As a culture, we worship youth and beauty. Certain ideals so captivate us that I now read that a person's physical attractiveness can be equally important to the skills he or she brings to the interview in eventually winning the position. We celebrate certain physical ideals of beauty -- you know, the big bright eyes, the white even teeth, the smooth, unflawed skin, the glowing smile, the 'right' body shape.

In our 50 Day Adventure our theme is about beauty, too. Would you say it with me?

My goals in leading you through these days of discovery are two-fold....

1. That as you realize the characteristics that YOU, as a Believer, can share with Jesus, you will become an increasingly beautiful person,
and
2. That you will become convinced that your friends and neighbors must be introduced to this magnificent Man.

In our adventure, we will not going to meet a celebrity that is flashy with an image created by consultants.
Jesus is no movie star, no Superman whose perfect beauty and 1000 watt smile drew admiring crowds. Indeed,
the Word tells us that Jesus was initially ignored because of his ordinary appearance!

Isaiah 53:2-3
2 He grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him. 3 He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

As I read and re-read that descriptive passage, I paused to reflect how very different Jesus was from the celebrities that attract attention today.

• "No beauty..." We don't know much about Jesus' physical appearance. Artists have created many images for us: long hair, bearded, sharp features, standing tall among the crowds that press in around Him. But the fact is that the Bible says His attractiveness had nothing to do with the way He looked.

 
• His attractiveness didn't come from a sparkling personality either. "A man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering..." Not exactly the life of the party, he was often burdened, sensitive to the suffering of people around him. He was given to withdrawing from the crowds so He could be alone to pray. To be sure, the Gospels do tell us that He spent time with people that others considered 'low life' but His attractiveness was not because He got drunk with them and told raucous jokes!

• "Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not." He wasn't popular because he stood out as a leader. In fact, something about Him made people look away at first the Bible says.

 

• Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people. News about him spread all over Syria, and people brought to him all who were ill with various diseases, those suffering severe pain, the demon-possessed, those having seizures, and the paralyzed, and he healed them.Large crowds from Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea and the region across the Jordan followed him. 
  
  
• Luke says, 12:1 
  Meanwhile, when a crowd of many thousands had gathered, so that they were trampling on one another,

• The Message, Mark 1:21 - 2:2 Here are highlights of His attractiveness
  
  "... the whole city lined up at his door!"

• "Jesus kept to out of the way places, no longer able to move freely in and out of the city... but the people found Him and came from all over."

• "A crowd gathered, jamming the entrance so no one could get in or out."

He was extraordinarily approachable. His life was incredibly influential. A poem shows up frequently on Christmas cards called "One Solitary Life." We don't who wrote these words of tribute to Jesus Christ, but we recognize their truth immediately. The poem concludes with these powerful words:

WHAT made Jesus so popular and approachable?

It would be simplistic to say that it was just the miracles. While people were surely initially impressed by healings and other wonders, they came to love the Man, not just His performance.

There are those who read the Gospels and explain the stories away as exaggerations and impossibilities. They tell us that Jesus was a kind of traveling showman whose tricks and personality attracted the crowds. What an insult to the Son of God. He was not loved and hated because he had a cool road show! It wasn't the bread he served, the jokes he told, or the warm-up band that got the audiences ready for Him. What about Him was so unique, so attractive?

In our Adventure, we're going to take a look at eight qualities of Jesus' life that caused so many to come to Him. These characteristics still make Him attractive to the world and we, as His followers, can make them part of our lives, too. The result will that His beauty will be seen in us, causing our friends and family to follow Him, too.

1. Jesus stayed connected to and directed by the Spirit of God.

We are drawn to a person who knows who they are and where they are going, aren't we? Jesus knew His God-given purpose and His destiny. He didn't brag about it, trumpeting it to all who would listen. He allowed His mission to shape His life and drew others to follow Him because of the connection to the Divine that kept His life on track. We, too, need to learn to listen for God so we can respond to His guidance.

I read about a Native American who was touring New York City. At a busy intersection, he leaned down next to a potted plant and picked up a cricket which he placed in the plant. His host asked, "How did you hear that cricket in all this noise?" At that moment a woman dropped a quarter as she fumbled for change for the bus. As the coin rolled across the sidewalk, a dozen eyes turned to it. The man looked at his host with a sly smile, "It all depends on what you're listening for."

2. Jesus broke down the walls that divided people in 'us' and 'them.'

To Jesus, a person was of value without regard to social status, wealth, or beauty. He extended love to prostitutes and powerful politicians alike. His Gospel tore down the walls that divided. The Bible says,

Galatians 3:26-28 You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, 27 for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

3. Jesus genuinely liked people and drew out the best in them.

Where others saw sin, Jesus saw the possibility of forgiveness. Where others saw failure, Jesus saw an opportunity for redemption and growth. Where others saw sickness, Jesus found opportunities for the grace of God.

This story came to me in my email this week...

A well known speaker started off his seminar by holding up a $20 bill.
In the room of 200, he asked, "Who would like this $20 bill?"
Hands started going up. He said, "I am going to give this $20 to one of you but first, let me do this."
He proceeded to crumple the bill up. He then asked, "Who still wants it?"

Still the hands were up in the air.

"Well," he replied, "What if I do this?"
And he dropped it on the ground and started to grind it into the floor with his shoe.
He picked it up, now crumpled and dirty. "Now who still wants it
Still the hands went into the air.

"My friends, you have all learned a very valuable lesson. No matter what I did to the money, you still wanted it because it did not decrease in value. It was still worth $20.

Many times in our lives, we are dropped, crumpled, and ground into the dirt by the decisions we make and the circumstances that come our way. We feel as though we are worthless. But no matter what has happened or what will happen, you will never lose your value in God's eyes. To Him, dirty or clean, crumpled or finely creased, you are still priceless to Him.

4. Jesus knew who He was and served all with humility.

Matthew 20:27-28 "Whoever wants to be first must be your slave-- 28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."

5. Jesus spoke the truth of God in everyday language.

I watched a video of a service at a prominent church this week. The music was wonderful. The spirit of the people as they worshiped was engaging. The building was nicely decorated. But, the message was preached in code! Not intentionally. The preacher made references to Bible stories most people would not know. He spoke of things like 'the anointing' 'the Blood of the Lamb' 'The Precious Word' 'The blessed Hope.' I sure he was unconscious that his words were incomprehensible in meaning to many, if not most, Americans.   A person who did not know the Bible, who had not been a part of church, might well have thought he was in a foreign country.

Jesus came to tell people about God and used everyday stories and common language to help people to understand eternal truth.

6. Jesus helped people to see the Kingdom of God, now and future.

We call this vision. God gifts some to see beyond 'what is' to 'what could be.' Jesus proclaimed what men and women could become with the help of God. He told them that they could rise above the evil that sucked so many down into despair! And they loved Him.

Jesus saw that Simon, the fickle fisherman, could become Peter, the rock of the Church. He spoke that to him in encouragement. What does He see in you? Does He help you to see the Kingdom in others?

7. Jesus completed His mission with courage.

As the Cross came closer, Jesus didn't change course. He knew the suffering, physical and spiritual, would be most terrible. He also knew that the work He would do there for humanity would restore the broken relationship of God and His creation. We love Him for His courage.

8. Jesus broke the power of darkness and brought Light.

Try to imagine a world of darkness! One of the reasons I don't like winter is the short days. I love early morning, but I hate getting up in the dark. Now that the days are lengthening, I wake up around 6 AM and look forward to getting around because the light is streaming in the windows.

Many people live in dark places: ugly habits squeeze them in their grip, despair keeps them from knowing even the simple joys, the threat of death strikes terror.... Jesus brought light. He helps those who have faith to break habits. He gives joy to those who learn to live in love and forgiveness. His resurrection takes the terror out of death and gives the promise of life with God forever.

Yes, Jesus was and is attractive not because He is beautiful or rich BUT because of His wonderful character.

• Are you putting too much emphasis in your life on the outward appearance?
• Are you spending too much time and money on clothes, hair, body shaping, and diets?

Then as we become attractive as Jesus is, we will draw others to take a second look at Him.

Part of our Adventure will be to take five Action Steps. These will help you and me to look outside of ourselves, to do want the Lord told us to do in taking His word to others:

1. We're going to learn to PRAY WITH A PENCIL!

We will be journaling some of our prayers as well as putting down on paper the names of people for whom we will pray. Using the "show me" prayer we'll be asking God to help us to see in the same way that Jesus saw.

2. We're going to learn to LIGHT THE STREET!

By becoming conscious of the people who live along our road or that work in our building, we will pray that our lives will point the way to God like a lighthouse.

3. We're going to learn to CELEBRATE PEOPLE!

It is so easy, so natural even to criticize and tear down others. The Evil One is called an Accuser. Why?

Because he insinuates division between people. By God's grace we can learn to see the goodness of others and even more importantly, we can by our sincere words call from them the possibilities that God has purposed for them. In our Adventure, you'll be challenged to celebrate people even on a daily basis to jot down your affirming remarks to others. Why? So that you will become conscious of it and turn this into a habit that makes you like Jesus!

4. We going to DARE TO CARE!

Genuine acts of service are pretty rare these days. Sure some people will serve you IF it benefits them but when their benefit is over, so is the service. Bev and I purchased a car a couple of weeks ago. The young sales rep was so attentive to our needs. I remarked to Bev, "He is almost making me believe that he really does care!" Then a couple of days later after the deal was closed we went back to the dealership to pick up some papers. The young man could have cared less about us. He hurried us through the paperwork and then breezed off with barely a goodbye.

As followers of Jesus, we're going to set aside our own interests and let His spirit of humble service come into our lives. Practical things like washing the dinner dishes, cleaning the family car, offering to care for a young mother's children for an afternoon - will be the ways that we dare to care.

5. We are going to learn how to SCREEN THE MESSAGE of the Gospel.

As we talk about Jesus and loving God, we are going to be very aware of not only what we say, but "HOW WE SAY IT." We're going to ask God to help us to be better at talking about faith without preaching so that people will be pointed to Jesus, not just to our way of life.
____________

I am really looking forward to this Adventure.

As you realize the characteristics that YOU, as a Believer, can share with Jesus, you will become an increasingly beautiful person, and you will become convinced that your friends and neighbors must be introduced to this magnificent Man.

Bill Bennet, a national leader who is deeply involved in renewal of our culture wrote:

• "America now finds itself at or near the top of industrialized world in rates of murder, rape, illegal drug use, divorce, abortion, child abuse, and births to unwed mothers. Our educational system is producing students who rank near the bottom among students from developed nations. Our popular culture is vulgar, violent, mindless, and corrupt. . . Large segments of America are characterized by moral confusion, laziness, apathy, self-pity, and self-absorption."

• "The greatest nation in history stands on the edge of self-destruction."

Join me in the God-given task of turning your family, your neighborhood, your city around. Let's Adventure together and discover through study and prayer just why we CELEBRATE JESUS.
Amen.