Lego Jesus seems friendly huh?

Remember how I said we like to make Jesus look more like us? As in, we seem more comfortable making Jesus look like, think like, and act like us rather than the other way around. We like to make Jesus align with our politics, our nationalism, and our denominationalism. Don’t believe me? Take a look down the streets of your town an tell me how many different churches there are. How many different brands of “Christian” are represented?

We like Jesus to agree with us, to be like us… even though it is supposed to be the other way around.

Still not sure you buy that?

Have a Look For Yourself:

 

 

So… It Gets Worse Though…

Not only do we let our own ethnicity influence the images we create depicting Jesus, we seem more than comfortable taking it a step further.

 

This Jesus May Be The Worst Of All

Especially since I have seen people post it, and not in an ironic way.

So what do you think? Do we have a problem church? Are we more interested in making Jesus look like us than looking more like Him? Even if it’s just figurative…

Sure, some could say I am only adding to the problem making a hipster version of Jesus, and I can appreciate the sentiment. However, my motivation is to spark conversations about real issues within the church. All this, all the silly “Jesus” images above, are just that, silly. What isn’t silly is those who claim to follow Jesus but seem to do the opposite of the things He taught.

So I will close with this… Are you working harder at getting Jesus to agree with your politics than you are actually letting your politics reflect who Jesus is? Do you spend more time convincing yourself Jesus would approve of your actions than you actually do reading the things He called His followers to do? Are you more interested in being the right “brand” of Jesus follower, participating in theological arguments whenever possible to show you know more about Jesus than anyone else?

As a millennial, I can tell you it is the thing that bothers me and other millennials most about the church. It is entrenched in so much of the “churchy” things done in Jesus name. It is also why so many like me have chosen to give up on the church instead of confronting the issues they see within it.

While it’s comical, it becomes less humorous when it affects how we actually live out our calling…

Acts 1:8 (CEB)

⁸ Rather, you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

Jesus said we would be his witness, not the other way around…

Food for thought.

Until next time…

Peace out!!!