Jesus is not a supplement... He's the only Way!

written by Stephan Joubert

We might be executing our religious activities with great surrender, but there's still a good chance that we are deeply unhappy people. That's what Hannah Whitall Smith writes in The God of all Comfort. But then she adds: "Nothing can set our hearts at rest but a real acquaintance of God." Faith is not equal to service to God. To find rest at the Lord's feet is different to running from one religious duty to the next. To be busy in God's service from early to late is not the key to his peace. You'll find true rest only through living in the footsteps of the right Person on the right Path.

The name used to refer to the early Christians was "People of the Way." Wow! Others noticed that followers of Jesus lived on a different route: that of Christ! We are not merely maintaining a bunch of religious rules. We are following the living Lord. He is our exclusive new route. Eugene Peterson puts it poignantly: "Jesus is an alternative to the dominant ways of the world, not a supplement to them." No, Jesus' route is not supplementary. He is not like a vitamin when our daily food offers too little nourishment. He is not the shortcut when we get lost on the world's routes. He is also not the spare wheel when our other life wheels are flat. Christ is exclusive. He replaces all other routes that we've wandered on. He rewires our old, obsolete ways of thinking and doing. There is rest on his path. It is paved with heavenly joy! Live on it and see!

Peace

Stephan Joubert