The Inconvenient Messiah
I recently heard a startling statistic that claimed that the likelihood of accepting and following Christ after the age of 14 drastically diminishes. This fact was followed by another that stated only 1 out of 8 adults come to Christ between the ages of 18-21. This is likely why Jesus said, as recorded in Matthew 18:3, “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”
I have been wrestling with this issue for some time now, and it was during another journey through the book of Acts that I discovered the pattern of the sharing of the “Good News” by the apostle Paul, in city after city, and the volatile and hostile reaction of the crowds.
What was it about this “Good News” that was/is so controversial? So threatening? And then it dawned on me, that when Jesus said in Matthew 16:24, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me,” He was requiring what ancient and modern man find almost impossible to comprehend—give up our own way, be willing to experience suffering and follow rather than lead.
No wonder the statistics tell the story they do. I mean, what rational adult wants to take the focus off of ourselves? Especially when the narrative of our culture shouts for individual freedom, exalting yourself above all else, serving your own needs (even at the expense of others) to find true success.
And that’s when I realized that, for many, following Jesus was just too inconvenient to justify. Let’s face it, His teachings simply fly directly in the face of the identity we’ve created for ourselves with our culture standing on the sidelines cheering us on on our journey of “self-discovery, self-indulgence, self-serving and ultimately self-destruction.”
I’m reminded of the exchange between Jesus and the rich, young ruler when he was seeking to follow Jesus and make his way into heaven. Matthew 19:16-30 recounts Jesus telling him, “If you want to be perfect, then go and sell all that you own. Give the money to the poor, and you will have riches in heaven. Then come and follow me!”
Of course, as the story goes, the rich, young ruler counts the cost and sadly walks away. Following Jesus was simply to inconvenient.
There are a current cultural set of values that govern much of our struggle to surrender to the authority of Jesus (or anyone for that matter who challenges our self-oriented belief system) that I call the five “P”s. Power, Position, Prestige, Prosperity and Pleasure are at the heart of what I believe have formed an almost impenetrable force field around each of us that, when threatened, recoils and then lashes out at any external irritant.
Through this lens it’s easy to see why Jesus and His followers we seen as threats to the established system of SELF. Kings, like Herod, trembled at the thought that the message of Jesus could rob them of their power, challenge their position, threaten their prestige and steal away their prosperity and pleasure.
Yet, before we point the finger at ancient kings, political figures or those current power brokers in the public eye, let’s take a look inward, at our own self-made “kingdoms” that we have fashioned around us that are also in danger of being overthrown by the acceptance of the “Good News.”
If you’re finding the message of Jesus inconvenient,—or an invitation to contemplate at a later, more advantageous time—or if you’re feeling threatened as the prospect of losing control over your kingdom, my prayer is that rather than prematurely mourning over all that you stand to lose, you’ll find yourself yearning over all that you will gain by following the one true King.
