WHAT JESUS IS NOT

There is an old saying that is often true:  “Familiarity breeds contempt.”  It simply means that when people become familiar with something, they tend to start losing their appreciation or respect for it and begin taking it for granted.  It becomes common.  Jesus alluded to this same principle when He said that a prophet is not without honor except in his own home town (Mark 6:4).

But today, not only is there a growing (and disturbing) loss of appreciation and loss of respect toward Jesus Himself in the world, this same lack of respect for Him is even in the church.  In the modern church’s fervent quest to use absolutely anything at all to attract the youth of today, many churches are resorting to the use of street language to make Jesus seem more common and mundane, perhaps more approachable.

    

Many in the church (including pastors) are trying to force Jesus into today’s common “street image” to bring Him down to our own level.  The intent is to present Him as more of a friend than a judgmental King.  You’ll hear some say that Jesus is their ‘‘homeboy.”  But would any sane person dare to address a judge, or a governor, or the president as “homeboy”?  Not likely.  So how much greater and more deserving of respect is Jesus Christ than any mere man?

Sorry people, but Jesus Christ is not your “homie,” your “best bud,” or your “pal.”  He sits on the throne at the right hand of the Father in Heaven.  He’s not your “BFF” or your “bro.”  He is grander than that.  He is holy.  His name is above all other names (Philippians 2:9), He is Lord of lords (Revelation 19:16), and He is the Resurrection and the Life (John 11:25).  But the titles that even churches use of Him today are irreverent, cheesy, and worldly, at best… and crude and blasphemous, at worst.  By the use of these names His true nature is casually watered down and dishonored.

Using these kinds of worldly titles makes Him “just one of us.”  But don’t expect Him to greet you at the pearly gates with a high-five, like teammates in a locker room.  He’s not going to be “rappin’ with His homies” or “throwing signs” with you in Heaven. 

 

Why are we being so “intolerant” and making such a big deal of this?  Because the apostle John, one of the closest friends of Jesus, tells what happened when he saw Jesus in His glory:

“And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as a dead man…” (Revelation 1:17)

Think about that.  Let it sink in.  This is the same John who traveled, lived, and ate with Jesus every day for at least three years; but when he saw a vision of Him in His glorified form, he couldn’t speak, he couldn’t move, nor could he do anything else.  He was utterly stunned.  He was overwhelmed by His majesty.  John was never to view his friend, Jesus, in any “common” way again.  Yes, He is approachable, but we must be careful how we approach the King of kings.

So, is this “common,” “hipster,” “cool daddy-o” Jesus in the modern church another Jesus (2 Corinthians 11:4)?  It certainly is not the One we find in Scripture.

It’s acceptable to call Him your friend (John 15:14), but He is not your “homeboy.”  He is Jesus Christ, the one Mediator between God and man (1 Timothy 2:5), but He is not your “best bud,” or your “pal,” and He is not to be called “dude” or “J.C.”  He is the Creator of the universe, the First and the Last, but He is not your “boyfriend” (there is actually a “Christian” song titled, “Jesus is my boyfriend”).

 

If you think that you can address Him so flippantly when you meet Him face to face, you just may be shocked to find out that you DIDN’T know Him after all (Matthew 7:21-23), and that you’ve been serving the wrong “Jesus.”  God help the church to use discernment.