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Some believers cling to Jesus like flotsam after a shipwreck. Others chat with Jesus on a Scandinavian luxury cruise ship next to the pool. Some Christians appear to need Jesus more than others, or they see Him as more essential to staying alive, or they experience life itself as more difficult than their peers and so they need Jesus with a passion.
Do any of you have that aunt or grandparent or sibling who is a bit intense spiritually? They seem so heavenly minded that they are kind of—handicapped—in this world socially. Is that a good thing or a bad thing? Are these individuals simply eccentric and their spirituality is part of that overall eccentricity, or are they hungry for God in a way that’s more pronounced than others?
For some people, Jesus is one of many aspects in their lives. For others, Jesus is their life.
Many individuals enjoy Jesus as they enjoy smelling lilacs, while others experience Jesus at an intensity level akin to inhaling oxygen to live.
A devoted Muslim once commented that believers in Jesus treat their faith as one of many extracurricular activities in their lives. Jesus is granted a position in their lives alongside church volleyball, fantasy football, Marvel movies and cooking new recipes.
Yes, there are some who cling to their faith in Jesus as if it is a matter of life or death. Are they overdoing it a bit? Are they culturally irrelevant?
Jesus did say that those who are forgiven much, love much. Maybe some individuals love Jesus with such intense affection because He saved them from deep darkness.
Is it possible that some people simply by sheer dint of their past or present life circumstances–whether it be characterized by sin or sorrow, badness or anxiety, cancer or abuse–are drawn to Jesus with a burning passion?
Could it be true that some people are born on third base in this world while others stagger to first base after being hit in the jaw by a high fastball?
In other words, one person might be born into an advantaged position socially, financially, racially, psychologically, geographically—even with an exceptional physical appearance—while another person might be born behind the proverbial eight ball of life and desperately need Jesus to save them.
Being born on third base isn’t necessarily an immoral thing. We don’t get to choose if we come into this world on third base or stuck in the batter’s box facing life’s pitcher who throws a 110mph fastball. What matters is if a person boasts that they hit a triple–that they are where they are all because of their own effort.
This assumption is dangerous for at least two reasons. First, it is a gateway to pride and can lead the person on third base to look down on the person in the batter’s box of life.
Secondly, it can lead to a sense of self-sufficiency, a belief that I don’t need anybody else in life because I’m all that. Even Jesus is viewed, at best, as a God of the gaps who is only needed when I can’t do something in my own strength like heal my pancreatic cancer or miraculously change my spouse into a normal person. At worst, Jesus is dismissed as dead or considered a fantasy for the weak and the excessively needy.
This post is for all of you who feel less than others; for you who don’t feel like a pretty Christian; for you who feel on the outside of life; for you who often wonder why God ever chose a person like you and often doubt that He did.
Shame has been a frequent issue in DTFL posts because it is at the core of the fallen world. What is the antidote to an accusing prosecuting attorney who tells you that your badness is unforgivable, and your personhood is unlovable?
Knowing that you’re chosen.
Picked.
Delighted in.
Here we encounter the beauty of the gospel. God chose you.
And just so you know, He didn’t come for those who proudly stand on third base staring down their noses at the rest of pathetic humanity; for those who smugly think they hit a triple by their own efforts and don’t need any help to get home.
Jesus came for all those in the batter’s box who feel afraid, ashamed, incompetent, mentally ill, sinful, unloved. (Personally, I believe these words describe all of us. The only difference is between those who admit their weakness and those who don’t.)
Read what God says about those of you who feel disqualified by life or your past choices:
Not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth [born on third base]. But God choose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world [born in the batter’s box—possibly even without a bat] to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are ~ I Corinthians 1:26-28
For thus says the One who is high and lifted up, who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: “I dwell in the high and holy place, and also with Him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly, and to revive the heart of the contrite” ~ Isaiah 57:15
Is it okay to be lowly and contrite in this current world you live in? Or is it mandatory to be strong and self-sufficient?
‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong ~ 2 Corinthians 12:9,10
Is it possible that God prefers you to be weak instead of strong? Could it be that when we’re strong, we need Jesus less, but when we’re weak, we need Him more?
For we do not want you to be unaware, brothers, of the affliction we experienced . . . [in the batter’s box]. For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death. But that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead ~ 2 Corinthians 1:8,9
Such is the confidence that we have through Christ toward God. Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God who has made us sufficient to be ministers of a new covenant ~ 2 Corinthians 3:4,5
These verses appear to turn the issue of pride, strength, performance and the status of our position in life (on third base) on its head. It sounds like in God’s economy, to be weak is to be strong. Even more, to be poor in spirit is to be gifted the kingdom of heaven and to be meek is to inherit the earth ~ Matthew 5.
Does God desire us to feel weak and incapable? Yes and no. He doesn’t want us to rely on ourselves—so yes, He wants us to be weak in terms of trusting ourselves because if we value self-sufficiency at all costs, we won’t rely on God and we’ll condescend toward others. But He does want us to rely on Him and then feel confident, strong, sufficient in Him and powerful: I can do all things through Him who strengthens me ~ Philippians 4:13
Could it be that the weakest person is the one closest to Jesus?
Today, if you feel abandoned, unloved, less than, too sinful, paralyzed by anxiety or stuck in the swamp of depression, the good news is that Jesus brings healing therapy for your psycho-spiritual-relational health. He would much rather have you broken than supremely self-confident.
What is the primary objective of life anyway?
There two ways to answer that question, one through the eyes of flesh and one through the eyes of faith. It is clear from God’s word that Jesus’ primary objective for us is to believe on Him and trust Him.
Even the tried and true Proverbs 3:5-8 says, Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make straight your paths. Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord, and turn away from evil. It will be healing to your flesh and refreshment to your bones.
So, don’t fret (that’s easy to say but difficult to practice) if you’re not popular in the eyes of the world. Don’t worry if your body was not born attractive or if age is robbing the beauty of your youth. Strive to not envy those who have a larger house or a better paying job or newer cars or positions of status and power.
If mental illness is currently ravaging your mind and body, don’t add to your misery by comparing yourself to others.
In the life of a believer, God will use the ills and illnesses of your life to draw you closer to Him and give you what matters most. He may not give you happiness, but He promises you eternal joy. He may not give you peaceful circumstances, but He promises you a peace beyond understanding.
Perfect bodies and circumstances and mental health and position in the world are not as important as trusting Jesus. He’s the savior who said, Seek me first, and I’ll take care of the rest.
Don’t worry about how you’re going to get to third base. Jesus has already promised that He will get you all the way home.
He Himself is waiting to welcome you along with all His saints and angels and the twelve elders and the four living creatures.
In this world, you may have—no, you will have—trouble, but take heart for Jesus has overcome the world along with all its sorrows and trials and abandonments.
Remember that it’s better to be a lowly doorkeeper in God’s house than to practice sin and seek its rewards. Moses forsook the pleasures of this world—living on third base in Pharaoh’s palace—and instead chose the lowly position of the batter’s box because—because he anticipated the reward of being with Jesus, and because by faith He saw the invisible God.
In short, don’t worry about your current status in life. Seek justice and love mercy and walk humbly with your God, of course, but don’t let envy or bitterness or depression or shame entangle you as you run the race of life keeping your eyes fixed on Jesus.
Life is a storm and Jesus is your life raft, so cling to Him with all your strength. He will help you get off the ground in the batter’s box and guide you around the bases until you’re safely home. So, rely on Him and not on yourself.
Embrace your weakness and lean into His strength. Love God with a passion and speak about Him in a way that others might think you can’t live without Him. Heaven forbid.
Gazing into the face of Jesus at all times is not eccentricity. It’s faith in the indescribable God who created you uniquely you, on purpose and for a purpose. It’s loving the most precious entity in the universe—the Triune God who has always existed and will continue to exist forever and ever.
To love anything or anyone else more would be the gravest injustice in the universe–or just plain stupid.
So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand ~ Isaiah 41:10
Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the Lord your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you ~ Deuteronomy 31:6