THOUGHT-PROVOKING SAYINGS OF JESUS
(As recalled by Twin)
Chapter One
Jesus is alive! Here is a collection of some of his most intriguing and challenging sayings,
as passed on by one of his closest friends, whose real name was Jude, but better known by
his nickname, Twin.
Anyone who unravels these sayings and takes their truth as guide, will not experience
death.
Jesus said, “Make your life a quest and don‟t give up till you find what you‟re looking for.
What you find may upset your prejudices, but you‟ll discover much to wonder at and get to
grips with what the world is all about.”
Jesus said, “If the leaders of your community tell you God‟s New World is in the sky,
you‟ll know they‟ve got it wrong. That‟s where the birds will discover the New World! To
say the New World is in the sky is as silly as saying it‟s under the sea. That‟s where the fish
will discover it! In fact, God‟s New World has no precise location. It‟s to be found inside
you and all around you.”
“Other people won‟t understand you until you understand yourself. When you understand
yourself, you‟ll realize you have a family relationship to the Loving God, and recognize the
life of God inside you. There‟s no greater poverty than not understanding who and what
you are.”
Jesus said, “Someone who is old will have the sense to ask someone much younger about
what‟s going on in the world today, and that up-to-date knowledge will give them a new
lease of life.”
“People‟s ideas of who is important and who isn‟t must be turned right around. One day,
everybody‟s experience will be valued and be part of a shared whole.”
“Recognize what‟s staring you in the face and everything else will make sense.”
The friends of Jesus asked him many questions, such as “Do you want us to do without
food from time to time?” “How do we talk with God?” “What provision should we make
for those in need?” “Is there any food or drink we ought to avoid?” In answer to these
questions Jesus said, “If you have a feeling deep inside you that something is wrong, don‟t
do it. Don‟t let your minds play tricks on you. God sees things as they really are. One day
your behaviour will be seen by all for what it is.”
Jesus said, “Splendid are those born with the character of a wild animal who allow
themselves to be tamed by tender human qualities. Disgraceful are those born with tender
human qualities who choose to develop the behaviour of a wild animal.”
He went on to say, “Human beings throw their nets into the sea of life and come up with all
manner of fish, mostly small and worthless. Experienced fisherfolk pick out the big tasty
fish and throw the rest back. If you‟ve got ears, use them!”
Here is a story Jesus told. “One day a farmer went out onto his land with some seeds and
scattered them around. Some fell on the path and the birds pecked them up right away.
Some fell among the rocks and either didn‟t take root, or didn‟t find enough soil to produce
full-grown plants. Some fell among the weeds and were choked; others were eaten by
pests. But some fell on good soil and produced a good crop, yielding sixty or a hundred
times the seed sown.”
Jesus said, “I‟ve set the world on fire. I must keep fuelling it until there‟s a good blaze!”
He said, “Everything that now exists will change – what you can see, and what you can‟t
see.”
“Being alive or dead has nothing to do with breathing and nothing to do with corpses.”
“Ideas come to life when you let them shape your personality.”
“When you learn something which sheds new light on things, you can either act on it or
ignore it. Which will you do?”
The friends of Jesus said to him, “We know you‟re going to leave us. What shall we do for
a leader? Jesus said, “If you have any problems, you can always go to my brother James for
advice. He‟s honest and fair. I think the world of him!”
(13) Jesus said to his friends, “How would you describe me, as compared with other
people?”
Rocky said, “You‟re like a reporter who gets the facts right.”
Matthew said, “You‟re a deep thinker who makes good sense.
Twin said, “Teacher, I‟m lost for words!”
Jesus said, “I‟m not your teacher. I‟m just somebody standing by the spring of knowledge,
inviting people to drink. You‟ve been over-drinking from the spring lately and getting
confused.” Then Jesus took Twin to one side and had a serious chat with him. When he
joined the other friends again they said, “What did he say to you?” Twin said, “If I tried to
tell you, you‟d kill me, and then you‟d be in right trouble!”
Jesus told his friends, “If you try to score points by going without food, you‟ll be making a
big mistake. Your talk with God will be insincere and your help to those in need will be
given grudgingly.”
“When you visit other countries and travel around, if people invite you into their homes, eat
whatever food they put in front of you. Heal any members of the household who are
unwell. What goes into your mouth doesn‟t make you a bad person, only what comes out of
it!”
Jesus said, “You shouldn‟t bow or curtsey to other human beings. They were all born as
babies like you were. Your true parent, the one you should honour, was not born that way.”
Jesus said, “Some people think I‟ll get the peoples of the world to live together in peace in
no time at all. It‟s not as easy as that. What I have to say will lead to deep divisions,
conflict, killings and all-out war. Families will be torn apart, and individual members made
to feel lonely and isolated. But I do have something good to give you. It has not yet been
seen, heard or touched; indeed it‟s beyond human imagination.”
The friends of Jesus said to him, “What will happen to us in the end?” Jesus said, “Why do
you want to know about the end when you‟ve only just started? Every end depends on
where you begin. If you‟re lucky enough to get the beginning right, you‟ll discover that life
is all beginnings with no final end.”
“It‟s good if, before you develop your personalities and ideas, you first realize how lucky
you are just to be alive!”
“If you adopt my attitude to life and take to heart what I have to say, you‟ll learn to use the
material things around you for your benefit.”
“A garden has been provided for you where the trees are always green. Learn to appreciate
the lovely things around you, and then, like them, you‟ll last forever.”
(20) The friends of Jesus said to him, “What‟s God‟s New World like?” Jesus said, “It‟s
like a mustard seed. It begins as something very small and ends up as a large plant, big
enough for the birds to roost in.”
Maggie asked Jesus, “What sort of people do you want your friends to be?” Jesus told a
story. “One day some children were innocently playing in a field. The farmer came along
and said, “This is my field, get out of it!” The children stripped in front of the farmer to
show they had stolen nothing and said, „You can have your field, we mean you no harm!‟ ”
[Fn.1]
“Wise home-owners who‟ve been told there‟s a burglar about, make sure their property is
well-protected. In the same way, you must take precautions against those who would do
you harm. You need an inner strength to meet the troubles that are sure to come. It helps to
have an understanding friend you can talk to.”
“The moment a crop is ripe, the farmer gets on with harvesting it. If you‟ve got ears, use
them!”
One day Jesus saw some mothers feeding their babies at the breast. Jesus said to his
friends, “Little babies are the perfect example for those who want to be citizens of God‟s
New World.” The friends said, “Surely we don‟t have to become babies in order to qualify
for the New World?” Jesus replied, “When two people become one, like a mother feeding
her child; when there‟s no difference between the way you behave and what‟s going on in
your mind, or between your head and your heart; when you treat males and females
equally, without any distinctions whatsoever; when you respond naturally to another‟s
body language; when you accept people as they are, - then you‟ll be ready for God‟s New
World.”
Jesus said, “I select my friends very carefully. I expect them to stand shoulder to shoulder
with one another.”
The friends said, “Tell us exactly how you are thinking and feeling. We want to model
ourselves on you!” Jesus said, “Trust your senses! If you‟re honest at heart, your honesty
will help you to understand everything in the world, in the way a strong light shows
everything more clearly. If you‟re confused inside, then everything you see will be
blurred.” [Fn.2]
Jesus said, “Love other people as you love yourselves. Protect their interests as keenly as
you protect your own eyes.”
Jesus said, “You‟re very good at seeing the bit of sawdust in someone else‟s eye, but
somehow manage to miss the plank in your own eye. Only when you‟ve dealt with your
own weaknesses will you be qualified to attend to the weaknesses of others.”
“Until you free yourselves from your attachment to material things, you won‟t be ready for
God‟s New World. If you don‟t make the Rest Day a day free from life‟s stress, you won‟t
be in the right frame of mind to meet with the Loving God.”