He Didn’t Come Down

The time has come for us to confront one of the great mysteries in the Gospel. This Man, Jesus of Nazareth, came doing so much good: loving people, befriending people, healing people, comforting people, bringing them the Good News of how much God loves them. But the religious people, the educated people, the leading citizens of the time rejected Him instantly and almost before He had begun, murdered Him. Why? Why the fear, and then anger, and then hatred?

These are important questions for our time. In a recent U.S. national poll, a large number of people were asked what they thought would happen if Jesus came back. A majority of persons were honest enough to say, “I think we would kill Him again but this time more quickly.” You may disagree with that majority opinion, but the fact is that there is something in us that resists Jesus. There is a part of us that is drawn toward Him (we wouldn’t be here…