If you’ve read any of the other posts that I’ve made on this website you’ve read a little bit about my faith journey. I’ve mentioned before that I think it’s vitally important to talk about our life experiences that have shaped the people we have become. What maybe gets lost in that sometimes is why we continue to do certain things. For example, you may have read a bit about my upbringing in the faith, but that hardly explains why I continue to devote my life to Christ and why I so strongly believe in the way of life that He taught us to live.
To start, I want to share three passages from scripture with you all that pretty well outline why I continue to be a follower of Christ. I hope that you’ll take the time to read them all in full before continuing, as they are the pillars of my own faith:
Luke 22:24-27
“A dispute also arose among them, as to which of them was to be regarded as the greatest. And he said to them, “The kings of the Gentiles exercise Lordship over them, and those in authority over them are called benefactors. But not so with you. Rather, let the greatest among you become as the youngest, and the leader as one who serves. For who is the greater, one who reclines at table or one who serves? Is it not the one who reclines at table? But I am among you as the one who serves.”
Luke 6:27-36
“But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. To one who strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also, and from one who takes away your cloak do not withhold your tunic either. Give to everyone who begs from you, and from one who takes away your goods do not demand them back. And as you wish that others would do to you, do so to them. If you love those who love you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. And if you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to get back the same amount. But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil. Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful.”
John 13:34-35
“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
I have conversations with people about Christianity on a regular basis. It's kind of the nature of the beast being a teacher and youth pastor. This may sound funny coming from someone who legitimately believes that Jesus of Nazareth is the God incarnate, but when I talk to young people who are struggling to get into the idea of faith, I will often tell them that it almost doesn't matter if you believe in God or not. If you study the Gospels, if you really study the teachings of Jesus of Nazareth, and you begin to try to apply those teachings to your own life, there are only good things that will come from it.
Both Harvard and UC Berkely have published research in the last few years detailing how volunteering your time serving others can have a positive impact on your own mental health. Here's a quick blurb from an article in the Greater Good Magazine published by students at Berkley:
"New research suggests that volunteers aren’t just helping the communities they serve. People who volunteer actually experience a boost in their mental health—good news at a time when more than a third of Americans are experiencing symptoms of anxiety or depression...Although it’s true that people who are happier do tend to spend more time volunteering, the current study suggests that you don’t need to already feel happy in order to benefit from it. In fact, some research suggests that people who start out with lower levels of well-being may even get a bigger boost from volunteering."
I love this so much. Two thousand years ago the Son of Man came to earth begging anybody who would listen to serve each other. To love one another. To provide for your neighbor. Now in 2024 we can, in some ways, prove that by serving those around us we can improve our OWN conditions. We can heal our own hearts and minds by denying ourselves and serving those in need in our communities. This is the first major reason that I choose to continue to follow the teachings of Jesus. It's good for me!
The second big reason that I continue to choose Jesus is that Jesus could have very easily called for rebellion against Rome, yet he refused. In fact, some Jews at the time had a really hard time grasping the idea of Jesus as the Messiah because they expected him to call for an armed rebellion of some sort against the Roman Empire. In the show The Chosen, in season three, there is a scene where a bunch of the disciples are sitting around sharpening daggers, just in case a brouhaha was to take place. Even the disciples themselves couldn't quite grasp the idea of a peaceful rebellion. Nor who it would be against, for that matter...
In a lot of ways Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. exemplified these traits of Christ in a modern sense. To be clear, Dr. King was a mortal human being and therefore was not perfect. However, I'll always love this quote from Dr. King:
"Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that."
Dr. King had every reason to be hateful and violent in his lifetime. The discrimination that he faced, the time he spent in prison, folks have taken up arms against less throughout history. Yet, even in the face of segregation, Dr. King refused to give in to calls for violence. He refused to give in to the hate. And he is now revered as one of the saving faces of the modern United States. In some ways he is a reminder of what love and peace can accomplish. A love and peace he learned from nonother than Jesus of Nazareth.
The word "light" is referenced over 430 times in the Bible. The authors of the books of the Bible very clearly felt that light was a perfect metaphor for the power that God possesses. You cannot stop light. You can shade it. You can hide it. But light is inevitable. I've heard it put before that there is actually no such thing as "darkness." What we perceive to be darkness is truly just an absence of light. Likewise, there really is no such thing as "hate." What we perceive as hate is just an absence of love. It is our job then as Christians to deliver that love where there is hate in the world. As we learned previously...delivering love to areas of darkness doesn't just light up the community we're serving, but it also lights up our own soul in the process.
Lastly, Jesus was for everybody. There's a story in the book of Luke, chapter 18, in which the disciples rejected some kids from getting to Jesus. Jesus immediately corrected them and instructed them to allow "the children to come to me." I love this so much. Jesus was also constantly criticized by the religious leaders of the day for dining with prostitutes, tax collectors, and all kinds of sinners. He sought out the poor and the beaten down. Nobody was unworthy of the King.
After His resurrection, Jesus gave His disciples something we call the great commission: “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:19-20
The word “nation” here does not describe a country with a border, as we might think of it today. Nation describes a people’s descent, culture, language, and religion, among other things. Jesus wanted EVERY nation to be a part of His kingdom. Jesus was for EVERYBODY. He didn’t just want the Jews, or the clean, or the pure, etc. Jesus wanted EVERYBODY, including you and me. This is why I continue to choose Jesus. I believe that the Old Testament prophets foretold of His arrival, that He was the Son of Man, God incarnate, the Messiah...but I also think that you can build a sound argument that His teachings are some of the best life advice that you could give to anybody, regardless of religious affiliation.
"Not only do we not know God except through Jesus Christ; We do not even know ourselves except through Jesus Christ." - Blaise Pascal -
