It has been almost a decade since I experienced the nervousness associated with starting a new job. Still, I can quickly recall the combination of anticipation, nerves, and general sense of “I-don’t-know-where-the-bathrooms-are” that a first day provokes in my psyche.
Recently, I began to wonder what Jesus’ first days in public ministry must have been like. Of course, in one sense, He has always been “on the job” since He existed before time and is the Creator of all we see. However, at one point in time – on one particular day in history – He began His public ministry.
I wonder what it felt like.
I could be wrong – it has happened once or twice before – but it seems to me that Jesus’ first day of public disciple-making is found in John 1:19-28. In the same chapter in verses 29, 35, and 43, we see the phrase, “the next day.” So, it appears that we actually have the first four days of Jesus’ ministry. If this is true, it is probably worth our time to observe how Jesus began His disciple making movement.
What jumps out at me is that Jesus did what he had already been doing for about 30 years – He lived among the people. John says, “There is one who stands among you.” Another version reads, “There is one who is present here.”
Jesus, the Creator, Son of God from all time, lived among a sinful, normal people in a dusty corner of the Roman Empire. How did He do that? Earlier on in chapter one, John says that Jesus “lived among us… full of grace and truth.” (v.14) Jesus always told the truth, even when it got Him in trouble – and it often did. Still, truth-telling was not an option for Jesus. He also spoke with grace. He always addressed people with genuine love.
If we are going to make disciples like Jesus did, we need to live incarnationally among the people. This means that we must do the impossible for us… speak the truth in love while bumping shoulders with the masses. In Ephesians 4:25 we are told, “So then, get rid of lies. Speak the truth to each other.” In Colossians 4:6 we read, “Let your speech always be gracious.” (ESV)
Always. Even when our neighbors are not nice to us when we tell the truth. Always. Even when we are tempted to shave a bit off the message so that it seems more acceptable to our neighbor. Always.
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