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GAINING NOTHING FROM JESUS There is a legend about a group of explorers traveling through the forest of South America who stumbled upon El Dorado, the famous city of gold. The citizens welcomed them in and were very gracious to them. They noticed that everything was made of gold; the buildings, the roads, the children’s toys, even everyday items like bowls and spoons were made of gold. The explorers were awestruck at the abundance and accessibility of gold around them. But what had amazed them the most is that the city’s people regarded it as nothing special, since they were surrounded by it all their lives. At several points in the Gospels, the writers told the story of when Jesus was asked by a man named Jairus to heal his dying daughter. On the way to his house, surrounded and pressed on by a large crowd, Jesus asked such an interesting question, which led His disciples to become a little confused. He asked, “who touched me?” It was interesting in two levels. (1) Jesus was surrounded by such a large crowd that Luke said it almost crushed Him, yet He felt one particular touch from one specific person. (2) The woman who touched Him only touched the hem of His garment. Yet it more significant to Him than a crushing crowd. In reality it was her faith that touched the Lord. It was her spiritual hands that stretched out and grabbed the Lords attention. And though others were physically closer to Jesus, her faith, rooted in desperation and recognition of Jesus’ power was the thing that made Him turn around and take notice. You see it is possible to be very close to Jesus and gain nothing from Him. It is possible to be pressing up against Him and yet not be blessed, effected, or even changed. It is possible to have an encounter with Jesus and leave the place as if nothing special happened. You remember the religious leaders in the Jesus’ time, who observed Him heal a man in the Sabbath, then criticized him for having the man carry his bed. The truth was press up against their faces, but they gained nothing from it. Yet they are not the worst of it. A lot Christians are in this situation. Jesus has become a common thing, a routine issue. This is particularly true for us who have been Christians a long time or have grown up in Christian homes. Where church, the Bible, prayer, and “Christian” culture have always been available and readily accessible. You are pressed up against it, yet you gain very little from it. Much like the citizens of El Dorado, who have become used to seeing gold everywhere and in everything, we have actually grown desensitized with being in so close proximity with the Lord of Glory. Such is human nature. We have somewhat associated scarcity and inaccessibility with value. To us, something common is hardly ever special. We have a very sad human problem: the more we are exposed to something the less precious it becomes to us. We always long after what is new and different. And if it isn’t new then it isn’t worth any new interest. C.S. Lewis called this “the horror of the same-old-thing”. And so we blend, change, create and recreate on top of the foundation already laid, to make it more interesting for our pallet, in order to appease this “horror of the same old thing”. Meanwhile, Jesus’ ever-present nature and accessibility has become His very downfall in the western world. We have grown weary of Him. His effectiveness has lessened in proportion our increasing familiarity with Him. You see it is possible to be pressed up so hard against Jesus at the point of crushing, yet not really touch Him. Mere superficial contact is not enough. Simply rubbing up against Jesus does not guarantee you will get anything. There is no more desperation for Him. No more dire rescues to perform. No more giants to slay. No urgent hopelessness to remedy. We expect Him to do nothing, so we get nothing. God Bless March M. Villareal www.manswicked.com manswicked@gmail.com
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