Walking With A Human Jesus: What I Learned From Life In The Church With A Jewish Rabboni

I believe that God is a "who," who gives Grace, as well as a "what" that sustains us and binds the Universe together. Whenever I doubt that God exists, I look out my window at the tree in the yard. What hand could have devised a process of selection and pressures on the system that would result in something so perfectly designed? From planets to galaxies, to the beautiful and complex design of a flower, and the most amazing engine we know of, the human brain: it is all evidence of God for us. Paul says in Romans 1:20, "For since the creation of the world, God's invisible qualities-his eternal power and divine nature-have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made." I am not a saint. There are many things about my life and my past that I wish were not part of my experience in this life. But none of that matters. The walk is a journey where the destination is here and now: I believe "salvation" is for the present. Salvation is knowing that you are known and you are loved, just the way you are, by the One who created you. You are loved, warts and all, by the Great Artist of the Cosmos. And with that knowledge we change for the better. That is salvation. I think that was the gift Jesus gave to humanity through his teachings and life. It was a gift he gave to anyone who would listen, shocking the religious leaders of his time. The gift is the awareness of Grace - the unmerited, unearned, no-strings-attached, favor of God. And it was a gift custom made for you. All you have to do is accept that you are loved. No more. If you accept that, then in Jesus' words, "Your faith has saved you; go in peace." Jesus can be your teacher. He doesn't have to be your God. There is room for all of us in the church no matter what our beliefs may be, just as there was in the early Greek church. You have the unmerited favor of God because you are you. There are no conditions on Grace. There are no strings attached. There is nothing required of you. Jesus wanted us all, from the "sinful" Samaritan woman at the well, to the hated Jewish tax collectors for the occupying Romans, to the rejected and socially isolated lepers he touched, to know it.This book is for everyone who has been dumped on by life. Sooner or later, that is all of us. God redeems our suffering so that we are uniquely equipped by our misfortunes to go out and help others who find themselves where we have been. This helps us as much as them. This is how Grace travels. Jesus knew this. He wanted us to know it too. (This book was previously published as "Life With A Human Jesus.")