In addition to listening to Michael Card teach this week, I’ve started rereading a Philip Yancey book The Jesus I Never Knew. Between these two teachers I’m being immersed in a good measure of Jesus’s humanity. Theologians have decided (and most of the Church agrees) that Jesus was “both fully human and fully divine.” I can’t quite imagine what being “fully divine” (fully God) would be like, but it’s remarkable that Jesus would give that up to become human.
“Though he was God,
he did not think of equality with God
as something to cling to.
Instead, he gave up his divine privileges;
he took the humble position of a slave
and was born as a human being.
When he appeared in human form,
he humbled himself in obedience to God
and died a criminal’s death on a cross.” (Philippians 2:6-8 NLT)
Michael Card says that the Gospels aren’t intended to be biographies but testimonies. They do not try to fill in all the blanks about his childhood, education, jobs, life experiences, and the other things we’d expect in a biography. Instead, they are testimonies to his life, miracles, teachings, work, and the invitation we have to enter into the Kingdom of God through the life of Jesus.
But, who is Jesus the man? Card gave us “sketches” of Jesus. Think about incorporating these into your Biblical Imagination about your Savior.
- Jesus was about 5’6″ – the average height of a man of that place and time according to archeology
- His hair was about 3″ long (not shoulder length as we see in paintings and pictures) – typical for that culture and time
- He wore a knee-length tunic with a mantle (blanket with fringe) over it – typical for that culture
- Jesus spoke Hebrew, Greek, and Aramaic
- He was looked down upon as uneducated because he grew up in Galilee and couldn’t pronounce certain syllables correctly
- He probably had at least four brothers (James, Judas [Jude], Simon, and Joses) and at least two sisters (Matthew 13:55-56, Mark 6:3)
- He went to the synagogue for festivals and paid taxes even though as a rabbi he was exempt from paying them
- Seven times he asked the Disciples to keep his identity as Messiah a secret
- People around him (even his family) thought he was crazy (Mark 3:21)
- Jesus lived in and thought the Old Testament all the time; he was immersed in it
- “Jesus” was a popular name at that time and he would have been called “Yeshua” or “Yeshi” by people around him.
- He must have been virtually unrecognizable in a crowd since Judas had to point him out to the arresting officers in the Garden of Gethsemane (Mark 14:43-45)
So, what does it matter if he was a fairly average guy for his day, unremarkable in his appearance, who had a nickname? Maybe it doesn’t matter at all. But maybe it reminds us of how much he gave up to become like us. And, therefore, how much God understands about each of our lives because he lived among us.
“So the Word became human and made his home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the Father’s one and only Son.” (John 1:14 NLT)
God of Unfailing Love and Kindness,
Thank you for sending Jesus to earth to live among us and to show us your Kingdom. Thank you that he was fully divine and fully human and, so, we can identify with him. Help us to see your Glory and to show your Glory to others. In Jesus’s name we pray, Amen.