Jesus Christ vs. the gods

During the time Jesus of Nazareth was on earth, the majority of people believed in many gods. The Romans ruled and before them the Greeks. Both had a pantheon of deities. No one at the time believed that the world came from someone. It was a plurality of divine beings that ruled the universe. Many things that are popular today are named after these gods such as Nike, Amazon, Mars, Pandora, Saturn, Trident, Venus, Midas, Mercury, Ajax, and in my area of town The Titans.

Every god had its own assignment and specialty in the universe. But as you would expect, they were not so nice. Humans were just in the way. There were power struggles between the gods. You did their bidding and stayed out of their way. You offered sacrifices so they would bless you instead of smiting you. It was a belief system of bondage and superstition.

No one ever saw these gods because they were myths passed down for generations. Natural disasters and unknown phenomenon were explained to be influenced by these gods. It gave people the answers to questions that scientists had not discovered at the time. Although these divine beings were supposedly powerful, they were easily manipulated by the sacrifice and offerings of mankind. They were a mix between unethical, blundering, erotic, narcissistic, and malicious. In other words, it was like middle school drama!

Then one day, an actual man from a small unknown but real town began to make claims that He was the Son of God. He began to say that there is only One God and He called Him Father. He also spoke of a Spirit, but He stated that all three were One in unity. He claimed that His Father in heaven was the only One reigning in the universe.

There were many people during that time that wrote about it and were eyewitnesses of Him. He was not mythology. I’m not sure how many people in the past have been killed because they say they were big fans of Thor. Yet, millions have been killed just for following through with the lifestyle of following Christ.

Unlike the gods, He didn’t claim to have an agenda in which He needed to be escorted on chariots with large fans keeping Him cool and clusters of grapes constantly fed to Him by servants. He did not ask people to give Him money to perform a miracle. If you were healed immediately just because you happened to be walking by Him that hour, there was no co-pay and no need to schedule the appointment. You didn’t even know He had scheduled the appointment for you!

He went to His death claiming He was equal with God and by His death, we would be restored. Yet, did anyone become more ethical because they study the life of Saturn or Midas? Billions have been changed because of Jesus Christ. Yes, there are hypocrites. But the real authentic Christ followers love others well, serve others without desire for recognition, and seek to shape society to be whole and healed.

The gods were much more similar to mere men that seemed to dwell in the realm beyond earth. Jesus Christ appeared to be just a mere man but was God in the flesh. No malice, no blunders, no eroticism, no narcissism, and no politics. Just an extended hand to an eternal friendship.

Thor may have had a name before Christ was born a human. But after Christ lived His life, the entire empire that made Thor famous was turned upside down by the few that had been changed by the life of Christ. Within a few hundred years, the Roman Empire diluted because of the influence of Christ. Have you looked into these matters? At the City of Refuge, we have started a new series about the basics of Christianity. This Sunday we will be discussing the Tri-unity of God. We welcome all to join in on the conversation!