The babe in the manger, Jesus, whose birth we celebrate today was born to die. That’s it. That is the only reason He came to earth. God sent Him so that He could die on the cross and take the punishment that I deserved for my sin and rebellion against God.
If Jesus willingly died for me, then what am I willing to do for Him?
Currently I am reading Radical by David Platt. I began reading it with fear and trembling because I had heard that it is one of those books that rocks your world and challenges your faith. Most of us, including me, are quite happy with the status quo of our faith, even when the status ain’t much to ‘quo’ about.
Crazy Love by Francis Chan and UnChristian by David Kinnaman challenged my faith in huge ways, so it was no surprise to me that God had placed Radical in my path. He seems intent on not letting me stay comfortable in my faith. Dang it!!
One section of Radical in particular is challenging me to consider how much I am willing to sacrifice for Christ. I cannot get it out of my mind, so I want to draw you into my pondering:
“I can imagine the looks on the disciples’ faces when the next words came out of Jesus’ mouth: ‘I am sending you out like sheep among wolves.’ Sheep are among the most helpless of all domesticated animals. They are also some of the most senseless. Harmless noises can send them into a frenzy, and when they face danger, they have no defense mechanism. So why in the world was Jesus, the good shepherd (John 10:11), the great Shepherd (Hebrews 13:20), telling his sheep to hang out with wolves?
“We don’t think like this. We say things such as, ‘The safest place to be is in the center of God’s will’. We think, If it’s dangerous, God must not be in it. If it’s risky, if it’s unsafe, if it’s costly, it must not be God’s will. What if the center of God’s will is in reality the most unsafe place for us to be?
“I met a Christian brother from the Batak tribe of northern Sumatra in Indonesia. He told me the story of how his tribe had come to know Christ. Years ago a missionary couple had come to his village to share the gospel. The tribe was 100 percent Muslim. Talk about sheep in the middle of wolves. The tribal leaders captured this missionary couple, then murdered and cannibalized them.
“Years later another missionary came to their tribe and again began sharing the gospel. The tribal leaders recognized that the story he told was exactly what the former couple had shared. This time they decided to listen. After they listened, they believed. Within a short time, the entire tribe was converted to Christ. This believer told me that today there are more than three million Christians among the Batak tribe of northern Sumatra.
“When I first heard this story, the immediate questions that came to my mind were Would I be willing for my wife and me to be that first missionary couple? Would I be willing to be killed and cannibalized so that those who come after me would see people come to Christ?”
People, when I read this I felt as if the wind had been knocked out of me. Would I be willing to be that first missionary? Would I be willing to give my life so that others could know Jesus? Would you?
Jesus gave His life for me. How can I be willing to do less so that others can know Him?
