I want first to set the direction of this series of articles by comparing the evidence of Holy Scripture with the assumed religious images of Jesus Christ - the paintings, the pictures, the statues, the icons, even the 'harmless' little cards displayed for sale in your local Christian book shop etc. etc. etc.. From our infancy, if we have had a traditional Christian up bringing, we will have been bombarded with these effeminate false images of Jesus Christ. This long haired wimp image is a given in traditional Christian circles, but is it a true likeness and in truth should there be any likeness at all!? Having said that, after completing this introduction I will then proceed to expound on the negative effects that these false images have had on Christians and Christianity in general. Indeed, and even upon how the world (secular) view of Jesus Christ and Christianity, has been tainted because of these false images. Make no mistake these images are just plain defamation of (or more lies about) The Lord Jesus Christ in pictorial form. These image based lies, rather than the usual oral and literary religious forms, are a foundation upon which a whole religious/politico system or industry has been constructed.

These blasphemous false images have been propagated, paraded and promoted by the Christian religion down through the centuries - a 2,000 year old marketing plan. From modern marketing techniques we also know that images are a far more powerful tool for making an impact and getting your message across than the written or spoken word. Human beings are only now just beginning to understand the subliminal element to the value of images in marketing, but you can bet your life the Adversary knows only too well how powerful they are. This wickedness too has, without any prompting, been enthusiastically and willingly assisted by a predominantly unbelieving secular art world. How have these religious illegitimates and counterfeiters got away with it for so long, when in truth no one knows what Jesus Christ looked like? There is no recorded description of The Lord's physical appearance at all - none!! This too was intentional on The Lord's part.

The good thing and the interesting thing is we do know what He didn't look like and because of this valuable piece of information we can quickly ascertain that the images generally promulgated by the counterfeiters are a blasphemy!! For the evidence of this, let's go now to 1 Cor 11:14 where Paul states quite clearly and unambiguously what The Lord thinks of the look of effeminacy in men or men wearing their hair in a feminine manner: "Doth not even nature itself teach you, that, if a man have long hair, it is a shame unto him?"

Now in the Greek: Yet (even) the nature (instinct) same is teaching you that man indeed if ever may be tressing unvalue (dishonour) to him it is.

Here we can plainly see there is a slight difference between the Greek rendering and the King James Version (KJV). This difference though doesn't change the point The Lord is making here through Paul, but because of the detractors and gnat strainers that may object to what I am saying, I will spell it out. The KJV states 'long hair' and the Greek says 'tressing'. What is 'tressing'? In my Oxford Concise Dictionary it gives 'tress': portion, lock, plait of hair of human especially woman's or girl's head. In order to plait hair successfully it has to be long. So what The Lord was saying, through Paul to these Corinthian men was, do not dress nor wear your hair in a feminine way. Why, why because it is dishonourable or brings shame upon the man that does such a thing.

We now have to ask ourselves some questions: Why do all the paintings, icons, pictures, statues and sundry images of Jesus Christ show Him with long hair? Many also show Him with a pathetic little goatee beard. Any man will tell you, who has grown a beard, that this type of beard is usually sported by those men who can't grow a full beard. This additional 'feature' just adds to their bigger picture, the bigger picture of a weak ineffectual effeminate fop of a human being. In many pictures they portray The Lord as gaunt, extremely thin and malnourished - yet more images of sickly ineffectual weakness. Overall, the Christian religious image of The Lord Jesus Christ is a defamatory one of weakness and effeminacy - why? Come on, we know why don't we; it doesn't take a lot of working out? They portray Him this way because they are against Him, they are not for Him, they dishonour Him with relish and willingly. This is done so that you believe in them - the men and their religion and not in an all powerful Lord Jesus Christ who will return to rule this earth with a rod of iron. Revelation 12:5 And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule (shepherd) all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne. (Brackets mine) Here is another question: Can you imagine their weak effeminate nancy boy image(s) of a Jesus Christ shepherding the earth as with a rod of iron? I'll answer - not a chance!!

Having set the above back drop in place we now have to move on to the modern 'Christian' ideas that emanate out of these blasphemous weak images - the negative end results, caused in part by these images, after nearly 2,000 years of demonic propaganda. The images in themselves are bad enough but their negative knock on mental and spiritual effect on believers can only be quantified through the answers to the questions I have listed below, such is their effect. As a witness of The Lord Jesus Christ I know what goes on in the world with all its corruption, domination, manipulation and control freakery. I also know what goes on in mainstream Christianity or the so called church and I monitor continually their hype, their silly notions, their latest fads, buzz words and ideas. So from out of all this witnessing and from considerable personal experiences I have put together these questions:

Would Jesus Christ have stood up for your human rights? Would Jesus Christ have given His blessing on multiculturalism? Would Jesus Christ stand at the window with the Pope at the Vatican sharing the adulation? Literally as I write a certain number of people are gathering in South London to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the British abolition of slavery, would Jesus Christ have joined in? Would Jesus Christ have 'made a stand' against apartheid? Was Jesus Christ the first hippy going around saying "Peace man"? Was Jesus Christ all Hollywood luvvy duvvy, sentimental and ever so nice trying not to offend people? Was Jesus Christ a liberal do-gooding reformer and did He want us to be? Would Jesus Christ have stood shoulder to shoulder with Dr Martin Luther King? Was Jesus Christ weak or meek, for many silly 'Christians' fallaciously think meekness is some form of never ending martyrdom or what I call the doormat 'Christian' lifestyle - come on guys I'm a Christian, walk all over me, I love it? Was Jesus Christ a communist or socialist? Would the Spanish Inquisition have had Jesus Christ's blessing? Would Jesus Christ have lived in Sherwood Forest with Robin Hood and been his buddy? Did Jesus Christ ever say "let's make poverty history?" Would Jesus Christ have joined the Crusades? Did Jesus Christ ever tell His followers to "go and change the world" or to, "go and make a difference"? Would Jesus Christ have been a tree-hugger and/or a member of Greenpeace?

Why have I asked all these questions? Well first and foremost, I have asked these questions because they needed to be asked - and urgently!! Secondly, I have asked these questions because these questions reflect a spiritual continuation, rather than just a physical continuation of the false images described earlier. In turn the issues these questions raise tie in beautifully with the false physical images; they are like the flip side to same coin. The images described above in the opening paragraphs are just that, physically moulded and painted man made images of what men think Jesus Christ looked like. This is a very bad habit that men have gotten into, so much so they then went a step further and moulded The Lord Jesus Christ into an active false image - an image that would actually do things rather than hang lifelessly on a wall or stand lifelessly on a shelf. Naturally the things this image would do and does do are not really The Lord doing nor are the activities and ideas His, but rather what these people think He would be doing if He was here. This is the effeminate wimp image in action - his false physical image has now come alive through them, first of all in their minds and, once to full fruition, then in all their 'world changing' ideas, activities and 'good' works.

To sum up, the most important thing about these questions is that much, if not most, of mainstream Christianity whole heartedly believes in the spirit of the ideas in the above questions. Now this is the real crux of the problem. The spirit of these questions is the 'essence' of what they think Christianity is, this is what they think, in general, it's all about, but from whence do they get these false ideas? That's easy, just take their foundation of the wimp false images of Jesus Christ and then add to them from this world, its system(s), its history, its politics and its religion(s) mix them all up in one hell of an unholy mess and you then end up with what they believe in - no wonder they are confused.

OK, that's it for the first article and I will be dealing with the answers to all the above questions in the articles that follow. I hope you have found this article liberating, if so, then good 'cos that means you're on the Way - His Way to the narrow path of freedom under His glorious Grace. Always remember Jesus Christ is The Way and there is no other way.

Charles Crosby