Try Jesus
Try Jesus. He will give you better gas mileage. He will make the shingles on your roof last longer. He will give you better blood pressure readings.
Some people that hear us encouraging them to come to Christ, may think that we believe Jesus is a better option that some other philosophies. It sounds like Jesus helped us in a time of need so He might help them, too. Jesus sounds like an option that appealed to us when we needed a crutch to cope with life. They may be glad for us that we found something to occupy our thoughts. They may think, “Good for you”. Some people tried deep breathing techniques or acupuncture. They are glad that things worked out for us with Jesus.
An Illustration
Try strawberry. You could choose vanilla or chocolate. I want you to try strawberry next time among all the other options available. Let's say I was a representative for the strawberry growers. They want to promote strawberries. There was a pageant and I won Strawberry Queen (or King) this year. My job is to travel around to various cities to give speeches and motivate as many people as possible to try strawberry flavor the next time they have the option.
You could choose vanilla or chocolate. Since it is all the same, try strawberry next time.
Try Jesus. People think, Since all the other options are practically the same I might consider Him. I might consider strawberry flavor, but I probably will not. I like chocolate best. I might try strawberry if they are out of chocolate.
When we say, “Try Jesus” we might be seen as someone who wants to force our personal preference on others. One choice is the same as all the others (many times) but we want our personal choice to be considered as preferred.
While we do not have the life of Jesus recorded by cell phone cameras, we get an assumed flavor by reading the gospels. It seems Jesus was calm and quiet. We do not read of him slapping anyone, trying to wake them out of their spiritual coma. We do not imagine Jesus grabbing anyone by the cloak, shaking them, and slamming their head repeatedly against a stone wall until they repent.
And yet, it is that important. Jesus said to Nicodemus and to us, “You MUST be born again!” (John 3:7) It is not optional. It is not a preference. It is not my personal bias against someone's personal opinion. It is not one flavor versus another flavor that really does not make any difference. This is essential. It is mandatory. There is no place for anyone's opinion. These are Jesus' words and that is the last word.
Yet we do not read about Jesus racing around Jerusalem screaming that everyone is damned. We do not see Him shaking people or chocking them until they “give”. And God does not lead us to do that, either. It does not work that way. A person must come willingly to salvation. Heaven must be filled with people who want to be there, not by people who were tricked into trying Jesus by some clever spiritual vacuum cleaner salesman.
The Spirit of God works in a person's heart (John 6:44). There may be many small steps toward the gospel. A person must be drawn to Christ, not driven toward Him like cattle. And yet, it is that important. If we could threaten or force people to be saved, then we should. It is that important. Yet God has ordained that it must not be that way. Everyone must come willingly to Christ, though we may have to warn them.
Let not our calm or peaceful manner be mistaken for the idea that it is really not that important.
Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again. (John 3:7)
Jan. 4, 2024