I read an article on the internet recently that told the story of a shocking advertisement. Many years ago one of America’s biggest department stores tried marketing a Baby Jesus Doll. They advertised it as being “washable, cuddly and unbreakable.” It was neatly packaged in satin and plastic. They even added some Bible quotes about the Baby Jesus. The department store executives assumed that it would be a big seller. They were wrong. Sales were so slow that one of the store managers placed a huge sign in his store that read: “Jesus Christ Marked Down 50% Get Him While You Can.”

That story got me to thinking. Experience has taught me that the Jesus Doll can picture how a lot of religious people treat the real Jesus. He becomes just a doll to take out and cuddle whenever life gets difficult. I’ve seen it happen frequently. When life gets hard, some people start praying and maybe even coming out to church.

Then there are other times they will hide the “Jesus Doll,” when they know they’re doing something wrong. For example, they get angry or upset at others so they put the “Jesus Doll” away by steering clear of church, not reading the Bible, and maybe even avoiding their Christian friends. Perhaps they are hoping God doesn’t really care about their behavior and won’t hold them accountable. Maybe they wallow in self-pity or assume that they can always pull the “Jesus Doll” out and ask forgiveness.

Let me explain why both of those ways of treating Jesus will never work.

We must start by asking, “Is Jesus anything like a doll?” We have to realize that Jesus is much more than just a nice guy who lived 2,000 years ago, who spread encouragement and healed people in a far away land.

Let me show you what Jesus is really like.

Jesus is the all-powerful ruler of the entire universe. God the Father “…raised

[Jesus] from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. And He put all things in subjection under His feet, and gave Him as head over all things…” (Ephesians 1:19–22).

Jesus controls everything, down to every single atom. Jesus “is at the right hand of God, having gone into heaven, after angels and authorities and powers had been subjected to Him” (1 Peter 3:22). “[Jesus] is the radiance of [God’s] glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power. When He had made purification of sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high” (Hebrews 1:3).

One day, every person will be forced to admit that Jesus rules everything. “Being found in appearance as a man, [Jesus] humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:8–11).

Since Jesus is the King of creation, He can’t be manipulated and bent to do your own will. You can’t just “pull Him out” when you want Him and “put Him away” when you don’t. We must submit wholeheartedly to Him. Jesus made that clear: “… If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily [i.e. love Him enough to die for Him] and follow Me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake, he is the one who will save it” (Luke 9:23–24).

That may sound harsh, but it isn’t. Submitting enthusiastically to Jesus brings us in line with the reason why we exist. Surrendering to Jesus brings us joy because then we are doing what we were created to do. “Let us rejoice and be glad and give the glory to Him….”  (Revelation 19:7).

When we surrender to the Lord, we receive the greatest gift possible: “[Jesus] is able also to save forever those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them” (Hebrews 7:25).

When we come to Jesus we receive much more than forgiveness. “… If God is for us, who is against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things?…  For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8: 31–32, 38–39).

How are you treating Jesus? What place does He have in your life? I encourage you to worship Him as King of Kings and Lord of Lords–because that is who He is!