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    The Jesus I Know
    The Jesus I Know
    The Jesus I Know
    Ebook79 pages

    The Jesus I Know

    By Jeremy McCollum

    ()

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    About this ebook

    Jesus was a revolutionary whose teachings continue to define humanity even today. Not only did he offer himself as the final sacrifice for sin and remove the barrier between God and man, but he taught us that every life has value and dignity. Life is complicated, and it’s easy to lose sight of Jesus’ words. We find ourselves fighting bitter political and social battles in an effort to preserve Christian values, but we forget that our “enemies” are the very ones we need to introduce to the love of Jesus. People are walking away from the church in record numbers, but they are not necessarily walking away from faith. If we decide to infuse the church with higher standards of theological education, scientific literacy, transparency, and the authenticity that pulls the curtains away from the real person of Christ, then we will be poised to see a resurgence of those who boldly count themselves as followers of Jesus.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherLulu.com
    Release dateMay 24, 2017
    ISBN9781365983740
    The Jesus I Know

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      Book preview

      The Jesus I Know - Jeremy McCollum

      The Jesus I Know

      Jeremy McCollum

      Scripture is taken from the HOLY BIBLE,

      NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. ® 

      Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society.

      Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House.

      The Jesus I Know.

      Copyright © 2017 by Jeremy McCollum

      All Rights Reserved.

      Printed in the USA.

      ISBN 978-1-365-98374-0 

      inspired word publications logolulu_logo_retina

      Introduction

      It seems like people are so bent on hurting each other these days that there isn’t any more hope for society than there is for walking on water.  Except there was this one man…

      Jesus replied, ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’  This is the first and the greatest commandment.  And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’  All the Law and Prophets hang on these two commandments. Matt 22:37-40

      Who is Jesus?  Was he some long haired, bearded dude with blue eyes, a British accent, and a pained look on his face?  Hardly.  Try a dark-skinned, curly-haired Palestinian Jew that turned the world on its head.

      Non-violence?  That was his idea.  His advice to the wealthy?  Sell everything and give it to the poor.  Healthcare?  A doctor recorded the most detailed account of his life, including dozens of miraculous physical healings.  Women?  They played a vital role, independent of their husbands.  Children?  At a time when kids weren’t even named until they turned one year old because they were so likely to die, he put them on his knee and said we had to become like them to enter his Kingdom.

      He is a religious, social, and spiritual revolutionary.  He is arguably the most influential human being in history, and his teachings continue to influence the world with a spiritual and moral authority that transcends religion.  In fact, a recent phenomenon known as the insider movement has emerged around the world where groups of people outside of Christianity, some with little or no missionary or even Western influence, have begun to claim that they are followers of Jesus.  Research is young and difficult, but I suspect that the Internet has been able to carry Jesus’ words and put them in front of fresh eyes where the New Testament would never be allowed.

      Whether you are an Atheist, Muslim, Hindu, Jew, Buddhist, Catholic or an Evangelical Protestant Christian, the words of Jesus have the power to connect you directly to God.  They have the power to change your point of view from me first to you first.  They can change your fear of others into love for others.  His words incited the most radical social change ever seen two thousand years ago, and the echoes of his voice continue to be heard today in our calls for justice, equality, and compassion.

      PART ONE | What Was Jesus’ Purpose?

      I don’t really think there is a God, so this doesn’t apply to me.

      thinking-man

      Not so fast.  No, I’m not going to try and prove to you that God exists.  That’s not possible, and it’s not my point.  I understand you either want to laugh or cry in despair when you hear things like I don’t believe in Evolution and I bet it was scary for people when dinosaurs were on the earth.  Scientific literacy, critical thinking, and rational thought are sorely lacking in large swaths of our society, and I understand that.  What I also know, however, is that you are connected to humanity.

      Jesus never sat around a campfire, held our hands, and sang Kumbaya while eating smores (he liked fish), but he did define love.  Jesus said in the Gospel of John, Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.  (15:13)  In the ancient world, both in the Jewish faith and the polytheistic societies, God or the gods were seen as stern, brooding figures that meted out punishment at the slightest violation of the law.  Jesus changed that by describing God as a loving father, willing to sacrifice his own son to save mankind.  He taught his disciples that this sacrificial love was how we were to treat each other.

      Jesus turned around the concept of revenge by teaching and embodying the concept of forgiveness.  In ancient times, an eye for an eye was the law of the land, but he reversed this endless cycle of vengeance by teaching us to turn the other cheek (Matthew 5:39) and go the extra mile. (Matthew 5:41).  Can you imagine our courts today rendering decisions to allow plaintiffs and victims to take revenge?  It might sound good to you until you were at the mercy of a raging accuser.

      Jesus elevated the disadvantaged.  There were charities in the ancient world, but Jesus flipped the script on caring with the parable

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