Category Archives: Jesus’s Example

Thoughts on Holy Week: Jesus’ Prayer from the Cross

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jesus_crossIn his first sermon (Mark 1) Jesus offers a simple message: “Repent and believe the gospel.”  As he hangs on the cross some 3 years later, what is Jesus doing?  We have only a handful of words spoken by Jesus during the crucifixion, but there are some powerful lessons to be shared in them.

As he hangs on the cross, he was in between two thieves.  One of them mocked Jesus, but the other asked to be remembered by him.  Jesus replied that he would be with him in paradise.  Even while dying on the cross, Jesus won a convert!

But even more amazing: Jesus said the prayer of intercession for the very people crucifying him that day. Not just of the Roman soldiers, but for those really responsible, including the Jewish people, the priests and the Sanhedrin.  “Father forgive them, for they know not what they do.”  He prayed for the very people taking his life.  Taking the form of a servant is one thing.  Washing feet is another.  Praying for those that despitefully use you is another entirely.  But none of those compare to asking forgiveness for the very people that are nailing you to a cross, where you will slowly bleed and die.

Jesus, Sheep or Shepherd?

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jesus_shepherdThe LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want.

The 23rd Psalm; a very familiar passage and perhaps the most quoted poetry from the Old Testament.  In John 10, Jesus explains that he is the good shepherd.  He is not a hireling, but loves the sheep, and would lay down his life for them.  He has been entrusted by the Father to care for the sheep.  And of course, we’re the sheep.

We’ve all seen pictures of Jesus holding a lamb.   But it’s more than a cute analogy.  Sheep must be cared for.  They have few natural defenses, and are very near sighted.  They need the shepherd.  We too are no match for the devil, often nearsighted (or blind), and desperately need the Good Shepherd.  Continue reading →

Jesus in the Wilderness, a short film

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Thank you Noel Heikkinen for sharing this video.  Noel is doing a series on the Old Testament, and reminds us that each time Jesus resisted Satan he quoted from (what we call) the Old Testament scripture.

Jesus Shaped Spirituality

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jesus-shapedWhat is Jesus Shaped Spirituality?  That is precisely the question that the InternetMonk tried to answer earlier this week.  In short, it is about making sure that our Christianity is modeled after the teachings and examples given to us by the Jesus of the Bible. 

If you’re a regular at this site, you know that I have written several posts on the examples given by Jesus.  Click “Jesus’ Examples” in the Categories list at right for a complete listing.  Each post is a specific lesson (or lessons) that we are to learn from something Jesus did himself, and in many cases encouraged his followers to go on doing.  Jesus didn’t lecture on how to be a Christian; he went around ministering to people’s needs and told his followers to keep doing the same things they had witnessed him doing. 

iMonk explains what a Jesus Shaped Spirituality looks like when we read the Scriptures and are challenged to conform to the image of Christ.  It’s not about denomination, emerging or church tradition.  It’s about each of us taking up our cross and following Jesus Christ.  Check it out. 

Jesus, Friend of Sinners

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he that is without sinJohn chapter 4 tells the story of Jesus meeting the Samaritan woman at the well. It just so happens I’ve written on this passage before. This post describes everything “weird” about the conversation Jesus had with her, namely that a religious leader, or any Jewish man for that matter, would not have been talking to such a person.

John chapter 8 recounts the story of the woman caught in adultery. In this situation the woman is clearly guilty of a sin punishable by death. When she is left with no accusers (“Let he that is without sin…”) Jesus tells her that he will not condemn her either. She is told to go, and sin no more. How can he not condemn her, having been caught in the very act of adultery? Continue reading →

Jesus Example: Fish for Breakfast

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fish-fryOkay, this one may seem a little silly but there will be a point.  This lesson may be more about friendship than anything else.

So after Jesus had been crucified and buried, the disciples were in a tough spot.  They had given up the past three years of their lives to spend with Jesus, basically doing the world tour around the Mid East.  They had also preached, taught and cast out demons, but often disappointed Christ with their lack of faith and understanding.  So now all their hopes and dreams have been nailed to the cross.  Continue reading →

Jesus’ Example (What Did Jesus Do?)

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wwjdWhat would Jesus do:  Remember that one?  Just in case you missed the 90’s, that was the Christian youth catch phrase to end all others.  There were backpacks, bracelets, t-shirts, teddy bears, pencils, bumper stickers, and the list goes on.  If it could be printed, it was.

The question wasn’t new.  “What would Jesus do” is asked by the characters in the short novel In His Steps by Charles Sheldon.  The locals of a small church congregation are challenged to ask this simple question before making any decision of consequence, and their lives are changed in the process.  The only problem, of course, is that we cannot always know for certain what Jesus would do in a particular circumstance.  What then?  Continue reading →

Jesus’ Example: Resisting Temptation

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temptation-of-jesusThe temptation of Jesus is recorded in Matthew 4:1-11.  We will be referring to these verses many times.

Walking the earth as a man subjected Jesus to all things common to humanity.  The Epistle of James teaches that God is not tempted by sin, and does not tempt anyone to sin.  But Jesus is God in the flesh; he experienced all the things we experience and can thus empathize with our weaknesses, feelings, emotions, frustrations, and so forth.  Whatever we experience, Jesus himself has been there.  And so it is with temptation.  Continue reading →

Commandments and Traditions, Jesus in Mark 7

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jesus_teachingThis lesson is from Mark 7:1-22.  Jesus is being questioned about why his disciples eat without washing their hands.  Jesus’ response says a lot about first century Jews’ attitudes toward the Old Testament Law, and how they lived out their convictions in real life. 

Jesus’ immediate reply to their criticism is to quote from Isaiah “this people honors me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.”  Jesus tells them that they ignore God’s commandment to keep the commandment of men.  Continue reading →

Jesus’ Example: Growing Up

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child-jesusWhile it’s true that the whole Bible is about Jesus, what we know about his life on earth is found in four books, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.   The story of his birth (Christmas) is only recorded in two of those, Matthew and Luke.  What we know about his childhood is very limited, basically one paragraph in Luke 2.  Yet even in this short story Jesus provides us with an example we can learn from.  Continue reading →