The Five Jesuses I Have Known

My good friend, Leonard E. LeSourd, long time Executive Editor of Guidepost Magazine, introduced to the five Jesus’ he had known. The title confused me at first. Then he explained how one’s understanding of Jesus changes as they grow spiritually.

The first Jesus was the one with a pale anemic face as depicted on the wall in Sunday School. He believed in God, went to church, and was a perfunctory Christian. Apart from church He was given little thought.

The second Jesus was the historical Jesus he learned of in college. He was easy to take a comfortable position toward. He was a historical figure set far from the mainstream of life. He joined the intellectual crowd who in chorus said, “Jesus was a good man, a great teacher, but you have to be cautious about those myths and fairy tales.” Having such a view of Him prevents one from being considered a fanatic.

The third Jesus he drifted to was Jesus the teacher. In the process of applying for a job he encountered spiritually mature people with a faith he admired. A salesman said to him, “Jesus is the greatest teacher, and there is practical value for us in the gospels for us today.” He grew to consider Jesus as a good psychologist. He understood people. All this was fine as far as it went. Unfortunately his interest was not in what He was and is, but what He could do for him.

The fourth Jesus emerged after college when a fellowship group introduced him to Jesus the person. He wandered into a church and eventually their activities. To them Jesus was more than a teacher, He was a man of adventure. He thought what an adventure it must have been for the apostles to follow such a man.

The fifth and most meaningful Jesus was the indwelling Jesus. On a weekend retreat with peers they began talking about making a personal commitment to Jesus. At first he thought he had already done that in that he believed in God and went to church.

One in the group described how he had made a personal commitment to Jesus as Savior. This made him uneasy because it was a threat to his self-confidence, an emotional faith he had always tried to avoid. Soon he realized it was more than that. Before he left the retreat he knelt and prayed, “Lord I want to give my life to you, and I do so now. Show me how to be a good disciple.”

Life thereafter wasn’t always easy. Some failures and losses followed, but his new found faith supported him. He realized the same power that sustained the apostles in all of their trials was available to him. Thus, he began his faith walk.

With which of the five Jesus’ are you most familiar? Don’t stop growing until you are confidentially familiar with the fifth Jesus.

Truths Defined

“And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” John 8: 32

Dietrich Bonhoeffer was a brilliant young man who committed his life to serve the Lord two years before Hitler came to power. Being unable to share his faith publically under the Fuhrer, he briefly sought asylum in America. He soon realized he should not forsake his fellow Christians in Germany and returned. He was imprisoned for opposing Hitler and proclaiming the gospel. There is much to be gained by assimilating truth as he saw it. Following are quotes of truth he espoused. They are worthy of our meditation and therefore adherence.

“God loves human beings. God loves the world. Not an ideal human, but human beings as they are; not an ideal world, but the real world. What we find repulsive in their opposition to God, what we shrink back from with pain and hostility… this is for God the ground of unfathomable love.”

“Christianity preaches the infinite worth of that which is seemingly worthless and the infinite worthlessness of that which is seemingly so valued.”

“The first service one owes to others in a community involves listening to them. Just as our love for God begins with listening to God’s Word, the beginning of love for others is learning to listen to them. God’s love for us is shown by the fact that God not only gives God’s Word but also lends us God’s ear… We do God’s work for our brothers and sisters when we learn to listen to them.”

“May we be enabled to say ‘No’ to sin, and ‘Yes’ to the sinner.”

“Judging others makes us blind, whereas love is illuminating. By judging others we blind ourselves to our own evil and to the grace which others are just as entitled to as we are.”

“Nothing that we despise in other men is inherently absent from ourselves. We must learn to regard people less in the light of what they do or don’t do, and more in light of what they suffer.”

“We must be ready to allow ourselves to be interrupted by God.”

“We pray for the big things and forget to give thanks for the ordinary, small (and yet really not small) gifts. How can God entrust great things to one who will not thankfully receive from Him the little things?”

“The ultimate test of a moral society is the kind of world that it leaves to its children.”  

“Seek God, not happiness – this is the fundamental rule of all meditation. If you seek God alone, you will gain happiness: that is its promise.”

Pause and reflect on this heavenly wisdom. Contemplate it and commit to it.

Pro Life – Yes

A deeply divided US Supreme Court overturned the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision and wiped out the constitutional right to abortion, issuing a historic ruling likely to render the procedure largely illegal in half the country.

The impact promises to be transformational. Twenty-six states either will or are likely to ban almost all abortions. Thirteen have so-called trigger laws designed to automatically outlaw abortion.

The issue of abortion deserves an objective biblical perspective. Most pro-abortionists never mention having a pro-biblical perspective. There is none. They merely refer to a woman’s right to her body. The right of the unborn to his or her body deserves advocacy. 

That is not merely a fetus in the womb of a woman. That is a work of art and God is the artist: “For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. your eyes saw my unformed body” (Psalm 139: 15, 16).

In Scripture the Greek word “brephos” is used for a young child in the womb and as well as those already born. This evidences the sanctity of the lives of both.

Studies show why young women often seek abortion. The reasons most frequently cited were that having a child would interfere with a woman’s education, work or ability to care for dependents (74%); that she could not afford a baby now (73%); and that she did not want to be a single mother or was having relationship problems (48%).

Since Roe v Wade many Americans have become hardened about abortion. Many are so hardened they fill streets in protest marches favoring it.

The mothers of numerous well known individuals considered an abortion. Some are: Steve Jobs, Oprah Winfrey, Tim Tebow, Pope John Paul II, Justin Bieber, Jesse Jackson, Celine Dion, Andrea Bocelli, Brooke Shields, Cher, Eartha Kitt, Faith Daniels, Ethel Waters and many others. Consider all the delayed-gratification in that list.

I started the first home for unwed mothers in the state which had a capacity for fifteen young women. In considering the name for the home I suggested the name Clay Home. It honored the former owner and depicted the fact that the young women who lived there were clay in the Potter’s hand.

Recently I met a young mother who identified herself as having been a resident of the home. She said her son, born while she was living in the home, was just entering college on an athletic scholarship. She gave him the name of the home, Clay.  Her gratification in giving him birth was evident by the pride shown in talking about it. He was one of many given birth as a result of our ministry.

The other thing evidencing my support of pro-life is that I started the first abortion clinic in the area where young women considering an abortion could receive pro-life counsel. Since then several hundred young women have changed their opinion and given life to their children.

Concern for young women faced with a choice of life or death should be expressed by prayers and support of pro-life individuals. The decision of the young woman is a decision affecting two lives, hers and that of the child.

War Zone

There are two wars going on, one in the Ukraine and the other in the United States.        

Often a significant effort to hide the loss of a leader is made in war. 

When Aleric II and his army were sweeping across Italy he was killed. His loyalists didn’t want their enemies to know for fear his body would be desecrated. At night they diverted the waters of a river, buried him in the river bed, and redirected the water into its normal channel. His grave was never found.

Are we hiding or ignoring the loss of leaders in the battle for moral sanity and legal reasonableness? The casualties are mounting.

Often the cause of war is conceptualized in a person. In reality war is ideological. Contrasting concepts battle for the mastery of minds. Our current “war” is about how persons dress, how women and children are treated, about what god is worshiped and how, about what music and entertainment is allowed, sexuality, and even what century we live in. It is a war of philosophies and though essentially manifest on battlefields where it will be won or lost, classrooms. 

Those foreign opponents of us currently believe with all their hearts America is the great Satan. Their perception of our society is that it is decadent, depraved, degenerate, immoral, perverted, and corrupt.

Some folks are not going to like this, but there are plenty of symptoms to give them that feeling. Proponents of an alien evil philosophy have awakened in America a greater sensitivity to our conditions than a thousand pulpits could. There is an awareness of a need for God and morality such as has not been felt for a long time. 

America is not nor ever has been perfect. However, the ideals on which America was built are far superior to any world order of the day. Those ideals are embodied in the lives of many good, honorable, noble, moral, and spiritually committed people. 

The question begging to be answered is who has the best evangelists. Will it be the evangelists who advocate perversion and immorality, or the evangelists who champion biblical morality? 

Confidentially, many with the heart of a spiritual warrior ask what they can do. Start with your sphere of influence. Consider yourself the guardian of it. Therein stand firmly for the cause of Christ. Don’t expect to go unopposed, expect it. But remember, “For to you it has been granted on behalf of Christ, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sake….” (Philippians 1: 29)

That theme runs through the New Testament. If it comes, face it with this spirit: “The apostles left the council and were happy, because God had considered them worthy to suffer for the sake of Jesus.“ (Acts 5: 41)  

Take heart, “If we suffer, we shall also reign with him….” (II Timothy 2: 12)

Till then live rejoicing. It will drive the opponents nuts.

God’s Hall of Fame

The MLB playoffs are very much a popular topic. Consider two of the most outstanding men to have ever played the game. 

Both played for the New York Yankees during the era of their “Golden Age.” They were Bobby Richardson and Mickey Mantle. Though they had few things in common they were very close friends. Bobby had a lifestyle of strong personal faith. Mickey none, but he would occasionally show interest and was always open about it. Over the years Bobby shared his faith with Mickey.

When Mickey was on his death bed the family asked Bobby to visit him, which he did. When Bobby entered Mickey’s hospital room, he took Mickey’s hand and said, “Mickey, I love you, and want you to spend eternity with me.”  

With a smile Mantle responded, “Bobby I’ve been wanting to tell you that I have trusted Jesus Christ as my Savior.”

That news brought joy to the heart and tears to the eyes of Bobby.

The Mantle family asked Bobby to speak at Mickey’s funeral at which he recited the following he and Mickey talked of frequently. Both had memorized it.

GOD’S HALL OF FAME
Your name may not appear down here
In this world’s Hall of Fame.
In fact you may be so unknown
That no one knows your name

The trophies, the honors, and flashbulbs here may pass you by,
The neon lights of blue, 
But if you know and love the Lord,      
Then I have news for you.

This Hall of Fame is only good
As long as time shall be,
But keep in mind, God’s hall of Fame
Is for eternity.

I tell, you friend, I wouldn’t trade
My name however small,
That’s written there beyond the stars
In that celestial hall,

For every famous name on earth
Or glory that it shares, 
I’d rather be an unknown here
And have my name up there.”