One of the most interesting studies I have made in the past few years concerned a careful review of  the life of the Lord Jesus as revealed in the first four New Testament books. This survey of Christ's sojourn upon the earth convinced me that many people have dreamed up their own concepts of the Savior, and they have not been willing to let the Bible change their minds! The Jesus of modern religion is not the Master Teacher of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Even in His church, one can find some faulty impressions regarding the Redeemer. Far too many people depict the Son of God as honey-dripping  sweet, apologetic and undemandingly patient. It comes as a rude shock to such folk to learn that Jesus forcibly ran the money changers out of the temple! And some are amazed that Jesus  became "ANGRY" (Mark 3:5) because of men's hardened hearts!

     Because of the above, I have in times past preached a series of sermons called,"The Jesus Who Never Was."  There never was a Jesus like the one in whom many folks believe for sure!  Yes, we even  have some brethen in Christ who serve what I have called "Another Jesus." Their "Jesus" is one who was bereft of all of the powers privledges and and prerogatives of deity, and was in fact "a mere man" while on earth. Some of these same brethren say he is still a "man" in heaven. A "stripped down Christ" is not The Christ  of the bible. The real Jesus also called names and identified doctrines that were false and warned folks not to be led astray by such (Matt. 7:14; 15:14). The real Jesus was "God with us" (Matthew 1:21-23). And "In Him dwelt all the fullness of the Godhead bodily" (Colossians 2:9).

    The celebrated "Sermon on the Mount" contains several stinging challenges that demand far more of us than some devotees of Jesus realize. "Whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of the hell of fire... When ye pray, ye shall not be as the hypocrites: for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, they have received their reward. . Narrow is the gate, and straitened the way, that leadeth unto life, and few are they that find it... Not every one that saith unto me,  Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father who is in heaven" (Matt. 5:22; 6:5; 7:14,21). In other words, Christ is more demanding and more insistent than most folk wish to admit.

    The classic illustration of the wrath of the Lord is found in Matt. 23. In this fierce chapter in the life of Jesus, our Savior bluntly tells the self-righteous Hebrew religionists that only desolation and hell awaits them. He tells them: "Woe unto you scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye shut the kingdom of heaven against   men: for ye enter not in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering in to enter" (Matt. 23:13-14). Six more times does Jesus pronounce a "Woe" on these, and then He concludes with these words: "0 Jerusalem, Jerusalem, that killeth the prophets, and stoneth them that are sent unto her! how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not! Behold, your house is left unto you desolate" Matt; 23:37-38).

    The ultimate rejection of the Messiah by these Pharisees would result in their absolute barren condition spiritually. The temple would be in ruins in symbolism of their shattered dreams and broken aspiration. No one can honestly read Matt. 23 and then continue to see Jesus only as the epitome of love and compassion. In order to be just and honest, He also manifested the wrath of God against iniquity.

    The Bible often reminds us of the consistent nature of God. As the writer of Hebrews cogently stated, "It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God" (Heb. 10:31), and, "Our God is a consuming fire" (Heb. 12:29). Jesus is not only called "The lamb of God" (John 1:29; Rev. 5:12), but He is also "The Lion that is of the tribe of Judah" (Rev. 5:5). Both descriptions fit!

    It is true that even in scenes of fiery indignation, one can also read of the unfathomed love, compassion and concern of our Savior. But most everyone knows that "God is love" (1 John 4:8). In fact, nearly everyone believes that is all that He is! Who has not thrilled to the tender pleading of Matt. 11:28, "Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest," just after a strong denunciation of three wicked cities by our Lord? The statement of Jesus, "Behold, I stand at the door and knock" (Rev. 3:20) follows closely one of His most scathing condemnations, that of the lukewarm church in Laodicea! It would also seem that Rev. 22:17 is placed by purpose in the last paragraph of the Bible to remind, for all time to come, every sinner to come back to God: "The Spirit and the bride say, Come. And he that heareth, let him say, Come. And he that is athirst, let him come: he that will, let him take the water of life freely."

    To be sure, even the stern setting of Matt. 23 breathes one of the loveliest of all invitations as Jesus implores the Jews to find shelter under His everlasting arms of love. There is a haven of rest for the weary and a balm for the troubled heart, and the rejected Savior provides that consolation. However, those who persist in rejecting the Master will not abide therein. In teaching "the whole counsel of God" (Acts 20:27), we dare not eliminate the unpleasant and challenging material that some call "negative teaching." As Jeremiah and Paul were commanded to tear down, pluck out, destroy, reprove, rebuke and exhort, so must gospel preachers today loyally proclaim the full truth (2 Cor. 10:3-6; 2 Tim. 4:1-8; Jude 3). It is as Raccoon John Smith the old pioneer preacher once told a startled audience: "I must remove the rocks, pull up the weeds and move out the stumps before I can plant the good seed of the kingdom, the word of God, in the hearts and lives of people."

    Jesus was so bold and unrelenting in His preaching that His contemporaries thought another prophet had come upon the scene, or that John the Immerser had been revived (Matt. 16:13-15). Some even thought He was "Jeremiah or one of the prophets," who had been sent by God to warn and chasten a rebellious people. No one acclaimed Jesus as a "crowd-pleaser" or a "compromiser!" Christ was tender (John 11:35) and considerate (John 19:27), but He was also very practical (Mark  3:35) and even clever (Matt. 21:25). But in all of His teaching, He set high goals for  living and was always demanding (Luke 9:60-62).

    Although our Savior was motivated by such love for lost sinners that He "tasted death for every man" (Heb. 2:9; 1 John 2:2), He also gave dire warning to those for whom He died. "I have this against thee, that thou didst leave thy first love. Remember therefore whence thou art fallen, and repent and do the first works...Thou hast a name that thou livest, and thou art dead... I have found not works of thine perfected before my God. Remember therefore how thou hast received and didst hear; and keep it, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come as a thief and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee" (Rev. 2:4-5; 3:1-3). Jesus sharply pronounced the eternal doom of many when He pictured the judgment to come, in which He will state to the lost: "Depart from me, ye cursed, into the eternal fire which is prepared for the devil and his angels... and these shall go away into eternal punishment" (Matt. 25:41,46). Jesus Was Both Good and Severe Jesus did not agree with everyone, nor did He shun controversy. He had not come to earth to please men, but to save them. We are also to have that purpose: "Hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, that ye should follow his steps" (1 Pet. 2:21). Some brethren, under the guise of humility, will not rebuke error or condemn sin or practice church discipline.  The only aspect of the life of the Lord that they seem to notice is that of tenderness. But notice the characteristics, seemingly opposites, that belong to Him: "Behold then the goodness and the severity of God" (Rom. 11:22). Just as a gentle mother slaps her baby hard to keep her from choking, so God chastens those whom He loves and "scourgeth every son whom he receiveth" (Heb. 12:6). We dare not pick and choose which characteristics of Jesus to admire; we must be like Him in every  way. Every facet of the Divine One should challenge our attention.

    Yes, Jesus was meek and gentle (2 Cor. 10:1), but He was also exacting, straightforward, demanding and unbending (Mark 9:43-48; John 8:21; Luke 13:3; Matt. 12:30). At the first and the last of His personal ministry (John 2 and Mark 11), Jesus ran the money changers out of the temple in an awesome display of righteous indignation. The apostles witnessed that and were reminded of Psa. 69:9  and the famous words, "The zeal of thine house hath eaten me up." Evidently some of us are not very zealous, for we never get excited enough about error, sacrilege and blasphemy to even raise a whisper against such matters.

    We must conclude, therefore, that some folk want to be like Jesus only in the characteristics that are palatable to them. The full Bible account of what Jesus was REALLY like would truly shock many casual, traditional members of the church. If we were to truly "stamp His own image deep on our hearts," as the great song suggests, I guarantee we would be more militant against sin and more outspoken against error! Everybody knows of the love of the Lord, but many seem oblivious to the fact of His wrath. Justice demands a proper view of these matters, lest we concoct a vision or mirage of our own imagination and then become disenchanted when we meet the real Jesus on the pages of the Bible.

    What was Jesus really like? We all need to read again the Bible story, lest we grope around the scaffolding of His life like "the blind men of Hindustan" who each gave his impression of what an elephant looked like; and never really get to the super-structure of divine revelation on the matter. Such a study would be a real adventure for any honest student. Matthew, Mark, Luke and John are waiting to tell us the complete story of who Jesus wasas well as who He now is.  Do you know the real Jesus? If not, we would appreciate an opprotunity to assist you in learning about Him and about His will for you and for us all. Call us at 1 (309) 347-3582 or Ken at 347-5645.  An article edited by Kenneth E. Thomas with parts from an article by Johnny Ramsey, another gospel preacher.