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At first, I was tempted to not refer to the Christmas story for this blog. After all, I have no problem with Jesus as an infant. Who doesn’t? He’s an innocent baby. God in His most vulnerable form. He could have rightly been born into circumstances akin to royalty. Instead, his parents were fleeing a maniacal ruler who was trying to kill babies and He ended up amongst the filth of a stable. It’s humble. It’s endearing. I like that Jesus.
Some screenwriter in Hollywood must have felt the same way. In an irreverent film called “Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby” there’s a scene in which Ricky, a successful NASCAR driver, is at the dinner table with his family and best friend saying grace (if you want to see the clip I’m sure you can find it on YouTube; but be forewarned, it does contain some profanity which is why I’m not showing it here). Ricky begins his prayer by saying, “Dear Baby Jesus…” His wife interrupts him, and tells him that Jesus has become an adult and that it is ridiculous to pray to “Baby Jesus.” Ricky remains adamant. He says he likes “Christmas Jesus” and that’s who he is going to pray to. His best friend says he likes to picture Jesus in a tuxedo t-shirt, expanding “you know, kinda formal but also ‘I like to party.’” Like I said, it is an irreverent movie.
Then, I thought that’s kind of the point of this blog. There are certainly pictures or images of Jesus we prefer. Perhaps we have this image of Jesus subconsciously when we pray, worship, or read the Bible. However, it is there almost as a filter regulating what we absorb or not.
For instance, I like “Death and Resurrection” Jesus. Having the Son of God punished for my wrongdoings, wiping them away, and conquering the power of death… that’s a great image to hold onto! Similarly, I also like “End of the World” Jesus. When Christ comes back to end the reign of sin in this world so that there will be no more pain and no more tears… again, the conquering hero image is very appealing.
However, even in those pictures I tend to skate over the unsavory parts. I gloss over the fact that it was my sin that put Jesus on the cross in the first place and caused Him an unbelievable amount of suffering. I’d rather avoid the depths of my sin and its consequences. I also tend to avoid thinking that at the end of the world there will be many people who will not go to heaven with Jesus. People who may be very close to me who I did not have the guts to share the gospel with. I edit that part out.
There are other images of Jesus that I either ignore or simply refuse to deal with. For example, I don’t like the “Extreme Discipleship” Jesus in Luke 14:25-33. Neither do I care for “Beatitudes Jesus” in Matthew 5:3-11. Both of these pictures of Jesus call me to a standard that feel I woefully short of attaining and I’m honestly not sure that I want to. When I let myself, I don’t struggle with this a little bit. I struggle with it a lot.
The problem is that all of these images of Jesus are real and valid. The same Jesus that will sweep me up and take me to my new mansion in heaven is also the same Jesus that calls me to be persecuted because of him (and be happy about it!) I can’t have one without the other. As long as I stick with the pictures I like, I’ll remain spiritually lethargic and apathetic. Honestly, I think this is the pandemic of the American Evangelical Church.
So, what about you? I’d love for you to comment answering 2 questions today:
What images/pictures of Jesus do you prefer?
What images/pictures of Jesus would you rather keep at a distance?
{ 13 comments… read them below or add one }
1. I prefer the Shepherd that nurtures and protects his flock. He restored my soul and now guides me in paths of righteousness so that I may dwell in the house of the Lord, forever (parts of Psalm 23).
2. I’d rather keep the Jesus that tells me that “not everyone that says to me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. (Matthew 7:21). What makes that hard for me is what was already discussed regarding prayer. How do we know the Father’s will and if we’re doing it? Wouldn’t we know because our prayers are being answered? What if you pray for something and it doesn’t happen? I believe that once you’re saved by a sovereign and omnipotent God that you’re always saved. If man can’t do anything to earn their salvation how can they do anything to lose it once granted? It seems like Jesus calls us to not only get saved but to continually do the will of the Father in order to enter the kingdom of heaven. What does this mean?!?!!?
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!. I like the picture of Jesus who called his disciples to walk with him. He picked some of the least qualified men he could find. He saw potential in them that they could never see in themselves. With all their shortcomings, denials, and lack of understanding, He still chose them and used them to spread the Gospel that has changed the world and my life. Why do I like Him, becuase he saw me the same way he saw the disciples and called me even with my faults & shortcomings. He has allowed me to share and spread the Gospel that has helped change this world and many lives through the ministry He has and still provides today.
2. I like the thought of the Christmas Jesus, but when I understand that the true meaning of Christmas was the gift of His life on Good Friday, I want to turn my head and not look on Him because of what He suffered for ME! I have seen the movie, The Passion of the Christ” and realize the beatings, the same, the denials and the cross were even worst than protrayed, how can I look at Him when it was my fault He went there in the first place. I know I love Jesus for this and He did this out of His love for me. I am a grateful follower even though I can not quite understand that kind of love.
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Well, this won’t be the first time I’ve changed the question a little.
1. I love the story of Jesus having the fire ready to cook supper for his disciples. Maybe because I hate to cook supper. I love the way Jesus loves.
2. I love Jesus most because of the Crucifixion. His obedience to death, and His resurrection, allowed the Holy Spirit to come and now it’s Christ in me living and loving, It’s a moment by moment choice about who lives in me. But wow, Christ in me is really cool. Christ in you is really cool! Christ opened the door so I can enter the throne room and spend time with my Father! He’s preparing a place for me in heaven!! This is so awesome! To Him be all glory and thanks.
ps I love love. My story is complicated and long (so far it has taken 60 years to learn the truth) but the main point….with man this is impossible but with God all things are possible. And I am one happy lady because of the marvelous love of Jesus.
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Of course I love baby Jesus. I love all of the pictures of Jesus. I am trying to understand what you are going thru and your journey and I don’t know if my comments will help. I just have to share a memory verse that came to my heart as I read your questions.
“I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the son of God who loved me and gave himself for me.” Galations 2:20
That does not mean that I (nor Paul) have been crucified on the cross with Jesus but that I died to my old self and the holy spirit lives in me and I live by faith in the Jesus that I love and who died for me.
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Sometimes it bothers me that Jesus remained silent when faced with His critics. There is something in me that wants Him to explain Himself- especially when He neared the end of His life and stood face to face with the cross. I understand (theologically) why He didn’t defend Himself, but when I read the accounts, I am emotionally conflicted. My guess is that what I don’t like about Jesus’ response reveals sin in me. When faced with abuse or pain or criticism, I want to fight back…I want to speak up…I don’t want to turn the other cheek…I don’t want to love my enemy or pray for those who persecute me.
On the other hand, seeing the gracious and loving way that Jesus interacted with people (even though it bothers me) also draws me to Him. I know what I deserve and it isn’t His love…it isn’t His redemption…it isn’t His grace. If He can offer those things to me, then I want to be a person who freely offers love and grace to others.
But I have a long way to go. Thank you, Jesus, for not responding the way that I would have responded. Thank you for grace.
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I’m not going to answer the questions directly. Rather, I’m just going to mention what was running through my mind as I read through this post.
I was reminded of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. When I was a kid, I loved the Turtles, and I would save my allowance to buy the action figures. There were the regular turtles, and the turtles in disguise, and the cool sports turtles, and the samurai turtles, and I’m sure there were others that I can’t remember. Well, of course I wanted the turtles in disguise and the cool sports turtles. However, I didn’t want the samurai turtles, because they looked like they were wearing skirts. That’s so not cool. Why would I want to get those turtles? When you think about it, though, it was always Leonardo, Donatello, Michelangelo, and Raphael. They just had different clothes on. While I could pick and choose which turtles to play with, I can’t pick and choose which parts of Jesus I want.
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1. Images of Jesus I love include his encounter with the adulteress woman (John 8:7-11), “Let the children come to me.” (Mark 10:14), his miracles of healing, his walk on the water, his power to calm a storm. These all represent to me his loving-kindness, mercy, power, and peace.
2. The wrestling that is taking place in my heart is that when I went back to my Bible today to search for some of the references, I had to skip over some not-so-pleasant encounters. Like Luke 6:22-23 where Jesus says to leap for joy when “you are hated and excluded and mocked and cursed because you are identified with me”. This is something I am beginning to understand, but I’m not exactly happy about it. Identifying with Jesus fully means suffering (such as what Marti spoke of above). Another tough passage follows this where Jesus says: “Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.” (Luke 6:27-36) Ouch.
Jesus is just as relentless in his forgiveness and grace as he is in his mercy and kindness. I, in my flesh, am more agreeable to harboring resentment in my heart towards those who choose to hurt me and those I love. I have had the opportunity to forgive my enemies (on more than one occasion) and pray for them. It was hard to do, but the Lord was faithful in giving me joy and healing beyond measure as I took each step of obedience. He is not like me. He is God. He is the only one who I trust to the point of obedience beyond my understanding.
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1) I hold the Beatitiude Jesus very close to my heart. I am powerless to change without “that” Jesus.
2) Even though very comforting at times it’s hard to accept that Jesus is with us always, he sees everything we do and everything we are and still loves us. I am disgusted by my actions and thoughts most the time, and kinda wished nobody else knew about them. Especially the person that died because of them.
I am very glad you launched this blog and am very excited to take this journey with everyone who participates. Thank God for Beach Church and EVERYONE who is a part of it.
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I really like Jesus when he was faced with the woman caught in adultery, asked those in the crowd without sin to cast the first stone, and then doodled on the ground while waiting for them to realize none of them could meet that requirement. Then his sweet forgiveness to her. That’s love and forgiveness we all want and can have.
I, too, have struggled, and some days continue to struggle, with the passages about Jesus you mentioned Sun, specifically Luke 9:59-62. These seem like reasonable requests… yes, I will follow you, just let me bury Dad, or just let me say goodbye to my family. My thought is that Jesus saw a bigger heart issue in these individuals and was challenging them to see how commited they truly were. I don’t like to be challenged. That doesn’t mean I don’t love Jesus, it doesn’t mean I don’t accept the challenge, but it’s hard. And in my selfish heart, I want to stomp my foot and shout, “That’s not fair!”
Years ago, my favorite vs was Romans 8:28, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” Then, I went through a dark period where I just couldn’t believe this was true… I couldn’t see how certain things that had happened to me could EVER be used for good, and I was mad at God about this. Mind you, I was a believer at this point in my life, but I was really struggling with liking Jesus or trusting him completely. When I got sick of “playing church” and putting on a happy face, because no one had any answers for my tough questions, I just quit going. For 3 years, I had nothing to do with church, because all the people I knew wanted to throw platitudes at my heavy questions. “God said it, I believe, that settles it” (said with a big goofy grin.) Sorry, but bumper-sticker theology just didn’t cut it for me anymore. I searched on my own, sought counseling (both Godly and worldly), and struggled. I cried out to God, shouted at Him, said some very irreverent things to Him. I came through eventually knowing that the God I serve is big enough to handle my tough questions, and my angry tantrums. He loves me enough to doodle in the dirt while waiting on me to finish my rant. It has been a slow journey (this started 15-20 years ago.) I am just recently getting to where I can quote Rom 8:28 again, and really believe it. There are still things I don’t understand, but I know I was loved throughout my questioning and anger, and I am still loved by a God that’s big enough to take it, and not fickle enough to walk away. I don’t have all the answers I wanted, but I have a deeper love for Him, and an acceptance that there are not easy answers to all my questions. I hope this blog will be that journey for others.
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Jeanne K Reply:
August 27th, 2009 at 2:39 pm
Well, I was going to post, but I don’t need to…Kelly has said it SO well…I can’t improve upon it.
Our God, our Jesus is BIG enough to handle us and all of our humanness. We don’t have to be God– He is.
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One of my favorite pictures of Jesus is the scene with the adulterous woman (John 8). The picture has been imprinted in my heart ever since the first time I watched The Passion of the Christ. It reminds me that Jesus didn’t come to condemn me but to forgive and save me. (John 3:17 & Romans 8:1) I can have confidence that I can crawl to Jesus with my sin and he isn’t going to throw stones at me but instead extend his hand and lift me up. But here lies the uncomfortable or hard to swallow part…He tells me to go and sin and no more. That when I accept his hand of mercy I am asked to die to myself once again, to give up that desire, to not get my way, to make me turn from whatever it is and if that’s not enough I am reminded how many times I am the one holding stone.
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I think my favorite images of Jesus is when he was challenged and the attempts to corner him, they way he just so simply responded with things like “Give to Caesar what is Caesars” and “let he who has not sinned cast the first stone” I reminds me to not over complicate things and keep things in perspective.
The image I have the hardest time with is the one after being denied by peter the third time, just seems like such a painful and lonely time just like in the garden when his disciples couldn’t even stay awake with him. Knowing he suffered these things because of my sin really hurts and embarrasses me.
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i prefer the image (a true one, thankfully!) of a redeeming Jesus, who fulfilled the requirements of the old covenant and inaugurated a new one; i prefer the image of a Jesus who shattered the sin-filled view of women that permeated cultures around the world and illuminated their full equality with men.
i do not prefer the Jesus (also, a true one) who does not affirm my desire to see pain and suffering visited on those who do horrible things. the theme of the movie Taken is a good example, as i am fairly certain that He would not share my enthusiasm as Liam Neeson’s character did whatever was necessary to retrieve his abducted daughter. sure, He would want to see her freed; i just don’t think He would have endorsed all the tactics Liam’s character utilized. that is a tension i find myself still held in as a Christ follower.
thanks for stirring the pot, Todd!
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One of my favorite images of Jesus…
Mark 10:13:16
And they were bringing children to him that he might touch them, and the disciples rebuked them. But when Jesus saw it, he was indignant and said to them, “Let the children come to me; do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.” And he took them in his arms and blessed them, laying his hands on them.
- – - I want to be like a child when it comes to knowing Jesus… full of enthusiam, opened hearted and eager to learn.
One of my least favorite…
Luke 22:39-44
Jesus went out as usual to the Mount of Olives, and his disciples followed him. Inreaching the place, he said to them, “Pray that you will not fall into temptation.” He withdrew about a stone’s throw beyond them, knelt down and prayed, Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done. An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him. And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.
— It is just that I dislike seeing him in such agony, feeling betrayed and defeated. It is the ‘image’ I dislike, not the meaning If I look into the story and beyond, I see this as so essential in the journey… it shows the human side of Him. It helps me to see that Jesus can be with me in full understanding of any pain or struggle I may have. It shows me the power of prayer and the surrender to God’s will.
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