Luke 7:36-50 page 1
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Luke 7:36-50 page 1 |
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Like the song says: Jesus
is the Answer for the World Today Well, I wouldn't dissent from that, either. (I hope you're relieved!) But I want to suggest a different approach. Not 'Jesus is the answer' but 'Jesus is the question'. There are a couple of reasons for suggesting this. The first is that to proclaim 'Jesus is the answer' in our culture runs into problems of getting a hearing. For one thing, it assumes people are asking a question, and many of them are not. For another, to some ears today a claim such as 'Jesus is the answer' comes across as deeply arrogant. Now a Christian might rightly respond and say that we can't compromise the truth of Jesus, and I agree. But there is a manner of putting things across, and Christians too frequently slip into the habit of lecturing people rather than treating them with gentleness and respect. Presenting Jesus as the question gives people the freedom to explore for themselves without feeling under pressure. Then there is my second reason for suggesting the 'Jesus is the question' approach, and it's this. Quite simply, it's often the approach Jesus himself used. Granted, there are plenty of times when Jesus does say, "This is how it is" and he doesn't mince his words. But we shouldn't overlook the times when what he effectively does is hold up a mirror to people and says to them, "What do you see?" The parables are a classic example of the 'Jesus is the question' approach. We are invited to see ourselves as one of the characters in a parable, or in relation to other characters. But sometimes Jesus adopts this approach in a real-life situation, too. I suggest that the story we have read from Luke's Gospel here is one such time when Jesus doesn't so much give answers to the people he encounters as he raises questions.
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Copyright © David D Faulkner, 2006 except where other sources are attributed or noted as inspiration. |
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