As Was His Custom

Over a decade ago, my Dad and brother, Peter, were honored to go on a mission trip to Honduras over the summer. They mostly rebuilt homes while there, laying a concrete foundation and rebuilding the walls and roof with the slim materials they had to work with. When they presented one of the newly built homes, my brother Peter recalls a woman dancing on her new cement floor, worshiping God, and saying something repeatedly in her language. Not understanding, Peter asked the translator, "What is she saying?" He responded, "She's saying that she thinks all homes in heaven will have cement floors."

Wow.

People's perspective on how they live changes everything they think, feel, trust, and believe. When we realize that, our perspective on reading the Bible needs to change due to the author's intended meaning and audience (click links for posts on these exact things).

How Did Jesus Live?

But how often do we change our perspective and put some thought into how Jesus lived? How He thought. What He practiced. What He felt. If we don't try to understand these things, we will miss half of who Jesus is. You see, two orthodox Jewish parents raised Jesus in a religious village. Nazareth was tucked behind several cliff faces, away from the interfering philosophies and thoughts of the pagan religions situated below in the Jezreel Valley. They followed the feasts and festivals of the Jewish calendar and even offered a purification sacrifice for Jesus as an infant in Jerusalem at the Temple.

I was aware of all these things. But it never struck me until early last year when I was reading through the book of Luke for a seminary paper. When I turned to chapter 4, I stumbled across a phrase I'd never actually paid attention to in my Bible. To set up some context, Jesus has just returned from being tempted in the wilderness. From there, He began as an itinerant preacher, teaching in synagogues all over the country. But when He returned to Nazareth, it reads in verse 16, "And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up. And as was His custom, he went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and he stood up to read."

As was His custom?

Right then, it occurred to me that Jesus led a life filled with habits and customs that He had done His entire life! And He had a lot. If you've heard the term "spiritual disciplines"- they are taken from the habits of Jesus. There's a reason for them- so that we can become like Jesus.

Disclaimer: We need to remember that these were Jesus' habits. And although we need actually to begin to follow after Jesus, He was the Son of God and perfect. So, if you want to become more like Jesus, start with one of these habits that you're not currently doing and start there. When you've established one new habit, add another.

The Customs of Jesus

Okay… so here's the deal. Jesus had quite a list of customs. And this list is not extensive. As I mentioned, Jesus traveled for Jewish holidays, feasts, and festivals, and that's not even listed here.

But shouldn't we start with the customs and habits that He kept if we are to follow Jesus, our Rabbi, Teacher, Savior, and King? Following Jesus is not easy. You may find yourself in the wilderness, trying to dodge guilt and shame at not following all of Jesus's habits or failing at some. But don't give up. Keep plugging away. Don't allow shame to take charge of your thoughts when you mess up.

My Own Story of Failure

I remember attending an FCA retreat when I was in junior high, and I remember one of the youth sponsors telling the small group of girls I was with that we weren't mature believers unless we woke up at the crack of dawn and read our Bibles. So, for years, I was guilted and struggled, and severely failed, at waking up early to read my Bible. It wasn't until I was older that I realized my brain didn't turn on and absorb what I was reading in my Bible at that early hour but at night?!?! I LOVED reading my Bible at night before going to bed. It calmed me. It brought me back from any stress and anxiety from my day and allowed me to sleep better. That's not to say I don't read my Bible in the morning anymore because I do when our family's busy schedule allows it. But at the time, I needed permission from someone to read it at night.

So, here's what I'm saying. Don't force yourself to stick with something if it's not working. But keep trying the custom in different ways until you find something that sticks.

The Customs of Jesus

Join us this summer as we walk through all of Jesus' customs and habits in Scripture. (For pre-homework, if you're gung-ho about this, try to search the Bible for the phrase "as was His custom" or "habit." The phrase "as was His custom" is most easily found in the ESV and KJV.)

Stay tuned for our next post on Jesus' custom of reading God's Word.