All of the images of Jesus and of the kingdom are small things: be a light in the darkness.

A God wise enough to create me and the world I live in is wise enough to watch out for me.

Jesus represents a point of common ground an esteemed rabbi to the Jew, a god to the Hindu, an enlightened one to the Buddhist, a great prophet to the Muslim. Even to the New Age guru, Jesus is the pinnacle of God-consciousness. At the same time, Jesus is the divider. None but Christians see Him as a member of the Godhead on an exclusive mission to repair the broken world.

Jesus reserved his hardest words for the hidden sins of hypocrisy, pride, greed and legalism.

A philosophy may explain difficult things, but has no power to change them. The gospel, the story of Jesus' life, promises change.

One Harlem preacher likens us to the pink plastic spoons at Baskin Robbins: we give the world a foretaste of what lies ahead, the vision of the Biblical prophets. In a world gone astray we should be activity demonstrating here and now God's will for the planet.

Most observers understand the difference between a committed Christian who accepts Jesus as a model for living and a 'cultural Christian' who happens to live in a nation with a Christian heritage. Most Muslims do not.