How Jesus Did It Part 3

The last two things that are true about Jesus’ attitude reveal to us two essentials for our attitudes as followers of Jesus if we want to really be used by Him to touch other’s lives.

Jesus saw all people as a whole person.

There are too many times when we as the church, the people of God, see people as a soul with ears. We communicate to them that they are only important to us if they are willing to listen to us and agree with us.

In the Bible people are described as body, soul, and spirit. That is not thought of as three different parts of a person but more as three different ways to view a person as a whole. It is more biblical to see people as being both body and soul, not having a body and soul. Jesus never forgot that people are both.

Mark 6:34 says that as Jesus looked at the crowd, He had compassion on them because they were like sheep without a shepherd. And He began to teach them many things.

The disciples saw it was growing late so they went to Jesus and asked Him to send the people away so they could go get food. Jesus then tells the disciples to give the people something to eat. The disciples were overwhelmed because they had no way to get enough food to feed this amount of people. Jesus then took a small amount of food and fed the people.

Jesus saw and met the spiritual needs of the people.

Jesus saw and met the physical needs of the people.

In Luke 8 Jesus raises Jairus’ daughter from being dead. In verse 55 the first thing that Jesus told the parents to do was to get her something to eat. Again, we see Jesus meeting the spiritual needs and the physical needs of a person.

In Matthew 9 a paralytic is brought to Jesus and Jesus heals him. But in verse 2 Jesus says to the paralytic, “Take heart, My son; your sins are forgiven.” The most obvious need was for the paralytic to be healed so he could walk. Jesus dealt first with the less obvious but more essential need and forgave the man of his sin. Again, Jesus met the spiritual needs and physical needs of a person. 

Many times, we focus on one or the other. Jesus constantly showed that He focused on the whole person.

Jesus urged men to repent, forgave them their sins, taught them to think of God as their Father, instructed them in prayer, commanded them to preach the gospel. He also fed people, healed people of a variety of diseases, and raised people from the dead.

When Jesus used the words saved and salvation He meant:

In Luke 7:50, the forgiveness of sins

In Luke 18:42, the recovery of physical sight

In Luke 19:9, the transformation of character

Jesus is the Savior for the whole person.

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is seeing people as a whole, not as unrelated parts.

Jesus spent Himself for others.

Jesus’ earthly life was about serving others. To prepare for His mission Jesus spent forty days and forty nights fasting in the wilderness (Matthew 4:1-10). During that time, He rejected the easy way to bring the whole world to His feet. He had set Himself already on the hard way He had chosen, and from the beginning of His ministry He set out to spend Himself for others. 

In Mark 1:21-45 Jesus:

Heals a man with an unclean spirit

Heals many people of various diseases

Preaches in several towns in Galilee

Cleanses a leper

Was giving Himself away to help others

What we see throughout Jesus’ earthly ministry is Him sacrificing His time, His energy, and His power to help and save others.

In Mark 10:45 Jesus says that He came not to be served but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many. Jesus gave His life for you and me.

1 Peter 2:21 says, “For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in His steps.”

Jesus’ choosing to suffer for us and give His life for us is not only done to meet our needs but also to set an example for us to follow. We as the Body of Christ are to spend our lives for others.

What does it mean to follow Jesus?

It means to spend our lives for others.

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is spending your life meeting the needs of others.  

In the Image of Christ Raising the Roof and Removing the Walls,

                                               Joe