Knowing Jesus

The Jesus we meet in the gospels is a dynamic figure. He speaks words that are sometimes hard to understand and often hard to accept, heals multitudes, casts out demons, and walks on water. Who is this man? Sometimes I feel like I don’t know.

As Evangelical Christians we can loose sight of the mystifying God-become-man we find in the gospels. We remember the Jesus who died on the cross for our sins, but what about Jesus who told us not to store up our treasures on earth? What about the Jesus who said that parables are meant to conceal, not to reveal? Do we remember His stories, His power?

The less devout also often forget the Jesus of the gospels. The One who claimed to be the Son of God, the Christ, indeed God himself, turns into a nice guy who helped people. Forgotten are His radical claims that believers must give up all that they are placing above him in their affections. Father, mother, husband, houses . . . are they more important to you? That is the question Jesus kept asking. Is this the One our society remembers as gentle Jesus meek and mild?

My answer to this Jesus-amnesia is to re-read the gospels, and write down summaries of what Jesus said and did. Maybe you’d like to join me. Jesus is the One who has turned the lives of multitudes upside down, and He’s still at it. He does so through His words, His Holy Spirit, and His victory over sin. To love the true God, we must know this Jesus.