Thinkaloud | in whose steps?

WWJD… unworkable, gauche?

I

s it naive and impractical to live as Jesus lived by asking yourself “What would Jesus do?” The conviction that such action was not only practical but also necessary for every Christian was the theme of In His Steps, a book written by Charles M. Sheldon. It was published in 1896 and is still in print, having influenced  generations of Christians. In recent years there has had a revival of interest in the novel, with many young Christians wearing plastic wristbands bearing the letters WWJD (What would Jesus do”)

Sheldon’s book portrays the sincere attempt of members of a church to make every decision of life pass the scrutiny of that question, and details the consequences of such actions.

This is not a book review, but it is an attempt to remind us that all of us have role models, people who have influenced us and whose example we try to follow. Psychologists have written extensively about the positive benefits of good role models, and the long term destructive effects of poor examples.

Of course many scoff at the idea of asking “What would Jesus do?” as being laughable, unworkable and definitely gauche. “How could you be so naive, so ultra-fundamentalist?” they sniff with superiority.

Besides, they say, it is not possible to know how Jesus thought. After all, He was a first-century Palestinian peasant who was limited to His time even though He was a remarkably good man.  What would Jesus know about computers, about iPods, about most of the things that determine how we spend our lives and what we do with our time?

The assumptions behind such comments betray enormous ignorance. Jesus Christ was not simply a good man who lived a circumscribed life as a poor carpenter and teacher. Jesus is God, and as such He is beyond time, though He chose to enter human life, as historically attested. Those who say that He cannot understand us today are denying His deity. Jesus has always understood - and understands - the human condition.

The Bible, which records His life and ministry, is full of principles for living that are just as applicable today as they were when written. These principles reveal God’s intentions for human life. Jesus is the perfect role model. But He is more than that: As the hymn says, “And He walks with me, and He talks with me…”

If in the privacy of our quiet moments we ask ourselves, “What would Jesus do?” as we review our responsibilities and challenges, life would be different. Simplicity, sanity, joy and peace would be ours in abundance.  It is no wonder that Sheldon’s novel is still selling and influencing lives. Have you read it? Are you living it?

Writer: Lieut.-Colonel Maxwell Ryan is a former Editor in Chief in Canada and the UK. In retirement he is a copy editor of theRubicon and the author of theRubicon series called Resurrected Writers.

5 Comments to Thinkaloud | in whose steps?

1. Agreed! I Corinthians 2, from verse 6 on, explains how the Spirit really imparts the wisdom of God to us, culminating in with this glorious verse: “But we have the mind of Christ.” It is not impossible for Spirit-filled Christians to know what Jesus would do - in fact, it is quite normal. I’ve sat beside many who prefer to consider God consistently unknowable. I pity them. They must be lonely for God, unhappy in their lack of intimacy with him.
Amy Reardon on September 21st, 2008

2. Again Colonel you’re saying the right things and offering a challenge, but are not mentioning the disconnect in our world today.
   My problem with WWJD bracelets is that many who wear them seem to be doing things that I doubt very much that Jesus would be found doing.
   A few years ago there was a NIMBY demonstration which was organized to protest a new SA facility here in Toronto that is designed to work amongst some of this city’s most vulnerable people. The person spearheading that protest was wearing a WWJD bracelet…
   Dion
Dion Oxford on September 22nd, 2008

3. We must never dismiss the Holy Spirit’s guidance, which has been promised, but not really believed or accepted as a part of the normal Christian life (Watchman Nee’s phrase). As for the bracelets, I doubt if trinkets mean much even as a reminder. It’s the life that we live in all its existential trembling awareness of our daily walk with the Lord that makes the difference. Regretfully, some of us are blind to hypocrisy. Thank God for grace!
Maxwell Ryan on September 22nd, 2008

4. A friend was trying to convince me the other day that WWJD was theologically incorrect…His argument (which he had gotten from some camp he’d been on) was that it is impossible to do what Jesus would have done because He’s the son of God..etc etc.

   I for one was a bit bemused by all this… I mean for sure I guess they were correct, but that doesn’t mean they way he lived his life was not meant for us to follow (you know the whole idea of discipleship etc)…He tried to convince me the proper theological statement should be “What would God have you do?”…I argued with him anyway for arguments sake…but in the end I didn’t see how it actually made any difference :S

   In the end if we are truly disciples of Christ…it doesn’t matter what it says on on wristbands whether that be “WWJD”, “Make Poverty History”, or “Obama 08″ (is there one of these? I wouldn’t know I’m in Aus)…
Clint on September 22nd, 2008

5. Its an interesting debate about the wearing of insignia as a reminder of some biblical, theological or life style ethos and whether it matters what they signify. Perhaps its a modern counter part of wearing a uniform with two Ss, a clerical collar or noted rope around a habit as reminder of a covenant or commitment.

   These too have in some instances become a fashion statement of one kind or another with the wearer falling short of the expected behaviour they signify. Its interesting that when this previously happened in SA circles, the ‘backslider’ was not allowed to continue to wear the uniform. So does it matter that what the symbol says?

   If I have a problem with a wristband, it is the thinking behind the one that says PUSH (pray until something happens). It seems to imply that the petitioner has a predetermined answer to their request and will continue to ask until this is realized. WWJD? O yes; “not my will but yours be done!” What about PWC - pray without ceasing?
Paul Collings on September 24th, 2008

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