how do you see Jesus?

Matthew 21:44
"He who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces, but he on whom it falls will be crushed."

There are only two ways to view Jesus Christ, the stone the builders (Israel) rejected (Mt. 21:42); either we will be broken and contrite, resulting in repentance and conformity to His image, or we will be hardened, resulting in judgment and discipline or punishment. Neutrality is not an option. To look to Jesus with casual familiarity or passive curiosity no better than disdain. For what Jesus has done on the cross alone demands something far greater than a pleasant thought or quaint nostalgia. To look to Jesus and be anything but broken is to miss the significance of His life and sacrifice. Such a response is both a moral and personal offense to God the Father who has given His only Son as the perfect sacrifice for sinful men. Such a response demands His judgment, discipline and punishment.
So how do I see Jesus? Do I read my Bible and listen to stories of Jesus with quaint familiarity or do I force myself to be broken by the person and work of Jesus Christ? Do I view the cross as a fortunate demonstration of God's love for me or as the heart-breaking and life-changing, saving and sanctifying work of a Holy God on my behalf. When I look to Christ and His cross I ought to be brought to be wrecked and reduced to repentance, obedience, purity, self-sacrifice and conformity to His image and nature. Far too often, for me, Jesus is simply too familiar.

Father, break me. Discipline me and shape me to see Jesus Christ, His work and the cross as You would have me see them. Let me be broken and contrite. Drive me to repentance, obedience, purity and conformity that I might walk away changed; looking more and more like Your Son each day. Amen.