Messed up by Christ

"So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ this way, we do so no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! All this is from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation."  ~ II Corinthians 5:16-18

As so many know, once Jesus enters your life, there's no going back, is there? So many lives have been (and are being) radically transformed by the message of Jesus Christ. Simply put, when you allow Christ into your heart, the process of regeneration and renewal begins through the work of the Holy Spirit that now lives in you. Through Christ and the work done on the cross, you become a 'new creature' with the old, sinful part of you 'dying' and the new 'you' emerging. As a caterpillar emerging from the dark dormancy of a cocoon, we emerge better than before, with new, more amazing capabilities, such as the capability to live lives of reconciliation, forgiveness and restoration.

Amazing, isn't it?

Just the other day, I read this incredible letter by a church member to her pastor. At first, as I was reading it, I wasn't real sure where it was going as it seemed very negative. But after continued reading, it made perfect sense. Here is a woman who allowed Christ into her life, and as a result, Christ messed her up. Maybe you can relate? I can.

Here it is. Enjoy... 


  

Dear Pastor,

Please stop talking about Jesus. Please stop talking about sin.

You keep ripping my little Christian family’s world to pieces, and your teaching keeps bringing out secrets.

Through your teaching, God told me I needed to leave my home behind and follow him to your church. I was lonely and scared. Through your teaching, my visiting sisters decided to come back and hear more. Through your teaching, they were convicted. So one at a time, they told us their secrets. One of them is bulimic and cutting herself. The other has been getting drunk and sleeping with her secret boyfriend we knew nothing about. Our world is in pieces. We have all been crying non-stop.


This pain is too much.Why did you have to talk about sin and Jesus?

Now they have confessed and we are all shattered. We are all broken into little bits. My Dad had to go to the ER because his heart was giving him problems from all the stress and grief. I can’t stop bursting into tears. We are so messed up. We are clinging to one another for dear life. And now, more than ever, we need to hear you talk about Jesus. More than ever, we need to hear you preach the Bible and the gospel. More than ever, we need to be reminded that the truth is that the Truth will indeed set us free.

There is a “thank-you” in this pain, but I don’t understand it because this all hurts so badly. This Jesus from the Bible is alive today…he is the most painful and comforting person I have ever encountered.