Unveiled faces

Have you ever awaken after sleeping on your stomach and both of your arms are asleep? Do you know that momentary panic filled thought that you are paralyzed and are going to suffocate? Can you recall the stinging sensation of pins and needles as the blood begins to flow through your arms? I have the nagging sense that some of us are going through this in our faith.

Sometimes I feel that as churches we have been sitting so long that maybe our legs have fallen asleep, that we try to walk but our feet are not fully functioning. Or that maybe we have slept on our arms to long and they feel like heavy rubber making it difficult to reach out to hug, or help others. Perhaps I am so wrapped up in how the church (the people) are not seeing how much I am struggling, or how high life is piling things upon me, or blah, blah, wahhhh!


1 John 3:16 (New International Version)

16This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.

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Okay, so as I continue to look into John 10:10, the statement was made to me "it depends on our definition of life." I agree...so lets look at what it was Jesus meant abut life.

the Greek word is from the root - zao (dzah'-o) actual word is zooeen from zoe (dzo-ay') The definition in Thayer's Greek lexicon is: "life real and genuine,...a life active and vigorous, devoted to God, blessed, the portion even in this world of those who put their trust in Christ, but after the resurrection to be consummated by new accessions (among them a more perfect body), and to last forever." "to be obtained in fellowship with Christ."

The Rev. David Brown write this:[Jesus states]"I came not to preserve a life already possessed, but to impart a life before unknown and to communicate it in a rich and unfailing exuberance."

That is a remarkable claim! Jesus is telling these Jewish leaders that this life is one of which they have never before even thought o…