I Can't Wait to See Jesus - con't.

What did Christ look like?  Used to find myself wondering about it all the time.

Wouldn't faith be easier today if we had an accurate historical description in the Gospels, or even better, a true-to-life drawing on a scroll that had somehow survived 2000 years, extant today so we could see His face, read Christ's expression, "get a feel for who He was" and be assured that Jesus was real?   

Wouldn't seeing a real picture of Jesus help soothe all our doubts?

I don't think so: Christ's message had nothing to do with His appearance, or with what He looked like on the outside.

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You've probably seen framed reprints of paintings in churches, reproductions depicting either a glowing, doe-eyed Jesus focused longingly in prayer toward Heaven, or Christ crucified on the cross ... looking more tired and sad than what he surely was: scourged, dying and in torment.

The idea of hanging an accurate portrait of a naked, flayed, crucified and dying Jesus inside a church building would be repugnant ... but then, why re-invent and sanitize the reality of what Christ suffered and endured to guarantee our salvation, except to make the crucifixion more palatable (and "decent") ... and reduce the cross to little more than a spiritual lucky charm?

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Crucifixion was the most humiliating, public and agonizing death the Romans, who had centuries of experience culled through barbarous trial and error, could devise ... and that's saying an awful lot.  

The pain of being crucified had to be so excruciating and horrific that we can't even begin to imagine what it must be like.

But that's why Christ chose to be crucified in our place.

Not because we're righteous, church-going and gung-ho to condemn others for their sins.  Not because we're willing to contribute generously to causes we agree with (especially those promising to have our names displayed) or because we feel our role is so important, church couldn't open without the pastor asking our opinion about which door to unlock first.  

And not because we're holy, 99.99% sin-free and therefore deserved His substitution.

It's because Christ loved us so much that He was willing to die for us even though we were sinners.

No matter what we looked like, especially on the outside.