Real Jesus - New Evangelizers

Way back in my Catholic school days, I could never figure out why folks in the Bible couldn’t figure out Jesus was the real Jesus.  Pilot…clueless. Caiaphas…clueless. The Jewish mob…clueless.  How could all these people miss Jesus? Couldn’t they see that guy standing in front of them glowing and not realize there’s something very, very special about him?

I grew up in Catholic school and a Catholic home which translates to lots of Jesus pictures around. In portraits on the walls, pictures in the classrooms, and illustrations in religion books, Jesus always seemed to have a “glow” about him.

Seriously. Have you ever noticed?

When I grew up (Okay, got older), reality set in. Jesus probably really didn’t glow like he does with the artist’s interpretations in the portraits and illustrations of my youth. He was God-made-man, regular flesh-and-blood.

Jesus did not come with flash and fanfare. He didn’t come with a marketing team and a sweet ad campaign. Jesus came as a simple man; a simple man fully loaded with a fresh serving of God’s power. He lived and He loved. He was gentle and He lost his temper. He created and He healed. He was a friend and He was an enemy.

What if I would have been a contemporary of Jesus?

• Would I have been one of the mob screaming for His crucifixion?
• Would I have realized and appreciated the power of the five loaves and fishes as I reclined on the hill surrounded by the cool crowd gathered to hear the latest from the indigent preacher from Nazareth?
• Would I have doubted Him?

I don’t know if I like my answers to these questions.

Would I recognize Jesus if He arrived in 2014? I don’t know. I doubt He would have any kind of a glow to make the recognition easier. It would take my leap of faith based solely on His message and, honestly, it would take a level of belief I am not sure I have.

Hard questions to ask ourselves. Questions we need to ask as we head into the Lenten season and begin to self-evaluate our faith.

There is good news, though. Jesus may not have had an outward physical glow in real life, but His message draws us like a beacon in the night. The faith He triggers in our hearts glows inside us and we should let it shine from within us. We should glow in our faith; glow so all the world knows the power of the REAL JESUS.

We should not let others guess to what lies in our hearts.

We should not be timid with our faith.

We should let is shine.

Copyright 2014, Mike Hays

Mike Hays

Mike Hays is a husband, a father of three, a lifelong Kansan and works as a molecular microbiologist. Besides writing, he has been a high school strength and conditioning coach, a football coach and a baseball coach. His debut middle grade historical fiction novel, THE YOUNGER DAYS, is a 2012 recipient of The Catholic Writer's Guild Seal of Approval Award. You can find it at the publisher's website or on Amazon.