Jesus Didn't Write a Book

Jesus didn’t write a book.

If He had written a book, we would be debating every word, disputing every sentence, and arguing over the minutia of what it all means. A book written by Jesus, even though written in the human language of a particular time and place, would be idolized by us. How to translate a 2000 year old document written in a 2000 year old dialect into our current imperfect and inexact languages?

Instead, we have the four gospels and the letters of Paul and others. These documents give us nuanced insights into the life and teachings of Jesus, from different points of view, without carrying the weight of being The Book that He Wrote.

Jesus imparted His message via transformative experiences with his apostles. Then, each of them passed on the experience person to person to many others, who in turn passed it on down through the years to an exponentially growing number of people.

Written words are not enough to shock us out of our conditioned selves. On the road to Damascus, only an encounter with the Logos can inspire us to do the right things for the right reasons.

The meaning and the message of Jesus carrying His cross will outlast all written books, and will never fade into nothingness.