The Trouble with Jesus
by Constance Hastings
The Trouble with Jesus is his call to be prepared to act, all in God’s own time.
Hey, Reason for the Season, you brought it on right from the start. Get Ready! Watch! Be prepared because the Big Day is coming! If that’s how you announce yourself still after 2000 years, no wonder the holiday begins with daylight savings time and a halftime show called Thanksgiving. Sure, life goes on as usual, but hovering over us is how time is getting shorter, and we need to start as soon as possible. So lights go up even earlier than last year while Amazon trucks are already making deliveries three times a day. With this building stress, tell us dear Jesus, why would we ever call you Prince of Peace?
Only God Knows
Well, then don’t. Don’t jump ahead to what’s to come. In fact, Jesus said he doesn’t know himself when it’s going to happen. But more important, don’t condense one thing into another. Yes, it’s smart to be ready for the biggest day of the year, but right now Jesus is talking about the biggest day in time. You’ve got December 25 on your calendar. God doesn’t own one.
God’s Time
This is one of those things that might very well hurt your head but take two of your favorite OTC and go with it. Mortals experience time chronologically, like from the nanosecond to millennia. God’s got another sense of time which is kairos. So when Jesus said no one knows the day or hour, he was speaking of kairos, God’s time.
Kairos happens when God enters at the most fitting opportunity. Thus, only God knows when that might be. Jesus had been talking about the end of time when as the Son of Humanity he would bring together all creation into this sense of time and God’s presence. However, that’s not the only occurrence of kairos.
Of Floods, Fields, and Flour
Jesus gave a few examples. Most of his listeners were familiar with the Great Flood and Noah. The story goes that most people were just living life as usual, and when the flood hit, they got carried off in the waters. Another story has two men in a field, and one also was taken away. Same with two women grinding flour at a mill. Those taken away weren’t ready for God’s time, that is, how God enters lives with his kind of kairos.
Better Watch Out…
He knows if you’ve been bad or good….You know the song. The Big Guy is on the way and looking for the naughty and the nice. Now, let’s make this clear: God/Jesus is no Santa Claus. (Why people ever teach their kids this kind of thing is meant for another blog site.)
Still, Jesus says, “Be prepared…” Be prepared for God’s time of kairos, when God shows up in those fitting moments of life. He compares it to the watchfulness a homeowner has against burglars. You never know. So keep your eyes wide open.
A Kairos Break-in
You never know; just be prepared to see it when it comes. Miss it and it’ll be like being swept away with flood waters. You won’t get to see what God can do and is doing in special times, moments, and movements.
Be prepared to act, to do the right thing. Darnella Frazier bravely videoed George Floyd as a police officer pressed his knee into Floyd’s neck ultimately causing his death. That recording spoke deeply into American consciousness of racism and its abuses.
Be prepared to give and give sacrificially. Rich celebrities get recognized for giving millions to various causes. For the likes of them, it’s the drop in the bucket. Jesus recognized the woman who while what she gave was small, her giving was all she had.
Be prepared to love, even your enemy. Ever hear that you don’t have to like someone to love them? That’s love at a distance and probably doesn’t really go that far. Love is close up and messy sometimes. Do it because Jesus said to.
Be prepared to lose your life. That might mean your life and breath. Or, what you live or breathe for. Either way, all of life is turned over and reversed for what God intends.
The Trouble with Jesus is his call to be prepared to act, all in God’s own time.
“Be ready all the time. For the Son of Man will come when least expected.”
Named 2024 Notable Book Award by Southern Christian Writers Conference!
The Trouble with Jesus: Considerations Before You Walk Away by Constance Hastings
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