Outlaw

I used to stare at the picture of Jesus hanging in church.
A ((white)) man with a brown beard and sad, sad eyes.
Jesus, I'm learning, isn't who he think he is.
You know what frustrates me?
When Christians think they have Jesus all figured out.
Because here's the deal.
Jesus?
Well...he's full of surprises.
It really frustrates me when people say,
"Jesus wouldn't watch that movie."
"Jesus wouldn't get a tattoo."
"Jesus wouldn't listen to that song."
The list goes on. And on.
Of course, we can't forget the classic WWJD?
I don't think that's a bad question.
I just think we get the answer all wrong.
Jesus is full of surprises.
And us?
We're full of assumptions.
We assume Jesus wouldn't get a tattoo, go to parties, drink, or listen to secular music.
I'm not saying he would, either. I'm just saying that maybe we need to rethink who Jesus is.
Sometimes Jesus makes me laugh.
Because Jesus?
Well. You see, he was kind of an outlaw.
A homeless rabbi, you could say.
He made wine at a wedding.
He called God his father.
He forgave people's sins.
He hung out with prostitutes.
Ate with tax collectors.
Turned money tables in God's holy temple.
And we have the audacity to imagine Jesus as a quiet, soft-spoken man with a perfect beard and sad look in his eyes like the pictures always display.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but something tells me that's not how Jesus was.
Now let's get something straight. 
I'm not saying that Jesus was a madman.
I certainly don't want to disrespect Jesus!
But I think we disrespect Jesus when we fail to understand who he actually is.
When we're so engrossed by who we think he is that we stop searching for the truth of who he actually is.
Not who we imagine him to be.
Not even who we want him to be.
So please.
Stop trying to fit Jesus into a mold you've made.
Stop making assumptions about Jesus.
Let him loose.