Jesus Our All in All (#6)

Another portion from "Jesus Manifesto" by Frank Viola and Leonard Sweet:

"Most people think of evil as a mystery. We believe the mystery of goodness, beauty, and truth is an even greater mystery than that of evil and wickedness...After all, Jesus is the most beautiful at the ugliest moment of His life: His execution on the cross...According to the New Testament, the mystery of God is Christ, and the mystery of Christ is the church. (Col. 1:26,27; 2:2; Eph. 3:4-6; 5:32)...

There are basically two strategies that religion can employ when dealing with divine mystery: hide the mystery, or display the mystery through prayer, worship, art, and conversation. Byzantium and Eastern Christianity chose to display the mystery, whereas Western Christianity chose to hide it. But it even got worse. Beginning with Descartes, Western Christianity moved from 'truth as mystery' to 'truth as certainty.'...

When truth is encountered as certainty rather than mystery, open spaces of providence and possibility begin to close. The idea that you can discern truth by diagramming propositions or analyzing principles disenchants the world and 'drawstrings' the heavens. Only by living the mystery can truth be discovered.

This is not to say that we cannot be certain about anything...Hebrews 11:1 calls it (faith) the 'evidence of things not seen'. By faith we know God...(faith) is as real as our physical senses.

At the same time, the mystery of our faith opens the door for embracing paradox and even logical contradictions...As G.K.Chesterton once put it, 'The riddles of God are more satisfying than the solutions of man.'
...embracing mystery opens the door for appreciating how infinitely 'beyond' all of us our Lord really is. It produces heart-awe mixed with a peaceful confidence in a God who is bigger than we can ever imagine.

To the person who walks in the Spirit, paradox, mystery, and uncertainty propel him forward instead of bogging him down. Those who live by faith can live in the presence of mystery and be motivated to rest in God's loving care...

Concerning the reality of Christ Himself, all the fullness of God dwells within Him. It is for this reason that every theological system breaks down somewhere...no matter how coherent or logical, eventually (it) meets some passage of Scripture or passage of life that refuses to fit into it. Such passages have to be bent, twisted, and forced to fit the system...Christ is too immense, too imponderable, and too alive to be tied into any immovable system of thought constructed by finite humans. Thus, He will always break out...Jesus Christ is too alive to be caged in any human system...

When you say yes to Jesus, you are saying yes to a person, not to a proposition...

What do you seek?

Do you seek righteousness? Jesus Christ is righteousness and sanctification. (I Cor. 1:30)
Do you seek wisdom? His name is Jesus. (I Cor. 1:24,30)
Do you desire peace? Jesus Christ is peace. (Eph. 2:14)
Do you want truth? That's what Jesus is. (John 14:6
Do you seek the power of God? Jesus Christ is the power of God.(I Cor. 1:24)"

Lord Jesus, there are no words to express all that You are! We love You, our Lord and God...