St. Peter

What's So Good About Jesus?

A stranger stopped by a church, looked around inside, came to a stained-glass window that depicted a man surrounded by sheep, one of them in his arms. The Pastor saw the man looking at the window and said, "That is a representation of Jesus as the Good Shepherd." "What's so good about Jesus?" the man asked, searching. He was seeking help for what troubled him. What would you have told him? What's so good about Jesus? It's the kind of person He was. He held no office, wrote no books, and we don't know what He looked like. But from His disciples who wrote about Him, we know Jesus never sinned, not even once. Though He held no office, He had a lot of power, a special kind of power that could make a sick person well, the kind that could make the blind see and the deaf hear and the cripple walk and even put life back into a dead body. He used His power to help people and to show them that God was in and with Him, that he was God's Son. Then there was the way He talked. You could listen to Him for hours, as if God were talking to you. It must have been God. And there was the way He handled people. He didn't push them around or push them away. He was so patient with them. There was this disciple Peter, for instance. Even when Peter, the night before Jesus died, lied and said he didn't even know Jesus, Jesus didn't reject him. Later, after Easter, Jesus took Peter back as a disciple and told him to take care of His sheep and lambs. Lambs remind us that Jesus loved children. They loved Him, too. Jesus loved everyone, no matter who or what they were, all of them. No wonder they loved Him too. Then there was the way He died and the reason He died. He didn't have to die or let them kill him. He wasn't guilty of anything. He did it for others, just like everything else in His life. We are the ones who deserve to be punished and die, because we're always doing wrong things against God and other people. He took our place. That's what good about Jesus. He died for sinners. Anyone can be saved if he is really sorry for his sins and believes in Jesus as his Savior, who has washed his sins away. Even the worst of us and the best of us. Jesus wants everyone to be saved and to become His follower. You can tell by the way He was concerned about all kinds of people, no matter whether they were poor or rich, liked or disliked, what part of town they came from or what they looked like. He even sat down to talk to public enemies and ate dinner in their houses. Take for example the little man, Zacchaeus, who climbed a tree to see Jesus. Jesus stopped under that tree and asked Zacchaeus, a sinner, if he could visit his home. Zacchaeus accepted, turned over a new leaf, and became one of Jesus' followers. That's what is so good about Jesus. He loves all people. He is especially interested in those who are lost, like wandering sheep, who need to be brought to God and be a part of God's family. Jesus wants all people to go to heaven. There's no reserved section up there for VIPs. Or down here either, for that matter. If we're going to heaven with Jesus, and that's the only way any of us is going to get there, we ought to get used to the company we're going to keep in heaven. The way to do it is to get friendly with all believers on the way to heaven and do it now. Jesus said there's only one flock and one Shepherd. He loves all, wants all, welcomes all, died for all, rose for all, prays for all and waits for all! That's what's so good about Jesus. It is this Jesus who is the center of faith and worship at St. Peter Lutheran Church. This new congregation invites any and all to worship each Sunday at 10:30 a.m.. Newspaper Article Submitted by Rev. Robert Strickert St. Peter Lutheran Church, Dahlonega