Jesus is a remarkable person
Sometimes we forget how remarkable and radical Jesus was during his earthly life. He came and put the religious establishment in his ear. He shook people to their foundations and disturbed the status quo for him. No matter what unbelievers think about Christians these days, they are all impressed in one way or another with Jesus. And for very good reasons.
Jesus lived the perfect human life. He kept his eyes focused on his Father. He wanted only what the Father wanted every minute of every day. Jesus knew why he was here and he stayed on target. His life was blameless and his responses to his critics left them speechless.
Those answers continue to amaze us today as well. Because? Because they are so unexpected. They go against our human nature. Their answers are more evidence that the Bible is inspired, because sinful humans could never have invented these things. It is too contrary to our nature. The Bible continually convicts us and brings us back to God, keeping us on track. Look around. We are not capable of doing what Jesus did consistently. No normal human being has ever done it and no one ever will.
Take for example Jesus’ response to the religious leaders when the adulteress caught in the act was brought to him in Jn. 8:1-11. (And by the way, where was the man? The Mosaic Law (Lev. 20:10) required both parties to be stoned.) Jesus’ response was so profound that they quietly dropped their stones and slipped away. What about Jesus’ teachings about turning the other cheek, or loving our enemies, or about the good Samaritan? And the parable of the Prodigal Son should really be called the parable of the Loving Father because Jesus clearly showed us how much God loves us despite our sinfulness.
Humans could never have imagined a God like our God. He is too different and radical from our fallen nature. Jesus had to come and tell us about Him. Many people imagine God as a super human. This is a mistake. He is beyond us. He is perfect in every possible way. We can behave well, but He is goodness. He has some love, but He is love. We have some power, but He is force. We can do justice, but He is justice. We need to get rid of our human notions about God and start to understand how great and incomprehensible He really is. This is what Jesus was trying to communicate to us during his lifetime. This is what the Bible keeps trying to communicate to us, if we are willing to listen.
The teachings and life of Jesus were such a radical departure from what was normal that people did not know what to make of him. And his life and actions bothered some so much that they crucified him to silence him. But this was all part of the plan. God in his wisdom wrote the biblical texts about the suffering Messiah in such a way that the religious leaders, who were only interested in promoting themselves, did not understand them. It seems that Satan himself did not fully understand it either. It is easy to recognize these Scriptures now that we are on the other side of the cross. But it was very difficult for the Israelites and Satan to understand them back then. And because of this darkness, Satan played into God’s hands and actually helped put Jesus on the cross. If he had understood that the Messiah had to suffer and die to redeem humanity, he would never have helped kill Jesus. He would have done everything to keep Jesus alive to prevent him from fulfilling his mission. Then Satan unknowingly became an agent of God in our salvation.
Jesus is God and He is our Savior and Lord. But Jesus the man is also our earthly example of how to live. And this is a truly radical lifestyle. We must strive to live like Jesus every day because it doesn’t come naturally. When things don’t go our way, what is our first reaction? Anger? Frustration? Jealousy? We feel this way because of our fallen human nature. But when we look at Jesus’ reaction, it was unique and different. We must copy and model his reaction even if it is difficult. We must keep trying and trusting the Holy Spirit to get us through it (see Philippians 2:12-13).
We are not perfect and we never will be. But if we keep our eyes on God and continually consider the example that Jesus left us to follow, we will always be heading in the right direction. Absolute surrender to God seems like a big sacrifice at first, but once you start the journey, you’ll start reaping the benefits. For the first time, you will discover that you are completely free.
Do you want peace and joy here on earth? I warn you. Become like Jesus and trouble will surely follow. Remember they killed him for being so different. But He defeated death. This means that in the midst of all the problems, the door to all the blessings of heaven will be thrown open. So take a chance and follow this amazing man, Jesus!