Perspective. It’s on the menu. Sometimes, we lack the entree, and other times, we put too much emphasis on it. We forget to balance between a healthy difference of opinion and forcing “our truth” onto others. You may be familiar with the Pixar film Ratatouille. Anton Ego, the food critic, intimidates and belittles the restaurant’s expertise while ordering “perspective.” As followers of Jesus Christ, we can become nervous when others ask for definitions and the reasoning for our faith. However, perspective shouldn’t be something we dread. We need more of it.

The word derives from a Latin word and is clarified in its French form, both meaning “to inspect, look through, look closely at.” In the Christian culture, we get caught up in the business of our schedules and forget to take a step back. We neglect to remember God is in control, and Jesus reconciled us not for religion but to restore a relationship. We tend to prioritize the lists and things, the fruit of our actions, instead of simply abiding. Put another way, we, as the branches, start producing so that we may feel validated. But that misses the whole point of following Jesus. We aren’t a product or a bunch of human “doings”; we are human “beings” created for an abundant life with Jesus.

Several people I have talked to in the past week have mentioned feeling stressed and overwhelmed, not knowing how to dedicate time to Jesus. They think they need to pray more, read more, and do more. It starts stacking up, but the day is still only 24 hours. What to do, what to do. It all goes back to our topic for today: perspective. The question is not, what do I have to put aside or how can I fit this into my schedule, but how do I view Christ? It’s the foundation that we rarely start from because we have shied away from asking questions.

Exposing Foundations

For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each one’s work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one’s work, of what sort it is.

1 Corinthians 3:11-13

As followers of Jesus Christ, we choose Him as our foundation, our themelios. His words and teachings become our first principles, the belief system we build on. Yet, as we build, we start to compromise. Believing our truth or some version of it, we forget to test the strength of what we accept as truth and throw it on the pile for construction. How many of us are falling apart for that very reason? We believed something was true, but there was no substance to it. That hay you shoved in the hole in the wall has now blown away with the wind of culture. You’re freezing or melting with the hostility of those outside. You agreed with the unspoken thought that if you only read your Bible on Sunday, you’d still know who God is. Or maybe you believed the lie that God wants you to do, do, do, so you volunteer everywhere you can, never giving yourself rest.

Many have believed some version of those two things, never mind the countless others, however seemingly small they are. If I would read this 5-minute devotional, I’ll be able to understand Jesus so much more! Or If I lift my hands in worship, I’m more spiritual than he is.

Do you see the destruction? Little things become twisted over time. We take the heart of something, stretch it to see how far we can go, and then pick out the convenient things.

For the LORD does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.

1 Samuel 16:7

A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.

Luke 6:45

refocus

When we become so wrapped up in temporal, visible things of this world, we forget the truth: Jesus didn’t come for a religion; He came to reconcile. He doesn’t love you for what you can give or what you can do for Him. It’s about what He’s done for us. That’s the perspective we have forgotten. We start acting as carnal men (1 Corinthians 3:1-3) and forget the things above. Jesus isn’t something to be put in a box labeled “for Sunday” or someone fitted into our schedule, “meeting with Jesus for 2 hours”. We have separated the spiritual from the physical because we have forgotten what He wants to do. Belief in Jesus isn’t so you can go to Heaven or feel spiritually superior. It’s for inviting Him into those everyday moments.

Morality and belief are concepts we have forgotten. Our perspective has changed from relying on Jesus and walking with Him day-to-day to being some spiritual thing we agree with for the sake of believing in something.

Jesus was really lived. He was the fullness of God in the flesh (to expand your understanding of this, please read The Unseen Realm). Yet, we treat Him as some philosophical truth that will keep us moral. He’s not something we add-on to our lives; He’s what we center our lives around. He is the Chief Cornerstone – everything rests on Him.

Rebuild

Once we identify the twisted things we’ve agreed with, we must replace them with truth – burning the straw for wood and stone. The starting point is this: Jesus came for a relationship. That means everything must focus on being but doing. We do not need an invitation to come into His presence; He’s waiting for us to invite Him into our day-to-day lives. He doesn’t want just a part of you. He wants all of you. He wants to show you the goodness of His character, but how will He if you keep interrupting or hanging up?

We need to recall the art of staying still, soaking Him in, remaining there. He’s not interested in quick fixes or emotional highs. He’s interested in the mundane, the sorrow, and the joy. The foundation is solid. The quality of your house is up to you. Will we remain in a constant state of humility, seeking His face? Or go on with our lives, nervous to go to Him when we screw up?

He’s a loving Father, but you’ve got to spend time with Him to know that. He wants to change your perspective on life, but to do that, you must ask yourself some questions. Do I want Jesus? Or do I only want what I’ve made Him to be in my mind? Do I want to be sustained with the truth or survive on a counterfeit?

He’s waiting at the table for you to sit down. He’s sitting there waiting for an invitation to go with you. He’s patiently looking for when you come back home.

How long will you make Him wait? How long will your house lean and crumble away before you start asking questions?

Don’t let your ego or inner critic get in the way.