The Demands of Jesus #1

Of the reading of books there is truly no end, at least for some of us. I just picked up John Piper's What Jesus Demands of the World, and having just read the introduction, I'm excited.

Now, admittedly, Piper's title put me off some. I've had quite enough of the "demanding Jesus," thank you. But it turns out that Piper expected just such a response. Here's what he says:

I am aware that the word demands is jarring to many modern ears. . . . My conviction is that if we rightly understand Jesus' demands, and if we are willing to find in him our supreme joy, his demands will not feel severe but sweet.

Jesus left his disciples with one of these commands ringing in their ears. "Make disciples of all nations . . . teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you." Ah, it is a command concerning his commands. Teach people, he says, to observe my commands.

Dang.

And it does no good to say, "Well, all that really means is that we should love people. Just love on 'em." As if that were the easy part about obeying Jesus. Oh, well then, I know how to love people. I love 'em all the time. I'm the lovingest guy anywhere!

Right. Well, actually, wrong. This love deal turns out to be pretty damn tricky. Like squeezing a camel through the eye of a needle, in fact. Impossible.

To which Jesus says, "With man it is impossible, but not with God." [Mark 10:25-27].

And, well, I happen to believe it. There is going to be a felt reality about this having Jesus living in us (as we like to say), a noticeable, distinguishable, measurable, real-deal alteration in my way of living, talking, working, playing, etc. And the way that will look is, well, it will look like Jesus back in the flesh, walking around on the streets of my town, in my skin.

I believe that "union with Christ," to use the old-fashioned theological term, makes this kind of difference in the world. I believe it because Jesus promised it. Even as he made his ultimate demand, he also made this promise.

Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age. [Matt 28:19-20]

Have I taken that promise seriously? Maybe at one time I did, but I have to admit, not lately.

The point that Piper makes about all this is that the life of Christ in you, in me, will be lovely, and will ultimately result in glory to the One who made the impossible possible.

Or, as Piper points out, "the Son of Man came to save people from their suicidal love affair with possessions (and every other idol) and to lead them into the kind of impossible obedience that displays the infinite worth of Jesus."

This is what I'm searching for. I'm 52 years old, and want to make the most of the time I have left. What is the most I could make of it? By doing the impossible, living a life that brings glory to the One who is pure love. Jesus, help me with this!

Well, these are the thoughts that have been scurrying around my brain since I read Piper's introduction. I haven't done that introduction justice, not by a long shot, for it has much to say about these things, but here's what I'm going to do. I'm going to gradually blog my way through this book. Not so much simply to tell people what's in it, but to chronicle my own interaction with the thoughts and ideas within these pages.

Each chapter is about 6 or 7 pages, and I will try to spend a few days with each, posting here on the subject once or twice a week. I find that journaling through a book can encourage a more intense engagement with the work, and I hope my doing so on this blog might also be a blessing to others.