Personal “substitute” Jesus

As people seeking change, all believers live somewhere on the continuum between slavery and freedom. Our culture in every age presents its own views of freedom as well as its own solutions for change, and these alternate ideas seem appealing. What do they offer? Avoid chaos. Live in control. Keep your own plans and dignity intact. We have always had to sift through false ideas of change (Colossians 2:6-8). Christians must continually contend against hollow and deceptive diagnoses and solutions to problems presented as superior to Jesus Christ. These false ideas frequently masquerade themselves as biblical wisdom, borrowing some aspect of biblical truth. False wisdom allows us to live independent of Christ as opposed to dependent upon Him, which thereby circumvents the deep transformation of the heart only the grace of God in the gospel can produce.
Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, rooted and built up in him and  established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving. See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ.
Colossians 2:6-8
What are some examples of what can rightly be called plausible lies or hollow and deceptive philosophies rooted in human tradition that, often pass for true Christian change?
The finger-pointing strategy of changing my circumstances is both deceptive and hollow, because it misses our need for Christ’s redeeming grace and places the blame for our problems ultimately on God. “If only I made more money; could change my appearance; had a better boss; had a more understanding husband/wife; had children who respected me.” Real change lies in changing everyone around me. Circumstances and a demand for them to change always hits the “sweet spot” of what the heart truly worships. Merely seeking circumstances to change bypasses the need for grace in the heart to worship God alone in the midst of difficulty.
I need to change my behavior – “I should be nicer at home; more involved at church; reach out to the neighbors; not get so upset about other people’s opinions.” Merely addressing our external actions fails to address the inward driving issues of worship that are the overflow of the heart explaining why we do what we do. Rather than doing the painful and time consuming work of addressing motives and worship we can seek skills and techniques that will help us to navigate through life more smoothly. You can even memorize Bible verses exercising your own self-effort to change yourself as opposed to trusting in the grace of God to change you through embracing biblical truth on the level of heart desires. Even a commitment to obey, read, and memorize scripture will not result in change if it is merely faith in faith; (i.e. faith in your own ability to believe and obey) and not a trust in the resources of the grace of God that He has given you freely as a gift because you are unable to truly obey these commands on your own. This often results in asking such questions as, “I’m doing everything I’m supposed to, why isn’t my life better or more fulfilling?” or “Why am I still having trials?” In this case the steps or principles become the means to getting what we want more than Christ. The hollowness of mere behavior change is it does not deal with the need for the grace of God to transform the heart, by the Spirit.
There is the pursuit of change that goes beyond just behavior to changing our thinking so that our behavior will reflect appropriate thoughts about our circumstances. Our thinking needs to be adjusted so that our behavior with respect to our circumstances will change. However, people are much than just the sum total of their thoughts; they are worshippers with hearts filled with expectations, desires, and aspirations that profoundly influence how they respond to life. In other words we can change the way we think about a matter, how we understand something, we can engage new ideas, and acquire new information, but leave Jesus out of the picture. We can do all of the above without introducing the person and work of Jesus Christ or trusting Him to change our thinking as well as our affections, desires, aspirations, motives.
Even memorizing verses pertaining to an area of struggle so that we can be prepared when the temptation arises can be performed through the mere exercise of the will, instead of being done with trust in Jesus Christ. Instead of trusting Christ while pursuing obedience one can, independently of Christ, put their trust in oneself to do and think what the verses teach. It reduces the Christian life to, “think these thoughts,” and, “act this way,” and does not involve Christ as Savior. He came to transform not just the intellect, but also our entire person.
We need to change our self-concept/view of self . This view manifests itself in these type of sentiments: “Believe in yourself;” “You’re a good gifted person;” and “Don’t be so hard on yourself.” Looking within for the power of change appears deeper since it addresses our innermost feelings and seems more real. It begins with our own goodness and the better we feel about ourselves; the more highly we view ourselves and our gifts and abilities the more we are able to help ourselves change and help others (“If I feel good about myself then I’ll feel good about helping you;” or “I like to ___________ because it makes me feel good about myself”). The alternative to leaning on our own abilities, gifts, and confidence is leaning on Christ and what He has already done on our behalf (Christ exalting faith as opposed to mere self-confidence).
For we are the circumcision, who worship by the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh— Philippians 3:3
The assumption being made is that our hearts are empty and need to be filled. This is just not true. Instead, we are an overflowing cauldron of desires that longs for everything else in creation to fill us rather than the uncreated living God.
Hollowness and emptiness does not come from longing for nothing, but longing for something other than what we were created to enjoy, God Himself. We are not passive and innocent, but rather defectors and rebels rejecting God for what He has created. On the other hand a life spent crippled by guilt and its effects as well as despondency over failure does hinder change. However, seeking resources for change by creating artificial saviors does not offer hope or produce change. The good news of Jesus Christ is that He grants forgiveness of sin, declares us righteous, and promises His presence and a new track record (Christ’s) with a new potential (conformity to Christ-likeness). Making too much of yourself or perpetually belittling yourself are two different sides of the same coin.  Trusting in the gifts you think you have or even might actually possess, or placing your trust in the gifts you wish you had but do not, are both cases of deferring to self rather than trusting in Christ alone.
Just trust Jesus more – Who is this Jesus? Is He the Jesus who meets my needs as I define them or a Savior and a Redeemer who both defines and addresses my true need in ways far more glorious than I could ever ask or think? Is this Jesus my Savior or my ticket to getting the things in life I really want more than Him? Is this Jesus the One I worship as the ultimate end or is He the One who gives me what I want more than Him: a good name, respect among peers, professional success, a good marriage, happy, obedient, and “saved” kids? Is He the Jesus you worship or the Jesus you have an unspoken deal with:  “I go to church, read the Bible, take my kids to church, see to it that they’re involved and learning, live an upright moral life and in exchange I expect a trouble-free life and fun life, answered prayers, a husband who loves me, a wife who respects me, kids who obey, home in a nice, safe suburban neighborhood.” Do we have a deal?
Defining Jesus and my needs for myself rather than looking to the Bible to define these for me produces a Jesus who is the “means to an end” rather than the end Himself. In the gospel, Jesus Christ loves me with a love that exposes my rebellion and idolatry and leads me to repent of what I desire more than Him. All God-replacements must be demolished through real, honest, thorough, and thoughtful repentance of what has supplanted Christ and a pursuit of a thorough trust and dependence in Christ’s righteousness alone. For many the answer to just trust Jesus more leads us to ask the question, “What Jesus are we trusting?” Is He the Jesus who meets all of our needs as we define them or is He Jesus the Savior and Redeemer who calls us to repentance and trust in Him that He might make us holy?
The above has been adapted from chapter two of How People Change, by Drs. Paul Tripp and Tim Lane. “Dynamics of Biblical Change” currently meets during 2nd service in the Fellowship Hall.
-Vince Cuomo