What if we have misunderstood what Jesus meant?
Trusting something Jesus said, which we actually misunderstood, is a recipe for disaster.
When our religious tradition, cultural lens, or personal approach to interpreting the Bible distorts what Jesus meant, our faith becomes a fantasy. We end up following a misimagination of Jesus. We start doing things he didn’t recommend and believing unreliable promises he didn’t make.
When our fabrication of Jesus turns out to be an untrustworthy and irrelevant fiction, we become disillusioned—before we even understand what Jesus is all about! The fake Jesus disappoints us, and the most sensible response is to discard the whole deal. It’s why “deconstruction” of misinformed Christian doctrine has become a growing epidemic. But it can be avoided.
The reason we misunderstand what Jesus meant is our assumptions. We assume Jesus taught universal truths to a timeless audience which can be instantly understood regardless of our culture or language today. We assume our translated Bible verses make the meaning of anything Jesus said plain and simple to understand. But that assumption blinds us to our own self-deception. It excuses us from carefully defining Jesus’ words by their particular use in his time and place. Instead, our personal and cultural biases run wild without us ever noticing it, distorting what Jesus meant.
Trusting something Jesus said, which we actually misunderstood, is a recipe for disaster.
When our religious tradition, cultural lens, or personal approach to interpreting the Bible distorts what Jesus meant, our faith becomes a fantasy. We end up following a misimagination of Jesus. We start doing things he didn’t recommend and believing unreliable promises he didn’t make.
When our fabrication of Jesus turns out to be an untrustworthy and irrelevant fiction, we become disillusioned—before we even understand what Jesus is all about! The fake Jesus disappoints us, and the most sensible response is to discard the whole deal. It’s why “deconstruction” of misinformed Christian doctrine has become a growing epidemic. But it can be avoided.
The reason we misunderstand what Jesus meant is our assumptions. We assume Jesus taught universal truths to a timeless audience which can be instantly understood regardless of our culture or language today. We assume our translated Bible verses make the meaning of anything Jesus said plain and simple to understand. But that assumption blinds us to our own self-deception. It excuses us from carefully defining Jesus’ words by their particular use in his time and place. Instead, our personal and cultural biases run wild without us ever noticing it, distorting what Jesus meant.
Why can’t we assume anyone in any time can easily understand what Jesus meant? Because Jesus didn’t teach in a timeless, transcendent vacuum. He did not pick the first-ever disciples from outside of time and begin from scratch whiteboarding the way to “heaven on earth.” He had no TABULA RASA on which to write culture-less commands. The minds and hearts of his audience were already full of ideas and ambitions and stories, shaped by their historical moment. Their ethnicity, economy, and urban legends informed what they believed and debated. So Jesus engaged it all.
This entire book will reframe what Jesus meant by confronting one consistent dynamic: Jesus entered into lively ancient conversations when he taught. The words he used had already been defined by the discussions people began before he appeared. He wasn’t the first one to weigh in on the subject.
For example, as soon as Jesus said he was the Messiah, he had to redefine everyone’s assumptions about the Messiah. When he talked about coming “judgment” or “heaven and earth passing away” or his “yoke,” he had to distinguish himself from competing voices shouting the same words. Those expressions all had a long list of possible meanings hammered out by rabbinic schools and apocalyptic priests.
If we do not hear the other voices in the conversation, we will not understand what Jesus taught. Why? Because Jesus was not making points. He was making counterpoints. His teachings were not heavenly conjecture on universal topics; they were targeted corrections voiced by a first-century Jewish rabbi who didn’t agree with what other people were teaching in the Eastern Roman Empire.
The Consequences of Reading without Context
Here’s a shocking reality for us all to consider: Words don’t control their own meaning. You can know the words somebody said without understanding what they meant.
What does determine the meaning of words? How an author uses words in a context does. If a reader puts the right words in the wrong context, the meaning can go in any direction the author never intended. And it happens all the time.
The first-ever FBI director experienced such unintended consequences of misread words. J. Edgar Hoover created andcommanded the FBI from 1924 to 1972. He was known as “Captain Clarity.” According to those who worked alongside him, he gave clear orders and expected everyone to follow them. But what happened when someone misunderstood a “clear” order?
Hoover had a habit of communicating written instructions in one consistent place: the margins of FBI memos. When a subordinate submitted a report, he would mark up the margins with comments and commands in characteristic blue ink. The words he wrote down were the instructions you needed to do your job. You didn’t question them; you just did them.
Everything worked fine until a new FBI agent took over the office supply department. The new supply manager decided wide margins were a waste of money. So he ordered smaller memo paper to impress his boss with his fiscal prudence.
Hoover eventually received one of the new memo sheets in his inbox containing an internal security report. You can imagine what happened. In his frustration with the lack of space to scribble his notes, he wrote out a clear order in three simple words, "Watch the borders! H."
That memo circulated through the office quickly, and his words were taken seriously. Agents started calling each other to ask: “Is there intelligence about a threat coming through our borders?” “Does the Immigration and Naturalization Service or Customs know what’s happening?”
At that point, anyone could have approached Hoover about his three words. But no one would risk the embarrassment. So the very next day 750 FBI Agents were sent to “Watch the Borders of Mexico.” Why? Because the paragraph next to the three words and two arrows was a paragraph about Mexico!
For the next six weeks, it was extremely difficult to enter the United States by road from either Mexico or Canada. All because someone interpreted the right words in the wrong context.
Eventually a supervisor reread the memo and deciphered what “H” was really trying to communicate. He just wanted memos with bigger margins! The problem was the small borders on the edge of the paper, not a looming threat at the border with Mexico.[1] Can you believe that? What a thoroughly preventable disaster! But how often have we made similar mistakes with the written words from Jesus?
It’s easy to jump too quickly and start acting on written words before doing the hard and patient work to decipher what they mean. When it comes to Jesus, we often want to assume we already know. Because if we’re wrong, then so are the people we respect who taught it to us that way. That’s a tough dose of humility to take. But isn’t asking hard questions about the context better than wandering around with misunderstood orders Jesus never meant to communicate?
Listening to Jesus in First-Century Israel
If Jesus’ words are heard with modern assumptions rather than rooted in Ancient Near Eastern debates, then we miss his meaning and make up an illegitimate message. We unsuspectingly make his words reflect our initial opinions rather than what he originally meant. And Jesus’ message is too important to distort with our modern ideas and ambitions.
The good news is: ancient texts have become more accessible today than ever before. We can actually hear what other people were saying about the same issues Jesus addressed. We can reconstruct the world that shaped Jesus’ words and feel the intended impact of his original assertion.
So this book will carefully uncover What Jesus Meant when he said:
What Jesus Meant puts each one of these points in the relevant first-century conversation. It takes you beyond the words Jesus says to apprehend what he actually meant.
About the Book: What Jesus Meant
As you digest each short chapter about a one-liner from Jesus, you will hear the other voices Jesus’ disciples had heard. You will feel the despair and the revolutionary zeal of his Jewish audience. You will be introduced to the economic corruption in Israel and the Jewish sects who fought to define how God’s kingdom would come. You will learn the symbolic significance of the Jerusalem Temple and nearby Greco-Roman shrines and religious rituals. You will dissect the metaphors and idioms used in Jesus’ day. The competing instructions of contemporary Rabbis will reveal the battle Jesus waged for God’s reputation on earth. All five senses will be engaged on this journey to listen well to Jesus’ words.
What Jesus Meant will give you a broader paradigm for reading the Gospels. It will shape the questions you ask and the conclusions you make about what you read. Every chapter will show you how to avoid misconceptions about Jesus’ teaching so you get clear on what he wanted us to be and to do today.
Each chapter will also tell you a different story of how innovative ministries are doing today what Jesus taught back then. You will learn about inspiring organizations I’ve been researching around the world for the last fifteen years. When these contemporary examples are combined with the questions for discussion at the end of each chapter, What Jesus Meant has the potential to push you beyond a fragile faith built on a fictive construal of Jesus’ words to the discerning creation of a new kind of culture Jesus taught us how to make.
So get excited. We can take one step closer to confidently knowing Jesus. The danger of making up the meaning of his words and arbitrarily selecting where it applies today can be avoided. His disconnected quotes about some unknown issue in the past can become poignant instructions for concrete situations today. When we figure out the meaning of Jesus’ most misunderstood sayings in the Gospels, then we’ll know with confidence what message to “trust and obey.”
Click the link on the right to read this new book about what we've misunderstood in Jesus' message.
[1] Sources: Barbara “hoover craft” Mikkelson and Cartha DeLoach, Hoover’s assistant from 1965 to 1970, the #3 man in the Bureau
This entire book will reframe what Jesus meant by confronting one consistent dynamic: Jesus entered into lively ancient conversations when he taught. The words he used had already been defined by the discussions people began before he appeared. He wasn’t the first one to weigh in on the subject.
For example, as soon as Jesus said he was the Messiah, he had to redefine everyone’s assumptions about the Messiah. When he talked about coming “judgment” or “heaven and earth passing away” or his “yoke,” he had to distinguish himself from competing voices shouting the same words. Those expressions all had a long list of possible meanings hammered out by rabbinic schools and apocalyptic priests.
If we do not hear the other voices in the conversation, we will not understand what Jesus taught. Why? Because Jesus was not making points. He was making counterpoints. His teachings were not heavenly conjecture on universal topics; they were targeted corrections voiced by a first-century Jewish rabbi who didn’t agree with what other people were teaching in the Eastern Roman Empire.
The Consequences of Reading without Context
Here’s a shocking reality for us all to consider: Words don’t control their own meaning. You can know the words somebody said without understanding what they meant.
What does determine the meaning of words? How an author uses words in a context does. If a reader puts the right words in the wrong context, the meaning can go in any direction the author never intended. And it happens all the time.
The first-ever FBI director experienced such unintended consequences of misread words. J. Edgar Hoover created andcommanded the FBI from 1924 to 1972. He was known as “Captain Clarity.” According to those who worked alongside him, he gave clear orders and expected everyone to follow them. But what happened when someone misunderstood a “clear” order?
Hoover had a habit of communicating written instructions in one consistent place: the margins of FBI memos. When a subordinate submitted a report, he would mark up the margins with comments and commands in characteristic blue ink. The words he wrote down were the instructions you needed to do your job. You didn’t question them; you just did them.
Everything worked fine until a new FBI agent took over the office supply department. The new supply manager decided wide margins were a waste of money. So he ordered smaller memo paper to impress his boss with his fiscal prudence.
Hoover eventually received one of the new memo sheets in his inbox containing an internal security report. You can imagine what happened. In his frustration with the lack of space to scribble his notes, he wrote out a clear order in three simple words, "Watch the borders! H."
That memo circulated through the office quickly, and his words were taken seriously. Agents started calling each other to ask: “Is there intelligence about a threat coming through our borders?” “Does the Immigration and Naturalization Service or Customs know what’s happening?”
At that point, anyone could have approached Hoover about his three words. But no one would risk the embarrassment. So the very next day 750 FBI Agents were sent to “Watch the Borders of Mexico.” Why? Because the paragraph next to the three words and two arrows was a paragraph about Mexico!
For the next six weeks, it was extremely difficult to enter the United States by road from either Mexico or Canada. All because someone interpreted the right words in the wrong context.
Eventually a supervisor reread the memo and deciphered what “H” was really trying to communicate. He just wanted memos with bigger margins! The problem was the small borders on the edge of the paper, not a looming threat at the border with Mexico.[1] Can you believe that? What a thoroughly preventable disaster! But how often have we made similar mistakes with the written words from Jesus?
It’s easy to jump too quickly and start acting on written words before doing the hard and patient work to decipher what they mean. When it comes to Jesus, we often want to assume we already know. Because if we’re wrong, then so are the people we respect who taught it to us that way. That’s a tough dose of humility to take. But isn’t asking hard questions about the context better than wandering around with misunderstood orders Jesus never meant to communicate?
Listening to Jesus in First-Century Israel
If Jesus’ words are heard with modern assumptions rather than rooted in Ancient Near Eastern debates, then we miss his meaning and make up an illegitimate message. We unsuspectingly make his words reflect our initial opinions rather than what he originally meant. And Jesus’ message is too important to distort with our modern ideas and ambitions.
The good news is: ancient texts have become more accessible today than ever before. We can actually hear what other people were saying about the same issues Jesus addressed. We can reconstruct the world that shaped Jesus’ words and feel the intended impact of his original assertion.
So this book will carefully uncover What Jesus Meant when he said:
- “Do not judge so that you will not be judged”
- “Heaven and earth will pass away”
- “Woe to you who are rich”
- “Seek first the kingdom and his righteousness”
- “The gates of Hades will not overpower my church”
- “She, out of her poverty, gave all she owned, all she had to live on”
- “He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life”
- “You will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy.”
- “The Gospel must be preached in all the world, and then the end will come”
- “They will see the Son of Man coming in clouds”
- “One will be taken and the other will be left”
What Jesus Meant puts each one of these points in the relevant first-century conversation. It takes you beyond the words Jesus says to apprehend what he actually meant.
About the Book: What Jesus Meant
As you digest each short chapter about a one-liner from Jesus, you will hear the other voices Jesus’ disciples had heard. You will feel the despair and the revolutionary zeal of his Jewish audience. You will be introduced to the economic corruption in Israel and the Jewish sects who fought to define how God’s kingdom would come. You will learn the symbolic significance of the Jerusalem Temple and nearby Greco-Roman shrines and religious rituals. You will dissect the metaphors and idioms used in Jesus’ day. The competing instructions of contemporary Rabbis will reveal the battle Jesus waged for God’s reputation on earth. All five senses will be engaged on this journey to listen well to Jesus’ words.
What Jesus Meant will give you a broader paradigm for reading the Gospels. It will shape the questions you ask and the conclusions you make about what you read. Every chapter will show you how to avoid misconceptions about Jesus’ teaching so you get clear on what he wanted us to be and to do today.
Each chapter will also tell you a different story of how innovative ministries are doing today what Jesus taught back then. You will learn about inspiring organizations I’ve been researching around the world for the last fifteen years. When these contemporary examples are combined with the questions for discussion at the end of each chapter, What Jesus Meant has the potential to push you beyond a fragile faith built on a fictive construal of Jesus’ words to the discerning creation of a new kind of culture Jesus taught us how to make.
So get excited. We can take one step closer to confidently knowing Jesus. The danger of making up the meaning of his words and arbitrarily selecting where it applies today can be avoided. His disconnected quotes about some unknown issue in the past can become poignant instructions for concrete situations today. When we figure out the meaning of Jesus’ most misunderstood sayings in the Gospels, then we’ll know with confidence what message to “trust and obey.”
Click the link on the right to read this new book about what we've misunderstood in Jesus' message.
[1] Sources: Barbara “hoover craft” Mikkelson and Cartha DeLoach, Hoover’s assistant from 1965 to 1970, the #3 man in the Bureau
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