5 guys and 1 amazing girl

the funny thing is that the picture is both wrong and right on a number of different levels.  BUT the way in which it is MOST wrong is the statement, “i want to be formal.”

nothing could be further from the truth.

so i found this pic while thinking through the Word this morning… Matthew 5 where Jesus is talking about religious people’s tendency to “lay down smoke screens of pious talk” in order to cover up their own sinful hypocricy. Jesus, the guy pictured up above with the 40 oz barley pop and sneakers, said in His early sermon on the mount, “in making your speech sound more religious, it becomes less true.“[E.Pete's Message Mt. 5.35-40]

if Jesus, THE revelation from the God of the universe, wanted to be anything, it was not formal.

Jesus was intentionally, by the design of God, not formal: born to an unwed mom, a supposed bastard.  born in a cattle stable, in a feed trough.  raised by a blue collar dad, and learned the trade.  chose blue collar and sinful dudes to become His disciples.  hung out with the poor and sinners, to the point that the religious people called Him a drunk and a glutton.  was homeless and rejected regularly as He preached the Word of God.  he dressed and spoke and preached in the style and language of the street, when all the religious people dressed in religious robes and spoke in ‘higher’ languages…

Jesus does not want to be formal-  He wants to be known by you, real-ly.

that’s right – God is the God of the REAL.  He wants you to have a REAL life in Him – not a facade of religious words and acts used to impress others and hopefully God.  so don’t feel the need to wear your tuxedo tshirt to impress God, or your tuxedo language to talk to Him either.  He’s interested in you, and me – just as you are.

and that’s the other part of the picture above that’s a bit off key – he’s not here for a cheap beer-buzz,  per se … He’s here for YOU.  and once you get sorted out in Him, the real party of grace can begin…