Why is it so hard to be like Jesus?

We mess up, and mess up, and mess up again.  Maybe we are not kind enough, or forgiving enough, or loving enough.  We say we’ll be better, but soon fall into the same pattern as before --- making the same mistakes, committing the same sins.  We really wish we could be a lot more like Jesus.  We tell ourselves that that is what we really want.

But do we?   Let’s be honest here.  Do we REALLY?

The pattern I just described is a very common one.  We all fall far short when it comes to imitating Jesus.  We all do things he would never do, and fail to do things he would do without question.  We act selfishly at times.  And all of us sin with quite a bit of regularity --- repeating the same mistakes, making the same bad choices over and over again. 

And we feel bad about it.  We truly do.  And we want God to forgive us, to give us a second chance and a third and a fourth and a fifth.  And he does.  Thank goodness --- no, thank God --- he does.  We all desperately need his mercy, and his gentleness, and his understanding, and his forgiveness.  We would be lost and broken and hopeless without those things, would be in trouble if we had to do it all on our own.

But is that the complete picture, the full reality?  Is that truly the way it is in every case?  Is that always what’s happening when our lives don’t look very similar to the life of Jesus?  Or is something else going on?

As you know, it’s not always easy to know exactly what God wants from us.  Life and situations and people can be complicated.  And of course, on top of that, we don’t have an absolute complete picture of Jesus --- his every move, his every word, his every action, or his every expectation.  Some of the stories about him are puzzling.  Some of the stories he told are strange and confusing at times. 

Well, today is NOT one of those days.

The Gospel passage we just heard has some of the most direct, plain-spoken words in all of Scripture (from the very mouth of Jesus!).  And even the most skeptical Scripture scholars would probably have a good deal of confidence asserting that these statements came from Jesus himself.  There is a kind of unique and cohesive quality that emanates from these “words of wisdom” --- a kind of authenticity that has the ability to speak to the believer and non-believer alike. 

Did Jesus actually make these statements?  Did he say these exact words? 

We can be reasonably confident that the Gospel writer Luke (under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit) didn’t just take some lukewarm (pun intended) statements from Jesus and exaggerate them for effect or emphasis.  No --- Jesus almost certainly made most or all of these statements (or very similar ones) at one time or another.

I bring all of this up for a reason --- to not “let us off the hook”, to not give us an “out”, to not provide an easy opportunity for us to ignore them or dismiss them or water them down --- because I’m pretty sure we would all like to.  That’s how tough these statements are. 

Love your enemies . . . do good to those who hate you . . . bless those who curse you . . . pray for those who mistreat you . . . turn the other cheek . . . give your cloak AND tunic . . . from the one who takes what is yours do not demand it back . . . do unto others as you would have them do to you . . . lend without expecting repayment . . . do good to your enemies . . . be merciful . . . stop judging . . . stop condemning . . . forgive . . . give.

Can we REALLY say that we want to BE just like Jesus?  Can we really say that it’s our weaknesses that keep on making us fail in our attempt to be like him?  Can we say in all honesty that imitating Jesus is truly our main goal, the thing we want above all else?

Or is something else going on?  I think you know. 

Our greatest sin might just be a stubborn unwillingness to even TRY to be like Jesus, an unwillingness to even WANT to be like him, an unwillingness to sincerely DESIRE to love as he loved and continues to love.  If the blueprint for being faithful contains all those things I mentioned above, all those things that came from the mouth of Jesus, then do we really want to sign-on to all of that.  Maybe we like the watered-down version a whole lot better, the “just be nice” version.  THAT one most of us can handle most of the time.

But is that enough?  Really enough?

We are the People of God, brothers and sisters of Jesus, and every once in a while the requirements of the commitment we say we have made hit us right in the face and challenge us in ways we simply don’t want to be challenged.  Today is one of those days.

How are we doing?  Are we even close?

Who are we at this very moment? 

And, with God’s grace, who do we want to be tomorrow?