The good news is that Jesus is one of the most popular figures of history. A few years ago, a polling company asked Americans of all faiths and no faith who they thought was the most popular historical figure. Jesus, alas, didn’t come in first. He was beaten by Abraham Lincoln. But a 90 percent popularity rating is cause for rejoicing, right?
The problem, of course, is that the Jesus of the popular modern imagination bears little resemblance to the Jesus testified to by the Gospel accounts and historical records. The Jesus we all like is mostly a projection of our own desires and needs, a bobble-headed deity who agrees with everything we say and do.
The popularity and malleability of Jesus in our day makes him an unwilling accomplice to politicians, entertainers, and religious charlatans. The more Jesus is used and abused in the pursuit of someone else’s goals, the harder it is to determine where the Jesus of our imaginations ends and the Jesus of history begins. This issue of Modern Reformation is intended to help us remember the profound revelation given to Peter’that Jesus is the Christ, the son of the living God (Matt. 16:15).
In this ‘Discipleship Issue,’ the feature articles are presented under three main headings. First, ‘Who Is Jesus?’ To answer that question, we’ve asked popular author and speaker Nancy Guthrie to trace the promise of Jesus, the Lamb of God, through the Bible. Scott Swain, professor of systematic theology at Reformed Theological Seminary (Orlando), helps us understand the most significant mystery of Jesus’ identity: the union in his one person of both divine and human natures.
Our second main section asks the question, ‘Who Isn’t Jesus?’ Kim Riddlebarger, cohost of the White Horse Inn, unmasks many of the false Jesuses in the history of the church; and David Zahl, executive director of Mockingbird Ministries, takes us on a rousing romp through pop culture’s vain imagination of Jesus.
Our third and final section, ‘Following Jesus,’ takes up the task of discipleship, because knowing Jesus isn’t just an intellectual exercise; it is the first step of a pilgrimage. Mika Edmondson, an inner-city Presbyterian church planter, helps us see how we participate in the kingdom Jesus is bringing; and Pastor Tim Keller returns to our pages with his sermon, ‘Come and See.’
If you are already a faithful disciple of Jesus, then read this issue and renew your worship of the God-man who even now rules and reigns at the Father’s right hand.
If you are curious about Jesus or skeptical of his claims, then work your way through these articles and encounter a Jesus who is often reimagined for our own era but whose radical message of forgiveness and grace still rings true.
