Jesus is the DUFF of DUFFs
My wife and I saw the DUFF (2015) the other night.
DUFF stands for "Designated Ugly Fat Friend." Someone who acts as a gateway to protect their better looking friends.
Bianca Piper discovers that she is the DUFF. But she also discovers that everybody is somebody's DUFF.
The lesson from the DUFF is: "In the end, it isn't about popularity or even getting the guy. It's about understanding that no matter what label is thrown your way, only you can define yourself."
Bianca does this by dumping her friends, getting a makeover and chasing the boy of her dreams.
The movie ends with Bianca being vindicated - her friends welcome her back and she gets the hottest guy in the school.
But this "happy ending" contradicts the movie's own advice. Because, in the end, it was about popularity and getting the guy.
If we are defined only by ourselves then we end up lonely. So, no matter how much we protest, it does matter what others think about us. It does matter that she got the guy.
So, maybe, the problem isn't that others get to define us. The problem is who we let define us.
No matter how much of a DUFF we are, Jesus happily calls us his "friends" if we follow him.
And in the greatest twist, Jesus chooses to be our DUFF.
Jesus said, "This is the greatest love that there ever is - that I give up my life for my friends."
So, Jesus isn't just King of Kings or Lord of Lords. He is the DUFF of DUFFs.