I do not identify as a Christian and generally my thoughts about Jesus send Christians running into the night. But in the month of December I have been sharing non-religious reflections on Jesus. I have written three non-religious Advent articles:

📄 What Christianity Won't Tell You About Jesus ➡️ tinyurl.com/yc33p56e

📄 How Christianity Got Mary Wrong ➡️ tinyurl.com/2xx9st5r

📄 Did Christianity Cover Up What Jesus Actually Did? ➡️ tinyurl.com/56barwfp

This morning I was thinking of Jesus as a deconstruction guide. Here are 5 suggestions Jesus would likely make for your religious deconstruction process:

1️⃣Trust the authority within yourself

Jesus was often questioned about what authority he based his life and teachings upon. Matthew 7:29 reads, "For he was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes." There was a gravitas to the wisdom and spirituality of Jesus that even the religious experts of his day did not have. One of the hallmark teachings of Jesus was that we discover the way, the truth and life within ourselves. Toxic religion teaches people to mistrust what lies within them but Jesus said we find our ultimate authority there. The message of Jesus to the world was that there is no separation between ourselves and the ultimate reality that is at the heart of all things. Jesus said, “I AM the truth.” He didn’t say “I KNOW the truth,” as if truth is a piece of knowledge held by the mind. Jesus said, “I AM the truth.” Truth is a reality at the level of being. Truth is not something outside to be discovered, it is an actuality inside to be realized.

2️⃣Don't let the Bible get in the way

Jesus said in John 5:39 "You study the Scriptures diligently because you think that in them you have eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me." "Bibliolatry" is defined as "excessive devotion to or reliance on the Bible." Devotion to one scared text can be more of an obstacle than an aid in the deconstruction process by limiting one's spiritual exploration to one framework of ideas, assumptions and beliefs. Be aware of adopting a path forward based on devotion to an external source. Never set aside the necessity of your own critical thinking, direct experience, self-reflection, intuition, and personal investigation.

3️⃣Be wary of the guru

In John 14:28 Jesus said, "The Father is greater than I." In other words, Jesus said that God cannot be reduced to any single mind-body human being. These and other statements of Jesus were meant to put the brakes on the formation of any kind of Jesus-worshipping cult. Sometimes in the deconstruction process, we swap out our old religious gurus with new progressive ones. When a person leaves religion, they can easily become beholden to the people who represent a new set of spiritual ideas and beliefs. We once handed over the reins to the church pastor or Christian theologian, we don't want to make the same mistake by handing over the reins to the progressive or non-religious influencer.

4️⃣ Be at peace

In Matthew 11:28 Jesus said, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest." I find a lot of people who leave religion are often spent and exhausted. The "deconstruction process" can also be taxing because it can feel like a hamster wheel of cobbling together a new belief system. Packaging up our spirituality in ivory tower expositions, clever concepts, and elaborate explanations is overrated. We find peace not by rearranging our concepts, but by realizing who we are at the deepest level.

5️⃣It doesn't have to be pretty

Luke 2:52 says, “And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man.” That's a nice way of saying that even Jesus wasn't Jesus for a long time. There's a reason why the gospel writers said nothing about his preteen, teen and young adult years. The deconstruction process can be volatile and messy. Join the club.

Jim Palmer