Mad for Jesus!

One time Jesus entered a house, and the crowds began to gather again. Soon he and his disciples couldn’t even find time to eat. When his family heard what was happening, they tried to take him away. “He’s out of his mind,” they said. (Mark 3:20-21)
 
Most people in this world are a little crazy. But most of the time we are not really believed to be crazy. However, Jesus’ family had great cause to think that He really was out of His mind. His claims about Himself were unbelievable. He called Himself the “Son of Man.” He claimed to forgive sins and to be the fulfillment of the Scriptures (see Matthew 26:63-64; Mark 2:10-11).
 
If our friends declared they were God, we would have a right to believe they were crazy. His claims about Himself eliminate the option that He is a good teacher or a great prophet. He is either nuts, or He is who He claims to be: the Son of God.
 
The real question we must answer is, have we ever had anyone believe or call us “mad” or “crazy” because of Jesus? Are we living so radically for Christ that we get called “insane” or “out of our minds” as Paul did in Acts 26:24? As we live our faith, our personal beliefs and our choices do we reveal a mindset that is radically different from that of the general society? Does our love for God extend to the castoffs in life? Are we insane enough to use our time and gifts taking the Gospel as Jesus did to the lepers, Samaritans, tax collectors, and prostitutes? Let us live in such a way that if the world will call us mad or crazy let it be about Jesus, for Jesus, and because of Jesus. Let God be your sanity and your madness— live only in Him and for Him.
 
In His Service,
Eric Barnes