Did Jesus Fight the Will of God?

Many Christians objected to the “Jesus” that was portrayed in the movie The Last Temptation of Christ. These same ideas about Jesus have been promoted in other offerings from Hollywood and in the popular media. In this column we are going to look at a few of the things in the movie that contradict the depiction of Jesus found in the Bible.

The following are the exact words that Jesus said in the movie The Last Temptation of Christ. Read them for yourself and ask whether you think these words could be offensive.

The setting: Jesus is writhing in pain, clutching His head. We are later told that God is the one inflicting the pain on Jesus, forcing Him to accept that He is the Messiah.

Movie

Jesus: “The feeling begins—very tender, very loving. Then the pain starts—claws slip underneath the skin and tear their way up. Just before they reach my eyes, they dig in. Then I remember. First I fasted for three months. I even whipped myself before I went to sleep. At first it worked. Then the pain came back and the voices. They call me by name, Jesus. Who is it? Who are you? Why are you following me?”

Novel

In Nikos Kazantzakis’ novel, The Last Temptation of Christ, we read (p. 25):

“He felt the claws bore far down, crack open his skull, touch his brain. He clinched his teeth so that he would not cry out; he did not want his mother to become frightened again and start screaming…. ‘He’s come again, he’s come again…,’ he murmured, trembling.”

Objection

Christians object to depicting God coercing Jesus. Nowhere in the Bible does God torment Jesus so He will accept His role of being Messiah.

Christians also object to the assertion that Jesus fought against the will of God. The Scriptures reveal Jesus did request the Father to remove His going to the cross, if possible. But Scripture never reveals that Jesus resisted God’s will. In fact, He said, “I always do the things that are pleasing to him [God]” (John 8:29; cf. 4:34).