There are so many people who misunderstand Jesus. They completely disregard his human side. They think of him only as God; and so they reject him without fully understanding him. In order to understand Jesus and his teachings entirely, it is imperative that we look at his human side.

Jesus’ beliefs were very revolutionary. They appeared to go against all that seemed right. He told people to be mournful, meek, poor, and to love your enemies. This is hard for us to do today; imagine what it would be like in a time where the Jews were under the control of the Romans. They had been in bondage for a very long time and they did not want to love the people who were keeping their freedom from them. Jesus told them to do it anyway.

Even though they were so revolutionary, most of Jesus’ teachings made a lot of sense. For example, In defending himself for associating himself with sinners, he said that a doctor does not help the healthy, he tends to the sick. In the same way, he has come to help the sinful and the low-lifes of society, not the well off. Why should he stay with those who are good, when it is the sinful who need a change in their lives. So, Jesus ate and stayed with the sick, the lonely, the tax collectors, and the prostitutes because it was they who needed a renewed faith. It was a radical new idea, but it makes perfect sense.

Despite his radical message, Jesus still had a mass of followers wherever he went. It got so big sometimes that he’d have to go on top of a mountain, like for the Sermon on the Mount, or out on a boat on a lake to address everyone there. His humanity was the very reason for these crowds. He was a man teaching them, not a Pharisee who had other political or personal interests in mind. He was a carpenter’s son. He was simple and spoke to the people as one of them. He understood what kind of situation they were in, and he gave them hope. They were poor and many were outcasts in society, and he told them of a kingdom that they would rule. Being the ruler of a kingdom would sound quite appealing in their situation. All they had to do was love. Love God, and love those around them.

Jesus, although fully God, still experienced all the same things that we do, including doubt, sadness, fear, and pain. He wasn’t immune to these things. If he think that it is hard for us to have faith, we need to look at Jesus. He knew that he was going to suffer excruciating pain for hours and hours. He would be mocked and made fun of. It would seem that everyone had abandoned him. He prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane so intensely that he started to sweat blood. The amount of stress the body experiences for this to happen is nearly unbearable. Yet he still did what God wanted him to do. The biggest things that we usually have to fear for showing our faith is being made fun of by our friends. Here is a man, faced with which is scientifically one of the most painful deaths possible, and all he has to do to avoid it is say that he is not God. He only needs to say no. But he doesn’t do it. That is faith.

Jesus showed us that life is not about money, or property, and social status; it’s about love; loving God and loving your neighbor. That is what Jesus came to preach. People wanted to keep his message alive because it gave meaning to their lives. From their seemingly pointless lives of exclusion from society, Jesus made them those who will "inherit the earth."

picture from this site

This picture illustrates the human Jesus to me because it is so simple. He’s not glowing or dressed completely in white. It's just another man who is with children. There is nothing special about him in this picture.