Because he offers forgiveness. This is the whole story of the Old Testament - Adam, Eve, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, David, the nation of Israel. They all were imperfect, they all didn't follow God all the time, and sometimes their rebellion was the sickest - just plain, old awful. But in that spectrum of a little bit of ignorance to flat out rebellion, God didn't change his view towards all these people - humanity. No. He gave them a choice: choose me and find life [through forgiveness] or choose your own ways and find death. If you choose to protect your image, then that's on you. You are your source of protection. [And when they tried that, they always got destroyed by other nations; hence death.] But if you choose my forgiveness [therefore, following God's ways and exposing themselves to when they act wrong], then I will protect you. Again, this is the paradox: God can offer his kindness to us when we are honest with our imperfections; but we can't receive his kindness if we try to hold a perfect view of ourselves.
The cross doesn't teach us to protect our image because Jesus didn't try to protect his image. He was perfect; yet, he was blamed. He had every right to defend himself; yet, he didn't. Even in his perfection, even in his blamelessness, he was not set on protecting his image. The only one who had the right to protect his image did not. Why? Because he knew who he was. And he knew his purpose.
That level of humility. That is empowerment. To not fight back, but to know who you are so well that you don't have to fight for your image, your name, your reputation. To be at peace because you have purpose.
This is the cross. To know my identity is secured because of his kindness, not because of what I do. To realize I have received a covenant of love and forgiveness based on his kindness, not my perfection. But the way I stay in this covenant? It's by continually being vulnerable, exposing myself to him, and letting my perfect image be ruined. Because this covenant is a relational covenant, if I choose to protect my own image, I distance myself from God and cut off the relationship where the gift of kindness is available to me. In other words, if I choose to protect my own image, I choose judgment instead of kindness.
"Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too. You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross. Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." Philippians 2:3-11 |
Matthew 16:24-27