WHAT IS YOUR MENTAL IMAGE OF JESUS?
MEEK====MILD====SOFT SPOKEN
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When reading a religious article one morning while drinking a cup of coffee, there was a eye catching story
of a person that said, “Jesus” wouldn't overthrow tables of commerce as we read He did in the temple.” This tells
us something about the persons mental image of who Jesus is too them, and it certainly isn't biblically accurate. The
person continued to say, “Jesus is meek, mild and soft spoken, tolerates pretty well everything.”
This leads us to wonder if we have an accurate mental image of who Jesus is, and where we derive our image
from. This person derived their thinking from their own imagination. My guess is that others find their mental
image of Jesus, the Christ from the gospel accounts; that of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.
If our concept of Jesus only comes from the gospels, do we actually have an accurate biblical mental image
of Jesus Christ? You've probably already guessed what the Church Of God in Truth answer is, “NO.”
We should not limit our understanding of who Jesus is, based only on what we've seen in the gospels,
because there's more to be understood. What Jesus did and said while on earth as seen in the gospels was in direct
relation to who He is and what His ministry is about. His ministry dictated to a good degree the things He said and
did. He was a loving and caring servant of God, His Father ! He gave of Himself for our salvation. John 3 tells us,
“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish,
but have everlasting life. “For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through
Him might be saved” (John 3:16-17).
Now that He has fulfilled His earthly ministry, do you think His present ministry might have some bearing
on what He says and does as well, and if so, where do we learn about this?
First, we need to understand our Lord of lords is not schizophrenic and that He is no different than who He
once was. He has not changed. Hebrews verse 13:8 reveals, “ Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, and to day, and
for ever.” For the most part, the gospel accounts show us one side of who Jesus is while He was on earth. Then
there's another side to Jesus that we only see glimpses of in the Gospels. We've got to look elsewhere to see the other
side of Him.
For example, the book of Hebrews says that Jesus is our High Priest forever. Right now at this exact moment
while you meditate on this article, and throughout all eternity, Jesus is and will be our High Priest.
Did you know that we'll still need a High Priest in Heaven? As High Priest He's constantly representing us
before God the Father, much like a lawyer would represent his client before a judge. We should be grateful, thankful
and glad that we have Jesus Christ as our Heavenly Lawyer to speak daily for us! “ For He testifieth, Thou art a
Priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec. Wherefore He is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto
God by Him, seeing He ever liveth to make intercession for them. For the law maketh men high priests which have
infirmity; but the word of the oath, which was since the law, makes the Son, who is consecrated for evermore”
(Hebrews 7: 17, 25, 28).
The book of Revelation gives us a clear picture of who Jesus, the Christ really is, especially in light of
His present Ministry. What we read about Him in the book of Revelation is different then the first mentioned
person’s view of Jesus Christ. What we read earlier, demolishes many people's flimsy mental images of the King
we serve.
Observe how the Apostle John described the physical representation of Jesus that he saw in Revelation 1,
“And in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot,
and girt about the paps with a golden girdle. His head and His hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and His
eyes were as a flame of fire; and His feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a furnace; and His voice as the
sound of many waters. And He had in his right hand seven stars: and out of His mouth went a sharp twoedged sword:
and His countenance was as the sun shineth in His strength” (Revelation 1: 13-16). Its not often we read about our
Lord’s appearance. Going over that again we found, Jesus was dressed in a long robe and a golden sash around His
chest. His head and hair were as white as snow. His eyes could pierce through anything because they were like a
blazing fire [lazar today]. His feet were like bronze glowing from being in a furnace of fire. His voice was like the
Niagara Falls. From His mouth spoke as having a sharp double-edged sword. And lastly, His face was like the
brightness of the sun — very blinding and difficult to look at.
This picture of Jesus Christ does not look like the One who walked the hills of Galilee. John saw an
extremely powerful majestic Jesus, and could not stand in His presence. He "Fell at His feet as though he were
dead.” His very presence knocked the wind out of John. Now look at some of the things that Jesus Christ actually
said to the seven Churches of Revelation, some of which may be quite astounding to those who have a meek and mild
image of our Lord Jesus, the Christ.
Notice now, what Christ said to the Church at Ephesus, Revelation 2, verse 4 “Nevertheless I have
somewhat against you.....” Did you know that our Lord can hold something against us? How does that fit into mans
mental image of Christ being meek, and mild? Jesus then says, in verse 5, “I will come unto you quickly, and will
remove your candlestick out of his place, except you repent” meaning, “remove the church and its witnessing
”[Candlestick or Lamp-stand represents God’s Church’s] (Revelation 1:20). Would Christ actually discard part of
His church? “Nevertheless I have somewhat against you, because you have left your first love. Remember therefore
from whence you art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto you quickly, and will remove
your Candlestick out of his place, except you repent. But this you have, that you hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans,
which I also hate” (Revelation 2: 4 - 6). It appears when looking around we've got many examples of discarded
people and churches today.
To the church at Pergamum Jesus said, “repent; or else I will come unto you quickly, and will fight against
them with the sword of My mouth” (Revelation 2:16). Them, refers to those in the church who hold to the teaching
of Balaam. Here we see Jesus as one who fights against people in the church. I've heard of church people fighting
each other, but here Jesus is fighting church people? Having them dis-fellowshipped.
Continuing to acknowledge Revelation 2, we read that our Lord Jesus, the Christ has something against
the church at Thyatira also. Jesus was very upset with this church because they “tolerated” a false prophetess who
was leading some of God’s people astray. In verse 22, He says that He will cast her into a bed of suffering and kill
her children. “Behold, I will cast her into a bed, and them that commit adultery with her into great tribulation, except
they repent of their deeds”(Revelation 2:22). What? Did Jesus really say that? “YES”, we read that with our own
eyes.
He also told the church at Laodicea in (Revelation 3:14 - 22) that He would spit them out of His mouth
because they were lukewarm. He would rather have seen them cold instead of lukewarm. You would think
lukewarm would be better than cold, but not in the eyes of Jesus. Does your mental image of Christ Jesus, include
spitting church people out of His mouth? These lukewarm people that were called are disfellowshipped from being
in God’s soon coming Kingdom.
None of us want to be unbalanced in our portrayal of Christ, by saying what’s been said, yet too many have
been unbalanced in their portrayal of who Jesus really is. These things said are only to bring some balance back into
our mental picture of who our Lord of lord and King of kings is! If our mental image of our Lord of lords and King
of kings doesn't include what we see in Revelation, then our mental image of the one we serve is not correct.
Jesus, the Christ is not always meek, mild, and quiet spoken. He is the King and the final authority over all
there is, both material and spiritual. At times He will show His displeasure, and will if necessary bring severe
judgement, even to His own called people. In order to not leave you in too much fear, look now at Revelation 5:
5 - 6, we see another portrayal the Apostle John saw of Jesus our Lord. John was prompted to turn around and see
“the Lion of the tribe of Judah,” the only One powerful enough to open the seven seals. Being fearful of seeing this
Lion, John probably nervously turned around to see the Lion, and to his amazement he saw “the Lamb of God.”
God's Lion in this case was a Lamb. How grateful and relieved John must have felt seeing Jesus is both Lion and
Lamb. He's not just a Lamb, and He's not just a Lion. He's represented by both.
With this back ground of Jesus the Christ and Him being our Lord of lords, we need to take serious our
calling knowing Passover and Days of Unleavened Bread is quickly approaching! We will need to relate to Christ
through His human sacrifice for us.
As the time for Passover approaches, representing the death of Jesus, the Christ, whom we, God’s called,
believe is the second person of the Divine Family, who took on human form to experience our sufferings, died for
us and make our salvation possible. As well as for those who are newly called, the idea of God becoming man strikes
some as a bit odd, at the very least. How could a perfect spiritual being — omniscient, omnipresent, omnipotent,
omnibenevolent – become for a while a human being.
If Jesus were truly God, why would He have agonized to the point of sweating blood in the Garden of
Gethsemane and pleaded with God, the Father, to relieve Him of His suffering and deliver Him from the agony of
His earthly mission? Why would Jesus have cried out to His Father from the stake He was nailed to, "My God, My
God, why have You forsaken Me?” (Matt 27:46). Why would He have needed the Father's help? Why not just
take Himself off the stake – as some mockers taunted Him at the time?
Interestingly, these types of questions, which used to be major stumbling blocks in our spiritual path, are now
foundational pillars undergirding our faith. We now understand that Christ's calling out to the Father for help, did
not mean Christ was not God. But for God's plan of salvation to work, Christ had to take on human form and
voluntarily surrender the use of some of His Divine attributes in order to offer Himself in substitution for us.
Scripture lays it out clearly in Philippians 2, “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: who,
being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: but made Himself of no reputation, and took
upon Him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: and being found in fashion as a man, He
humbled Himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross” (Philippians 2:5-8).
“But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory
and honour; that He by the grace of God should taste death for every man. For it became Him, for whom are all
things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect
through sufferings. Wherefore in all things it behoved Him to be made like unto His brethren, that He might be a
merciful and faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people. For
in that He Himself hath suffered being tempted, He is able to succour them that are tempted” (Hebrews 2:9 -10, 17-18).
Christ's human nature and His voluntary non-use of certain Divine attributes allowed Him to experience all
the indignities of imperfect human existence and all the trials and tribulations we face. Christ, who was "made like
His brothers in every respect, shared our experiences so that He could fully relate to us and us to Him. Just as we
bond with our fellow human beings who have shared our particular experiences, we can bond with Christ, because
He has shared our experiences. He even knows what it's like to be denied a prayer request: “Father, if you are willing,
take this cup from Me” (Luke 22:42).
Although Jesus allowed the temporary restriction of His Divine attributes, He did not compromise the essence
of His deity in any respect. He was fully human and fully Divine, and this perfect union is what made possible God's
flawless method for our salvation. Indeed, Christ's perfect harmony with the Father can be seen in His very next
words following His request that “the cup be taken from Him: yet not My will, but Yours be done” (Luke 22:42).
Though having existed in absolute bliss with the Father in Eternity past, Christ condescended to human form
and ultimately experienced separation from the Father, who cannot look on sin. This separation was possible only
because God is all-powerful. The separation was not just in a judicial sense; it was real– physically and spiritually!
Christ's humanity subjected Him to real temptation and real agony. His Divine nature empowered Him to
resist all such temptation and live a sinless life and conquer death for us – gloriously defeating death through death.
His suffering and redemptive death were not just some abstract satisfaction of a Divine mathematical
equation. He had to experience the full force of God's actual wrath for all the past, present and future sins of
mankind. “He died forsaken by God,” says the Bible Knowledge Commentary, “So that His people might claim
God as their God and never be forsaken.”
The British writer John Stott, who died last year in England said, “He God who allows us to
suffer, once suffered Himself in Christ, and continues to suffer with us and for us today.”
As we ponder the wonders of Jesus the Christ and marvel at His deity, we must understand that
when He walked this earth He was also as fully human as we are, and that His humanity opens the door
to our personal relationship with Him. It is this personal relationship with Him that is the heart of true,
TRUE Christianity. ☜
James Russell