This is such a loaded question. So loaded in fact that I had to break it up into different posts. I’m furloughed from work at the moment, and this has been weighing heavily on my mind over the past few weeks. I wonder if he would be pleased with what I am doing, or would I bring shame to him because of the front I put on, the masks I wear, or the things I do in private?
What if Jesus was walking around right now doing the same things he did in the “Bible Days”?
How would he be received?
Would people listen to him compared to the many distractions we have now that they did not have back then?
What if Jesus was alive today?
A regular day back then was so much simpler than it is today. What if Jesus were alive today? How would leaders treat him? How would the masses treat him? Would he have the following he had? Would he be written off as a crazy cult leader?
Read: How to Hear God’s Voice
So many questions and I am sorry to say not enough answers. I just want to plant the seed in the mind of the person reading this. What if Jesus were alive today?
We kind of have a small glimpse into how it would be through a show called “Messiah”. It is on Netflix now and it is exactly as the question asks, what if Jesus were alive today? With cell phones and background checks. Social Media and the 24-hour news cycle. It went into detail about how the crowds flocked to him because he gave them hope.
But the leaders of the world didn’t like this because he had no agenda other than helping people. He was not trying to make as much money as possible. He was not trying to build a multimedia conglomerate with selling books, television shows, and podcasts. He went into the world where the people who needed his help were and helped them.
Helping those in need
Plain and simple. I know I am guilty of this. Living in the suburbs and going to a not yet megachurch. I go about my routine of going to work, the gym, the grocery store. I tithe and teach middle school youths. Go to soccer practice and school functions. Go on a date night and stay in my ‘little world’ here and there. But rarely do I go out and help those in need on the front lines.
I pray the money I tithe makes it further than I ever would. I usually do like most people and not give to the guy begging at the stoplight because I convinced myself that he would buy drugs or alcohol. I like to pretend that not committing crimes and raising my kids right is the best I can do to make the world a better place.
Modern-day Pharisees
Jesus did not worry himself with the busyness of his life and I believe that if he were alive today he would tire of the busyness his publicist would demand that he maintain and eventually fire everyone on his staff so he could be about his father’s business. How would he handle big-time heavyweights that are trying to take him down? The modern-day Pharisees.
They would not understand how someone so powerful would not be interested in being rich and in control. That would confuse them. They would be skeptical because he would not want to be controlled by their super PAC contributions and even more frustrated because they could not find dirt on him during opposition research that they could use. What does he want?
They would ask and not believe their analysts when they say that he only wants to help people be better. To love God with all their hearts, to love their neighbor, and help people that cannot help themselves. He would go around convincing people that they are worth it. That the world is a better place with them in it. You do not need to be rich to be valuable and happy. To turn the other cheek. To love people who look, and act differently than they do. This would blow all their projections, charts, and graphs.
This is part one where I am just planting the seed with this question. What if Jesus were alive today? I want to dig deeper into this more as it pertains to us in 2020. If you get a chance watch the show, Messiah. It is not necessary though.
Let me know in the comment sections how you think Jesus would be received if he were alive today. I intentionally titled it this because I know Jesus is alive and well in all the hearts of the people who believe in him. So, I want to show how Jesus is speaking to me that I am not living a life that is pleasing to him based on how I am alive, and he is living within me.
Take this journey with me and let us learn about ourselves some more and see what God is saying to us. Part II coming soon.
Prescott Williamson is a Bible-believing Christian. He is a husband, a father, and someone who believes that there is a little humor to be found in whatever situation God sends your way. He was born in the small islands of the Bahamas but now lives in the Suburbs of Fort Worth Texas, which is basically the same thing. He enjoys TV, reading, blogging and serving in his church (especially on the days they serve donuts). You can see what I have been thinking about lately on my blog www.prescottascoolbreeze.com.
