Spies, Mercenaries, and You and I
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| Photo Credit: Tim Pierce, Creative Commons, cc |
My husband and I have been watching spy shows lately. Explosions ricochet and cars burst into flame while two or three trained personnel rescue children from kidnappers or free communities from violent drug cartels. And no matter the crisis, the loyal friendship between these heroes never ceases to capture my attention. Without hesitating, they charge into danger to protect each other.
In my Bible reading today, I walked into a tense, pulse-racing battle scene too. Mercenaries infiltrated a quiet night, friends betrayed each other for money, and men held their weapons out with taut arms. Jesus alone stood calm.
And I noticed the smaller print in my study notes below, drawing my attention to a repetitious part of the transcribed dialogue there. Jesus asked the mercenaries and soldiers the same question two times.
“Who is it that you want?”
“Jesus of Nazarus,” they replied.
He asked them again, “Who is it that you want?”
“Jesus of Nazarus,” they confirmed.
“You have me. Let these men go.”
Hmmm. Our Warrior-God, aware of his coming torture and execution, is nonetheless thinking of his friends’ safety. Not bargaining for himself, he stoically, carefully, guarantees their safety.
You’re here for me, right? Then let these men go free.
And my courageous hero complex? He woos me anew.
Are you looking for someone who will love you unconditionally, who will see the good in you, who will fight for you, and who wants the best for you? The God of the Universe loves you fiercely, passionately. He is the warrior standing up saying, “Take me, let them go” for his friends in the dark night, knowing that death is coming. And he is the God who died for you. For me.
(Linking too with Ann at A Holy Experience…)
I lean heavily on the truth you are writing about.
I love that Jesus is my warrior. He fights for me everyday. We all battle with sin each and everyday, and Jesus is right there in the mist of the battle with us. He even tells us to be still and let Him handle the battle. What love He has for us!
True Love at it's finest. Great lesson and reminder of the love that holds back destruction for all of us… even the enemies.
Me too, Bill, me too. Thanks.
Jennifer
jenniferdougan.com
Jayne,
I appreciate your image here of Jesus right in the midst of our sin battles too. Good.
Jennifer
jenniferdougan.com
Me too, Jane.
Jennifer
Floyd,
Isn't he wonderful?!
Jennifer
jenniferdougan.com
Beautiful words of Jesus' sacrifice for us.
Yep, the Bible is full of action alright!
Love this picture of Him! Thank you. I like spy movies too.
The world seems to love super hero's and good guys who save the day and beat all the odds…amazing that so many discredit the greatest action and love story in history- the death and resurrection of Christ. Talk about beating all odds!
Great post.
Nice meeting you.
I love how you made the analogy between the shows and Jesus. I can't watch too many spy shows because I'll then dream about them. Ha. But this truth is also something to dream about! "Our Warrior-God, aware of his coming torture and execution, is nonetheless thinking of his friends' safety." Beautiful.
Loved your post this morning. One scripture, in particular, jumped out at me: "You, LORD, are forgiving and good, ABOUNDING IN LOVE to all who call to you." Psalm 86:5 I paired it with one of my pics & tried to find you on Instagram or Facebook to share it with you. Are you there?? If so, let me know 😀
stuck-in-indiana.blogspot.com/
There it is :)Loved this post too Jennifer 🙂
Heather,
Nice to meet you! Thanks for stopping in. Yes, full of action, that Bible is! 🙂
Jennifer Dougan
jenniferdougan.com
Hi TC,
Welcome, nice to meet you too. Thanks for stopping by. Congratulations on your new book.
Oh I agree, those stories of rescue and battling villains are so infused with hope and strong truth that we need them, and hunger for them. And our Cosmic Writer's story is written in our hearts, it seems.
Jennifer Dougan
jenniferdougan.com
LisaNotes,
Always nice to have you here. Thanks.
Jennifer Dougan
jenniferdougan.com
Linda,
Welcome, thanks for stopping in. Fun to find another spy aficionado. Yes, doesn't it make you see Jesus in a new way? It did to me too.
Have a great weekend,
Jennifer Dougan
jenniferdougan.com
Hi Stuck in Indiana,
Glad you enjoyed this post. yes, isn't that verse in the next one neat? It encourages me too. Sure, feel free to use it. I don't have an instagram account. You are welcome to link it here to jenniferdougan.com, but no worries.
I'll have to pop over and see it. 🙂
Jennifer Dougan
jenniferdougan.com
Wow! I have never noticed that in my reading of that passage before. Thank you for sharing that with us.
Jo,
So glad to have you here. Welcome!
I'm thankful you enjoyed this post about "Spies, Mercenaries and You and I." I think I'm visual or story-oriented so this stood out to me too. Nice to have you here,
Jennifer Dougan
jenniferdougan.com