Discussion Paper

The 12-page Discussion Paper offers the most complete presentation of our position, including footnotes for all of the facts cited by WWJDrive resources. It can be used by Professors and Adult Education teachers in their classrooms (as can the Fact Sheets and our special issue of Creation Care magazine).

The discussion paper is available below or may be downloaded as PDF.
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Introduction: What Would Jesus Drive - Get Serious

The first reaction by some to the question "What Would Jesus Drive?" is to laugh. However, we consider it one of the crucial questions of our day. Jesus cares about what we drive. Obeying Jesus in our transportation choices is one of the great Christian obligations and opportunities of the twenty-first century. Pollution from vehicles has a major impact on human health and the rest of God's creation. It contributes significantly to the threat of global warming. Our reliance on imported oil from unstable regions threatens peace and security.

The question "What Would Jesus Drive?" is a more specific variation of "What Would Jesus Do?" (WWJD). All the bumper stickers, bracelets, and tee shirts asking "What Would Jesus Do?" may have become a cliché to some. But we take the question seriously because it pointedly reminds us that we have confessed Jesus Christ to be our Savior and Lord, that we are his followers. It is completely natural for individuals to ask what their leader would do when faced with a moral decision - especially when that leader is the Living Lord Jesus. "What Would Jesus Do?" is also another way of asking, "What is God's will for me in this situation?" There is not a more serious question for a Christian to ask.

For Christians, the Lordship of Christ extends throughout every area of our life. Nothing is excluded from His Lordship. This includes our transportation choices. That is why the more specific question, "What Would Jesus Drive?," is a question that all Christians should ponder seriously.

That we have choices today that were not available during the time when Jesus of Nazareth lived in Palestine does not make the question irrelevant. Because of the resurrection of Christ, because the Risen Lord lives in all Christians, because the Church is His living Body, Jesus Christ lives today. If we confess and understand these basic Christian beliefs, then we realize that contemporary moral questions are indeed questions for Jesus Christ and His followers to face together. Thus, the question, "What Would Jesus Drive?," while initially amusing, actually calls Christians to "get serious" about considering their transportation choices as moral ones.

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