The Unexpected Christ

THE UNEXPECTED CHRIST

(Written By Howard Kelly)

The Lord has been speaking to me about the way He interacts with us and the way He can direct and challenge us. I’ve been impressed and encouraged by the fact that when God enters our lives (either for the first time, or to those of us who already know Him), many of His dealings, though unexpected, are always positive and affirming in the end.

Key aspects of the story of Jesus illustrate this truth:

He proves to be a Saviour Who comes to the ordinary – shepherds simply doing their job. Busy with their routine, suddenly, unexpectedly, the Word of God came with the gospel message of Peace and direction to a Saviour. He was the antidote to all sin; the antidote to despair; the antidote to death, and He was announced to shepherds!

He invades lives unexpectedly and offers transformation. His first direct word to men in Mark’s gospel is “Follow Me and I will make you become...” In the middle of the strain and stress of work, fishermen are challenged by a Teacher Who offers to make them to become something different, with a wholly new purpose in life. When they obeyed, they walked away from one life into a whole new adventure with Jesus.

In John 4 a women desperate for love and in a downward spiral of sexual failure, going about her ordinary (and lonely) daily life, is met and challenged and offered freedom by Jesus, Who was already there waiting for her. She had been to the well many times before, but on that particular day the Saviour was waiting – unexpectedly – to offer Living Water springing up into everlasting life. He had an appointment with her that she had known nothing about, and the new beginning He offered would completely wash away all of her sexual failure!

In resurrection, He comes through locked doors into the room where the frightened, failed, and disillusioned disciples were hiding, and presents Himself as the One Who brings peace and forgiveness and empowerment. His new beginning is greater than all their previous failure! This breaking into the disciples’ lives came at the moment of their extreme despair and disappointment. Whether they felt fear or anger or hurt, they were suddenly faced by One Who broke into everything, and destroyed the concept of closed doors forever. (I love the contrast this offers with the other vision the same writer had later, of Jesus standing at the door, knocking… Here, in that resurrection moment in Jerusalem, He didn’t ask permission!)

Wonderfully, He never speaks condemningly of any of the characters’ failures or previous life. Even with Thomas, He only directs him to stop being faithless, and enables him to see a new way – with eyes of faith. I’ve been really excited by the truth of His new beginnings: He comes unexpectedly to do the unexpected!

In 2013 I believe God wants us to be ready to make progress: to have new beginnings. We can look forward to His doing things which have never been done before; things that break out of natural laws and experiences into the supernatural laws of God.