Jesus Meets The Matrix?

I've titled my blog with the title of my doctoral thesis, Jesus Meets the Matrix. Over the years many people have asked me, what's with the title? It was a play on words, because my thesis used references to the movie "The Matrix" as a framework for the material. It referred to a Multimedia Matrix worksheet I developed to help pastors consider media elements and their appropriate use in sermons. But over the years, the matrix has expanded a lot in my thoughts. So many have said so much about Jesus and wide study of their comments begins to reveal that there is a clear difference between Jesus himself and what we say about him. My goal for this blog is to keep making a distinction between Jesus and our beliefs about him. My bias is believing that the four canonical gospels contain an accurate record of the words of Jesus. They have stood the test of time, have an ancient history, and several major events recorded in them are validated by secular sources from the time period. They also are more restrained and historical than the gnostic gospels IMO.
Over the years, Greek, Medieval, enlightenment, and modern constructs have been laid over the top of Jesus words. In this emerging post-modern time we have a fresh opportunity to discover where we have added our own worldview to the message of Jesus. Worldviews have been turned on their heads in recent years and the change is not over yet. Wherever we discover this extra material we have added to the message of Jesus, we are discovering the matrix. I believe Jesus has been presented to each age of history. Each age has had its own "matrix" of beliefs, yearnings, and values. This "container" always affects the message. To be fair, the post-modern container will ultimately limit and reduce the gospel in its final form. But here on the edge of change, we have a fresh opportunity, now that we are wise to the limits of modernity, to give the gospel a fresh hearing. We can allow the very words of Jesus to shape our beliefs in the coming era. We can be more self-aware as we seek to explain the gospel in a more comprehensive way. If we really do the hard thinking and praying, maybe we can end up with a container that is a little less limiting. At the very least, for us who will have lived in both ages, we can harvest the best of the age that is passing and be able to see with greater vision a fuller portion of Jesus' message in the age that is emerging. Lofty? Yes. But I believe it is essential if the message of Jesus is to be heard by future generations.
Jesus may return at any time. But when he comes, may he find us rightly dividing the word of truth, growing from glory to glory, even growing in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God & humanity!
So let's get down to it! What are the most important things Jesus said? Where have we missed it? Where is the matrix of our age reducing it and watering it down? Where is the matrix of our tradition helping it to be heard in fullness? Where does our tradition need to listen better or hear again Jesus' words? I hope you enjoy this journey with me... Please join the conversation today! As Jesus meets the emerging post-modern matrix may he be heard with life-changing, world-saving, peace-making power!