Who Is Jesus - The Question That Matters Most

Does the idea of talking to someone from another faith make your hands sweat and your heart race? My passion for apologetics, the arguments and evidence in support of the Christian faith, was fueled by fear that I would one day be talking to someone and not be able to respond to their question or objection even though Jesus told us not to worry about this (Matthew 10).

In time I realized that I was going about it the wrong way. Apologetics is a powerful way to address objections and an encouragement to know that our faith is based on reason and evidence as well as the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit. But these discussions become a distraction when we neglect to focus on the one thing that matters.

Who Is Jesus?

The next time you have the opportunity to speak with someone from another faith or world view, you can get straight to the point by asking that question. Then just listen to their response and their story. In 1 John 4-1:4 we are told that the question, "Who is Jesus?" is the litmus test. Then it's not an issue if you don't know everything about everything, though knowing the history and background of the major world views is an excellent subject of study.

In Acts and the rest of the New Testament, we find that the apostles spent most of their time explaining and clarifying who Jesus is and what the impact of that is.

So, who is Jesus? Knowing the answer to that question is key so I've listed a few statements and references to get you thirsty. These are just a sample because the roles and identity of Jesus can be found described throughout the Bible.

• King - Lord over all creation (John 1, Revelation 19) and He will return to judge and rule (Matthew 25).
• Man - Jesus came to Earth as a human but did not sin (2 Corinthians 5, Philippians 2). God's creation is good but mired in sin (Romans 8). If Jesus was willing to come to the Earth as a man, and He proclaimed His creation very good then Christians should love their bodies and creation and not seek liberation from it.
• Priest/Savior - Died and resurrected as an offering for our sins (Isaiah 53, Hebrews 10) so we could be reconciled to God and be in relationship with Him.
• God - The Son submits to the Father while remaining fully God (John 14, 15, 17). His divinity is affirmed by all the creeds, the New Testament, and references to the Messiah throughout the Bible. Therefore Jesus has all the attributes of God such as being eternal, holy, and omnipotent.
• Just and righteous - God has always been about justice which means to set things right. He is for the poor and the underdog (Psalm 82, Isaiah 58) and His return and reign over creation will restore (Isaiah 65). God is accused of being intolerant and harsh but if you read closely He is compassionate, slow to anger (Genesis 15, Numbers 14) and wanting to see everyone repent and follow Him (Ezekiel 18, John 3, 2 Peter 3). Whether it is the Israelites or you and me, He has given us a lifetime to choose to learn about Him and love Him and even when we push Him away, He continues to pursue us.

Again these are just a few of Jesus' roles and scripture that supports these claims. It's important that we know who Jesus is so we can reveal misconceptions and clear the way for people to have a fruitful relationship with Jesus.

Perhaps you've found the end of yourself. Your world view and attempts to reach God or success have fallen short and you're not sure what to do. Jesus is with you. He died for you so you can be reconciled to God and have a relationship with Him again (2 Corinthians 5). Seek Jesus!

Blessings from a Broken Radio Part 2

Its the beginning of the year, that means many of us resolved to read the Bible in a year. Like many other resolutions this may be something you are struggling with. Changing habits is difficult and takes a lot of effort, but this is a resolution worth keeping.

Did you know the average commute time in the U.S. is about 25 minutes? In part one I shared how I used my daily two hour commute to memorize scripture. Since moving my commute is a little shorter and I no longer have a car with a broken radio. Nonetheless I wanted to continue using this time to deepen my faith and understanding of God.

I am experimenting with an audio version for my year through the Bible. This is in addition to memorization and any study I may give to a particular passage. It may be hard for us to imagine the Bible before it was a book. While the Word of God has been kept in collections e.g. Torah, Psalms it was only a few who could read it and even fewer who owned a copy. Before the printing press and efforts to translate the Scriptures into other languages, Synagogue and Church were the primary place a believer could hear the Word (sadly many cultures still do not have a copy of the Word in their own language). While it is a blessing to have a copy of the Bible in one's own language and be able to read and reread it deeply, we must acknowledge that for most of history, the scriptures were primarily heard and remembered.

I tried the Logos ESV audio book but eventually went with the Audible NIV audio book because I could listen to it offline, it synced with the last place I listened, and I could turn off the screen while listening.

Positives

• I'm getting a great overview of the Bible. Listening for about one hour a day on my commute takes me through a few chapters a day. After listening for only a couple of months, I'm already at 1 Kings (11th out of the 66 books in the Christian Bible).  This provided me with a great survey of the Torah and the history of early Israel that would have been difficult for me to gain by daily reading.
• My brain seems to remember the stories and events better by listening than I ever have by reading them.
• No excuse to miss my daily time in the Bible.

Difficulties

• It's difficult to pause/go back (although the Audible app makes it fairly simple) to something I heard. If I hear something I want to study more deeply, I need to make a note to go back to it.
• This would be no different if I was reading the Bible, but the names are not common to modern ears and so it is easy to get lost and mix up names.
• I was on a two hour road trip and I thought this would be a perfect time to listen, but since I was on an unfamiliar road I found it harder to listen than on my commute where I don't need to think about which exit I need to take.

All in all I think this is a good experiment and will be really helpful in giving me a better mental view of what was said and when events took place. I'll continue this for the rest of my read through the Bible this year and update the post with the experience for the poetical books (Psalms), Gospels, Epistles, and whether or not I would do it again. If you have even a 20 minute commute, I would recommend giving this a try as a way to keep you in God's Word every day.

Blessings from a Broken Radio Part 1

A few months ago the radio on my car stopped working. Ok, it might be more correct to say, it didn't fully retract when I was getting a car wash. With a commute of an hour each way, I knew I would go crazy if I couldn't find something to do. Thankfully, in the Bible study group I attended at our church in San Jose, we were given the task of memorizing scripture (specifically Romans 12). This was something I had done years ago when I worked the night shift in the Navy but sadly had neglected for years (among other parts of my faith).

Is memorizing scripture really for every believer?

Think about how many songs you know the lyrics to. You may be surprised that it is easily over 100. This means that up to this point you have memorized enough lyrics to equal two books of the Bible. I have yet to meet someone who was incapable of remembering a song (even toddlers can sing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star). In addition to the lyrics, think of all of the names, email addresses, stories, and more that we remember as part of our daily lives.

We take for granted that we can read the Bible but prior to the printing press, believers were required to remember what scripture they heard. In Jesus' day everyone who was able had memorized many parts of the Torah as a child and those who were to become disciples of great Rabbis had memorized the entire Torah (approximately 5888 verses)!

Keeping scripture in our minds, and on our hears was never intended only for some believers (Proverbs 4:21, Deuteronomy 11:18, Hebrews 10:16). Just as Jesus and the Apostles used scripture to overcome sin (Matthew 4:10), share the good news (John 3:16), encourage and rebuke (Matthew 21:16, 21:42), pray (Matthew 27:46). Scripture is valuable for training in righteousness (2 Timothy 3:16), standing against sin (Psalm 119:11) and the forces of evil in the world (Ephesians 6:11), encouraging one another (Hebrews 10:24), and sharing what God has done in our lives (1 Peter 3:15)

So if it is possible for each of us to remember large amounts of text and each of us are to do it then is there something mystical about it? In many ways no. Memorizing scripture is in practice no different and can rely upon many of the common memory tricks and tactics that worked in school. The important thing to take note of is this is a skill and even if we are all capable to some degree, it requires effort in order to do it and to become better at it.

Be encouraged by the fact that, no matter what you might think you are capable of memorizing, God will bless your efforts. I can't begin to tell you how much it has impacted my relationship with God. It gives the Holy Spirit words to share with you and it will deepen your ability to follow Christ.

Getting started

While everyone is different, here are some tips I've learned from myself and my education background:

1. Make a plan. It's not enough to want to do it. You have to set yourself up to succeed. We find time for what we consider important and you would be surprised at how you can find a few minutes here and there. For me it was the traffic in the morning or the night watch shift in the Navy. Instead of wandering around aimlessly on the Internet when standing in line bored, why not practice and mediate on your verses? It helps pass the time and you'll finish with a much better attitude and refreshed spirit.
   
   Like any skill it takes time for this to become a habit but it will become easier over time. You wouldn't expect to learn a new language or build muscle without repetition, practice, and time and so it is the same with memorizing scripture.
   
   This should go without saying but find verses that fit your needs and that you love. Everyone has a different walk and personal relationship and while there are many verses that would benefit everyone, memorization is most satisfying and enjoyable when you discover them for yourself. If you are looking for a good place to start, here are the most popular verses searched for on Bible Gateway.


2. Get the right tools and know the tricks. I used to carry a large stack of flashcards I made from index cards cut in half. Nowadays there are great apps for smartphones as well. I use Remember Me and I know a few people who use Remember Anything for iOS. The Bible was meant to be remembered so use the time tested methods (TED Video, Wikipedia). Some of the most helpful for me are to look for patterns (e.g. the alphabetical order of the gifts in Romans 12:6-8 prophecy, serving, teaching...encourage, giving, leading, mercy) and chunking (useful for 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 and Galatians 5:22-23). Try and visualize the situation written about or at least the words in your mind. This is especially useful for the Gospels and is exactly the reason that Jesus talked in parables so many would remember them.
   
   If you can give it a rhythm you'll find they'll stick with you more easily. This has been the approach of the Cantor, the Church hymn writers and even the Psalmists of the Bible took this approach to ensure the words would be remembered.

For those who need a more formal plan and guide, this is a great resource that has helped many memorize verses and even entire entire books: An Approach to Extended Memorization of Scripture.


3. Don't become mechanical. If you're a reader of the BrokenAirplane blog you know I'm not a big fan of memorization for learning sake unless it is applied. These are the Holy Scriptures, the Word of God and for it to have an effect it must be meditated on (Psalm 1:2) and applied (James 1:22) You can have a lot of knowledge but not be putting it into practice which is even worse because we will each stand before God and answer for how we used our talents. There are times when I get focused on the memorization and forget to slow down and reflect and appreciate what it is saying.

I wish you well as your practicing the discipline of memorizing and mediating on the Word of God. I pray that you will never find yourself bored in traffic again and that you will find strength and wisdom in the Word. Let this and everything you do be all for His glory.