Jesus Uncensored: The Last Shall Be First

“Gentle Jesus, Meek and Mild” is a hymn not well known to most of us, but the sentiment of the hymn is certainly prevalent among Christians.  We have this idea that Jesus was so gentle, so meek, so mild that He never confronted or challenged anyone.  A sort of Mr. Rogers of yesteryear, always encouraging, always kind, always mellow, peaceful, and bland.  But when we read the Gospels, we see a Jesus who is anything but feeble and spineless.  We see a Rabi who is bold, courageous, and challenging.  We see a Savior confronting the powers, false ideologies, and harmful practices of His day with statements like “the first shall be last,” “turn the other cheek,” and even “not my will, but Thy will be done.”  Many of us, however, have censored those parts of Jesus’ revolutionary message to make Him more palatable to our comfortable contemporary lives.   This month we will be examining “Jesus Uncensored” as we take a closer look at Jesus’ radical teachings, their impact on our lives, ways we can live into these important principles, and Jesus’ transforming power in our lives. We hope to see you in worship this month!      Pastor Lesly