I am the recipient of the unconditional love, grace, and compassion of Jesus Christ. Therefore, my identity is based solely on the fact that Jesus has saved me and is saving me. My identity and my way of living are based exclusively on the fact that Jesus is Lord.
"Surrender is entrusting to God things over which we have no control." D. Benner
"Father, restore our souls in Jesus Christ, that we may be merciful and kind, even as Thou art."
They knew that Jesus was guided by compassion for the weak and broken and not by some hard-edged interpretation of the law.
So, I’ve now provided some background material (see links to previous "Zacchaeus" posts at the end of this post ) for understanding this powerful encounter between Jesus and the chief tax collector in Jericho—maybe more background information than you really wanted (judging from the amount of traffic those earlier posts have generated). Let’s now dive … Continue reading Bible Note #60: Zacchaeus #4–Getting into the Story–Jesus Make a Lot of People Mad
Christians, especially American Christians, can be really good at sanitizing the gospels in order to make Jesus less offensive. We want a version of Jesus that doesn’t make us uncomfortable, one that fits with our American way of seeing things. The story of Jesus’ encounter with Zacchaeus is a case in point. One of the … Continue reading Bible Note #57: Zacchaeus #1–The Real Zacchaeus and That Terrible Children’s Song
Here’s a truth that is very dear to me. When Jesus went to the cross, he did not merely take my guilt with him. He took my sin. He died not merely to gain forgiveness for me but to set me free from the power of sin. In his resurrection from death, he demonstrated not … Continue reading Pastor Note #139: Learning to Live without Chains in Christ’s Victory
"This kind of living ["living by faith rather than by sight"] invites opposition. It will come first in the form of those who insist on living within the budget, thereby restricting the ability of God to reach the community. The easiest answer to a leap of faith is 'No!' The church that I now pastor … Continue reading Quote of Note #102: Living by Faith and Not by Sight
"Our legacy is written in heaven; we are called to practice compassion for the plight of others and to sacrifice our own agenda to the work of Christ, a task beyond human capacity. That is the definition of discipleship; that is the business we had all better be about--the Father's business." Stan Moody, "I've Met … Continue reading Quote of Note #101: Sacrifice our own Agenda
In his spiritual memoir, Surprised by Joy, the great Christian writer, C. S. Lewis, admits that from the days of his youth one of the things he disliked most in adults was their tendency to interfere with his life. “No word in my vocabulary expressed deeper hatred than the word Interference.” He notes that it … Continue reading Pastor Note #84 — Surrender to an “Interfering God”
Gary Chorpenning's Notebooks 