Jesus should play a starring role in Humanity. Jesus should not merely put in an occasional cameo appearance.

Unfortunately, Humanity often relegates Jesus to cameo appearances.

These cameo appearances are limited to sacred settings such as churches.

Other cameo appearances are limited to sacred times such as Christmas and funerals.

It’s OK for Jesus to appear in cameo roles in such sacred spaces and at such sacred times once in awhile. A cameo appearance is better than no appearance at all.

But Jesus longs to play far more than a cameo appearance in Humanity.

Jesus longs to play the starring role as the Suffering Servant for Humanity who acts wisely (Isaiah 52:13), proclaiming good news to the poor, freeing prisoners, giving sight to the blind, and setting the oppressed free. (Luke 4:17-19, paraphrasing Isaiah 61:1,2; 58:6).

Jesus longs to play the starring role as the Suffering Servant for Humanity—the Suffering Servant who is despised and rejected by Humanity, yet brings us peace and healing. (Isaiah 53:3,5).

What kinds of peace and healing?

Peace and healing from all kinds of sins:

—peace and healing from bad consequences that we ourselves create because our lives have gone astray (Isaiah 53:6); and

—peace and healing from bad consequences that others create because their lives have gone astray (Isaiah 53:6).

For example, Jesus longs to play the Starring Role as the Suffering Servant—“a man of suffering and familiar with pain. . . . who took up our pain and bore our suffering”—so that he can bring peace and healing despite:

—massacres of innocent people in supermarkets;

—massacres of innocent people worshipping God; and

—massacres of innocent school children.

I know that the increase of such wickedness threatens to make my love—and the love of many others—go cold (Matthew 25:13).

The increase of such wickedness threatens to make me—and many others—go numb so that we stop seeing, hearing, feeling, and understanding. (Isaiah 6:8-12).

But then I take heart. Why?

I remember that Jesus promises that, despite increases in wickedness that threaten to make our love go cold, “the one who stands firm to the end will be saved”. (Matthew 24:12-13).

I remember that Jesus is the Suffering Servant for Humanity “who will not falter or be discouraged till he establishes justice on earth” (Isaiah 42:4)

I remember that Jesus is the Suffering Servant for Humanity whose salvation reaches to the ends of the Earth (Isaiah 49:3,6) so that:

[t]hose who hope in the LORD will renew their strength.

They will soar on wings like eagles;

   they will run and not grow weary,

   they will walk and not be faint.

     (Isaiah 40:31).

READ MORE

For more of my blogs about how Jesus should be the permanent focus in our lives and in Humanity, please read my blogs “Jesus Playing the Starring Role, Not a Cameo Appearance: In Our Life” and “Following Jesus: A Marriage, Not a Date”, and “Places of Worship—Following the Way of Jesus”.