Follow the Real Jesus

I am going to get a bit controversial here for a minute. I don’t want to offend and imply anything, this is my own thoughts. I am not a fan of wearing a cross around my neck. I know many people do and it is their full decision to do so. I do not need the badge around my neck that can and will be seen and judged. I am not perfect and will always be a sinner. When others see the cross, the judging begins and there is potential, to me, for the immediate cynical thought of showing one thing and then doing other things. I know that I am cynical, but I will say that it does not come without reality. I have seen too often the distortion of Jesus to fit into the box we have for Him at that moment. Now, the real Jesus is not a cross. He died on a cross for my sins so that I would not have to. I pray that is the reason for the wearing of the cross.

In my study this morning we explore the “right” or real Jesus. James MacDonald points to caricatures to show how we “paint” Him to be something or a number of things. The caricatures are; Jesus is my buddy, my safety net or good luck charm, my religious artifact, my meal ticket, and/or my social conscience. Notice that the caricatures all point to Jesus as a thing. And, He is thought of as “mine” as if I somehow own Him and we can use Him when it pleases us our we find “need” to call on Him.

“³But I am afraid that as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your thoughts will be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ. ⁴For if someone comes and proclaims another Jesus than the one we proclaimed, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received, or if you accept a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it readily enough.” – 2 Corinthians 11:3-4 (ESV)

Paul points out to the church at Corinth the fickle nature we hold. We are subject to that which is in our view. We are concerned with acceptance of and hold back from reality. We are fascinated with the “truth of the moment” and less about the truth. The real Jesus is not a thing, He is more than my buddy, He is my friend. Jesus is not just my safety net or good luck charm, He is my guide and protector. Jesus is not my religious artifact, He is my LORD. Jesus is not my meal ticket, He is my master and I serve Him. Jesus is not my social conscience, He is the Truth.

We have to get to the place where Jesus is LORD and not just a thing. Jesus is not just part of our lives, He is the focus of our life. The real Jesus is not the “truth of the moment”, He is the Truth of our life.

James MacDonald writes, “The problem with a caricature is that the truth is in there, but it’s distorted by an emphasis of one thing to the exclusion of others.” It is the capture of the “truth of the moment” and not as just the truth. The real Jesus is The Truth and does not change with the moment. Oh, yes, Jesus does provide what we need when we need it, but He does not change to fit what we want out of a moment. He provides the truth that we can rely on forever.

How are you looking at Jesus? Do you see Him as a thing to help you make it from one point to another? What if you saw Him as real and The Truth as opposed to the “truth of the moment”?