A Beloved Theologian Says, "Don't Imitate Jesus"
At first I didn't want to agree with him. But now, I see his point.
What does it mean to be Christian?
It’s a question I think a lot about.
Some might even accuse me of overthinking it, but I maintain that we (ie, the Christian church, ie, those who claim to be Christians) may not think about this enough.
In fact, I’ll bet your typical church-going Christian probably isn’t thinking about this question at all, and if/when they do their imaginations may not extend much farther than, “Being Christian means believing in Jesus.” Which brings the whole conversation back to something I write/talk about a lot, meaning, the outsized emphasis on “correct belief,” as though that’s what matters most to God. Which I reject.
So then, what does it mean to “be Christian?”
This morning I read a portion of a beautiful little book from Henri Nouwen, Following Jesus, in which he casually dismantled one of the ways I sometimes think about what it means to be Christian.
He writes this,
Contrary to popular opinion we are not called to imitate Jesus.
Wait, what?
Isn’t that what a disciple is? Someone who follows so closely behind the steps of their rabbi that the dust kicked up by the rabbi’s sandals adorn the cloak of the trailing disciple?
Nouwen goes on to explain,
We are called to form a community of people who through different ways reflect the great love of Jesus. Not one of us can reflect the fullness of that love. Therefore following Jesus means something different for each of us.
Ah, okay, I’m tracking now. Let me try out a really bad analogy.
Jesus as the Best Human Ever
Imagine if you could combine the skills of the greatest professional basketball players of all time and squeeze them in to one person:
The competitive edge of Jordan
The court vision of LeBron
The passing of Magic
The defense of Russell (as in Bill, not Westbrook… come on)
The three point shooting of Curry
The footwork of Olajuwon
The size of Shaq
The fundamentals of The Big Fundamental (aka, Tim Duncan)
The mentality of Kobe
The scoring of Durant
And let us call this epic, mythical, superhero of a basketball player Eli Ward.
But on the court?
He is known simply as, The Apex.
In this thought experiment it is no exaggeration to say that The Apex is, in a word, divine (on the court).
Perfect in every way and possessing all the requisite skills to be the ultimate master of the game. Lacking nothing and excelling at everything, this player could and would win any game, any time, even though it’s 1 vs 5.
Now imagine I say to you, “Go be like The Apex.”
Go an imitate him.
Shoot like him. Defend—both the perimeter and rim protection. Make perfect passes (which you understandably look confused by because if you’re playing alone then who do you pass to?). Never tire. Be clutch. Win everything. Always.
Obviously that’s absurd.
No one person can perfectly embody all aspects of the game of basketball.
But do we sometimes think of Jesus in this way? As some superpowered mythical figure who can do anything and everything?
Probably not, at least not on the surface. Though I do wonder if on some level when we think of Jesus we think of, “The perfect epitome of what it means to be human.”
And I think it’s that right there… the idea of Jesus as being the best at humaning in all regards… that helps me to sit with Nouwen’s suggestion that Christians are not called to imitate Jesus.
Nouwen teaches that no single one of us can reflect the fullness of who Jesus was, which means that each of us are Christian (aka, little Christs) in our own unique ways.
Which calls to mind the way Scripture speaks of the “Body of Christ,” and how it requires all the different parts to do their own individual part. (Or, in basketball, each player brings their own skillset to complement and round out the larger team).
Nouwen explains,
There are many forms and shapes in this pursuit. The exciting thing about Christian community is that we have so many ways to be a disciple; we can be an activist or a contemplative. We can embody both. There are different ways we can live out God’s love. Some of us are passionate, others are more quiet and hardly noticeable.
Different Ways to Live Out God’s Love
I do my best to try and be Christian. To try and live out faithfully the way of Jesus; inspired, empowered, and guided by his teachings and his legacy.
But I can’t be him. I can only ever be me.
So what if being Christian means that I be me—my particular form and shape, my unique set of skills, my personality, my passions and interests, my demeanor, my disposition, etc—in ways that look, sound, and feel like the love of Jesus?
I can’t imitate Jesus. Not really. And certainly not fully. Just as neither Jordan nor Lebron nor Kobe nor Magic could imitate The Apex.
Perhaps what I can do… and indeed, as a Christian, what I ought do… is try and be the best, most fullest version of myself, using the values and the beliefs of Jesus as my North Star.
I am me. I am louder than others, but not as loud as some. And that’s okay.
I’m not as passionate about some issues as others, but I’m wildly more interested in certain issues than most, and that’s okay.
I have seasons where I’m more contemplative, and seasons where I’m more activist, and that’s okay.
There are different ways to live out God’s love, and I wonder if our highest calling is to chase after the unique and specific ways that we are wired for and invited to.
Asking the question, WWJD (What Would Jesus Do) is a great start. Many Christians would do well to return to this basic sentiment.
But I think the better question is WWIDIILOMFHLJD?
Otherwise known as, What Would I Do If I Lived Out My Full Humanity Like Jesus Did?
Slap that on a bracelet. I’d wear it proudly.
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