Opportunity Missed

     A few years ago, there was a young boy that lived in our community just a few blocks from where my wife and I lived.  His family was spread around the country in several states.  The only family he had locally was his mom who frequently left him alone to his own devices for days or weeks, and her current boyfriend who did not hesitate to abuse him when it seemed appropriate.

     We got to know the young teen as he would hang around our church on Wednesday evenings for the free meal.  He had several run-ins with law enforcement and the day finally came when our local child probation officer asked us if we would take him into our home and care for him a while.  My wife and I agreed with little hesitation as we had already developed an affection for the young man and were familiar with his situation.

     I knew he had not been raised in the church and I wanted to find out a little more about where he was in his understanding of Christ.  So, one day I asked him if he knew who Jesus is and his response was a little surprising and probably told me a little more about him than he thought he was telling me.

     After I asked him if he knew who Jesus is, he hesitated slightly and then answered me with a question, "Wasn't that the dude that died on the cross."

     My first reaction was WOW, really?  I took a couple of seconds to formulate my thoughts and realized part of the reason for such a response was one of defense.  He was using bravado and cool to protect himself from ridicule if he had tried to give a direct answer and was wrong.  He had to maintain his "COOL", that's all the boy had.  His answer also told me he knew a little more about Jesus than what he was letting on.  I just didn't know how much.

     I took the next few minutes that day, and between my wife and I, many days afterward, to attempt to fill in the blanks for the kid.

     As I look back at that time on this Resurrection Sunday, I realize that I also learned a lesson.  How many of us have ever heard someone respond to a similar question with a similar answer?  When I ask someone if they understand how Jesus died, I normally get a response of, "He died on the cross,"  Most of us, me, have a tendency to allow that answer to stand.  But the cross did not kill Jesus, that is where he died, not how he died.  After hearing a brief description of what Jesus was subjected to, a normal response is that they did not understand just how horribly He suffered.

    Many people do not understand the horrific sequence of events that Jesus, necessarily, went through, or there would have been no remission of sins.

    How many times have we heard the simple statement that Jesus died on the cross and did not question if they really understood what they were saying?  We must stop allowing our complacency about the misrepresentation of what the cross actually means.

     Generic nondescript answers about Resurrection Sunday are equally important for us to identify when we hear them.  Many people have only heard the sugar-coated version of the passion.  Without the actual story, how do they understand the proper story of what Jesus did for them?  

     If we don't share the truth of what happened this weekend two thousand years ago, we have missed an excellent opportunity to share the gospel for the glory of our Lord.

     Don't misunderstand the need people have to protect their dignity, but please, let's stop missing an open opportunity to share the gospel.