Skip to main content

" Jesus applied his genius to the most profound human dilemmas."


A thought by Erwin Raphael McManus, from his book, The Genius of Jesus (p. 26). The Crown Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.  (Click on the book title to go to Amazon to buy the book.)

So true, so very true.


Erwin says, "It is one thing when genius gives us new music, a new art form or technology, or a great advancement in science or medicine. But while genius can give us a better world to live in, it almost never makes us better, kinder, more compassionate, more honorable, more courageous, more humane."

He continues, "I think of the phrase we often use as an excuse for our worst behavior: 'Well, I’m only human.' Our history as a species is riddled with love and hate, with compassion and violence, with betrayal and loyalty, with bitterness and forgiveness. All these are equally the human story. The tragedy is that somewhere along the line, the worst expressions of our nature became the norm and the best of us became lost in ideals. Religion told us we were all sinners and penance was our only hope. It mitigated our guilt and shame but offered no means to restore our humanity. Jesus changed that narrative. He revealed to us what it looks like to live fully human through his own life. He then called us to reclaim our original intention to reflect the image of God in our humanity.

"Jesus applied his genius to the most profound human dilemmas. Are we as a species actually the worst expressions of ourselves, motivated by ideals that are beyond our reach, or are we most human when we are pursuing those ideals even though we continue to live beneath them? In all his actions—from confronting the use of God’s name and the power of organized religion as a means to manipulate and oppress the poor and powerless, to the elegance of summarizing over 613 religious laws into one commandment, to establishing love as the guiding principle of the universe, to reframing power as servanthood—Jesus redefined the core of the human problem as the condition of the human heart. All the problems of the world hinge on this one truth: we have seen the enemy, and he is us. Yet Jesus showed us in himself who we were always meant to be. His life and his teachings force us to confront both the worst and the best within the human spirit, while offering us a way into a new humanity."

He later says, "If Mozart convinced you that if you gave him the next forty years, you could hear the sounds that only he hears in his imagination, and then be able to translate them into music, would it be worth your life?

Erwin then says, "In Jesus, we have been given this exact kind of invitation. The genius of Jesus is completely transferable. His genius can become yours. My hope is that as we unwrap the person of Jesus, we will find in him the most astonishing and transformative way to truly live."

Have you found that to be the truth in your life? If you haven't, you can. Yes, yes! #continuethought




Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

"Lie 2: The more you worry about it, the better your odds of avoiding it."

A thought by Louie Giglio in his book,   Winning the War on Worry    (p. 5). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon to buy the book.) Here is another lie that the Enemy uses with us. And Louie says, "This is a tricky lie. Yes, we often have cause for concern and preparation. But the Enemy wants you to believe that if you worry or fret over a certain outcome long enough, you can keep something bad from happening." But this is so important to realize. He says, "The reality is worrying has never once prevented something negative from happening. Planning might. Prayer has. But worry never will." He continues, "The Enemy tells you that by worrying about a situation (or every situation) you can make your tomorrow better. Really, worry just robs you of today. Jesus implored us: 'I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body mor...
Post a Comment
Read more

“There’s a big difference between building a castle and building a kingdom.”

A thought by Bob Goff from his book, Everybody, Always: Becoming Love in a World Full of Setbacks and Difficult People ( p. 41). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.)   Have you ever built a sand castle or maybe a Lego castle?   Have you? Bob says, “We actually build castles all the time, out of our jobs and our families and the things we’ve purchased. Sometimes we even make them out of each other. Some of these castles are impressive too. Lots of people come to admire what we’ve built over the course of our lives and tell us what great castles we have. But Jesus told His friends we weren’t supposed to spend our lives building castles. He said He wanted us to build a kingdom, and there’s a big difference between building a castle and building a kingdom.” Bob goes on, “You see, castles have moats to keep creepy people out, but kingdoms have bridges to let everyone in. Castles have dungeons for people who ha...
Post a Comment
Read more

"To put it simply, worry isn’t just a bad habit."

A thought by Louie Giglio in his book,   Winning the War on Worry    (p. 1). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon to buy the book.) Ok, that is interesting. Louie says, "Worry is an Enemy tactic—a strategy built on lies that are designed to rob you of peace and tear your mind to pieces. "That’s why it’s crucial that you are able to spot the lies worry tells." He goes on, "Not long ago while on safari in South Africa, Shelley and I were really wanting to see a leopard in the wild. Early and late on our game drives our eyes were set on every tree limb, bush, grassy hill, and river path in hopes of finding one of several leopards that were known to frequent this particular area. But here’s the thing: leopards aren’t bright orange with tall, sparkly antennae on their backs. They are designed to blend into the surroundings, like the bark of a baobab tree where they might be lounging on one of its mighty branches. "In the same way, ...
Post a Comment
Read more