What Did Jesus Do?: And What His Followers Are to Do

By Kevin Anthony Keating

Jesus said: I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done … If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them. (Jn. 13:15, 17 ESV)

A common question among Christians faced with making decisions is, “What would Jesus do?” It expresses our desire to do what is in accord with the will of the Lord. But another, less-speculative question can also be asked regarding our life situations, namely, “What DID Jesus do?” What actions did He take? What choices did He make in his life? What did He do with His time here on earth? How did He choose to live? That is the focus of this book then: looking at His activities and deeds so that we who seek to follow Jesus can see clear examples of righteous behavior which He modeled for our benefit and which can be incorporated into our lives. In doing this, we will be more able to pursue Christlikeness in very practical ways.

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Nov 30, 2021
• ISBN: 9781664249653

Kevin Anthony Keating

Kevin Anthony Keating has worked as a teacher in fifteen countries around the world. He is also author of MUSTARD SEED: A Story of Jesus’ Little Sister (written under a pen name) and of THE HANDS OF JESUS: A Scriptural and Pictorial Devotion and Meditation.

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Copyright © 2021 Kevin Anthony Keating.

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ISBN: 978-1-6642-4966-0 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-6642-4965-3 (e)

WestBow Press rev. date: 11/29/2021

CONTENTS

Part 1: Introductory Ideas

Introduction

Goal

Objections

Actions Beyond Our Capabilities

What Jesus DIDN’T Do

Chronology

Some Key Terms

A Note on Capitalization and Abbreviations

About the Artwork

Part 2: What Jesus Did & What His Followers Are To Do

And the Word Became Flesh

Jesus, the Child, Grows in Body, Mind, and Spirit

Jesus as a Boy in the Temple

Jesus’ Baptism

Jesus is Tempted in the Wilderness

Jesus Meets His First Followers

Jesus Turns Water into Wine

Jesus Clears Out the Temple

Jesus’ Discernment regarding Trust

Jesus Speaks with Nicodemus

Jesus’ Ministry of Baptism

Jesus and the Samaritan Woman

Jesus Heals an Official’s Son

Jesus Reads Scripture in the Nazareth Synagogue

Jesus is Rejected by His Hometown

Jesus the Galilean Fulfills Prophecy

Jesus Begins to Preach

Jesus Calls His First Disciples

Jesus Commands an Unclean Spirit

Jesus Cures Simon’s Mother-in-Law

Jesus Heals Many but Does Not Allow Demons to Testify

Jesus Spends Time Alone in Prayer

Jesus’ Ministry

Jesus Teaches from a Boat

Jesus Produces a Miraculous Catch of Fish

Jesus Touches and Makes a Leper Clean

Jesus Heals a Paralytic and Forgives His Sins

Jesus Calls a Tax Collector to Follow

Jesus Associates with Sinners

Jesus Answers a Question about Fasting

Jesus Defends His Disciples’ Picking Grain on the Sabbath

Jesus Heals a Withered Hand on the Sabbath

Jesus Relocates and Continues His Ministry

Jesus Chooses the Twelve Apostles

Jesus Teaches on a Mountain

Jesus Heals a Centurion’s Servant

Jesus Raises a Widow’s Dead Son

Jesus Responds to Messengers from John the Baptist

Jesus is Anointed by a Repentant Woman

Jesus is Supported in His Ministry

Jesus Binds the Strong Man (Satan)

Jesus and His Spiritual Family

Jesus Teaches in Parables

Jesus Calms a Storm

Jesus Frees a Man Possessed by a Legion of Demons

Jesus Ends a Woman’s Hemorrhaging

Jesus Raises a Ruler’s Young Daughter

Jesus Gives Sight to Two Blind Men

Jesus’ Power is Called Demonic

Jesus Heals an Invalid at the Pool of Bethesda

Jesus Cautions the Formerly-Paralyzed Man

Jesus at Work with the Father

Jesus Returns to an Unreceptive Nazareth

Jesus’ Compassion for the Crowds

Jesus Sends Out the Twelve

Jesus Reacts to John the Baptist’s Death

Jesus Directs His Apostles to Rest for a While

Jesus Feeds more than Five Thousand

Jesus Withdraws from an Attempt to Make Him King

Jesus Walks on Water

Jesus Heals Those Who Touch His Garment

Jesus Offers Spiritual Bread

Jesus’ Words Cause Some Disciples to Leave

Jesus Obeys God’s Commands Not Human Traditions

Jesus is Implored by a Gentile Woman

Jesus Opens the Ears of a Deaf Man

Jesus’ Ministry Gives Glory to God

Jesus Feeds more than Four Thousand

Jesus Refuses to Perform a Sign

Jesus Warns of False Teaching

Jesus Heals a Blind Man at Bethsaida

Jesus at the Feast of Booths

Jesus Causes Divided Opinions

Jesus and the Adulterous Woman

Jesus Heals a Man Born Blind

Jesus’ Courage in Proclaiming Truth

Jesus Asks the Disciples about His Identity

Jesus Begins to Reveal His Death and Resurrection

Jesus’ Transfiguration

Jesus Heals a Boy with an Unclean Spirit

Jesus Reminds the Disciples of His Forthcoming Death

Jesus Pays the Temple Tax

Jesus Uses a Child to Explain Greatness in God’s Kingdom

Jesus Endorses Others Ministering in His Name

Jesus Heads toward Jerusalem

Jesus is Rejected in a Samaritan Village

Jesus Challenges Three Would-Be Disciples

Jesus Sends Out the Seventy-Two

Jesus Condemns Unrepentant Cities

Jesus Rejoices

Jesus Replies to Questions in Different Ways

Jesus with Martha and Mary

Jesus Teaches His Disciples to Pray

Jesus and His Mother are Praised by a Woman

Jesus – an Unwashed Dinner Guest - Denounces the Religious Leaders

Jesus Refuses to Mediate a Temporal Matter

Jesus Responds to Some Violent News

Jesus Heals a Disabled Woman on the Sabbath

Jesus is Warned about Herod

Jesus Heals a Man with Dropsy in the Home of a Leading Pharisee

Jesus Instructs Those Who Seek to be Honored

Jesus Defines the Cost of Being His Disciple

Jesus Illustrates God’s Love for the Lost

Jesus Answers the Lovers of Money

Jesus Heals Ten Lepers

Jesus Blesses Little Children

Jesus Raises Lazarus from the Dead

Jesus Exercises Caution

Jesus and the Rich Young Ruler

Jesus Again Foretells His Death

Jesus Deals with His Self-Serving Apostles

Jesus Heals a Blind Beggar

Jesus and Zacchaeus

Jesus Addresses an Incorrect Expectation of the Kingdom’s Arrival

Jesus Sends for a Donkey Colt

Jesus’ Triumphal Entry

Jesus Refuses to Restrain the Praise of His Disciples

Jesus Weeps over Jerusalem

Jesus Looks around the Temple

Jesus Curses a Fig Tree

Jesus Cleanses the Temple

Jesus’ Authority is Challenged

Jesus Thwarts Entrapment concerning Caesar’s Taxes

Jesus Affirms the Greatest Commandments

Jesus Questions the Pharisees about the Christ

Jesus Warns of Religious Hypocrisy

Jesus and the Poor Widow’s Offering

Jesus is Troubled within His Soul

Jesus Predicts the Destruction of the Temple

Jesus Describes the End of the Age

Jesus Once More Tells of His Imminent Death

Jesus’ Pre-Burial Anointing in Bethany

Jesus Sends Apostles to Prepare for Passover

Jesus’ Enduring Love

Jesus Washes the Disciples’ Feet

Jesus Offers Bread to His Betrayer

Jesus Institutes a Memorial

Jesus Informs the Apostles of a Looming Satanic Attack

Jesus’ Twofold Promise: A Helper and His Return

Jesus Prays for His Followers

Jesus Sings a Hymn

Jesus’ Torment and Peace in Gethsemane

Jesus is Betrayed and Arrested

Jesus Faces Annas

Jesus Looks at Peter

Jesus is Interrogated by Caiaphas

Jesus’ Silence Before Pilate and Herod

Jesus is Mocked, Scourged, & Sentenced

Jesus is Led to Golgotha

Jesus Refuses a Drink of Wine and Gall

Jesus Forgives Those Who Kill Him

Jesus Promises Paradise to the Penitent Criminal

Jesus Cares for His Mother from the Cross

Jesus’ Anguished Cry of Despair

Jesus’ Assured Cry of Deliverance

Jesus’ Resurrection

Jesus Appears to Some Women Disciples

Jesus Comforts Mary Magdalene

Jesus and Two Disciples on the Road to Emmaus

Jesus Appears to the Disciples in Jerusalem

Jesus Imparts the Holy Spirit

Jesus and Doubting Thomas

Jesus Keeps His Promise to Meet in Galilee

Jesus Prepares a Meal on the Seashore

Jesus Reinstates Peter

Jesus, Peter, and the Beloved Apostle

Jesus Commissions His Disciples

Jesus’ Ascension

John’s Epilogue

Part 3: Final Thoughts

Other Books by the Author

MUSTARD SEED: A Story of Jesus’ Little Sister

THE HANDS OF JESUS: A Scriptural and Pictorial Meditation and Devotion

MODELING THE HEAVENLY FATHER TO EARTHLY CHILDREN:

A Thoroughly-Incomplete Guide for Christian Dads

Dedication

To

Suzette Mary, Dennis Joseph, Nanette Gabrielle,

Christopher Edward, and Michael B –

followers of the Lord

Royalties

All royalties from this book are donated to Mercy Ships,

a trusted Christian charitable organization

that serves the needs of the world’s forgotten poor and impaired

in the name of Jesus.

PART ONE

Introductory Ideas

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INTRODUCTION

Remember those wristbands that were popular a few years ago which said, What Would Jesus Do? They were an attempt to encourage people to consider the person of Jesus and make application of His life and teachings to modern day situations. Thinking of buying a house? What kind of residence would Jesus select? Making career plans? Which job would Jesus get? Evaluating a relationship? What sort of person would Jesus choose to be with? Thinking of changing churches? Where would Jesus attend services? Election coming up? Who would Jesus vote for? Intending to get married and raise a family in the future? Well, that’s a tough one since Jesus did neither of these. (More on that later.) Choices from the significant to the trivial, from the sublime to the mundane, anything really could be considered through the hoped-for clarifying lens of Jesus’ life.

While I understand this desire by Christians to do what is in accord with the will of the Lord, I believe that another, less speculative question can also be asked regarding our life situations, namely, not "What WOULD Jesus do?" but What DID Jesus do? What actions did He take? What decisions did He make in his life? What did He do with His time here on earth? How did He choose to live? That is the focus of this book then: looking at His activities and deeds so that we who seek to follow Jesus can see clear examples of righteous behavior which He modeled for our benefit and which can be incorporated into our lives. In doing this, we will be more able to pursue Christlikeness in very practical ways.

Now, certainly many of the specific situations we face today were not something that Jesus had to deal with. For example, Jesus never had to decide what kind of car he should drive or how much screen time He should spend on His cell phone. However, it is my hope that by looking at what Jesus did in His life, we can relate the principles by which He lived to some of the day-to-day challenges we face in the 21st century.

To do this, I am focusing on specific events in Jesus’ life, though certainly not all, as viewed from my far-from-perfect understanding of a general chronological sequencing of the canonical gospel stories about Him. In this book, I don’t reference the teachings of Jesus very much (nor do I but rarely quote from the rest of the New Testament), and I don’t emphasize His spiritual accomplishments, such as our redemption, justification, and atonement, as significant as they are; rather, I concentrate on Jesus’ activities – what He physically did, His actions, and it is from these that I hope to draw application to our lives as we followers of Jesus seek to become more godly, selfless, and virtuous in how we lead our own lives.

Having said that, let me candidly say that I am neither theologian nor biblical scholar; I’m just someone who has great interest in and some familiarity with the sacred scripture and who has committed his life to Christ. So, it is with utmost humility that I embark on this journey, praying for the guidance and inspiration (lower-case i) of the Holy Spirit of God, without whom we cannot hope to accomplish anything of true value.

GOAL

In a remarkable scene from the life of Jesus, on the night before He would die, while eating His final meal with all his disciples, Jesus washed each of their feet, including those of the men who would soon desert Him, those of the man who would soon deny knowing Him, and those of the man who would soon betray Him. Jesus’ purpose was to give His followers an object lesson in humility and service, and in a greater sense to teach them what it means to be His disciple. As He explained:

You call me Teacher and Lord, and you are right, for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done to you. Truly, truly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them. (Jn. 13:13-17)

For Jesus – the Lord, Master, and Teacher – a goal in following Him was to become like Him and to do what He did. Not just know about His life, but to follow His lead actively and seek to emulate Him purposefully in behavior and deeds. We Christians – His students (for that is what disciple means), His servants – are to become like Him; in Jesus’ words: It is enough for the disciple to be like his teacher, and the servant like his master (Mt. 10:25a).

We need to be aware, however, that becoming Christlike in our actions is not a one-time, momentary event. It is a lifelong process. It is the day-by-day dedication and discipline to submit to our Father God and allow Him to work in us to become more like His Son Jesus. We must be committed to Christ, willing to say no to what we want for ourselves and yes to what He wants for us. As Jesus declared: If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me (Lk. 9:23). The Lord calls us to every day surrender our own selfish desires to Him; to every day devote our hearts and hands, our energy and resources, to Him and His mission; to every day yield all that we are and all that we have to Him; to every day live in obedience to His way.

Yet, while becoming like the Lord is our aim, it is an ideal that none of us will ever perfectly realize, for inevitably we will fall short in emulating Jesus’ example in all things. However, thankfully, when we do fail to follow His lead, we are encouraged and instructed to acknowledge our waywardness, to turn back to Him, and then to continue on our spiritual journey.

We pray for the Lord’s support and strength to accomplish the goal of becoming more like Him.

OBJECTIONS

Focusing on the actions of Jesus rather than on His specific teachings might raise the objection that we cannot separate the Lord’s words from his deeds, that they are integrally linked together. In fact, I don’t disagree with this idea. What Jesus said and what He taught cannot really be disconnected from what He did.

Yet, though I strongly uphold the sacred importance of Jesus’ verbal directives and explanations about life, both physical and spiritual, it is my intention in this book to concentrate on the specific acts of Jesus – what He did in certain situations, how He reacted to actual conditions, how He behaved in particular circumstances. These provide us with examples that we, Jesus’ disciples, can strive to emulate today so that we can become more Christlike in our own lives.

Does that mean that because Jesus wore a cloak, His followers must also? Or, since Jesus ate some fish, do we have to include that in our diet? (Well, actually, yes, fish is good for you!) But I am focusing not so much on merely copying explicit customs from 1st century Israel; I am more interested in dealing with the universal deeds which transcend culture and historical era that we might glean from the life of Christ and incorporate into our own behavior – actions such as reaching out to those in need, knowing the Scripture, communing in prayer with the Heavenly Father, or denying ourselves for the benefit of others.

Another possible protest might be that Christlikeness is primarily an internal growth generated by the active working of the Lord’s Holy Spirit in the life of the believer which then manifests itself externally in our attitudes and behaviors. Again, I absolutely agree with this point. It is yielding ourselves to the inner promptings of God, hearing and obeying His voice that will result in outward words and deeds that reflect Jesus. By living intentionally in the presence of the Lord and developing the mind of Christ in us (i.e., His way of thinking), we will steadily move toward genuine Christlikeness. I stress the word genuine, for true Christlikeness is not merely robotically or phonily mimicking Jesus’ behavior without real conviction or perhaps just to be seen by others as some kind of super-Christian. Instead, it is devoting our lives to Him and honestly giving our hearts to the Lord so that He can mold us to become more like Him.

And as I stated earlier, becoming more like Christ does not happen instantaneously. It is rather a lifelong process of understanding the Lord’s life and seeking every day, moment by moment, to follow his lead. And that is the express purpose of this book: to focus on what Jesus did in His short time on earth so that we can learn better what to do with our own few years of mortal life. Let us walk in Jesus’ footsteps in order to lead more Christlike lives.

ACTIONS BEYOND OUR CAPABILITIES

Jesus exercised divine power. He performed miraculous healings, such as giving sight to the blind and causing the lame to walk. He defied the laws of nature, like walking on water and calming a raging storm. He exerted His dominion over the spiritual forces of darkness as He cast demons out of those who were satanically possessed. He manifested His heavenly authority by pardoning the sinful. And ultimately, He even conquered death through His resurrection.

But what does this mean for a disciple’s pursuit of Christlikeness? Are we expected to mirror the Lord’s supernatural abilities by restoring hearing to the deaf or multiplying loaves or raising the dead? After all, Jesus did state that whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do … (Jn. 14:12).

While I personally have never witnessed an actual authentic contravention of natural laws like those mentioned above, I do think that we believers can allow ourselves to be used of Christ to be involved in the miraculous, all in His name: We can contribute our abilities and our finances to the medical health and nutritional wellbeing of those in our community and beyond; we can work in conjunction with the Creator of all things to protect the environment and to provide relief for those who have been ravaged by devastating tempests and natural calamities; we can offer comfort to those suffering from the inner turmoil of depression, mental illness, and spiritual angst; we can reach out and embrace those marginalized and ostracized by our society – the dispossessed, the indigent, the struggling immigrant; and we can bring the message of the forgiveness and new life in Christ to those who desperately seek release from the burden of sin and the shackles of spiritual oppression and death. These are the miracles that we can engage in by letting God’s supernatural power and lovingkindness work in and through us to touch the lives of others.

WHAT JESUS DIDN’T DO

We can learn a good deal from the canonical gospel accounts about certain specific aspects of Jesus’ life: He prayed; He spent time fasting; He knew and quoted Scripture; He trained people to be His disciples; He had a close and personal relationship with God.

The gospels also show us much about the general tenor of Jesus’ life, which can be looked at from both a positive and negative viewpoint (i.e., what He did and didn’t do). For instance, He didn’t appear to worry and didn’t rely on Himself but always trusted His Heavenly Father; He didn’t expect others to serve Him but rather dedicated His life to serving God and other people; He didn’t focus on material, temporal, or earthly things but instead concentrated on the spiritual, eternal and heavenly; He didn’t seek self-fulfillment but came to give abundant life to those who would believe in Him; He didn’t pursue fortune, fame, or settled family life with a home, wife, and kids, but instead devoted Himself to His God-appointed mission of preaching, teaching, and healing, and to laying down His life as a sacrifice for our sinful world. Additionally, there are particular instances in which Jesus actively rejected or refused to do something, such as His withdrawal from an attempt to make Him king by force after feeding the five thousand or His refusal to rebuke His disciples for their vociferous praise as He triumphantly entered Jerusalem.

So, though in this book we are focusing on the things that Jesus did during His earthly lifetime, we might also ask whether it is valuable to think about what He didn’t do. For example, as stated above, Jesus never seemed to have gotten married or had children. Also, He apparently did not own much in the way of worldly possessions. Are these behaviors that we as His disciples are to follow if we are to be more Christlike? A simple response is that many situations are personal matters between the disciple and God, and they call for study of the Scripture, time spent in fervent prayer and meditation, and listening to the voice of the Lord, the Good Shepherd, who said, My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me (Jn. 10:27).

I must also offer a caveat here: Where the scriptural record is silent, we ought not to formulate beliefs and practices based on speculation or educated guesses. Surely, discussion and research are needed to deepen our understanding of the life of Jesus, but as we seek to become more like Him, let’s stick to what is clearly shown in the Gospels. To echo Jesus’ words, It is enough … (Mt. 10:25a).

CHRONOLOGY

It is in no way a simple task to try to harmonize chronologically the gospel accounts of Jesus’ life, and I confess that my attempts to do so have often resulted in some frustration. Seeing how John’s gospel fits with the synoptics is especially challenging. While there is certainly a general flow of events that is readily evident in the life of Christ, the exact timing of specific incidents or occasions and of particular teaching passages is sometimes difficult to ascertain with assurance.

Thus, what is presented in this book is not, by any means, to be seen as a strict chronology of events. I list many, though definitely not all, of the actions taken by Jesus during His life as described by the gospel writers, and sometimes these actions appear in this book to follow a precise timeline, but at other times they do not. As a result, occasionally, some incidents may seem to be out of time-sequential order. While I have consulted the storylines presented in gospel harmonization resources such as Tatian’s Diatessaron, Johnston Cheney and Stanley Ellisen’s The Greatest Story, John Macarthur’s One Perfect Life, Jerry Peyton’s online NET Bible Synthetic Harmony of the Gospels, and Marshall Thomas’ The Gospel of Jesus, the aim of this book is not to offer a strict chronology of the life of Christ; it is rather to show what He did in His life and how we, His followers, are to emulate the attitudes and actions of our Lord.

SOME KEY TERMS

Let me explain my usage of some terms that appear frequently in this book. They are based on my understanding of their meaning as spoken by Jesus.

➢ Repent: To have a change of heart and mind regarding our past wrongdoings and to turn away from an old, sinful and selfish life to a new life of righteousness, altruism, and obedience to God.

➢ The gospel: This is the good news that Jesus brought of the welcoming and forgiving love of a merciful and