Choice for live

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Choice for Jesus

Lees de BijbelWhat do we know for certain about Jesus that is relevant and truly helpful to everybody today? 

Do certain basic facts and clear certainties exist about Jesus that can
form a basis for realistic objective logical faith?

The Sources

The sources for knowing Jesus begin with the Four Gospels and the Book of Acts and go on to include your personal spiritual experience and your faith tradition, which might be helpful and might also be part of the problem. Where do you get your spiritual information? What have been your basic sources for religion, faith, spiritual direction and strength, and your vision of God and of yourself?
What have your parents, family and friends taught you about Jesus? What has your church taught and conditioned you to believe? What have you worked out for yourself? What has been the role of gospel songs and hymns along with religious art and images in shaping your view of Jesus? Many sources have shaped your vision of Jesus.

Seeing through the dark curtain

Jesus is a vague out of focus image for all of us. Too many conflicting voices claim to speak the truth. The voices that most firmly demand that they have the truth are often the most incorrect and misleading. Religious groups and churches that claim absolute authority and demand absolute obedience are usually the ones that most reduce Jesus to a set of beliefs, doctrines, rules and propositions and that discourage people from thinking for themselves and enjoying the real freedom of the Spirit of Jesus in their lives.

Who is Jesus?

Jesus is "the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world" (John 1:29, 36). But, what does that mean? Multiple layers of confusion and misinformation, along with political, religious and financial manipulations, and celebrations of ignorance in the name of God for the past 2,000 years of church history have darkened our access to Jesus. We do indeed see Jesus through a glass darkly and not face-to-face.

Where is the shortcut to Jesus? Does a basic simple direct uncluttered vision of Jesus exist? Can we construct a brief overview of the details of Jesus that is easy to grasp and relevant to each individual here and now? Is a simply vision possible? I think so.
The following steps might be a helpful framework for new directions in knowing and following Jesus. 

Twelve steps to recovering Jesus 

1 Admit that you have a vague incorrect view of Jesus and that religion has
 misled and confused you.

2 Turn to God who is already within you as your basic source for knowing and
 following the Spirit of Jesus.

3 Take the time to learn the basic content of the Four Gospels and the Book of
 Acts.

4 Question everything in the Jesus traditions that does not make sense or
 ring true to you.

5 Search for and write down a list of the actions and teachings of
 Jesus in the Gospels that demonstrate something human and accessible that you can
 realistically follow and do yourself, such as accepting and celebrating your own humanity
 and having compassion for other people.

6 Find or start a small group in your home that can provide a setting for
 dialogue, discussion, encouragement, learning, changing and growing.

7 Fearlessly face and challenge the misinformation and confusions about
 Jesus that seem to interfere most with your own acceptance of Jesus as
 real and relevant to you.

8 Start over in your own spiritual journey by letting go of legalistic
 judgmental religious literature, people and groups. Don't listen to the
 ignorant misinformation of fundamentalists and other forms of
 self-serving religious confusion.

9 Search for and find resources from other people both ancient and
 modern that also have struggled with their own understanding of Jesus and
 have challenged the traditions and tried to cut through the gloom to see the
 real Jesus. See also : the English page of HOLYHOME.NL

10 Accept yourself as you are, just as Jesus accepted himself, and build a self-esteem
 basis for being able to accept and follow the real Jesus that is beginning to emerge in
 your personal search and study.

11 Take others along with you in your journey of discovery and
 clarification whenever you have opportunity.

12 Act positively and with compassion on what you are learning and
 experiencing about the real Jesus.

Jesus in a simply vision

All of us are simply minds about many things. None of us completely master anything. Abandoning traditional visions of Jesus is not abandoning the real Jesus. Letting go of misinformation and confusions about Jesus is not letting go of the real Jesus. The reason that we are simply minds about Jesus is because we have been simply by religious manipulations and misinformation.

Jesus - His Names

God - Jesus is called God in several passages in the Bible. Along with His sinless life, miracles, and resurrection from the dead, His claims to be God stand firm (John 20:28).

Lord - In the New Testament, this term is used as a salutation to honor a man of distinction. The disciples used this term to salute Jesus as their teacher and master (Matthew 22:43-44).

Word - This title was used by the apostle John to describe the mission of Jesus. The title states Jesus' Godhead and eternal and absolute deity (John 1:1, 14).

Messiah - The long awaited "anointed one" who would deliver Israel. Jesus came to deliver mankind from sin and death (John 4:25-26).

Alpha and Omega - These two characters were the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet. This descriptive title expresses the eternal nature of God - the beginning and the end (Revelation 1:8; 22:13).

Savior - Jesus is the person who rescues mankind from an eternity in hell.

Redeemer - "One who frees or delivers another from difficulty, danger, or bondage, usually by the payment of a ransom price."1 In the New Testament, Jesus is viewed as the ultimate Redeemer who gave His life as a ransom (Mark 10:45, Titus 2:14).

Light of the World - Jesus is the Person who brings true knowledge of God. Those who reject this light bring judgment upon themselves (John 8:12; 3:19-21).

Lamb of God - This title refers to the Old Testament sacrificial system where God accepted the blood of animals as atonement for sin (John 1:29, 36). Jesus' blood made atonement for sin!

Ruler of Creation - Christ existed before the creation of the world and He is sovereign over it (Revelation 3:14).

Mediator - Because Jesus is fully God, He can represent God to man. Because He is fully man, Jesus can represent man to God. Reconciliation is possible (1 Timothy 2:5).

Bread of Life - Jesus is the one and only supplier of true spiritual nourishment (John 6:35).

Way, Truth, and Life - Jesus is the only way to heaven, the only source of truth, and the foundation of all life (John 14:6)!High hopes for positive change

We have high hopes for positive changes in how all of us find relevant spiritual resources and healthy spirituality in a fresh look at who Jesus really is for us today in our rapidly changing world. In every area of life, we are constantly being challenged to "let go and move on." We either: "let go and move on," or we are dead in the water and sinking fast.

Paul in Philippians 3:1-14 described how he had to move out of one spiritual house and into another place in order to have Jesus in his life: "I count all things (legalistic judgmental religion) to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them to be garbage (literally "animal feces"!) in order that I may gain Christ." When Paul said: "forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus," he was letting go of abusive legalistic religion in order to know and follow Jesus.

To live is to change. To learn and grow demands and creates change. Walking through new doors can be threatening. Stepping off of familiar ground onto a new path can be scary, but staying put on trembling sinking ground can be deadly. If the traditional abusive religious images of Jesus have not worked for you, let go and move on to something that does.

Read also: The good news in a nutshell - Summary

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