in John 8:58, “I tell you the truth," Jesus answered, "before Abraham was born, I am!" Jesus teaches His disciples: “If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him." Philip said, "Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us," Jesus answered: "Don't you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father” (John 14:7-9). So when Jesus teaches His disciples that He was here from the beginning of time, and when they have seen Him they have seen God, then if this were not true, then He is a mad man. Do you think He is a bad man, or a mad man? Do you worship Him?
Christmas is over. Let’s not leave Baby Jesus in the manger until next year. He was not a bad man, He was not a mad man, He was definitely a rad man with the ability to radically change a person’s life in a miraculous instant: “Then Jesus said to him, ‘Get up! Pick up your mat and walk.’ At once the man was cured; he picked up his mat and walked” (John 5:8-9 NIV). His ability to change a life has never changed. If you have any difficulty understanding this, then look at me. Jesus says: “Do not believe me unless I do what my Father does. But if I do it, even though you do not believe me, believe the miracles, that you may know and understand that the Father is in me, and I in the Father” (John 10:37-38). I consider it pretty miraculous that the Lord called me, a guy who once thought he was doing God a favor by showing up for church one hour each week. Me, a guy who didn’t care for Christian music. Me, a guy who would never share his faith with anyone; me, a guy who didn’t believe many of the stories in the Bible at one time. Me, a guy who was more concerned with the acceptance of man rather than God. Do you believe I had the natural ability to change my way of worldly living to Godly living? I know Robby, and the answer is no. Is He worthy of my worship? You better believe He is.
The Bible says about Him: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it” (John 1:1-5). The Word (Jesus) was God; the Word is God! God is worthy of your worship. Christmas is over and a new year has begun. Allow this year to be the year in which your life is radically changed. The radically different God Man can change your life by your simple request to ask Jesus to forgive your past, and to draw you closer to Him. The Bible says if you truly seek Him, you will find Him. I was walking in darkness and didn’t understand what worship meant. My turn around moment came from a simple prayer: “Lord, I don’t know if that was You showing up just now, but if it was, I want to know You.” There is radical truth in the Bible verse found in James 4:8: “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you” (NKJ). It is a historical fact that a man named Jesus was born over 2000 years ago. Who is He to you? A bad man; a mad man; or a God Man?
Robby
