Well,

I was trying to watch The History Channel's epic "The Bible", bracing myself for the new testament dramas. Intellectually, I know that there are no pictures of Jesus that he sat for to have made, no likeness carved into stone or fashioned into clay. Yet, it still bothers me how the media and the movie makers depict Mary, Joseph, and Jesus. I think it is because the depictions are not logical, and may actually be deceptive.

Probably one of the reasons I like the movie, "The Nativity", is that there was sincere effort to cast the parts of Mary and Joseph with sensitivity to the Bible's story. They were Jews who could identify as their ancestor King David. Thus, they were of the tribe of Judah. Joseph was a full-grown man, with an income and means to make a living. Mary was still a teen - of marriageable age - any where from 15 or 16 to 18-ish, in keeping with Jewish culture of the first century.

To fulfill Scripture, the one who would become the Messiah, must be born of a virgin (Isaiah 7:14), must be born in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2-5a), must be of the ancestral line of Jesse, the father of the great King David (Isaiah 11:1-2; Luke 2:1-7) - thus, be a Jew by heritage, would have as an ancestor the Great Abraham (Genesis 22:18; Matthew 1:1-2). His appearance would not resemble a character walking around with a halo over his head, with blond hair and blue eyes. He instead would have darker coarse hair, dark eyes, a dark beard, and his exposed skin may have reflected the ruddiness of one who was out of doors much of the day. Thus, he would not look different from his fellow Jews, would have been identifiable as a Jew (Isaiah 53:1-2); his features were ordinary. He was just a face in the crowd of other Jewish men who eeked out a living under harsh Roman rule. (compare Luke 2:21-52; 3:1) In order to accomplish the great purpose of salvation for which purpose he came, Jesus had to be Jewish. He was not European, Eurasian, Euro-Judean, nor did he claim Roman citizenship.

True, what Jesus actually looked like is a mystery to us. How tall he was, what was the distance between his hairline and eyebrows, how he wore his hair, how thick his lips were, what his ears looked like, how his voice sounded, or how his laugh sounded are not known to us. And, true, his looks, per se, do not weigh in God's purpose for the Messiah or Christ, yet his heritage did. He was born a Jew of the tribe of Judah into a royal line, into the Jewish culture of the first century in Judea, of a Jewish mother. All of these characteristics are vital to understanding God's plan of salvation. (John 4:22) As followers of Christ, it can be helpful to know just a little something personal about the Lord we serve. When we look closely at his life, then measure it against Scripture, we may find more clarity as we read the Gospel accounts - find a clearer understanding of certain things he said. We may also get a better perspective on the epistles written under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit by Paul and others in their discussion about Christ, about the law, about Jew vs. Gentile, etc.

I have a feeling that if this blog were actually read that there would be several persons who would disagree with the foregoing - in fact, some would say that of all the 'mullarky' I've penned in this blog, this is the most controversial! Which, well, would be understandable since from the time of the great painters and sculptors of Europe, portraiture of Jesus reflected a European heritage. That's what we grew up with; from my perspective, we lost so much truth as a result. I end with this thought: As an African-American woman, to be painted to resemble a European -- blond hair, blue eyes, pointed nose and thin lips - would be a distortion not just of my looks, but would give a false impression of my heritage and parentage, my culture. My story would look different, I would most certainly stand out in family portraits, as I would look distinctly different from the mother and father who bore me, and from the siblings also born to the same mother and father. The impact I would have and others would have because of me would give cause to pause - am I genuine? Well,     

How the Holy Spirit Works in the Lives of Believers - Women, Listen Up!

For many women, service is a part of their character. Many of us learn as little girls to serve others as part of a daily routine. Even some of us have been taught to perform various types of service in the church from a young age -- e.g., altar guild ministry, acolyting, hospitality initiatives, and others (we all have our own lists). Because of the ingrained programming of service, some of us then may miss, may not be aware, of God's call to service. It is a huge difference that too many churchgoers fail to recognize, and thus, there are those instances in some churches where 20% of the people do 80% of the work of ministries. Consider the following message I gave to members a while back on knowing who you are in the Lord:

We are many of us involved in various ministries at church. Many of us have come to know what God has called us to do in the building up of the church. 1 Corinthians 12, Romans 12, and Ephesians 4:11-13 share the types of ministry gifts that God has bestowed on individuals and on the local church. The ministry gifts on and in individuals do not happen when you sign up for church membership. They do not happen when a priest or clergy task you with an assignment. You don't get them as a result of going to meetings or classes. THE ONLY WAY WE RECEIVE INDIVIDUALLY THE MINISTRY GIFTS SPOKEN OF IN THE ABOVE SCRIPTURES IS THROUGH THE INDWELLING OF THE HOLY SPIRIT WHEN WE ARE BORN AGAIN AND ADOPTED AS SONS OF GOD. I can't say it any more plainly. The 'deposit' of the Holy Spirit in us - our guarantee from God of salvation - is the first gift of rebirth. From that point, the Holy Spirit operates within a believer and follower of Christ in a unique way that was preordained for Him to work, part of which is the bestowing of your personal ministry gift. Because many churches do not talk about the Holy Spirit, who He is and what He does in the lives of Christ's followers, so many churchgoers are ignorant of this part of their life in Christ if they have been saved. It is that call by the power of the Gospel and Holy Spirit working in us that God initiates our new life in Him - we have no power to do it ourselves.

The blessing of that calling is that God will enable us to do what He has called us to do. What He has called us to do has spiritual implications, and is outside of the natural -- therefore we cannot successfully respond to God's calling in our own strength. That is, we must do all things in Christ who strengthens us for the work we have been called to do.

How do you accomplish God's will in Christ? As believers, we have Christ living inside us in the form of the Holy Spirit. (please read 1 Peter 4:11; 2 Corinthians 12:9; Philippians 4:13,19; Romans 8:9; Ephesians 3:16-18) How do you know how to respond to the indwelling of God? Well, how does He speak to us? Through study and meditation of his Word, the Bible - the believers' handbook and authority, through prayer, and through circumstance. If you leave out the first two, it will be hard to discern the third one. When you leave out the first two, you will find your calling may begin to feel like a burden, or that it has become a routine duty - something on your checklist, something to satisfy your church membership or sense of doing good. When you don't do the first two regularly, the intimacy to which God is calling you to be in with him may escape you. When you don't do the first two consistently, it will be challenging to do God's will with joy. The sad truth is that there are those throughout Christendom who have been going to church for years and giving to the church in time and money and, yet, they have never known God because they will not do the first two things. (2 Peter 1:3-11, 20-21; Isaiah 5:13; Hosea 4:6; Ezra 8:22-23; 2 Timothy 3:16-17; 4:1-4; Hebrews 5:11-14; 6:1;Psalm 119:114; 1 Timothy 4:10; Hebrews 10:23;1 Peter 3:15; Romans 15:4,13; Nehemiah 1:3-6; Matthew 26:41; Luke 6:46)

Ladies, I pray that the only true burden we have in our work for the Lord within the Body of Christ is the burden of desperately wanting to please God in fulling His purpose for us. He will help you do whatever He has called you to do, sometimes using your God-given natural talents to accomplish the work. Do not forget though: do your utmost to continue first to seek relationship with Him who has called us, rely on His strength, and allow God's Word to dwell in us richly as we do his will.

Blessings.