Jesus was not perfect. Check your pulse, cause that’s what I heard. Is that true? Would someone say that if it wasn’t? I don’t know. Who would say such a thing? Hogwash. Jesus was perfect, Jesus is still perfect, and Jesus always will be perfect.
I try to stay out of the news frenzy and stick to my farm frenzy, there’s enough feathers flying here to keep me busy, but sometimes we’re called to stand in the world. Now’s one of those times. I’m going to stand, but probably not for the reasons you’re thinking. Not because I want to go toe-to-toe with a non-believer, you can’t be a believer without believing…believing that Jesus Christ died as a substitute for your sins, for my sins, is imperative to the faith. And since God is perfect, He cannot tolerate sin. So if God sent His Dear Son to atone for our sins, His Son had to be sinless. It’s really as simple as that. But don’t take my word for it, get out your Bible and see for yourself, as a Believer that’s our responsibility – to know what we believe. Not just to know what we believe, but to act on our belief, to live our belief.
Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens. He never changes or casts a shifting shadow. He chose to give birth to us by giving us his true word. And we, out of all creation, became his prized possession. James 1:17-18
Just in case you were wondering, God is not only good, but anything from God is perfect, including His Son. The Bible says so.
For you know that God paid a ransom to save you from the empty life you inherited from your ancestors. And it was not paid with mere gold or silver, which lose their value. It was the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God. God chose him as your ransom long before the world began, but now in these last days he has been revealed for your sake. 1 Peter 1:18-20
Back to why I’m taking a stand – statements like Jesus was not perfect, assaults on our beliefs without provocation and frankly without accurate information, are dangerous for Christians. At first I was like, wow, really, journalism gone amuck, and I moved to the next article. As I thought about that statement – Jesus was not perfect – I started to get angry. When you spread lies about my Lord like that, them’s fightin’ words. I have to keep reminding myself that those who speak such words were too created by God and potentially Children of the Perfect God. But the possible consequences of such a statement for the Believer is a clear and present danger.
You see, in this world today there’s a lot of information and we really have to figure out what is true and what is false. It’s quite a chore, isn’t it, deciphering? It’s just plain exhausting. Does anyone else out there get downright tired of it and turnoff and tune out, or am I alone? Should we just let the world say what it wants to say and frankly make excuses for them? No, with unapologetic grace, we take a stand. So, you’re probably saying yea, yea, yea, get to the point, Beth! Here goes…
My biggest fear with statements like that is that we won’t be appalled, that we won’t be offended, that statements like that won’t make us flinch, that they won’t make us grieve for ignorance, that they won’t cut us to the quick, that we simply ignore them and move on to the next great drama of the world or that we curl into the fetal position clutching our Bibles to our bellies, either way accepting what is said and having no response. The danger in that is that eventually we won’t care what’s said about our God. We become desensitized to the world. Desensitizing is acceptance. We may say we disagree with the world, but we will come to accept the world’s positions on our beliefs. If you think that is not true, simply look around you – look at our families, look at our towns, look at our workplaces, look on our streets, look at our governments. Believing that the world cannot erode our beliefs is super naïve and downright deadly.
Of course, as Believers we know the battles belong to the Lord, but we also have to know that those battles are fought through us, with His power. To be honest, I struggle with how to address those comments that offend me lest I be offensive. Or is that an excuse on my part, and I’m content being inert? I seem to have no trouble knowing how to address other things in my life, you know – work situations, family situations, friend situations.
Here’s my other problem with statements like that – people believe them! If there are those out there who claim to be Christians believe that Jesus was not perfect, how much more will people who don’t claim to be Christians believe that Jesus was not perfect. Scores. Just ask them.
You don’t have to believe what I believe (but I wish you would), but don’t state my beliefs incorrectly, don’t get my beliefs wrong. As Christians do we know what we believe? Do we believe the Bible, the inerrant Word of God? Do we believe parts of the Bible, you know, only the stuff that makes us feel good? We cannot pick and choose. It’s an all or none thing. God is an all or none God. We cannot serve two masters. We cannot serve God and ourselves.
Frankly, I’m not exactly sure how to stand against such fallacy. More likely I do and I’m just afraid to – if I’m honest, that’s really more like it. I do know I cannot speak against such lies if I do not know the truth myself – that’s my responsibility, no one elses – not my husband’s, my parents’, my friends’, my family’s, my churches. I must not rely on anyone else for information about my beliefs. That’s on me. And, I do know that I must stand on the truth and speak the truth. But, the most important thing I know is that where I stand, I do not stand alone – where I go, I do not go alone – the Perfect One who was beaten, whipped, abused, crucified and hung on the Cross for my sins goes before me. What wonderous Love is this, oh my soul.
Finally, build up your strength in union with the Lord and by means of his mighty power. Put on all the armor that God gives you, so that you will be able to stand up against the Devil’s evil tricks. For we are not fighting against human beings but against the wicked spiritual forces in the heavenly world, the rulers, authorities, and cosmic powers of this dark age. So put on God’s armor now! Then when the evil day comes, you will be able to resist the enemy’s attacks; and after fighting to the end, you will still hold your ground.
So stand ready, with truth as a belt tight around your waist, with righteousness as your breastplate, and as your shoes the readiness to announce the Good News of peace. At all times carry faith as a shield; for with it you will be able to put out all the burning arrows shot by the Evil One. And accept salvation as a helmet, and the word of God as the sword which the Spirit gives you. Do all this in prayer, asking for God’s help. Pray on every occasion, as the Spirit leads. For this reason keep alert and never give up; pray always for all God’s people. And pray also for me, that God will give me a message when I am ready to speak, so that I may speak boldly and make known the gospel’s secret. For the sake of this gospel I am an ambassador, though now I am in prison. Pray that I may be bold in speaking about the gospel as I should. Ephesians 6:10-20
Just for the record, the statement is patently false — Jesus was perfect, a Spotless Lamb to be exact. Don’t ever forget that! Don’t ever let anyone say different about your Savior, your Lord, without correcting them. It could be a matter of eternity for them.