Jesus, they say there is power in that name, yet somehow we’ve grown this picture in our heads that he was quiet or peaceful 24/7, or passive and NEVER aggressive. Somewhere along the lines, to us Jesus became a scrawny guy with long brown hair and a peaceful smile, dressed in a white robe with a burnt orange sash. In fact when you read the first word you probably had that picture in your head or something very similar. Where is the power in that? I guess we forgot that he grew up a carpenter, which last time I checked building things required muscle. Also, last time I checked carpenters these days (or construction workers) have attitude and bite. Now that’s not to say that Jesus had no self-control but let’s take a look at the accounts from the Gospels.
Matthew 21:12:
12And Jesus entered the temple and drove out all those who were buying and selling in the temple, and overturned the tables of the moneychangers and the seats of those who were selling doves.
John 2:15:
15And He made a scourge of cords, and drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and the oxen; and He poured out the coins of the moneychangers and overturned their tables;
K so we see a few things that exemplify anger and non-passiveness
So I think it’s safe to say that Jesus had bite. He wasn’t always passive and was definitely a strong guy with passion. Catch this…Jesus isn’t some raving lunatic who is pumped on roids and has rage fits like the Hulk, but he certainly isn’t just a passive wimp who only makes peace.
The other thing I think we miss when it comes to Jesus is the power that is not only in him physically but in the use of his name.
John 14:13-14:
13"Whatever you ask in My name, that will I do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.
14"If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it.
So Jesus himself said that WHATEVER you ask in his name it will be done. That’s a powerful statement. In Jesus name we pray is not just some conclusion to our prayer or “over and out” on the conversation. Its confidence in knowing that what we ask will be done, as long as it brings glory to the father. But think about it we can’t just go around throwing out the name of God because we feel like it. I think that’s another way we have taken power away from our “image” of Jesus. Prayer alone is a powerful thing but the real power comes from praying in Jesus name, the problem is when we don’t even think about what we are saying at the end. When we talk about Jesus we simply treat his name like our best friend or neighbor which is not completely inaccurate BUT he is also a strong and powerful being to be feared, as we have previously examined.
In a lot of foreign countries it is illegal to speak the name of Christ. Often time’s groups of people meet under cover to discuss the Bible and the things of Christ. To them the name of Jesus is a secret, something to fear in public, constantly looking over their shoulder to make sure that no one else heard them but does that stop them? Often times it pushes them to say it more. I wonder what would happen if we went around whispering the name of Jesus like it was a secret every time it came up in conversation and we looked over our shoulder for safety. Do you think people might become more interested? Do you think our image of him might be transformed? Do you think we might see change in the lives of those who hear it? I think so.
