Randy Pope, pastor and president of Life on Life Ministries, has used a simple yet profound visual tool for years to help people understand their spiritual journey.
This method, called the Box Diagram, is rooted in Biblical principles. The Diagram helps invite pastors and church members to explore the different drives within mankind and discover why we need a transformative relationship with Jesus Christ.
You can watch the video to see how Randy presents the diagram, or you can read more about it below.
The Foundation: A Box Representing Mankind
The diagram begins with a box that represents mankind. According to the Bible, humans are driven by three fundamental urges:
- Spiritual Drive: An innate quest to discover and know God—a drive evident in every culture throughout history
- Intellectual Drive: A pursuit of truth, distinguishing between what is true and false
- Physical Drive: Our natural desires for sustenance, pleasure, and comfort
The spiritual drive is meant to be the strongest drive, and this helps form the basis for the “three great commodities of life.”
In other words, when our spiritual drive takes the lead, we enjoy three of the most important needs of life:
- Purpose: Waking up each day with a clear reason for living
- Freedom: Not a license for anything, but the capacity to do what we know we should
- Assurance: Confidence in our relationship with God, especially concerning what comes after death
All of us have, however, gone against God.
This deviation leads to an inversion: the physical drive becomes dominant, and the true purpose, freedom, and assurance we were designed to experience diminish. When these things are lacking, we can feel it—we know something is missing in our lives.
In place of authentic spirituality, many adopt a “pseudo spirituality”—a mix of moralism and ritual that fails to restore what was lost. As time goes on, our spiritual drive can grow weaker and we become obsessed with fulfilling the physical drives, but these can never truly satisfy.
The Turning Point: From Pseudo Spirituality to True Transformation
So what happens when a person who is controlled by their physical drive encounters a person who has a strong spiritual drive?
At first, they may not believe the other person has purpose, freedom, and assurance. But as they get to know this spiritually strong person, they start to see the differences, and eventually, they realize they want the same things.
How can you bridge the gap from being driven by the physical to being driven by the spiritual?
The answer is NOT simply attending church, experiencing a moment of emotional awakening, or reciting a simple prayer.
Instead, the answer lies in a personal transformation through Jesus Christ. In the video, Randy explains how both the Bible and his personal experience have shown that the path back to purpose, freedom, and assurance is found in a genuine relationship with Jesus.
Investigating Jesus: The C.S. Lewis Example
But who is Jesus? What does it mean to have a genuine relationship with him?
The story of C.S. Lewis provides an excellent example: Initially an atheist and later an agnostic, Lewis was challenged by his friend J.R.R. Tolkien to investigate Jesus Christ. Lewis was a famous author, respected professor, and well-regarded intellectual.
Through a rigorous intellectual journey, Lewis explored the claims of Jesus and arrived at one of three conclusions:
- He was a liar,
- He was a lunatic, or
- He truly is who He claimed to be—the Lord of the universe.
For Lewis, the logic was clear: if even a small chance exists that Jesus is who He says He is, then his claims must be investigated. The more he investigated, the more he came to see Jesus as Lord. You can read more about this in Lewis’ book, Mere Christianity)
How to Investigate the Claims of Jesus
Investigating the claims of Jesus can be done in many ways, but for people who are new to Jesus, it is usually best to start with a brief and simple introduction. Reading through the entire Bible, for instance, is a massive task and worth doing at some point in the journey, but it’s probably not the best starting point.
There are four critical questions that people need to ask if they are investigating Christianity:
- How can people believe the Bible is God’s Word and that it is without error?
- How can Christians believe that all people, including moral and religious people, outside of faith in Jesus, deserve to be separated eternally from God?
- Of all the religious leaders to ever live, how can Christians believe that Jesus is the one and only way to God?
- What does Jesus say is required to have eternal life?
Recognizing that many seek a brief and private way to investigate these profound questions, Randy created a short series of Life Issues Booklets.
These concise resources are designed to provide:
- Brevity: A quick yet comprehensive exploration of key questions
- Privacy: An opportunity for personal study without the pressure of a public sermonGuidance: Integrated questions placed in the margins of the text to promote active reflection as you read through portions of the Gospel of John
Each booklet explores one of the key questions listed above and also includes a few chapters from the Gospel of John. The booklets are brief but can be read or studied one week at a time. If you are reading these booklets to explore the claims of Jesus, then we recommend reading a little bit each day and discussing your thoughts with someone who can help guide you.
Conclusion
If you believe there is a tiny percentage chance that Jesus is who He claimed to be, then He is worth investigating. The cost of investigating Him is minimal, but the potential rewards are limitless.
The box diagram is more than a teaching aid; it’s a roadmap for understanding the drives that shape our lives and for recognizing the gap between our intended spiritual state and our everyday experience. The key to bridging this gap and experiencing purpose, freedom, and assurance is a transformational relationship with Jesus.
If you’re a pastor, discipleship group leader, or simply a faithful believer who wants to share the good news with those around them, consider integrating the Box Diagram and Life Issues Booklets into your conversations. These tools are a simple but effective way to introduce people to Jesus and help them investigate His claims.