Pastor’s Paragraph - January 28, 2021

Today I begin a series of reflections on the reasons I follow the way of Jesus. I hope my thoughts will not only stimulate your own thinking but will also warm your hearts and increase your loyalty to the way of love, the way of Jesus.

One of the oldest expressions of commitment to Christ is the hymn St. Paul borrowed and included in his letter to the church in Philippi. Pre-dating Paul’s letters and the gospels themselves, this hymn sings:

Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. And being found in human form, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death—even death on a cross.

It is quite the understatement to say that Jesus is a different kind of leader. Most leaders exploit power while Jesus emptied himself of power. Jesus traded power for humility and obedience before God. It was certainly a costly decision, requiring Jesus’ life, though the end result for us was the revelation of Divine grace that forgives sin and overcomes evil and death with trust in God’s everlasting goodness and life.

This “emptying” through humble obedience to God that benefits others is sometimes called the downward way of Jesus. Rather than a posture of dominance over others, we follow Jesus by getting on our knees in prayer and worship to God and in service to others. The downward way is counter-intuitive and counter-cultural. The downward way values humility over exaltation. The downward way leads to meaningful, purposeful and joyful life.

I have not found a more trustworthy and faithful leader than Jesus. How about you?