The Bible explains that “Jesus set aside the privileges of deity and took on the status of a …human.” (Philippians 2:7, The Message)
When Jesus came to live among mankind, he came as someone very much human, a person, a man, with a very distinct personality.
“Jesus was so obviously human” notes Eugene Peterson, “but this has never been an easy truth for people to swallow. There are always plenty of people walking around who will have none of this particularity: human ordinariness, bodily fluids, raw emotions of anger and disgust, fatigue and loneliness.”
Jesus even experienced exasperation: “To what can I compare this generation? … For John [the Baptist] came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’ The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.’ ” (Matthew 11:16-19)
As Jesus is delivering this discourse, he’s got to be shaking his head, rolling his eyes. “What is it with you people? You are simply impossible. John fasted; you thought he was possessed. I feasted; you think I am an alcoholic and a pig. There is simply no pleasing you!”
The Bible also says that Jesus could read men’s hearts. What would it be like to have someone in your life who knows you intimately and is willing to be completely honest with you? Oh, yes, and who loves you regardless!
Yes, it would be a little unnerving, certainly disruptive— but doesn’t part of you also crave it? Most people have to pay a therapist to be honest with them because neither their friends nor family have the capacity or willingness to do it well. The more we realize this sort of disruptive honesty is exactly what we need and more difficult to come by than a winning lottery ticket, the more we will fall in love with Jesus for the way he offers it.