1.9 - The Intersection of Action and Reaction
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One Man’s Search for Meaning
I created this blog to confront my genuine thoughts and beliefs. I want to create a record of this journey for my grandchildren and future generations. I hope it will inspire them to do the same someday. Who knows? By making it public, it may also help someone else. I'm not trying to lead anyone to the same conclusion as my search but rather to the beginning of theirs. This blog is a mix of journaling, therapy, and prayer. Sometimes, it has abstract and personal content as I think aloud. I used John's account of his friend Jesus as my guide and to inspire my thoughts about truth. If you want more information, check out the introduction to the series called "When Faith Becomes Collateral Damage."All previous sections are available on my personal blog page.
Do You Have the Courage to Bet Your Life on Your Beliefs?
On November 26, 2023, I witnessed enormous strength in the most petite person. A friend of ours, who suffered a stroke a week ago and lost the ability to swallow, consciously decided to remove her feeding tube. By doing so, she has stared warmly into the eyes of death and graciously welcomed him into her life. These two will get better acquainted this week as she takes the final few steps on the trek to her transition. On the same decisive day, another friend, who had made a similar decision weeks ago, took her last step from this life to the next. These two little women have demonstrated enormous strength and won the battle of faith over fear. Today, my heart is heavy; theirs is not.
In the previous section titled "1.8 Going Inside," we read between the lines to gain insights into John the Baptist's inner life. In this section, we will focus on John's role as the baptizer, his introduction of Jesus, and the reaction of two of The Baptizer's disciples.
I'm sure John did many different things in his ministry, but the one thing he is known for is baptism. Let's consider what that might've meant to people then and to you and me today.
What Color Is Anticipation?
The term baptize comes from the process of permanently dyeing cloth, dipping it into the dye to come out a different color and never be the same again. The result of John’s symbolic baptism for his people was to come out of the river colored with a heightened sense of expectation of their new King’s arrival.
It's this expectation that is crucial. In my imagination I remember the excitement of the children as we gave them a bath on Christmas Eve, put on their new pajamas, and put them to bed to wait for Santa’s arrival.
Envision John's followers living with a multiple of that “excitement of anticipation” all over them.
Decide Now, Left or Right?
An encounter with John put a T-intersection in the lives of his people. They could turn one way and not believe his words or the other way, believing and being baptized with the excitement of anticipation, but they could not continue on their previous course. They would never be the same, and baptism marked the spot of the intersection. In the same way, encountering Jesus dropped an intersection into people's lives. They could turn one way and not follow him or the other, be “baptized with the Holy Spirit,” and follow his example - but they would never be the same. Those who followed were “baptized” with a new inner life and awareness of their Creator’s presence within them and its energy - never to be the same again.
Discover a New Way to Live Your Life
To grasp what this might mean, let's zoom out and consider that Jesus comes on the scene modeling this new way of life, an “inner life,” guided by an awakened, divine consciousness. Through his words and actions, he “sparks” the consciousness of those he met as they see his demonstration of “living” out of this inner spirit. This alters their awareness and way of thinking, from outside/in to inside/out, which produces actions of Grace, truth, and love. This canceled the need for temple sacrifices because this inner voice replaced the outer “law.”
Jesus has launched a new way of living, a new operating system, and a new “how to believe” that “takes away the sin” process and eventually sin. As we will see, it did not happen by Jesus delivering one excellent sermon and being put on a pedestal and admired. No, it was by his daily engagement with his followers. He became their master carpenter, teaching his apprentices to measure twice and cut once, recognize their inner voice, and convert it into actions. Every day, he is over their shoulder and in their face, applauding, correcting, and advising until they are ready to do the same for others.
I believe it's time to change how I approach Jesus's teaching. Instead of treating it like a series of university lectures, I must see it as an ongoing "shop class." Imagine Jesus traveling through the countryside with his mobile "industrial arts" program, setting up shop in village after village, and giving hands-on instruction to those who enrolled. This way, I can learn more practically and engagingly, just like a life-long shop class. What can I expect to learn? Ways to live this new life: hear my inner voice, love my Creator, and love my neighbor.
Jesus Never Asked Anyone to Become a Christian
35 The next day John again was standing with two of his disciples, 36 and as he watched Jesus walk by he exclaimed, “Look, here is the Lamb of God!” 37 The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus.
Well, it looks like the “Lamb" label stuck, and John was excited about it. We see John teaching his disciples and/or baptizing them. When he sees Jesus walking in the distance, he does not merely say the words, but points and “exclaims” or cries out, “Look, here is the Lamb of God!” It was John’s way of connecting Jesus to the Old Testament story of the spotless Lamb of Passover. It was ingenious because it provided immediate and constant context for his listeners. Every year of their lives, they celebrated Passover, which included sacrificing an unblemished lamb and then feasting on it in celebration as a reminder of being led out of slavery. This label was not lost on them! Thus, it was brilliant branding for Jesus by John the Baptist and a multifaceted metaphor.
“How so?” you say. Well, consider the following examples:
Later, they “got it” when Jesus said you must eat my flesh. They didn't hear it as being weird as we do today, but it brought to mind celebration and the door to freedom.
They could quickly connect him with Moses and see how following Jesus would lead them out of the slavery of the temple’s clean/unclean culture into the promised land of their unmediated “inner life” connection with their Creator.
It gave Jesus instant credibility when he told the story of the Good Shepherd because who knows a good shepherd better than a lamb?
Remember, John used the “Lamb of God” for Jesus, not Jesus of himself. Again, John’s role was to instill the excitement of anticipation in his listeners, and this certainly did it. In an earlier segment, Malcolm Gladwell referenced how certain 'sticky' ideas reach Tipping Point and hit a moment where they "spread like epidemics.” With this label for Jesus, John is causing his audience to think and open their consciousness to a new idea, which quickly spread to a critical mass.
Let's detour for just a moment and see how Jesus does refer to himself. He uses different terminologies than John, proving that he is emphasizing a new way of thinking and living instead of a golden ticket to heaven. Jesus said:
I am the Light of the World
I am the Door
I am the Vine
I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the father but by me.
After observing Jesus in John's story for over a year, it is evident that his primary concern is for his listeners to become his followers, enroll in the class, learn a new way of life in the presence of the Father NOW, and nurture their inner selves.
He was not concerned with their cultural label but that their actions embody his teachings - let the “word become flesh” through them.
Should the Church Return to the Original Narrative?
It’s popular to treat the narrative as an orientation class of Jesus, with individuals being absolved of their sins and granted access to paradise in the afterlife. I can see that this is more palatable to the listener and marketable for today’s church, but I don't see evidence that it's more effective in people’s lives. Anyway, I don't feel compelled to choose one narrative over the other, but instead, I prefer to hold space for both in my mind.
Let's get back to our story. John says, “Two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus.” Since this is only mentioned here in John’s story, I had to ask myself, "Was one of these men the author of this story?” Regardless, these disciples’ actions demonstrated the kind of decisive reaction Jesus expected of his followers. (Enroll and engage in the class, not merely audit it.) Although there may be the temptation to read John’s words and leave them on the shelf, true internal peace and outward acts of love can only be achieved by putting them into practice.
The “two disciples’“ immediate reaction also signaled the hallmark of a sincere search for truth. When the inner voice speaks a word of truth, I should immediately adopt it, changing my behavior to align with it. However, if you’ve raised a child, you know that changing behavior is a trial-and-error practice that takes time, and that's perfectly fine. It's similar to any other type of training, like playing an instrument or learning a language; you are training yourself to align with your inner truth. Here’s a straightforward example from my life years ago. It became clear that I shouldn’t smoke cigarettes, so I threw them away. However, I couldn't quite throw the urges away. Eventually, I learned to tell myself things like, "I'm not a smoker,” and when an urge hit, "Imagine that, me wanting a cigarette, and I don't even smoke.” It took time - one day at a time - but the urges also disappeared. I have used the simple practice several times for different situations.
I must ask myself, "Is the church missing a real opportunity here?" I believe a burning desire for honest, personal change exists within most people, especially Christians. Less theory and more hands-on training and active practice. Perhaps that's why there's growing interest in other spiritual paths, from yoga to Buddhism to spiritualism. Therefore, instead of merely teaching about what Jesus taught, should there be a return to the original narrative with training in the church on how to do what Jesus said to do?
“Change does not come through inspiration nor information, though both are important. Change comes through engagement in relationship.”
This man's search is not for a cultural label. I've got enough of those already. My search is for a new way of life, an evidence-based faith, that produces peace and joy, along with acts of love and grace. When I get to the end of my journey, may I look back and see that I've been on the path of truth, and have the courage to bet my life on my beliefs.
Follow My Search and Begin Your Own
“to empty your bags; to sort this and to leave that;
to promise what you needed to promise all along,
and to abandon the shoes that had brought you here
right at the water’s edge, not because you had given up
but because now, you would find a different way to tread,
and because, through it all, part of you could still walk on,
no matter how, over the waves.”
Key Takeaways
Learning to live from inside out instead of outside in takes courage, but once you do, you'll never be the same.
Learning about and following are two different things.
Disregard labels and focus on your actions.
In our next segment, we will move from John to watch Jesus enter stage right, encounter two of The Baptizer’s disciples, and say his first words in the story – a simple yet intersecting question.
