Episode 7: Was Jesus A Wimp?
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Nate: [00:00:00] Welcome to the Get In the Fight podcast. My name's Nate Whitson, and I'm the founder of Get In The Fight Ministries in our exclusive online fight club for Christian Men. Everything we do here is dedicated to helping Christian men become the men that God meant for them to be. So if you're looking for helpful content and conversations that can help you to grow and become the man that God made you to be, then you're in the right place.
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If a boy is to become a man, if a man is to know he is one, A man has to know where he comes from. and what he's made [00:01:00] of. You know, when we're talking today about Jesus, we often have a picture of who he was as a man. And I think that in a lot of ways we have gotten it wrong. And so today we are gonna talk about the fact that Jesus was a fighter.
Jesus may be pictured as this very passive and soft dude. And certainly at times we will see that Jesus really was this nice, soft, caring kind nice guy. , but to put him into this box as if the masculinity of Christ was a Mr. Rogers type character is to miss so much of who Jesus really was.
And I think that this quote that I read here, From John Eldridge and Wild At Heart is so accurate that if we are to become the men that God meant for us to be, which is our mission statement here at getting the fight, if that is to happen for us, then we have to know where we come from and we come from a [00:02:00] man of strength and honor and discipline.
Somebody who took on the cross. Jesus was a fighter. And that is our lineage. And, and that is what I want us to look at today. There's a quote that probably many of you have heard from a w Tozer, and he says this, what we think of God is the most important thing about us. What we think of God is the most important thing about us, and I like what he's saying.
And, and I want to ask you a question. I want you to think carefully about this. When you think of Jesus what kind of man do you picture? What kind of images come to mind? You know, when you think about pictures at church or if you think about images of Examples of men that you know in your church or maybe in your circle of influence?
The guys that we kind of esteem and hold up are often men that are pretty passive. They're men that are [00:03:00] just super nice and, and I don't think there's anything wrong with being nice. I hope people would say that about me. I hope they think I'm nice and I hope that I really am nice. I think being nice is nice.
is that really what the goal was? Is that really who Jesus was at his core was just this really nice guy? I think at certain times, absolutely he was. But we're missing a big part of what it means to have a masculine soul, to have a, a mentality like Jesus. If we think that the goal of being a man was to just be.
you know, was Jesus timid? Was he shy? What do you picture when you picture Jesus, this ultra nice guy, this pushover and weak guy? It's important that we think about that because I guess what I'm proposing to you is maybe we've pictured it wrong. Maybe we've understood it incorrectly, or we're reading these passages because we know that God is love.
that we're assuming something's soft, you know? Because men have stepped out of [00:04:00] their role to lead the way. have a problem with the fact that women are the ones who are stepping into roles of leadership because men.
Stepped out of that space. We have kind of gone on the sidelines. We've gotten out of the fight is how we would say it here in this ministry. We're not fighting for those places that men have been designated to lead and to step up. And so we have seen the softening over time that really is taking on this feminine side of, of God.
And it's absolutely an accurate part and a good part of who he is, but it's maybe an incomplete part of the picture. . And so I, I wanted to share this story with you that I, that I think is kind of funny. But it might kind of tell you a little bit about my background. So my dad thinking about who I am and where I come from, my dad was a golden glove, south paw.
Boxer in high school and he said that they would, he would tell stories, I guess, about going into Jackson State Prison here in Michigan and they [00:05:00] would fight against inmates. And so I remember as he's telling me these stories as a kid, like, you know, I was so passive and wimpy and scared of everything.
Like the idea of going into prison at all was terrifying. But in particular to. Now be in a ring with all of these grown men around you. What I'm picturing is just this crazy scene and my dad, the fighter is going in and boxing against inmates while he was in high school. Just an incredible story. So I picture that and I think, you know, he's got super fast hands and good reflexes I bet he was pretty decent.
Me on the other hand didn't really take on those qualities. I was athletic for sure, but that was kind of like a late blooming kind of athleticism. But I certainly didn't take on the mindset of a boxer, you know, the idea of being punched in the face just was not a part of my mentality or mindset at all.
[00:06:00] Definitely scared of doing anything like that. So, Huge props to my dad and always loved thinking about him fighting like that. Me on the other hand this story's probably a, a pretty good picture of what I was more like. So in junior high I was very squirrely and goofy. Those that know me know I was, I tend to be super silly and kind of crazy.
And I had a couple buddies that we were hanging out and I think we were probably trying to impress some girls in junior high. They were sitting near us and we're at this track meet at our home hometown school, and there was a, several other schools there, I think, but there was one in particular, a school named Springport, which is just a small town near us.
And there was a kid there who Was strong and stocky short, but looked like he was three or four years older than us. For whatever reason, we decided it would be a good idea to tease this guy. And so during the track meet he would [00:07:00] run by and we would say stuff to him and he would stare back or whatever.
And so the three of us feeling really confident and also feeling very like macho maybe in front of the girls. Can you imagine? Are taunting this guy in some way. And I really can't remember exactly what we say to him, but what I do remember was what he said to us, which was, you guys meet me here when this meet is over.
And the translation there was, I'm gonna kick your butt, like I'm gonna fight all three of you and whoop you. And looking at the dude I believed he would because again, I'm scared of everything. I'm not my dad. I'm not a fighter. I just am a jokester and. I wanted nothing to do with that. So when the, when the track meet ends, we tell the girls we gotta leave and the three of us just book it to get away from this guy
And we run to one of my friend's dad's car and we immediately all jump in the back seat. So there's nobody in the front seat. [00:08:00] We get in as quick as we can knowing this guy is right behind. We jump into the car to save our lives, and we're holding down the the lock of the doors, somebody on each side of there, and we are terrified.
And this guy comes up and he's banging on the door and he's screaming at us, and he's challenging all three of us to, to a fight. He's challenging all three of us, and I can't even believe it. I mean, again, I'm so wimpy and soft. I just can't believe that that's what he would do. And so shortly after this, there's a commotion, you know, and people are kind of.
Gathering around, they're starting to see what's happening here. And I think our rescue is coming because one of the guys, his dad, who's a big guy, comes down from the bleachers and he's walking to us and I can see him coming and I'm thinking, okay, good. You know, he's going to tell this guy to get the heck outta here and whatever.
And he and moved this guy on. Well, instead what he does is he yells at us to get out of the [00:09:00] car and fight like. I, I mean, I couldn't even believe that this was a true story. I couldn't believe he was telling us to do this. I mean, the kid that's coming wants to fight all three of us, and we are huddled together in the back of a car, scared to death.
There was no way I was going to act like a man, like, or act like a man, like this guy told us, dude, like, act like a man and get out here and fight this guy. There was no way. So we kept our fingers on the locks until we knew it was pretty safe that this. Kid who's in eighth grade who looks like he's 25 and definitely would've pulverized us.
There was no way we were moving until we knew their bus was gone or whatever, and we moved on with that story. But I think about that, you know, when, when our friend's dad said to act like a man and get out and fight these guys, I thought there's, there's no way. That's certainly not me. And so I kind of crack up at that, you know, think.
I'm the wimpy guy. , you know, was [00:10:00] Jesus that wimpy guy? You know? What was he like? Was he like me? I don't think so.
Nate: Going back to the book here, wild at Heart, who is this one we allegedly come from, whose image every man bears?
What is he like in a man's search for his strength? Telling him that he's made in the image of God may not sound like a whole lot of encouragement at first. To most men, God is either distant or he's weak. The very thing they'd report of their earthly fathers. In fact, be honest. Now, what is your image of Jesus as a.
isn't he sort of meek and mild? A [00:11:00] friend remarked, I mean, the pictures I have of him show a gentle guy with children all around, kind of like Mother Teresa. Yeah, those are the pictures that I've seen myself in many churches. In fact, those are the only pictures I've seen of Jesus. As I've said before, they leave me with the impression that he was the world's nicest guy, Mr.
Rogers with a. Telling me to be like him. Feels like telling me to go limp and be passive, be nice, be swell, be like Mother Teresa. I'd much rather be told to be like William Wallace, so is Jesus more like Mother Teresa or William Wallace. The answer is, it depends if you're a leper, an outcast, a pariah of society whom no one has ever touched because you were unclean.
If all you've ever longed for is just one kind word. Christ is the incarnation of tender mercy. He reaches out and he touches you. But on the other hand, if you're a Pharisee, one of those self-appointed doctrine, police [00:12:00] then watch out. On more than one occasion. Jesus picks a fight with those notorious hypocrites.
He goes on to say, the Lord is a gentleman. Well, not if you're in the service of his enemy. God has a battle to fight, and the battle is for our freedom. My point is that we also, similarly to John here in this book, have maybe pictured Jesus as this Mr. Rogers with a beard, this long flowing hair. He kind of looks like a marathon runner, and he's afraid of a lot of things.
He takes it all on. He's just getting beat up by the crowd. And again, there are times where that might be true. That might be part of who he was. But we also know that Jesus was a fighter. And in fact, I wanna read this passage that kind of illustrates one of my favorite stories of Jesus being a man who is a fighter.
It's here in John chapter [00:13:00] 18, verse four through nine, if you have a chance to look this up. But Jesus says this. He's in the garden and it's the middle of the night. And the cowards have shown up with blazing torches, lanterns, and weapons. And they're doing this in the middle of the night, of course, because they weren't brave enough or men enough to take Jesus on during the day.
So they come in the middle of the night to get him into arrest him illegally. And John chapter 18, verse four says this, and this is the verse that really just stands out to me, Jesus fully. All that was gonna happen to him. So he stepped forward to meet them. Who are you looking for? He asked Jesus the Nazarene.
They replied, I am he. Jesus said Judas who betrayed him was standing with them as Jesus said, I am He. They all drew back and fell to the ground once more. He asked them, who are you looking for? And [00:14:00] again, they replied, Jesus the Nazare. I told you that I am he, Jesus said, and since I am the one you want, let these others go.
He did this to fulfill his own statement. I did not lose a single one of those you have given to me. This is just an incredible passage where if, if you can picture it, and I think you need to, Jesus is in the, it's in the middle of the night. He knows what's coming. Imagine if you. King of all kings, Lord of all lords, fully God, but still fully man.
And you know what's coming. Jesus understands that he has been praying and crying out to God. Please don't let this happen. Take this from me, but your will not mine, Jesus. It says in verse four, fully realized all that was gonna happen to him. When you fully realize all that's gonna happen to you. and you take it on.
That is a sign not of a [00:15:00] passive wimpy Jesus, but a strong, strong man. Again, in my story, I held onto that lock for as long as possible. I made sure that I did not get out and fight because I fully realized that the 25 year old eighth grader was gonna kill me if I got out. Jesus fully realizes all that's gonna happen to him in this scene.
And what is it that the scripture say he does? It says that Jesus stepped forward to meet them. I love that verse. I mean, it's one of the strongest verses I think in all of the Bible. Jesus was not this passive wimpy guy, but he was a man that took on the challenges. He was a guy that fully realized what was gonna happen to him, and he did it anyway.
He stepped forward. So why does this matter? Why am I talking about this so much? Because John is telling us something. John Eldridge that is, is telling us something [00:16:00] in this book that causes me to really pause and think about my own life and my own understanding of who Jesus was. Was Jesus. The right is the way that I think about Jesus, the right way to think about Jesus?
What kind of man was he? Really? I think that's important for us to understand because when we think about becoming the kind of man that God made us to, , are we aiming for the right? Jesus? You know, Jesus was a nice guy, but Jesus wasn't so nice that he didn't fully take on the Pharisees and the hypocrites the religious people who were beating people down with their religion and not loving them the right way.
You know, Jesus took on people who were against other people. He had a righteous anger about him at times. . And so when I think about the kind of man that I want to be, [00:17:00] and I know that the aiming point for me is Jesus, what kind of man was he well at Get in the fight. We talk about being a man of honor, somebody who merits and earns respect.
That is what Jesus was. And again, it takes a strong man to do that. Jesus was also a man of of discipline. He did the hard right thing. Over the easy, wrong thing every time. And so that's one of the prayers that we praise, that we would be like Jesus in that way. And again, Jesus fully realized what was gonna happen.
That was the hard thing. The hard right thing was for Jesus to step forward and say, who are you looking for? It's me. Leave these guys alone. He saves his friends from that turmoil and from their sins a few minutes later on the cross because he was a man of discipline. And that's the. that we're trying to be as well.
Jesus was a man of strength. I don't know physically what he was like, but I know he was in good shape just by the amount of walking that he did that he took [00:18:00] care of himself, but Jesus was mentally strong, relationally strong. He was emotionally strong. He was strong in all of those ways, and as we pray at getting the fight, he was strong so that he could use his strength.
To help serve others. Jesus constantly was washing feet and saying, do it like this. Love each other like this. No greater love has a man than somebody who would lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends. And then he lays his life down for us. Jesus was an incredible man of strength and he used his strength to help serve others,
this is the kind of man that Jesus was. Jesus was a man of joy. now, was he always happy and goofy and silly and all of that? No, but I guarantee he was more than we think he was. There's so many times that I laugh through the scriptures because I just think, I bet Jesus was really funny in that moment. I bet we read that he's always so stale and yet I think there's times where it's very funny and he's, he's just a funny, hilarious guy and I can't wait to hug him [00:19:00] and meet him and and chat with him.
And I bet he surprises all of. Jesus was a man of joy. And joy doesn't always mean that you're happy, but Jesus took on the cross with joy because he saw past it. He saw what happens when he comes back from the grave, for the joy that was set before him, he endured the cross who endures such pain with joy, only a strong man.
And so this is why I'm saying all of this, this is what this is about, is Jesus was definitely no wimp. Jesus was a nice guy, but I don't think he came to this world just to show men how to just be nice passive guys. Yes, be nice. We're nice is called for, but be fierce. Where fierce is called for. Be disciplined and strong for the sake of others.
Be strong enough to endure the cross that you have to bear. The, the crosses that we have to take on the pain and the suffering that all of the New Testament tells us about is coming to be a Christian man, is [00:20:00] to be up against the world and that is gonna cause grief and struggle and pain, we need to have an image of Jesus. That is correct. We need to be able to know who we come from and what he was like. Jesus was a. Jesus was a man who did not back away, but he stepped forward fully realizing all that was gonna happen to him. And so my encouragement to you, my desire for me is that we are gonna be men who know that we come from a line of strength because we are made in God's image.
We have the masculine heart. Within us and we have all that we need in Christ to become a man of honor and discipline and strength and joy like he exhibited. We can fully realize what we're up against and still step forward like Jesus did in strength. [00:21:00] So for us, that might be stepping forward and getting in the fight, being a fighter like he was when it comes to our marriage.
Fighting to put aside all of the pettiness. Maybe that we have, maybe these selfish things that we do because we want our own way and we die for the good of our spouse. Maybe this is fighting for our family by doing devotions, and you're gonna have to get outta your comfort zone maybe and read your Bible with your kids, or grab a book or devotional, but lead them in prayer and worship together.
Maybe you have to fight in your workplace. Because you're the only one that bows your head and prays, you're the only one who is reading your Bible or not getting involved in the, the language and the jokes that are going on. That's gonna be tough in certain workplaces, because that's just the way that it goes, and you're gonna stand out and be harassed for that.
But you have to fight with strength fully realizing what you're up against [00:22:00] there. Maybe for some of you, you have to fight when it comes to finances. and you have to say, I don't feel like I have enough money to make things work, but I'm gonna trust God with my money. I'm gonna, I'm gonna give sacrificially and start tithing with your money.
Maybe for some of you, it's just getting spiritually stronger by creating a devotional time. You know, most men don't create time. They say, I don't like reading. I'm not good at it. Whatever the excuse is. But maybe for you, it's fighting for a spiritual growth where you're gonna commit to time. And it's gonna take away something, probably sleep,
you need to get up a little bit earlier and act like a man, get out of bed, open your Bible, put on some strong coffee, and start reading your Bible, whatever those things are, it's gonna cost you something, but you have what it takes because Christ in you is strong enough, and that's who you come from.
You know, again, John Eldridges quote, if a. [00:23:00] Is gonna know who he is. He has to know where he comes from, and he has to know what he's made of. In your own strength, you don't have what it takes. The good news is, is that Christ in you gives you a power and a strength that you can be a man like him, who is strong and honorable, and disciplined and full of joy, even in the midst of rough circumstances.
So that's our goal here at getting the fight, is that we would become a man like him, but that we would see him for how he really is. Maybe not just how the pictures on the wall of flowing hair soft Jesus looks. And again, he might have had soft, flowing hair, but I think in his heart he had a heart a warrior.
He was a fighter. And we need to be fighters too. So that's the encouragement. Act like Christ, act like a man and get into fight.
Hey guys, thanks so much for being here today and listening to the show. Please be sure to [00:24:00] head over to the website at Get in the fight.club. And before you go, if you haven't already, please subscribe, click the like button and leave us a positive five star review. It makes a huge difference. Whenever you do have a great day.
Go get in the fight.
