Impossible to Ignore
Honda was taking giant performance leaps in the 1980s. The CRX Si debuted in 1985 with a 91-horsepower fuel-injected 1.5-liter with 91 horsepower (over the carbureted version’s 76 horsepower). The next generation CRX Si got the single-cam D16A6 engine, worth 108 horsepower. When Honda dropped it into the 1988 Honda Civic Si, it changed the game.
All Civics in this generation ditched the previous generation’s front torsion bar suspension in favor of a double-wishbone setup – an incredible change. Civics quickly dominated Improved Touring class in SCCA road racing. Suddenly, the Honda Civic had performance that demanded a shift in perspective. It was no longer a flimsy economy car that was obsessed over by weirdos. It was a legitimate performer, with new strengths that built on its existing selling points of economy, efficiency, and lightness.
During the early moments of his ministry, Jesus’ actions and words demanded a second look and revised opinion from everyone around him. Yes, he was a nobody from nowhere always in the company of a handful of fishermen, rejects, and weirdos. And that didn’t change once he began healing lepers and speaking profound wisdom. But his new reputation demanded a second look:
The Pharisees and legal scholars couldn’t ignore his scriptural interpretation, understanding (and fulfillment) of prophecy, and divine miraculous power.
The broken and hopeless couldn’t help being affected by the new life and soul revival they saw in the people Jesus had touched.
The indifferent and apathetic couldn’t deny the masses of people who clung to his words and repeated them to each other and started looking at things in a new, wonderful way.
The past 20 centuries have only amplified the impact of the true Jesus as his people now know him. Yes, he lived in poverty, never wielded much power, and never traveled more than 200 miles from the place of his birth. But he continues to change hearts, including your own, when you consider his heart:
To the nitpickers and judgment-minded, Jesus’ inclusion of the most despicable people in his inner circle means there are second, third, and three thousandths chances. For everyone – even the people whose sinfulness seems unforgivable. Reading about Jesus forgiving and restoring these people begs a second look at the people in your life you don’t want to forgive.
To the broken and hopeless, hearing of the length Jesus went to rescue people who were physically dead or dying, or seemingly too far gone in a spiritual sense, means he has new life in store for you. Reading about Jesus relentlessly rejuvenating weak and despondent people begs a second look at the impossibilities in your life that suddenly don’t look so impossible.
To the indifferent, the jaded, and the cynical, the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus demand a second look. His extraordinary miracles and scandalously countercultural behavior simultaneously inspire, perplex, and fascinate even the most educated minds today. Reading about the astonishing life of Jesus begs a second look at a person who provided far too much material to ignore, and far too much goodness to live without.
If you think your opinion of Jesus is firm and fixed, think again. He’s worth a second look. If nothing else, you’ll begin to see how he looks at you: as his friend, a beloved child of God, a dear one he gave up his life for.
Honda would develop more powerful engines than the D16, but the plucky SOHC unit would power a variety of Hondas for the next 20 years. In the 1988 Civic Si, it developed peak power at 6,000 RPM with a 7,100 RPM redline, establishing a trend of high specific output and high volumetric efficiency. Along with the double-wishbone suspension, this would be Honda’s recipe throughout the 90s. Even today, people are discovering it for the first time, and finding themselves looking at small Hondas in a new way.
