A Great Man
History records that he was a great man. Yet he had humble beginnings. He grew up in a small village, an ordinary boy who did nothing to draw attention to himself.
Like most boys his age, he attended school.
He also worked in the family business and did his best to grow up strong and health. Deep inside, however, he knew he had a special purpose, a destiny to fulfill.
As he grew older people began to notice that there was something special about this young man. He had talent and charisma.
He was gifted like no other. It wasn’t long before he started attracting crowds. Thousands came to see and listen to him.
He chose a small band of loyal companions who traveled with him everywhere he went. Many of them had given up their jobs just to be with their idol and take care of his needs.
As his fame spread, some grew jealous of him. Others thought he was leading people astray, and they plotted against him. But his popularity only increased.
He touched the lives of young and old alike and brought joy and laughter to the weak and downhearted. Many hailed him as king.
Toward the end of his short life, he suffered quite a bit. Some who had followed him fell away and turned to worshiping others.
He died alone. Those closest to him were left discouraged and confused. They never expected his life to end that way.
Soon after his death, there were rumors that he didn’t really die. His followers spread the news all around. “He lives!” they said. “He is not dead!” Some claimed they actually saw him. Even today, many believe he is still alive.
By now you’ve probably figured out who this great man was. His name was Elvis Presley.
If you word things generally enough, you can find a lot of similarities between Jesus and Elvis.
In fact, you can find a lot of similarities between Jesus and you. That’s because Jesus was a human being, just like you. He was fully God, but he was also fully human.
That’s were the similarities end, however. Elvis came to sing, Jesus came to save.
Who is this Jesus?
A recent edition of Newsweek had a portrait of Jesus on its cover. Printed across the artist’s depiction were the words, “Visions of Jesus.” The featured article explained how various religions of the world perceive Jesus.
For most of the last two thousand years of Judaism, Jesus has been considered a heretic, one whose name a pious Jew would not utter.
In recent years a growing number view Jesus as an admirable Jew, and a good teacher, but one whose followers misrepresented and corrupted His teaching.
Certainly, though, He was not the Son of God. Not the Messiah.
Islam’s Qur’an speaks highly of Jesus, explaining He was born of the virgin Mary, and from infancy announced that He was a prophet of God (though not the Son of God). Jesus lived and taught and performed miracles.
The Islamic Qur’an goes on to say that He was crucified, but never actually died—God snatched Jesus from the cross and lifted Him into Heaven (God would never allow one of His prophets die in such grotesque manner).
Essentially, to Muslims Jesus was a prophet similar to Moses or Isaiah. The last and greatest prophet, superseding all others, is Muhammad. Muhammad was sent by God to set straight all the misunderstandings that had arisen about Jesus and the New Testament.
Hindus teach that a teen-age Jesus visited southeast Asia and there learned yoga-like meditation techniques. Once enlightened, He returned to Palestine to serve as a guru among the Jews.
Hindus are attracted to the compassion and benevolence of Jesus, but find the notion of only one God incomprehensible. They believe all people have the ability to become divine. Hence in Hinduism Jesus is a good man and a good teacher, but is not unique.
Buddhists believe the purpose of life is to become like Buddha. Jesus was nothing more than a person who achieved this objective.
The life story of Buddha, interestingly, is quite similar to that of Jesus.
Buddhists believe Buddha was conceived without sexual intercourse. As a young man he left home for the wilderness where he was tempted by a Satan-like figure, then he returned from this experience performing miracles and challenging the religious establishment.
Buddha attracted disciples, and was betrayed by one of them. Sound familiar?
And then there’s Christianity.
Christ is absolutely original and absolutely unique. If He were only a wise man like Socrates, if He were a prophet like Muhammad, if He were enlightened like the Buddha, without a doubt He would not be what He is.
With other Christians, we believe Jesus is the unique Son of God. He became a man, lived sinless, then surrendered His life to the cross.
This sacrifice brings forgiveness for the sins of all mankind, and grants the opportunity for each individual to be restored into relationship with God.
Three days following the crucifixion, Jesus conquered death by rising from the grave. After His resurrection, He spent a short time on Earth, then ascended back into Heaven.
As promised Jesus will one day return to gather all who have accepted and obeyed Him, taking them to an eternal home—Heaven.
Perhaps the testimony of one Christian will help you understood who Jesus is.
Who Jesus Is To A Person (from Philip Yancy)
Jesus seldom arrives in the manner you’d expect. I can testify.
Frequently I expect Him to appear one way, then find Him impacting my life in an entirely different manner.
I first got acquainted with Jesus when I was a child, singing “Jesus Loves Me” in Sunday school, addressing bedtime prayers to “Dear Lord Jesus,” watching Bible Club teachers move cutout figures across a flannel graph board.
I associated Jesus with Kool-Aid and sugar cookies and gold stars for good attendance and Bible verse memorization.
I remember especially one image from Sunday school, an oil painting that hung on the concrete block wall. Jesus had long, flowing hair, unlike that of any man I knew.
His face was thin and handsome, his skin waxen and milky white. He wore a robe of scarlet, and the artist had taken pains to show the play of light on its folds. In his arms, Jesus cradled a small sleeping lamb.
He was kind, reassuring, in the same category as Mr. Rogers or Captain Kangaroo.
Thankfully I matured. As a pre-teen I became awed by the complexity of creation. The sun. Moon. Stars and planets. Solar systems and galaxies.
And then it dawned on me—He created and controls the universe. Astounding! He seemed so…out there.
Thus it confused me when people spoke of personal relationships with Him. Some commented, “He told me to come here,” or “He is leading me to this opportunity.”
This level of intimacy didn’t seem possible—on one extreme He was a very American-looking figure on a flannel graph board, at the other extreme He was the king of the cosmos. What have either to do with real life?
But then I met Him.
How did it happen? Logic-made sense that He is a God-like person. Study-listening to the preacher on Sunday’s about scripture and a message always gave me thought.
Family influence-nurturing a consistent commitment to attend church. A conviction that my life missed something, and the realization that only He could fill the void.
Soon I could be heard uttering that peculiar phrase, “He led me…”
Later, the unexpected again. Already my Savior and friend, He became my teacher.
I began reading the Bible. I read other books and articles by Christian writers. I learned about Him and directly from Him.
His depth of wisdom astounded me, His unique grasp of the human condition intrigued me (perhaps I shouldn’t have been surprised, after all He created life!).
His teaching unearthed valuable answers to life’s ultimate questions.
Answers to my own longings.
I studied His every word and action and found my life developing, ever so slightly, into something that resembled Him.
Today, our relationship continues expanding. Previously He revealed answers to some of life’s questions, today He grants faith to explore questions I didn’t know I was allowed to ask.
He gently pulls me beyond a religion of clichés and easy answers into a grace-sustained, peace-saturated faith adventure.
I can’t wait to see what He’ll do in years to come. This I know—He’ll continue impacting my life in unexpected ways. That’s just what He does. Who is Jesus to you?
Breakout youth into discussion groups if your audience allows
Read Colossians 1:13-23
Who is Jesus to you? Friend, Counselor, Savior, Teacher, Master…?
In verse 15, if Jesus is the image of the invisible God, what snapshot do you picture in your mind?
In verse 18, what image comes to mind when you read that He is “first-born from the dead”?
In verse 22, If you have Christ in your life, why do we at times not feel blameless before Him?
Closing
Recap verse Colossians 1:23 about holding on to the faith and hope
Read Colossians 1:26-27
Illustration: Early Flubber
During World War II, an engineer at General Electric named James Wright was searching for a synthetic rubber substitute.
In one of his experiments, he poured boric acid into a test tube filled with silicone oil, and it became a soft, malleable substance.
Imagine his surprise when he dropped a glob of the substance on the floor—and it bounced!
With a little more investigation, Wright discovered that the substance could also be stretched, flattened, rolled, and sculpted into many different shapes.
Around the General Electric labs, the substance became something of a novelty. Soon many GE employees were taking some home to show their family and friends.
Unfortunately, the new substance proved to have a rather short shelf life, which made it useless for engineering purposes. It was dismissed by the GE engineers as an interesting, but worthless, discovery.
But a writer named Peter Hodgoson became intrigued with the amazing substance after he saw it demonstrated at a party.
Hodgson, a copy writer for a toy catalog, had a feeling that the failed rubber substitute would be extremely popular with children, even if it was not useful for engineers.
After testing the material for safety, Hodgson packaged the stuff in plastic eggs and added a name to it. Within months, the weird rubber know as silly Putty became one of the hottest-selling toys in American history.
What looks completely worthless to one person may be extremely valuable to another. It’s all a matter of perspective—how you see it.
For example, others may put you down because you seem worthless to them; however, God has a purpose and plan for your life that no one may be able to see right now.
When Jesus came as Savior to the world, he was rejected by His own people. Even today, people reject Him.
People have labeled Him as a good man, even a heretic…
What looks foolish to the world--is wisdom to those who can see things from God’s perspective.
(Download picture from google for a slid if you want)
THIS COFFEE "MUG" WORTH $15.6 MILLION TO ITS OWNER
SAN FRANCISCO -- When it comes to coffee, Russell Christoff is more of a fresh-brewed than a freeze-dried kind of guy. So he never scrutinized the Taster’s Choice label.
When he finally did, he was staring back at himself.
While shopping for Bloody Mary mix at a drug store in 2002, the former actor and model saw a younger version of himself, the one who had once posed for the freeze-dried coffee brand.
After two decades as a struggling performer, Christoff says he had all but forgotten the 1986 photo shoot where he spent two hours posing as "The Taster" in a red sweater. He received $250 for the job - with the understanding that he would be paid $2,000 more if his image was selected to promote Taster’s Choice in Canada.
He figured the job hadn’t amounted to a hill of beans - until he stumbled across his likeness in the drug store 16 years later...
Last week, a Los Angeles County Superior Court jury ordered Nestle USA to pay Christoff $15.6 million for using his photograph without his permission and profiting from it...
..."Our image is our product, whether it’s our face or our talent, and they took it improperly," he said. Christoff is now in his second year as a kindergarten teacher in the Bay Area community of Antioch. With the case likely tied up in a protracted appeal, he said he doesn’t plan to give up his day job anytime soon.
Isn’t it amazing to see what ends up in court these days? I know that I could never sue anyone for improper use of my facial image! My "mug" shot isn’t very valuable to anyone other than my wife and mother. Of course it’s invaluable when needing ID.
But here’s a question to think about...
IF GOD HAD A LAWYER, WOULD HE SUE YOU FOR IMPROPER USE OF HIS IMAGE?
The man who received $15.6 million for his coffee "mug" said, "Our image is our product, whether it’s our face or our talent, and they took it improperly."
To God, our image is priceless. As followers of Christ, our lives are supposed to look like Jesus. Thankfully, God doesn’t sue us...but He forgives us and empowers us.
Though it’s hard to understand, thank God for making you in His image.
Confess the ways you have not been reflecting God’s image. Ask His Spirit to deepen your knowledge and understanding of God’s Truths and bring change into your life.
Thank God that He will use the power of the Holy Spirit to conform you to the image of Christ as you follow Him daily.
If you drink coffee in a mug this week, let God remind you to let your "mug" be like Jesus.
For those of you who don’t drink coffee, whenever you look in a mirror this week, ask God to help you "face" your need to reflect His image.
Think of other examples you see of other believers reflecting the image of God.
What changes are needed in your life for you to reflect God’s image?
