If Jesus decides to visit this planet in the same way that he came to Israel, he will come to a world reeling from the impact of globalization, Information Technology and corporate greed. He will be born not in a manger but in one of the ghettos of New York.
He will establish his ministry in New York City because it is the center of the financial world. He will address the problem of consumerism, corporate greed and the fear of not having enough resources to sustain life and to achieve happiness. He will demonstrate that he is the Wisdom of God.
In the Bible one can find Jesus spending much of his time in the province of Galilee. It is a testament to the kind of person that he is. He is compassionate to the poor and miserable members of society. It also shows that he wanted to interact with the poorest of the poor and those who believe that they can no longer break free from the cycle of poverty and crime.
Thus, in the 21st century one can find Jesus ministering to those living in the ghettos and poorest sections of New York City. However, the Bible also revealed that Jesus spend some of his time in Jerusalem, particularly in the area near the Holy Temple. In this day and age Jesus would probably preach in Wall Street.
Jesus will say to the crowd that man cannot live on bread alone. He will clarify that the bread is a symbol of food and money. The ability to stockpile food in the same way that hoarders stockpile things that they do not need characterizes the present society.
America suffers from the fear of lack. A modern day Jesus will preach against fear and insecurity. His voice will thunder in the slums, ghettos, subway, side-streets, and parks. He will shout it out loud and say that man must not focus on filling his stomach with food and lining up his pockets with cash.
The most important thing is a life dedicated to God because it is only through a spiritual walk that man can find true happiness. In the spiritual realm man will find God’s wisdom which will tell him that happiness is rooted in love, righteousness, and peace. It is useless to go after monetary gain if the pursuit forces a person to hate, commit grave abuses and initiate conflict.
The Disciples
Jesus will look for disciples. He will need able men and women who will continue his ministry after he goes back to heaven. However, his disciples will not follow him until Jesus can prove his claim that he is the Wisdom of God. In response Jesus will teach them a parable and then demonstrate his power through a miracle that he will perform in the midst of New York City.
He will teach about the parable of the wise and foolish builder. He will tell them that the foolish builder builds his house on the sand. The foolish builder is as industrious as the wise builder but he will choose the wrong way to build.
After spending a considerable amount of resources and expending a great deal of time, the foolish builder marvels at his work. But the storm, wind, and floods will come. The forces of nature will beat upon the weak foundation and in a matter of time the house will crumble and disappear. All the money and work done goes down the drain.
The wise builder on the other hand is as industrious as the foolish builder. The only difference is that he will build his house on a rock. The strong foundation of the house will ensure that natural calamities will never be able to destroy the house. In the end, the wise builder was able to keep what he has built and all his efforts and financial investment are intact.
Jesus will explain that in the 21st century, the foolish builder is the person who works so hard to amass wealth and purchase luxurious items that he does not need. He does not find time to rest his weary body saying to himself that he will rest only when he is retired. He will defraud people and use their hard earned money to increase bolster his financial holdings.
He will alienate himself from family and friends because he has not time to care for them. When the foolish builder is just 50 years old and years away from retirement, his schemes were discovered and he will be indicted.
His deteriorating health as well as his failing business will bring him to the grave at an early age. The wise builder does everything in reverse. Since he follows the wisdom of God he gets to live a long and fruitful life.
Social Action
The 21st century Jesus impresses people with the wisdom of his teachings. As a result the number of his disciples will increase in number. He will continue to convince them by performing a miracle in one of the soup kitchens in New York.
A soup kitchen is a term used for places where the poor can find food when they do not have the money to pay for it. Jesus will enter one of the soup kitchens and find out that the food available is not enough to feed all the hungry people waiting outside. He will perform a miracle by multiplying the food.
At the end of the day, the administrator of the said facility is surprised to find out that there are still many leftovers. Thus, the administrator orders the volunteers to pack the food and distribute it to the homeless people who do not have the strength to walk to the said soup kitchen. The news of this miracle spread far and wide. Many residents of New York City decided to follow Messiah.
The following day Jesus turns his attention to corporate greed. He left the familiar sight of slums, inner-city poverty, and homeless people freezing in the cold December air. He then goes straight to Wall Street and speak against corporate greed. He tells bankers, investors, and CEOs not to collude with each other and force people to believe that they have to buy luxurious items that they do not need.
He will then point to the homeless scavenging for food near Wall Street and tell bankers, investors, and CEOs that they had a hand in the creation of the financial crisis that resulted in job cuts and the inability of homeowner to pay their mortgage.
Jesus then goes to a church nearby. In a less confrontational way he will try to persuade religious leaders to help the poor. He will explain to them that the money they have must not be used to build fancy parking lots and beautifully designed buildings.
He will clarify his speech by saying that it is acceptable to build a nice church building but it is wrong to adorn it with expensive chandeliers and costly marble flooring while there are so many homeless people with nothing to eat freezing outside the church walls.
Death and Resurrection
Bankers and CEOs were offended by his teachings. They began to put together a plan that will permanently prevent Jesus from preaching against corporate greed. There will be numerous trumped up charges leveled against Jesus.
He will be accused of a capital crime and he will be sentenced to death. He will die from lethal injection. But no one will claim his body and therefore his body was sent to a morgue where it will stay there for two more days. But three days after his death Jesus will come out of that morgue alive.
No one saw him ever since but his disciples remembered everything that he taught them. His actions and his speech emboldened them to echo his message about the important things in life.
They will preach first in New York City and then to the rest of the United States. They will preach that true happiness is rooted in love, righteousness, and peace. But just like their master they will be persecuted by the same people who plotted the death of Jesus.
Conclusion
In the 21st century, Jesus will focus more on the wisdom of God. People need wisdom to deal with the various problems that come their way. Jesus will focus on consumerism, corporate greed and the fear of lack. He will teach people that the most important thing is not the ability to buy expensive things but the ability to experience righteousness, peace, and joy.