On my second trip to Kenya I had the privilege of being in a well established Fellowship of Christians in the city of Nairobi. When I entered the Church I saw a crucifix that at first startled me for this representation of Jesus on the cross was different. The carver of this crucifix was a Kenyan who was very talented in his woodwork.
What startled me was that Jesus was black. I had never seen Jesus represented that way.
I knew this was not a mistake; nor was it done in ignorance. The craftsman wanted people to know that Jesus had come to share the Gospel with all people — not just with Jewish people, but white, black, brown, yellow…..all people. Jesus died for everyone; and the sins of everyone are forgiven. All people are called to believe in Him as Savior so that His forgiveness might become their own.
As I studied the carving I saw a second surprise. Remember that when Jesus was crucified, Pilate commanded a sign of His “made-up” crime to be hung over His head. The notice said, “Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews.”
In Latin, these words are written: “Iesus Nazarenus Rex Iudaeorum” (see John 19:20). When you take the first letter of each word you get INRI. We recognize these letters from many Christian paintings.
On this Kenyan crucifix, there are only three letters: INR. The last “I” is missing.
I am quite sure the carver did not leave off the last letter because he forgot but because he was saying something about just who the Lord Jesus really was. That last “I” was left off so that it would read, “Jesus of Nazareth, King.” It was the carver’s way of letting all of us know that Jesus is the King and the Savior of everybody in the world.
So you see, the Holy Spirit used a nameless woodcarver from Kenya to remind you and me that Jesus is our King — the King who gave His life to guarantee ours.
“Heavenly Father, thank You for sending Your Son to be our King; help us spread the message of His love to all the world. In the Name of our crucified and risen Savior and Lord, I pray. Amen.”
Pastor Brunner is the founder and director of Jim Brunner Ministries
