Who, being inherently in the form of God, deems it not pillaging to be equal with God, nevertheless empties Himself, taking the form of a slave, coming to be in the likeness of humanity
Paul to the Philippians 2: 6-7, Concordant New Testament Translation
Here's a question for all of you out there who claim to know Jesus. Would you know Jesus if you saw Him? What would He look like? Would He resemble those illustrations we've all seen in the children's bibles and paintings? That traditional image of Jesus we've all been accustomed to seeing? Indeed, there have been many illustrations and paintings done over that past few hundred years that depict the image of Jesus which the church wants us to see. But what is the true image of Him? For myself, I did not realize the true image of Christ until I had been out of the church for more than a few years. Up until then, my image of Jesus was exactly what I saw in the bible illustrations and paintings of Him. An unkempt, bearded man, sometimes sporting a halo over His head, sometimes not. In 2008, Christian author Wayne Jacobsen penned a book titled "So you don't want to go to church anymore." In it, the main character has encounters with an individual which he suspects resembles (In characteristics) the apostle John. So, along those lines, would you recognize Jesus if you were to encounter Him on the street? What would you be expecting He would look like? Well, you might be surprised to learn that you may have already encountered Him more times than you can count. You might be even more surprised to know that you are more than able to enjoy that personal relationship with Christ Jesus, but you simply have not realized the truth of who you are in Him. That's right, you and Jesus linked together in an unshakable bond. The apostle Paul speaks to this union in Galatians. Paul proclaims that "Yet I am living; no longer I, but living in me is Christ" {Paul to the Galatians 2:20}. Paul understood that his life as he once knew it, was no more. Having been crucified with Christ, what was once his life as he knew it, was now Jesus in Him. Or, for lack of a better definition, He in Christ.
In the book of John, Jesus has proclaimed that we now live in union with He and the Father {Johns Account 14:20}. So, I ask you again, would you know Jesus if you were to encounter Him? I would suggest that the Jesus you've been looking for looks nothing like you expected. One of the most difficult truths which I have struggled to unpack is the truth that I live as Jesus. Follow me here, we know that Paul has spoken to the truth that we no longer live, but Jesus lives within us. We know that Jesus Himself has proclaimed that we now live within the love of the Father. So, knowing this truth, what does Jesus look like? Well, how about this, try taking a look in the mirror. What you see is who you really are, a reflection of Christ in Whom you now live. The sad part of this is that the mainstream church has tried to deflect this truth for over 1500 years. This is why it has been so difficult for me to address that it is not I who live, but that I live within the Father. Trust me, 1500 years of church teachings are difficult to overcome. But this in no way diminishes the fact that we now live within God. Through Jesus, we have been reconciled once again unto Him {Paul to the Corinthians (2) 5:18-20}. The church will tell us that sin has separated us from God, but this is but one lie spoken by those within the Christian religion. For Jesus Himself, and we as well, have died to sin "Once for all time" {Paul to the Romans 6:10}. Those within the church will wring their hands upon hearing this. They will say, "What about our daily sin?" Fortunately, Paul gives us his response to this in his evangel. As he proclaims, "We, who died to sin, how shall we still be living in it?" {Paul to the Romans 6:2}. Indeed, the Jesus you have been looking for is most likely not the savior you were expecting to see. Not only do you look like Him, you ARE Him.
Yet all is of God, Who conciliates us to Himself through Christ, and is giving us the dispensation of the conciliation, how that God was in Christ, conciliating the world to Himself, not reckoning their offenses to them, and placing us in the word of the conciliation.
Paul to the Corinthians (2) 5: 18-19, Concordant New Testament Translation
~Scott~
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