Here is the Lamb of God

Behold.

Small and vulnerable;

God among us.

Gospel number four

tells us that we deal no longer

with the infant of Bethlehem,

with its sentimental trappings

of wise men, blinking lights and angels.

The long-expected one,

the divine Logos, has come,

according to John,

to be a lamb;

to speak to humankind of sacrifice,

of letting-go,

and of death.

Of love, of grace,

and of blood

that demands a response;

not of vengeance,

but of generosity.

Weakness,

by all earthly standards,

but the way of hope, peace,

and resurrection.

Here is the Lamb of God.

©Ken Rookes 2014

Stumbling blocks

My hand, my foot, my eye;

yes, from time to time

and on occasions, each of these

causes me to stumble.

Other parts too, including some

which my innate sense of decorum

precludes me mentioning.

My brain is the worst,

harbouring, as it does,

my quest for comfort,

my desire for a quiet life,

and those thoughts

which might properly be described

as lustful.

Shall I cut them off, or tear them out,

as the gospel writers suggest?

But I no longer believe in hell,

and my brain might be considered

a somewhat essential organ;

and it appears that my selfish desires

are as much a part of my core being

as any proclivities towards goodness,

love and generosity.

This latter group of worthy aspects

are, I like to think, fruits

of a discipleship choice I have made

to follow one who is truth.

These qualities I try to cultivate;

the others, I strive to keep in check.

Everything else is grace.

© Ken Rookes 2012

counter-cultural, Jesus?

But this is all very counter-cultural.
I feel sure that vulnerability, weakness and dependency, and the very idea of putting someone else life before our own.
these things are not particularly welcome in our society and are certainly not instinctive for us.

Our society, as was the case in Jesus' times, is very self-centered. Just look at our nations attitude to asylum seekers ....

Or to climate change. We would much rather keep our own lifestyle than surrender some of it in order  to give the future generations a sustainable way of life.

What Jesus was trying to sell was radical unselfishness and it always was a hard sell. Arguably, we in the church still find it hard to take. We, the followers of Jesus, still struggle to live out the message of the sermon on the mount. ...

Perhaps this is why, as we look at our situation in the church today, we should take heart from the encounter with Jesus that we have in our gospel reading today. A reading that perhaps at once challenges us about how comfortable our Christianity has become; How we are perhaps just a little too like the people of Jesus’ home town who thought they were familiar with him, but their very familiarity made them unable to hear his confronting gospel of vulnerability and selflessness. Then, this same reading perhaps tells us of the simplicity and vulnerability of Discipleship. All it takes is one cloak, some sandals and a stick, and the willingness to depend upon the hospitality and grace of the stranger.