By David ReayMonday 9 Mar 2015LifeWords DevotionalsCultureReading Time: 0 minutes
Transcript:
Read John 10:8-10
8 All who came before me were thieves and robbers. But the true sheep did not listen to them. 9 Yes,I am the gate. Those who come in through me will be saved. They will come and go freely and will find good pastures. 10 The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life. (NLT)
One of the great distortions of the Christian faith is that it squeezes the enjoyment out of life. One of the more extreme statements of this was from the pen of the Victorian-era poet Swinburne: “Thou hast conquered,O pale Galilean,and the world has gone grey from your breath.”
For any of us who treasure Jesus this is both a grossly untrue and unspeakably sad statement. And yet it is a view formed by some who have tasted a bleak and sour sort of faith that has twisted Jesus out of shape. Another reminder of how Jesus’ followers are to be positive ambassadors for a deeply satisfying if occasionally uncomfortable life.
The ‘thieves’ Jesus mentions in our text are those who promise such a life apart from Jesus. They do so not only by making their way seem so attractive but by rubbishing the way of Jesus. Very much like the episode at the beginning of human history when the first humans were seduced by the promise of a better life if only they would throw off the shackles of God’s commands.
Jesus’ way may not always be easy or always make sense. But we have his word that it is the best way. We are called to live out that way,to live it out loud so that others are drawn to it rather than driven from it.
Blessings
David Reay