Test for College Students Shows We Make Jesus in Our Own Image

In his book With, Skye Jethani tells about a test that Scot McKnight gives every year to his incoming group of college students:

The test begins with a series of questions about what the students think Jesus is like. Is he moody? Does he get nervous? Is he the life of the party or an introvert? The twenty-four questions are then followed by a second set—with slightly altered language—in which the students answer questions about their own personalities.

McKnight is not the only one who has administered this exam; it has been field tested by other professionals as well. But the results are remarkably consistent—everyone thinks Jesus is just like them. McKnight added, "The test results also suggest that, even though we like to think we are becoming more like Jesus, the reverse is probably more the case: we try to make Jesus like ourselves."

McKnight's personality questionnaire confirms what the French philosopher Voltaire said three centuries ago: "If God has made us in his image, we have returned him the favour."

Skye Jethani, With (Thomas Nelson, 2011), pp. 61-62