day no. 14,713: preaching produces janky, beautiful feet

ROMANS 10:9-15
If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. 11 For the Scripture says, “Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame.”12 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him. 13 For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

14 How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? 15 And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!”

If you had two pairs of feet in front of you: one smooth, without scars or blemish, perfectly manicured nails, no callouses, no warts or corns or cracks, etc... AND then you had another pair of feet with dirt and blood and scratches and chips out of the discolored nails... you would say the FIRST is more beautiful.

But the feet that travel to preach good news probably look more like the second. After all, feet that move, inevitably get worn. And feet that go off the path to find the lost get more worn, more quickly. And whatever is broken or messed up, we usually call, "ugly"

But God calls those kind of feet, "beautiful." Some would say its a waste of beautiful feet. They'd say someone went and ruined a perfectly good pair of feet. But God says that feet are made beautiful by using them for their intended purpose. The fresh out of the box look takes a lot of work, but it's the wrong kind of work. It's a kind of work aimed at keeping the feet beautiful to the exclusion of most other work. After all, feet require a lot of maintenance if they are to say looking beautiful.

If the chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever, which it is, then the feet that show signs of wear and tear show the signs of cheerful service and achieving the end for which they were created. And that is a beautiful thing. Preaching the Good News produces janky feet. You cannot remain pristine if you intend to obey. Following Jesus means getting your feet dirty, but Jesus has a way of looking to one's feet.