I have the song Listerine from Bush stuck in my head. You know the one they use in the mouth wash commercials “Listerine, Listerine, don’t let a day go by without using Listerine.” It’s a catchy tune I am just surprised it was done by a rock band.

OK OK OK yes yes I know the song is not Listerine, but that is what I keep thinking. I suppose it is because Glycerine makes no sense whatsoever. So I have to then change everything to make it make sense to my brain.

I think we do that with Jesus a lot. There are a few pictures that get floated around about Him because it is hard to make sense of it (fully God, fully man). Sometimes He is looked at as just floating around the Earth during His ministry time. Glowing halo, white robe just floating over the Earth. Sometimes He is seen as just mean. He said things like hate your mother and father, and I brought a sword, and do not do this or that. I’m talking about table flipping Jesus. Sometimes He is just a misunderstood Rabbi. He was a great guy, taught some good stuff, but didn’t want to pay taxes so they killed Him.

There are plenty of other bad ideas too, but these are my favorites. None of them true but none of them completely false either. I mean Jesus was glowing white and majestic (Matthew 17), He got mad and flipped tables (Matthew 21), and He taught some great things (All the Bible). So again not all the ideas are all wrong just not all right either. There is a little truth in some peoples ideas of Jesus but not a lot of truth

We should not approach Jesus with an idea of who He is and then try and fit Him in that box. The people of Jesus’s day missed seeing Him as the Messiah because He did not fit in their box. I hope we don’t miss Jesus in our day because He won’t get in the box. I hope instead we come to Him and say teach me who you are.

When we do that things get crazy. When we approach Jesus with an attitude of submission and desire to see Him, He shows up. He starts showing us stuff about loving our neighbor, and what it means to be the least of these. Stuff about how we are loved by God. Things about how we can be better husbands, wives, sons, and daughters. When we come to Jesus and say show me who you are, instead of saying Jesus get in the box stuff happens.

Just a thought,

Mike