A Systems View of Jesus as Change Agent

Abstract

Jesus Christ stands out as the most effective change agent in recorded history. His therapeutic encounters and the gospel message he preached may both be understood from a brief therapy, systems theory point of view. There are two levels of understanding in Jesus’ brief encounters and communications: an earthly level and a spiritual level. Most of the people whom Christ encountered were operating on the earthly level. Christ's goal in these encounters was to move the individual from an earthly perspective to a spiritual perspective, or from their old system to a new one. It is at this point of paradigm shift that people are presented with the opportunity to make the most significant second-order change possible: salvation.