Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.
- John 20:30-31

In the month of July, we’re going to be re-engaging our study in John: “Who is this Jesus?” John wrote his Gospel to help us answer this question so that we can experience the benefits that come with believing in Christ.

Yesterday, Alex encouraged us to be open to being surprised by Jesus. Jesus surprised even some of his closest friends at times. Although he was never inconsistent, he doesn’t fit cleanly into their pre-conceived compartments. As we step forward into the next year, we know that Jesus will surprise us.

Being surprised by Jesus can be scary.

He may call us to say or do something that’s way beyond our comfort zone. He has a nearly impossible mission that will transform our world for the better but requires sacrifice and risk-taking.

Being surprised by Jesus can be uncomfortable.

When we’ve communicated with great confidence exactly who he is and what he wants, it can be disconcerting to discover we didn’t have him all figured out. One moment he’s surprising us with his commitment to justice. The next he’s surprising us with his compassion and mercy.

Being surprised by Jesus can be life transforming.

Those of us who have walked with Jesus for years and years in our adult lives may grow complacent in our relationship with him. Neatly packaged and well groomed, our imagined Jesus sits on our bookshelves waiting for us to invite him into the warp and woof of our lives. And, then, surprise! He jumps off of our bookshelves and into our lives and we find ourselves loving and serving and praising God with new energy and life. The earth shakes under our feet as the Spirit of God fills us with courage and joy to follow Jesus.

How open are you to being surprised by Jesus?