Reading a Gospel passage and observing what Jesus does
We know Jesus by what he says: his teachings, his parables, his famous sentences. But the Gospels also tell what he does: he touches, he weeps, he withdraws, he waits, he sits down. This quest invites you to read a passage while watching his gestures.
What it looks like in your day
Take a Gospel passage, a story rather than a discourse. Then read it asking yourself precise questions:
- What does he do? Does he touch? Speak? Stay silent? Draw near? Move away?
- Whom does he see? Notice whom he notices, among the crowd, the ordinary people, the despised.
- What does he feel? The text sometimes says so: "moved with compassion," "he wept," "he was angry."
- How does he react to interruptions? To criticism? To urgency?
- What does this teach me about God? Jesus shows the Father.
An example: you read Mark 1:40-42, the healing of a leper. As you observe, you notice that Jesus puts forth his hand and touches this man whom nobody touched. He is not content to heal from a distance. You can take away: "Jesus draws near to those whom others move away from."
If you are in a hurry, a short account (ten to fifteen verses) is enough. If you are a beginner, start with Mark, the most direct Gospel, with a lot of action. If you are shy, simply note three action verbs, nothing else.
What the Bible says
The Gospels describe a Jesus who acts with great closeness. Faced with a leper, here is the unexpected gesture:
“And Jesus, moved with compassion, put forth his hand, and touched him, and saith unto him, I will; be thou clean.”
Moved with compassion, he puts forth his hand and touches him. At that time, touching a leper made you unclean. Jesus does exactly what the law forbade others to do, because he is stronger than uncleanness.
In another account, in front of a widow carrying her dead son, the sentence is very short:
“And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her, and said unto her, Weep not.”
He sees, he is moved, he speaks. Observing what Jesus does also means seeing what he feels: a compassion that moves.
And in the Gospel of John, just before his arrest, he washes his disciples' feet (John 13:3-5). He knows that he came from God, that all things are given into his hands, and he takes the servant's towel. That is who God is: the one who serves.
Pitfalls to avoid
Keeping only the words. If you read only what he teaches, you risk turning it into a doctrine. Jesus's gestures are just as much "Word of God."
Inventing details. Observing doesn't mean imagining emotions the text doesn't mention. Stay attached to what the author writes.
Turning him into a mere moral model. Jesus is not just an example to imitate. He is the Savior who does what you cannot do. Observing him means learning to trust him, before trying to resemble him.
Stopping at emotion. A story can touch you, but don't stop there. Ask yourself: "What does this change in how I live?"
Reading on autopilot. Well-known stories (Christmas, Easter, the healing of the blind man) are so familiar that we no longer see them. Read slowly, look for a new detail.
Today, choose a short Gospel story. Note three things Jesus does, and what that says about him.