Sometimes, as I read the Gospels, I wonder what I would have thought about Jesus if I had been there to actually see and hear Him for myself. The Bible says absolutely nothing about His physical appearance so I think He must have been very ordinary looking - kinda Plain Jane. No doubt His miracles would have been very impressive to me but His claims that He was God's Son - how would I have responded to that? And what about when said that He could rebuild the Temple in 3 days (He was talking about His body), or that I needed to eat His flesh and drink His blood in order to be saved, or that God was His Father, a very bold and striking claim for His day.
The problem with reading the Gospel accounts of Jesus 2000 years later is that we no longer live in the context of when they happened. We forget just how radical Jesus' statements were. Perhaps the best way to put this in context is how would we respond to a human being today who claimed to be God? The truth is that I don't know how I would have responded to Jesus. I hope that I would have seen and felt something deep within my spirit and would have responded favorably to Him.
Back in October 1979, I wrote the following song. I never sang it publicly because it ended up being 9+ minutes long! The song portrays the thoughts I have mentioned here - how would I have responded to Jesus if I had lived when He lived. If you're interested in this subject a good book to read is The Jesus I Never Knew by Phillip Yancey. It is very challenging and thought-provoking. Feel free to comment on your thoughts of this post. Meanwhile, enjoy the song!
LIVING IN THE TIME OF JESUS
I wonder if I had been born, in a different time and place,
Living two thousand years ago, born in the Jewish race,
Striving in vain to reach the Lord, how pious I would have been,
Bringing many burnt offerings, to save me from my sins.
Going to the synagogue, to hear the Law and pray,
For the promised Messiah, to come and save the day,
The cursed Roman soldiers, were everywhere I would go,
I wanted the Messiah, to kill the Romans so.
It was dark and desperate time, for over four hundred years,
No prophet had been sent from God, to wipe away our tears,
People had lost their faith in God, religion was stiff and dry,
So many thieves and publicans, ‘twas better off to die.
Living in the time of Jesus, walking by His side,
Watch Him feed the hungry people, and calm the angry tide,
Healing the lame and cleansing lepers, and even raise the dead,
But if He asked me if I’d follow, what would I have said?
One day I heard about a man, who had come from Galilee,
Jesus was the name of him, His trade was carpentry,
It seems that He could preach with power, a prophet they said He was,
They say that He’ll be here tomorrow, I’ll see how good He does.
Can’t forget the first time I saw Him, I could tell Him right away,
Stern and strong, yet oh so gentle, my heart began to sway,
“The kingdom of God is at hand, I, the Messiah, am here,
Listen to My Father calling, He loves you, oh, so dear”
Children they especially liked Him, they would sit right by His feet,
There were so many people ‘round, that you couldn’t find a seat,
Four hundred years had come and gone, a prophet was here at last,
The people flocked to hear Him preach, ‘til evening shadows cast.
Living in the time of Jesus, walking by His side,
Watch Him feed the hungry people, and calm the angry tide,
Healing the lame and cleansing lepers, and even raise the dead,
But if He asked me if I’d follow, what would I have said?
He said that we should love our neighbors, and even the Romans too,
Who’d ever think of loving them, why certainly, not a Jew,
If someone should try to do you wrong, turn the cheek is what He’d say,
Don’t follow after worldly treasures, but walk in the narrow way.
He ate with publicans and sinners, imagine a king to be,
Should have more sense than to hang around, the filth of society,
Needless to say He wasn’t liked, by the priests and Pharisees,
The only emotions they could feel, were hate and jealousy,
I’ve seen Him do great miracles, it’s a fact I can’t deny,
I know that if I follow Him, that I may have to die,
Sometimes I don’t know what to think, He’s a rebel like they say,
I know I’ll have to make a choice, to follow or turn away.
Living in the time of Jesus, walking by His side,
Watch Him feed the hungry people, and calm the angry tide,
Healing the lame and cleansing lepers, and even raise the dead,
But if He asked me if I’d follow, what would I have said?
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