Dave Dishman

Trends sweep through society. At one time a tattoo identified you as a person who lived a rebellious lifestyle, hanging on the edges of polite society. Today a sleeve of ink just means you’re one of the crowd. Most of the people who frequent my gym have tattoos, meaning those of us with clear skin are now edgy. It’s a nice feeling.

The children of Israel failed a major test in their journey to the promised land. Despite the presence of the Lord in the form of a pillar of smoke and fire, fear overwhelmed them. Their spies brought back a bad report and the people ground their teeth in terror. As a result all were condemned to wander for 40 years and die. Except for one of the spies who stood up to the mob:

But my servant Caleb, because he has a different spirit and has followed me fully, I will bring into the land into which he went, and his descendants shall possess it.

Caleb possessed a different spirit—what does this mean? Caleb emerged as the principal spokesman for taking the land. He saw the inhabitants were indeed impressive and lived in fortified cities. But he kept his eyes on that pillar of fire. He held a spirit of vitality and faith that routed any fears he may have possessed.

Moving forward by faith overwhelms fear. Caleb knew it, and Joshua and Moses understood as well. Unfortunately, they failed to convince their fellow spies. Despite a holy firestorm in the background, terror swept through the camp, tattooing a legacy of faithlessness on the adult population.

How to develop such a different spirit? Caleb watched the Lord and considered his ways. I can do the same as I study the Scriptures, observe God’s actions and ask the Holy Spirit to grant me wisdom. The more I know the Lord, the better I’m able to resist the trends society throws my way, especially those more insidious than ink on skin.

Numbers 14:24

Photo by Marc Szeglat

On rare occasions I find myself in the best seat in the house. Once I was invited to a Colorado Rockies game and sat in a box behind home plate. The view of the infield was clear and unhindered, the seats large and comfortable, and the room climate controlled. I could sit, stand or walk around during the game. Best of all, a full buffet spread across the back of the room. I ate like a champion.

Jesus offers us the best seat in the house. As the image of the invisible God and the firstborn of all creation, he made peace for you and me by his death and resurrection. He now presents us holy and blameless and above reproach…if indeed we continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that we heard.

I’m tempted to switch seats in regards to Jesus. Perspectives from society, or new takes on religion downplay his full teachings. Sometimes due to my own active rebellion or passive indifference I slide over a few seats. But in doing so I move to an obstructed view.

Once you and I have come to Jesus, there’s no need to adjust. Relocating only moves us away from the best seat in the house.

Colossians 1:15-23

Photo by Owen Lystrup

When we meet someone we haven’t seen for a long time we politely say, you haven’t changed at all! While this little white lie reveals our good breeding, both parties know change has occurred. The wrinkles give evidence.

It’s said that the only constant in our world is change. But one we look to never changes: Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.

The author followed with this injunction: Do not be led away by diverse and strange teachings, for it is good for the heart to be strengthened by grace, not by foods, which have not benefited those devoted to them.

The Jewish Christians who received this letter may have been tempted by certain ceremonial foods, thought to be advantageous in drawing closer to God. But the author turns them away from fads and toward Jesus Christ himself—don’t substitute the ritual for the one to whom the ritual is aimed.

Of course, I find myself guilty of the same. Lots of teachings bear the stamp of Jesus. It helps a writer make their point by appealing to the nature of Jesus, or to how they think Jesus would certainly act if he were standing here in the flesh. People hold a myriad of views about Jesus. Many wield the idea of Jesus like a magic wand, using his name to sway others toward their cause.

But Jesus never changes. I change, my views and perspectives change, the world around me changes. But not Jesus. To understand Jesus hew to the original. Only by studying the Jesus of the Scriptures do I gain insight into the Jesus in my life.

There is no Jesus 2.0. In the Bible we find the Jesus followed by fishermen, laborers, housewives and kings. Experience the one who is the same, yesterday, today and forever.

Hebrews 13:8-9

Photo from the Camino de Santiago

We overlook Jesus to our disservice.

The author of Hebrews tells us: Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power.

Jesus holds the universe. Don’t picture Atlas with the world on his back—Jesus doesn’t squeeze a dead weight at arm’s length. The concept here is dynamic. Jesus carries the universe along, infusing it with life and beauty. The leaf falls and the flower blooms due to his sustaining jurisdiction.

The word of Jesus carries force. It doesn’t lie bound within a book or hidden away on a shelf. On the contrary, it does things. The Greek word used to describe this power is dynamis (from which we the English dynamite), giving us a hint of the strength involved.

I tend to think of Jesus as a category in my life. Sometimes I have him in mind, sometimes not. But in reality, Jesus allows me to breath, to eat, to talk with my wife and to sleep at night. The nature of Jesus allows us all to exist. Some hold Jesus as a myth, or a fairy tale, or a lie foisted upon gullible people—but they’ve missed the mark.

In reality, below all misconceptions, the true Jesus remains. He allows our universe to function and creates a place for our flourishing, both now and into eternity. I do my soul a good turn when I give attention to our amazing God.

Hebrews 1:1-3

Photo by Aaron Burden