One of my students I’ve known better than most attended four classes of mine at two different colleges on the way to his degree. He’s crazy smart and always challenges me to think.
As we became friends in recent years our conversations often turned to philosophy and spiritual matters. He considers himself agnostic but only because he knows that calling himself an atheist is self-defeating since it’s a claim of absolute knowledge of the universe, and he’s too smart for such hubris.
A while back we were hanging out at the University of Pittsburgh when he told me about a class he was taking on religion. The professor required students to examine one of the gospels of the New Testament.
“Which one did you pick?” I asked.
“Went with the book of John,” he told me.
“Cool. What did you think?”
He exhaled cigarette smoke and said something that really made me think.
“Well, Jesus kind of seems like an arrogant prick.”
Let me pause for a minute and ask: What would you do with that statement? Do you agree? Does it offend you?
I asked him why he thought that.
My friend said, “He goes around telling everybody that they’re wrong and gets in the faces of the religious leaders.”
“He calls himself ‘the way and the truth and the life’ too,” I offered.
“Yeah, stuff like that,” he agreed.
We had a good conversation about truth, morality, and arrogance after that. These types of conversations often revolve around the basic contention that all religions are basically the same, and why can’t people just pick what’s best for each individual? Also tied up in this debate is usually the idea that Christians think they’re better than everyone else. In other words, Christians are arrogant because we claim to know the only true path to God and heaven.
Aside from the cases of Christians who actually have acted arrogantly over the past twenty centuries, is the claim of Jesus being the only way to God an arrogant statement in itself? Are the claims of Christ in fact immoral?
One thing to consider is that truth has to be exclusive. Like the Highlander, there can be only one. I cannot say that I am a doctor to one person and then walk down the hall and tell another person that I am not a doctor. Both statements cannot be true.
Also, when it comes to belief systems we should remember that every religion has claims of exclusivity. If you say that some ways are right then you’re excluding others. If you say that all ways are right then you’re excluding every system that claims that some ways or only one way is the correct path.
And when you get down to it, calling a belief system wrong is claiming that you are right. Is that not an exclusive, perhaps even arrogant, claim?
The issue isn’t whether or not we like the claims being made but whether they are true and real. If Jesus’ claims weren’t true then he’s delusional or something worse than arrogant. All of my studies and experiences to this point have convinced me that Jesus spoke in love not arrogance. His teachings are consistent and good and for me they are intellectually and existentially satisfying. That’s why I believe them. I have found nothing better or more true.
~*~*~
If you would like to read more about this topic, let me suggest two brilliant, quick reads. The first is called Aren’t All Religions The Same? by Amy Orr-Ewing. Here’s a sample:
“Take a step back and think about what is being said here. Do you see the breathtaking claim that is being made? Jesus, Buddha, Krishna, Moses, and Muhammad are all blind, but in fact, I can see! These leaders all had a small perspective, but I am the one who sees the full picture. Now who is being arrogant? It is just as arrogant to say that Buddha, Muhammad, and Jesus were all wrong in their exclusive claims as it is to say that Jesus is the only way. The issue is not about who is arrogant, but what is actually true and real.“
I also highly recommend Aren’t All Religions Equally Valid? by Andy Bannister
If you have thoughts or questions I’d love to hear from you, either in the comments or via my contact page. There’s nothing better to talk about than what we can know about ultimate truth.
19 replies on “The Arrogant Jesus I Follow”
I would have laughed, but that’s my nature. If I were talking to a stranger I think I would be concerned and a little upset – not offended at all, but worried about how that person viewed Jesus and the fact that a perspective like that would hold them back from exploring Christianity any further. But with a friend, in a friendly conversation, I would definitely laugh because I find his answer to be genuinely funny in it’s blunt honesty. And then we’d talk about it.
I don’t view Jesus’ claims as arrogant, because he was just telling the truth (which I think is what you went on to express, but I got lost somewhere in there; I may be too tired tonight to absorb all this properly). But I find it easy to accept that there are many valid viewpoints, and I can understand how your friend would see the things Jesus said and did in a different light than I do. As I was reading, I kept thinking that we are pre-disposed to judge things in a specific way. I see Jesus as love and kindness, sacrifice and purity – so I will view everything he said and did through that filter. We pretty much see exactly what we expect to see. Please don’t take that as a negative reflection on your friend. I just think it’s rare that we go into anything with a completely open mind.
Not to prattle on forever, but I love that he was so honest with you, and that you were open to his opinion. Honesty and acceptance, non-judgment, are fuels for great dialogue, for a sharing of minds. And you never know where that can take you.
I love those conversations too. Basically, anytime someone wants to talk about faith and they’re coming from a different perspective I want to understand whatever it is they believe. The only reason anyone does believe in Christ is because they believe what he says.
If someone does not believe Jesus is God, then yes it could be viewed as arrogant. However, if he is not God, he is a liar or a lunatic.
But if He is God? Well, what else would He do?
Yes Larry, that’s the old C.S. Lewis reasoning. If he’s not who he says then he’s way worse than simply arrogant.
There can only be one Highlander
We also have to consider, if Jesus’ claims are true, that he knows the depths of our hearts. Therefore, when talking to religious leaders in 30ad he must have been able to see what was in there hearts.
Jesus was definitely passionate in his proclamations.
Fast forward to today, we dont have a problem pointing out religious leaders mistakes today. We all get pretty heated when we see prosperity televangelists taking advantage of peoples wallets. If someone named Fred where to say, “that greedy televangelist is wrong! your doing everything all wrong!,” I find it unlikely that anybody would respond saying, “Fred is an arrogant prick.”
Now, if prosperity televangelism is what the majority our culture knew, followed, and believed, then someone might actually agree that “Fred is an arrogant prick.” However, just as it is clear to us that greedy prosperity televangelism is wrong, is the same way and as clear as it was to Jesus in 30AD that religious leaders where going about it wrong… and then some because he knew the depths of there hearts.
The Defanition of arrogant is “Having or revealing an exaggerated sense of one’s own importance or abilities.”…hmmm…sounds like Jesus To me…BUT…could there be such a thing as Arrogant love? or Love in Arrogance? According to Jesus…yes.
🙂 Just for the sake of argument, I wonder is it possible to have an exagerated sense of your own importance if you are the son of God sent to Earth to save all of mankind? That seems like a big deal. From his perspective, was he arrogant or simply stating fact?
On the other hand, humble is good. We love our superheroes best who show their human side. And who don’t get too big for their britches.
I agree…to our eyes..he is arrogant…BUT …since he is God in carnate…i think it takes it to a whole new level…it’s not arrogance….its absolute truth. Pure Truth.
I like that.
What do you mean by Love in Arrogance?
You know…thats why i put a question mark on that. I don’t think it’s humanly possible to be arrogant in love…but Divinely Possible?…i think Jesus did it all the time.
I mean why else would the disciples drop everything and follow. He told one guy that the dead bury their dead when he wanted to follow him…and no one who looks back at their life after encountering Jesus was fit to follow…
Love in Arrogance? Seems like it…since Jesus IS the best in our life and that is love…showing us he is the way, the truth , and the life.
If any of that makes sense. LOL…
That’s the beauty of the life of Christ and how it was defined by humility. He constantly told people NOT to reveal who he was or how his power had changed their lives. And the nice thing about that definition of arrogant is that it would be impossible to exaggerate the importance of what he was able to do.
You express that so much better than me. I guess that’s why you’re a writer 🙂 I use twice as many words and still struggle to convey ideas.
Always love hearing how non-Christians think of this Jesus we all follow. Very interesting and eye-opening.
Erwin McManus had a great take on this in a sermon at his church, Mosaic, a few years ago. He pointed out that God came to rescue us, and did so in the person of Jesus. It’s not arrogance or exclusivity to claim that the way of our rescue is only Jesus.
Ah yes, the collegiate intellectual. I’ve been there. I’ve been him. Terrible at parties.
I think one of the fascinating things about faith is it seems to be at the intersection of intellect and inspiration, the crossroads of common sense and the cosmos, the synergy of science and the supernatural, the mashing of the material and mysterious…
Sorry, didn’t mean to vamp right there. Been listening to a lot of Lecrae lately. 🙂
Anyway, thanks for the recommended reading. I really liked the last line of the quote.
“The issue is not about who is arrogant, but what is actually true and real.”
Thanks KC. Those are pretty short articles and both do a good job of making one basic point that we all claim exclusivity no matter what we believe.
Let me see if I can make any sense at all here.
You and I believe in Jesus as both God and Man, yet we are only Man. People who claim to have no need for the divine can only accept Jesus as Man. And to have another man behave in such a way as Jesus did is absolutely arrogant and maybe even a little offensive.
And from my personal experience with people like your friend, there’s an imbalance of self-awareness at work: self-aware to know how ridiculous for any one man to make the claims that Jesus did, yet not aware enough to know the disparity of the human condition.
I could argue arrogance in denying there’s even a need for any kind of salvation.
It’s true that many belief systems really don’t deal with the human condition at all. The ones that do don’t always provide satisfactory answers. Jesus accurately described what we experience and know in our hearts, but he also offered a meaningful solution.