The Character They Forgot

The First Step👣

It’s strange how someone can be everywhere and invisible at the same time.

The name of Jesus is everywhere in songs, in politics, in hashtags, in heated debates, in slogans, and in stage lights.

And yet…somehow, the person of Jesus feels harder to find.

We hear His name, but not His tone. We see people speak for Him, but not live like Him. We hear “God told me,” but not often, “How can I serve you?”

So this week, I don’t want to write about the ones who’ve misused His name.I want to write about the One whose name still carries healing. Still brings peace. Still bends down to wash feet.

This isn’t about doctrine. This is about character. And the quiet miracle of what happens when you really see Jesus…not as a political mascot, not as a lifestyle brand, but as the man who never once used His power for Himself.

The Pebble in My Path🚶🏽‍➡️

Here’s what’s been sitting heavy on my soul:

Somewhere along the way, the character of Jesus got buried.

Not lost. Not erased . Just… layered over.

Covered by power.Smudged by pride.Overshadowed by people who love to talk about Him but stopped walking like Him.

The world says “Jesus” but shows ambition. It claims His name but clutches status. It waves His banner but misses His eyes, the ones that saw the least of these.

And I can’t help but wonder:

If someone were to meet Jesus today, would they recognize Him? Or would they walk right past, assuming He was just another outcast preacher with dirt on His robe and kindness in His eyes?

That’s the pebble in my path. The ache to unbury Him. To brush off the dust and remember what love looks like when it wears sandals and listens more than it speaks.

The Compass🧭

Even though I could show you a thousand Bible verses that describe the character of Jesus, maybe what we really need today isn’t more verses. It’s more clarity.

Because truth be told, people have used Scripture for centuries to defend whatever side they’re on. Jesus never did that. He didn’t use the Word to win arguments. He was the Word, and He used it to bring healing.

So let me just say it plainly:

If Jesus walked into our world today, into our timelines, our headlines, our tension, into Palestine and Israel, into border towns and refugee camps, into a LGBTQ event, a church revival, a protest, or a quiet hospital room, He wouldn’t show up with a camera crew or a moral checklist. He would show up with compassion.

He would sit with the kid who’s being bullied for being different. He’d smile at the single mom working three jobs. He’d listen to the exhausted man at the gas station who feels invisible. He’d weep with the grieving. He’d laugh with the children. He’d share stories, not statistics. He would kneel more than He’d point.

He’d spend more time with the misunderstood than with the powerful. Not because He loves rebellion, but because He loves the ones nobody else does.

Jesus didn’t come to correct behavior. He came to transform hearts.

And he didn’t shame people into change. He loved them into freedom.

He was joy at a wedding. Gentleness with the outcast.Fierce when injustice hurts the vulnerable.Peace in the middle of storms, literal and emotional.

That’s the compass, not a rulebook. Not a checklist. But a person.A posture.

And the closer we move toward that character, the more human, the more honest, the more holy we become.

The Open Trail🛣️

So maybe this week,the invitation is not to defend Scripture…but to embody it.

To stop listening to the ones using the Word of God as a weapon, a megaphone, a hammer, a way to shout, “You’re wrong,” or “You’re going to hell.”

Because Jesus never used it in that manner.

He used it like a healing salve. Like a glass of cold water in the desert. Like a loaf of warm bread for the hungry.Like a hug for the ashamed. He used it to lift people up, not to tear them down.

And when someone asked Him, “Which commandment matters most?”He didn’t give a list. He gave love.

“Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind…and love your neighbor as yourself.”(That’s it. That’s the whole thing.)

So if the Word of God we’re holding doesn’t sound like love, doesn’t feel like Jesus, doesn’t carry compassion in its tone, then maybe it’s not coming from Him.

The Bible is not a license to judge. It’s an invitation to see to love God deeply, and to love people wildly.

So this week, don’t try to carry the whole Gospel. Just carry the part Jesus said mattered most: Love well. Start there. Return there. Stay there.

Stay barefoot. Stay honest. Stay close to the ground.

— Barefoot Gospel