I font it amazing how relational Jesus was with the people that here around Him. I think this is a quality of our Saviour that is often over looked. I hear countless sermons on the the things Jesus said to do or not to do. (Now on the other side, as we look throughout history we see the pendulum of theological thought swing from super holy high Christiology to people treating Jesus like they would a human friend).

Jesus cared about people. He spent more time with people, building relationships, then he did demanding a level of righteousness. I am reading a book called Jesus Driven Ministry for the second time in the last two months. It is amazing. Here is an excerpt from the book on this thought..

“Jesus was born in a stable because there was no room in the inn. As a child he had to flee to Egypt as a refugee because it was not safe for him to live in his homeland. After his return he grew up in a somewhat obscure town from which many people did not expect “anything good” to emerge (John 1:46). Though he was Lord of creation, we are told that he was obedient to his parents (Luke 2:51). As a youth he peobable had to take on his father’s business and thus be deprived of higher education. This was considered a disqualification for him when he launched into his ministry (John 7:15). Yet all of these deprivations are very commen to a large segment of the world’s population.

He took on emotional pain the way all of us do. His parents did not understand him when as a boy he spent time in the Jerusalem temple talking to the leaders there (Luke 2:50). His family initially thought he was insane and did not believe him (Mark 3:21). Thought he was going to raise Lazarus from the dead, he allowed himself to be so moved by the tears of Lazarus’s sister he himself wept (John 11:35). His closest friends did not understand the heart of his mission. One of these friends stole from their common purse (John 12:6) and later betrayed him. Another friend vehemently denied knowing him. On the night before his death, shortly after he had demonstrated servanthood by washing their feet of those friends, they argued among themselves who was the greatest (Luke 22:24). Then they forsook him and fed when he was arrested (Matthew 26:56). His opponents constantly accused him falsely, even attribution his acts of kindness to Beelzebul, the prince of demons (Matthew 12:24). Through their false accusations, the finally succeeded in getting him crucified” (Jesus Driven Ministry pg. 18-19)

Christianity is not about sinning less, but being utterly transformed. Even thought people constantly mocked Jesus he still was about showing love to those people.

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