Want to meet Jesus?

If you could chose to meet one person from history who had died, who would it be? A recent poll was undertaken asking people that very question. I was fascinated to read that the person who came out number one in the poll was Jesus. Ironically, John Lennon (of The Beatles fame), who once claimed that the group were "more famous than Jesus", didn't even make the top ten!

There's little doubt that, on the whole, the majority of people in the UK seem turned off by religion and church. We could spend a long time asking why that is the case, but it wouldn't change the reality. Yet this survey reminds us that, even if people are no longer particularly interested in church, many people do still recognise a spiritual hunger within themselves, and have a real desire to learn more about Jesus.

All this presents an interesting challenge for those of us who are followers of Jesus and part of his church. Perhaps it's high time we asked ourselves whether we've spent far too much time trying to encourage people to "come to church", when what we should be doing is seeking to introduce them to Jesus. I have no doubt that if those of us who claim to be followers of Jesus lived our lives a bit more like him (in other words, if people could see something of Jesus in us), then more of our family/friends/work colleagues would be interested in finding out more about Jesus.

I have just been looking at a website, LookingforGod.com, which has a useful section asking the question, "Who is Jesus?" Anyone who is interested in finding out the answer to that question would find the website useful. There are a number of useful resources which are available to help people discover more about Jesus. But best of all is when people see Jesus in the lives of his followers.

One final thought. In case you think that I've been a bit harsh on "church", it appears that at least some churches have managed to throw of the old, fusty, out-of-touch image. To hear a fascinating conversation about church on the Chris Moyles radio show, click here.