By Pastor
Greg
Two hunters hired a pilot to fly them into the far north for elk hunting. They were quite successful, bagging six big bucks. When the pilot returned, he objected and said, "The plane can only carry four of your elk. Those other two will weigh the plane down too much. You'll have to leave two of them behind." The hunters were insistent. They said, "Last year, we shot six elk and the pilot let us put them all on a plane that was the exact same model." Reluctantly, the pilot finally agreed. Rolling down the grassy runway, the plane was not able to take off, crashing into the wilderness. Climbing out of the wreckage, one hunter said to the other, "Do you know where we are?" "I think so," replied the other hunter. "I think this is about thirty feet from where we crashed last year!"
I know all about thirty feet. Oh, don’t get me wrong. I intend to do great things for Jesus. In the morning I’m am optimistic. “Today I will not sin. Today I will spend more time praying. Today I will begin reading my Bible”. But by lunchtime all I have gained is a mere thirty feet. There are days I feel like I’m getting nowhere. I work and work and pray and pray and where do I find myself? Only thirty feet from where I started. Dealing with the same old sins and the same old issues over and over again. For all my years of study and all my years of walking with Jesus, I still feel like a broken mess. Who would want some old broken down failure of a man that can’t seem to make the right choices? Who could love a man that continues to disappoint; that continues to fail?
Jesus would.
Yes, you heard me. Jesus would. He did. He already has. Time and time again Jesus demonstrated that He loves those who are broken. He loves those who know all about their failures. He loves those who climb out of their wrecked lives; those who face their thirty feet day after day, year after year.
One of the Pharisees asked Jesus to have dinner with him, so Jesus went to his home and sat down to eat. 37 When a certain immoral woman from that city heard he was eating there, she brought a beautiful alabaster jar filled with expensive perfume. 38 Then she knelt behind him at his feet, weeping. Her tears fell on his feet, and she wiped them off with her hair. Then she kept kissing his feet and putting perfume on them. 39 When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would know what kind of woman is touching him. She’s a sinner!” (Luke 7:36-39).
“She’s a sinner”, Simon proclaimed. Even Simon knew about her measly thirty feet. Yes, she was a sinner. Probably a prostitute. The Alabaster Jar contained expensive perfume. To open the bottle it had to be broken and the perfume was sprinkled upon the bed. But this time it is the woman who becomes broken. And in her brokenness she pours out the tools of her trade at the feet of Jesus. How did Jesus react? How did He respond to this woman who obviously had failed to live a good and holy life? He looks at this broken woman and forgives her sins. He loves that which is broken.
Jesus takes the time to talk with a woman who had had seven husbands. And the man she was living with at the moment was not her husband. If anyone knew about thirty feet, this woman sure did. And yet Jesus goes out of His way to speak with her and show her respect, tenderness, and concern. The story about the woman at the well in John 4 demonstrates that Jesus loved those who were broken.
He spent time with Zacchaeus, a man everyone knew was a notorious sinner. Everyone knew about his thirty feet. Yet Jesus takes this broken-down failure of a man and forgives (Luke 19:9). He loves. He rejoices in this tax-collector turned believer.
The Apostle Peter knew all about thirty feet. He, who had walked with Jesus and who had pledged his life for Jesus (John 13:37), would lie three times before the rooster would crow in the morning. Oh, Peter knew all about thirty feet. He had broken a promise once again. He climbed out of the wreckage of his life to find himself right back where he had started. This is why Peter decides to go back to fishing (John 21:3). Since the three years he had spent with Jesus obviously didn’t change anything, Peter decided to back to Galilee, find his old fishing buddies, and return to the life he had promised to leave behind.
That’s what thirty feet will do to a person. It will drive you back to where you first began. If you are no better today than you were yesterday, then why bother pretending? Why pretend to be a Christian when you certainly can’t live like one? But don’t you see? That’s the whole point. The whole point in being a Christian is to admit that you can’t be a Christian. The whole point is in admitting you are broken; in admitting you are a failure. I tell you the truth, only when we are broken can we know who Jesus truly is. Only when we admit failure can Jesus do what only Jesus can do. He looks past our measly thirty feet and shows us love. He shows us grace.
Just who is Jesus? Jesus looks tenderly at those who are broken. He listens to the prayers of those who shake their head in remorse for their measly thirty feet. But brokenness is a word many of us refuse to embrace; a word that stumbles awkwardly from our tongue. Like Peter, we’d rather go fishing than come to terms with our thirty feet. We’d rather wallow in our failure than give it back to Jesus. Perhaps we refuse because we don’t truly understand who Jesus is. Perhaps we have no idea what Jesus does with broken people.
“Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood and was praying this to himself: ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other people: swindlers, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I pay tithes of all that I get.’ “But the tax collector, standing some distance away, was even unwilling to lift up his eyes to heaven, but was beating his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, the sinner!’ “I tell you, this man went to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted.” Luke 18:10-14.
Brokenness. God uses broken things. It is the broken alabaster jar that gives forth perfume. It is the broken Peter that Jesus commissions to feed His sheep.
Across a charcoal fire Jesus confronts Peter the fisherman a second time. The same Peter that lied. The same Peter who wrecked his life once again. The same Peter who found himself right back where he started. The same Peter who was ashamed of his thirty feet. But rather than remind Peter of his thirty feet, Jesus tenderly says, Now come and have some breakfast (John 21:12). Jesus takes this broken man and says “Feed My sheep” (John 21:17).
Have you ever had one of those days when you feel like a broken mess? Have you ever felt hopeless; like all of your effort to live a good and holy life was a waste? Have you ever found yourself dealing with the same sins and the same destructive attitudes day after day? Then you know all about thirty feet – living a wreck of a life and getting nowhere. You know how the woman with the Alabaster Jar felt. Broken. Worthless. Helpless. You know how the woman at the well felt – the outcast who no one loved. You know about the pain Zacchaeus faced day after day. Everyone knows about your mistakes. You know how Peter felt. Rejecting Jesus and now there is no coming back. You know how it feels to let that thirty feet stand between you and Jesus.
May I just remind you who Jesus is? May I simply remind you what Jesus has done in the past? He will do it again because that’s who Jesus is. Jesus loves those who are broken. Jesus forgives those who are broken. Jesus uses those who are broken. He does this because that’s who Jesus is. He knows all about your thirty feet.
But He loves you anyway.
*sigh*. Only thirty feet. Only thirty feet.
I know all about thirty feet. Oh, don’t get me wrong. I intend to do great things for Jesus. In the morning I’m am optimistic. “Today I will not sin. Today I will spend more time praying. Today I will begin reading my Bible”. But by lunchtime all I have gained is a mere thirty feet. There are days I feel like I’m getting nowhere. I work and work and pray and pray and where do I find myself? Only thirty feet from where I started. Dealing with the same old sins and the same old issues over and over again. For all my years of study and all my years of walking with Jesus, I still feel like a broken mess. Who would want some old broken down failure of a man that can’t seem to make the right choices? Who could love a man that continues to disappoint; that continues to fail?
Jesus would.
Yes, you heard me. Jesus would. He did. He already has. Time and time again Jesus demonstrated that He loves those who are broken. He loves those who know all about their failures. He loves those who climb out of their wrecked lives; those who face their thirty feet day after day, year after year.
One of the Pharisees asked Jesus to have dinner with him, so Jesus went to his home and sat down to eat. 37 When a certain immoral woman from that city heard he was eating there, she brought a beautiful alabaster jar filled with expensive perfume. 38 Then she knelt behind him at his feet, weeping. Her tears fell on his feet, and she wiped them off with her hair. Then she kept kissing his feet and putting perfume on them. 39 When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would know what kind of woman is touching him. She’s a sinner!” (Luke 7:36-39).
“She’s a sinner”, Simon proclaimed. Even Simon knew about her measly thirty feet. Yes, she was a sinner. Probably a prostitute. The Alabaster Jar contained expensive perfume. To open the bottle it had to be broken and the perfume was sprinkled upon the bed. But this time it is the woman who becomes broken. And in her brokenness she pours out the tools of her trade at the feet of Jesus. How did Jesus react? How did He respond to this woman who obviously had failed to live a good and holy life? He looks at this broken woman and forgives her sins. He loves that which is broken.
Jesus takes the time to talk with a woman who had had seven husbands. And the man she was living with at the moment was not her husband. If anyone knew about thirty feet, this woman sure did. And yet Jesus goes out of His way to speak with her and show her respect, tenderness, and concern. The story about the woman at the well in John 4 demonstrates that Jesus loved those who were broken.
He spent time with Zacchaeus, a man everyone knew was a notorious sinner. Everyone knew about his thirty feet. Yet Jesus takes this broken-down failure of a man and forgives (Luke 19:9). He loves. He rejoices in this tax-collector turned believer.
The Apostle Peter knew all about thirty feet. He, who had walked with Jesus and who had pledged his life for Jesus (John 13:37), would lie three times before the rooster would crow in the morning. Oh, Peter knew all about thirty feet. He had broken a promise once again. He climbed out of the wreckage of his life to find himself right back where he had started. This is why Peter decides to go back to fishing (John 21:3). Since the three years he had spent with Jesus obviously didn’t change anything, Peter decided to back to Galilee, find his old fishing buddies, and return to the life he had promised to leave behind.
That’s what thirty feet will do to a person. It will drive you back to where you first began. If you are no better today than you were yesterday, then why bother pretending? Why pretend to be a Christian when you certainly can’t live like one? But don’t you see? That’s the whole point. The whole point in being a Christian is to admit that you can’t be a Christian. The whole point is in admitting you are broken; in admitting you are a failure. I tell you the truth, only when we are broken can we know who Jesus truly is. Only when we admit failure can Jesus do what only Jesus can do. He looks past our measly thirty feet and shows us love. He shows us grace.
Just who is Jesus? Jesus looks tenderly at those who are broken. He listens to the prayers of those who shake their head in remorse for their measly thirty feet. But brokenness is a word many of us refuse to embrace; a word that stumbles awkwardly from our tongue. Like Peter, we’d rather go fishing than come to terms with our thirty feet. We’d rather wallow in our failure than give it back to Jesus. Perhaps we refuse because we don’t truly understand who Jesus is. Perhaps we have no idea what Jesus does with broken people.
“Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood and was praying this to himself: ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other people: swindlers, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I pay tithes of all that I get.’ “But the tax collector, standing some distance away, was even unwilling to lift up his eyes to heaven, but was beating his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, the sinner!’ “I tell you, this man went to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted.” Luke 18:10-14.
Brokenness. God uses broken things. It is the broken alabaster jar that gives forth perfume. It is the broken Peter that Jesus commissions to feed His sheep.
Across a charcoal fire Jesus confronts Peter the fisherman a second time. The same Peter that lied. The same Peter who wrecked his life once again. The same Peter who found himself right back where he started. The same Peter who was ashamed of his thirty feet. But rather than remind Peter of his thirty feet, Jesus tenderly says, Now come and have some breakfast (John 21:12). Jesus takes this broken man and says “Feed My sheep” (John 21:17).
Have you ever had one of those days when you feel like a broken mess? Have you ever felt hopeless; like all of your effort to live a good and holy life was a waste? Have you ever found yourself dealing with the same sins and the same destructive attitudes day after day? Then you know all about thirty feet – living a wreck of a life and getting nowhere. You know how the woman with the Alabaster Jar felt. Broken. Worthless. Helpless. You know how the woman at the well felt – the outcast who no one loved. You know about the pain Zacchaeus faced day after day. Everyone knows about your mistakes. You know how Peter felt. Rejecting Jesus and now there is no coming back. You know how it feels to let that thirty feet stand between you and Jesus.
May I just remind you who Jesus is? May I simply remind you what Jesus has done in the past? He will do it again because that’s who Jesus is. Jesus loves those who are broken. Jesus forgives those who are broken. Jesus uses those who are broken. He does this because that’s who Jesus is. He knows all about your thirty feet.
But He loves you anyway.
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