The Heart of the Church

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Jesus: The Remedy We Often Overlook

It is Time to Stop Looking at Ourselves

What Would You Do?

What would you do if you went to the doctor and he told you that you had a fatal disease and not much time to live, but then he told you not to worry because he had the remedy? What if he told you there was a specific way to take the remedy to make it most effective, and that if you didn't follow it closely, you would suffer and not live as long as you could?

What would you do if, time and time again, he began to tell you the reasons you got this deadly disease, all your failures, and the reason you are now dying? Then he went on to tell you that with the remedy you could have a great life, but time after time failed to tell you about the remedy, who the remedy was, and how to take it so that it would work best.

I have gone to church for many years, and I have come to realize a harsh reality. Time and time again, we are told we have the disease of sin and that it is deadly. We are then told the remedy is Jesus, but we are never really told about the importance of who the Remedy is. We are not really shown who Jesus is, how amazing He is, what He has done for us, how He saved us, and how He wants to change us. We are told about the disease, but sometimes we don’t spend enough time talking about the Remedy.

Where Is Jesus, Our Remedy?

Go to church, and you will hear how we are sinners and how we can improve our lives. You will hear people’s testimonies of how they were lost, and then Jesus came into their lives, and now they are better. It all sounds Jesus-focused, but if you stop and really listen, it doesn’t take long to notice that there can be very little actually being said about Jesus.

Think about it. Even in our testimonies, where Jesus should be the center, we can make the story about ourselves. We talk about how bad our life was, what we went through, what we struggled with, how we changed, and how much better our lives are now. We say Jesus changed us, and that is true, but if we are not careful, the testimony becomes more about us than it is about Him.

Who is Jesus? How amazing is He? What has He done for us? How did He save us? Why should He be the focus of our lives? What does it really mean to know Him and walk with Him?

These are the things I believe we need to be talking about.

The things being said and preached might be true, but it seems that we can put the focus back on ourselves and take it away from the Remedy, who is Jesus Christ.

Why are we not preaching Jesus, lifting Him up, and making Him the focus, so that He becomes greater and we become less?

“He must increase, but I must decrease.”

John 3:30

If we are going to constantly focus on ourselves, we are going to get stuck in ourselves. We become focused on the flesh, our failures, our struggles, our performance, and what we need to do. How can we grow if we are constantly looking at ourselves?

The Church needs to make Jesus so great that we, as Christians, are not even tempted to go back to ourselves.

The Remedy

We go to church, and constantly we are told we are sinners and how we can have a better life with Jesus, but we are not always told how to actually live with Jesus.

Yes, we are told clichés like, “Draw near to Him,” “lean on Him,” “seek His face,” “let go and let God,” and “lean into Him.” We hear Scriptures quoted telling us to abide, walk by faith, and rest in Him, but are we ever really explained how to accomplish these things?

What are the practical things we can do? What should we do? What should we avoid? How do we actually walk with Jesus every day?

Jesus is not a formula, and Christianity is not about following a list of religious instructions to earn God’s acceptance. Salvation is a gift through Jesus Christ. But once we have received that gift, our lives are no longer supposed to be lived the way they were before. We are called to follow Him.

“If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.”

Luke 9:23

If Jesus is truly the Remedy, then we need to know the Remedy.

The Remedy: Best and Most Effective Results

When a doctor gives us a remedy for something that could mean life or death, the reality comes quickly: we can no longer continue living the same way if we want the best results from the treatment. We may have to change our lifestyle, change our habits, and make different choices.

In the same way, following Jesus means our lives can no longer be about ourselves. It is about Jesus.

The Church needs to remind us, and its congregants, that our lives are no longer supposed to revolve around us. We belong to Christ.

The first thing we must do is surrender ourselves each day, meaning we stop answering only to ourselves. This is what it means to die to ourselves. We give up our right to make ourselves the center and allow Jesus to be the center.

“I affirm, by the boasting in you which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily.”

1 Corinthians 15:31

The second is to renew our minds—to learn to think God’s way and not simply the way the world teaches us to think.

“And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”

Romans 12:2

This can be a struggle when you first begin to change the way you live. But a good doctor will never stop telling you what is necessary if it is truly necessary. A good Church should do the same.

The Church should not put the focus on us. It should keep pointing us back to Christ. It should call us out when we are living in a way that goes against what Jesus has called us to do, while also encouraging us to keep walking with Him.

No compromise.

Not because we are trying to earn our salvation, but because Jesus is worthy of our lives.

The Remedy is Jesus.

So let’s stop making everything about ourselves.

Let’s stop making even our testimonies primarily about ourselves.

Let’s talk about Jesus.

Let’s lift Him up.

Let’s make Him known.

Let’s make Him greater.

And let’s become less.