Let’s Talk About Jesus

 

My message is “Let’s Talk About Jesus.” Why does the mention of his name so often make people very uncomfortable, tongue-tied, and insecure? 

 

In our work environments if we start a conversation about Jesus, we’re likely to encounter silence and shock. You can see it written on their faces: We don’t talk about Jesus here. This is not church. Don’t get into controversial subjects.  We could say something about God and it likely would not have the same effect. But try to talk about Jesus, and see what happens.

 

In my business seminars, I would frequently quote the Golden Rule, "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you"–  as the best foundation for building a good customer service organization. And when I asked who gave us this golden rule, very few people knew and those who did hesitated to say. Then when I reported that the source was Jesus Christ, the room often became very silent. It’s as though you shouldn’t mention his name in a business setting. I could quote Lincoln or Alexander the Great or Peter Drucker or Tolstoy, no problem, but please, not Jesus.

 

Funny thing, it isn’t only non-Christians who have this problem. We who claim to know this Man in a personal way often hesitate to mention his name.

 

Some of us have truly fallen in love with Jesus Christ. We have committed our lives to him totally; He is our Savior, our Friend, our Brother, our Master. He is the Vine, and we are branches clinging to him for our life. Without him our life would have no meaning, no purpose. We cannot imagine life without him. And yet, even we find it difficult at times in our working worlds and among our friends and acquaintances to talk about Jesus. 

 

When people use his name as a curse word, we clear our throats perhaps, but rarely do we express our opposition. I often think: What would I do if someone used the name of one of my close loved ones as a curse word? Well, I don’t know about you, but I think I would strongly object without hesitation. I wouldn’t be embarrassed at all to say, "Excuse me, that’s my mother you’re talking about. Perhaps you don’t understand what she means to me." I don’t think I’d care a bit whether they liked it or not.

 

Why is it hard for us to be verbal and vocal about Jesus and our relationship to him? It really doesn’t make sense when you think about it, does it?