Chapter 3

Jesus, now with a satchel on his back and a walking stick in his paw, walked through the unexplored deserts of Zootopia. The white lion had been wandering the unexplored territory for 40 days and nights and it was starting to take a toll on him. He had been fasting all the time, without food or drink, and yet he continued to live.

He paused to tie a black bandanna around his mane to keep it from falling in his face when he heard a stone slip. He looked around and thought he saw the black cloak of...

Suddenly, the world started to change. Reality started to slide in Jesus' eyes. The toll of no food and water had gone to his head and he collapsed from exhaustion right into the hot sand.

When Jesus awoke, everything didn't look normal. It looked out of place, surreal, and almost fake. Jesus, who was lying sprawled out on his stomach, got up and sat against a rock, trying to get a hold on things.

"Boy… you don't look so good…" a demonic voice spoke. Jesus turned to see a… a skeleton of a lion with small curved horns clad in a black cloak. "Remember me?" the skeleton asked, kneeling down next to him. "Surely you must have. I was there at the beginning…" The skeleton placed his hand on the white lion's shoulder.

Jesus pushed the skeletal hand away from his shoulder and got up. "I know who you are…" Jesus spoke weakly, walking away from the skeleton. However, the skeleton continued following him.

"Why does he do this to you?" the skeleton asked as he followed Jesus, floating in the air like a ghost. "Why does he have you go on for 40 days and nights with no food or water? He wants to replenish your flesh… he wants you to eat." The skeleton knelt down and picked up a large stone. "Command this stone to be turned into bread and satisfy your hunger… That is… if you are the Son of God."

"No…" Jesus replied, throwing away the stone. "It is written: 'Man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that speaks from the mouth of God'."

The black cloaked creature slunk away and disappeared as Jesus walked towards a high point. When he looked over the high point, he saw down in a valley all the riches of the world.

"Look at all of this!" the skeleton appeared again and started to speak. "It's everything an animal has dreamed of! All the riches of the world!"

The skeleton brought him down into the valley and showed him all the riches. "You'll have plenty of money, houses, wine, and an army at your control… you'll be able to do what's right with an army like that… and all you got to is kneel down and declare me lord of the universe!"

"No!" Jesus cried out in a loud voice. "It is written in the scriptures: 'You shall the worship the lord your God and no one shall you serve'. No one!"

The horned skeleton of the lion roared in anger and made the riches disappear. He then teleported both him and Jesus up on top of the temple in Zootopia.

"This is getting really old!" the skeleton roared in anger. "I've attacked you spiritually twice and yet you defeat me! But you won't be able to counter this!"

He grabbed Jesus and pulled him towards the edge of the temple. "If you are the son of God, I dare you to throw yourself down there!" said the skeleton, who pointed towards the grounds of the temple. "You know… It is written in the scriptures: 'He shall give his angels charge over you. They will carry you up in their arms before your foot even hits a stone.'"

Jesus looked at the skeleton with holy and righteous fire in his eyes. "I know who you are…" he growled. "You are Satan! The enemy of my father and all that he and I stand for! I command you to leave me!" the skeleton pulled back in fear as Jesus walked towards him. "It is written:" Jesus continued. "'You shall not put your God to the test!'"

The skeleton of the lion, Satan, roared in defeat and faded away as reality stopped sliding. Jesus felt faint and fell to the ground, tired from the spiritual battle he had gone through. ….

When Jesus awoke, he was back where he was; in the unexplored territory. He had succeeded in avoiding the temptations of the devil.

Afterwards, Jesus went out of the unexplored territory of Zootopia and went to Savannah Central. He walked along the road when a car being driven by a friendly looking sheep pulled up next to him.

"Is that you, Jesus?" The sheep asked, getting out of the car.

Jesus' face brightened. "Lazarus!" he roared joyously.

Lazarus ran over and hugged the white lion, who knelt down and returned the embrace. Lazarus was a sheep, so his height came up only to Jesus' waist. Lazarus' fur was a grayish color and he wore a pair of glasses and had green eyes. He wore a brown t-shirt, a black jacket, and blue pants. He had been friends with Jesus for a long time and knew his family.

"Oh… My sisters have been arguing and it's driving me nuts!" said Lazarus as he let Jesus out of his embrace. "They said that they saw you at the river a few miles from Sahara square, but that was about a month and ten days ago!"

Jesus smiled and got up. "Martha and Mary…" he said thoughtfully, remembering Lazarus' two sisters who were quite the handful. "I'm longing to see them…"

"Well then… Come on!" said Lazarus as he got in his car. Jesus got in the passenger side and they both drove to Lazarus' home.

A little bit later, Jesus sat around the table inside Lazarus' home. Jesus' appearance had changed, as he no longer wore the carpenter clothing he usually wore. As Lazarus drove back to his house, they stopped at a clothing store. Though Jesus didn't care about appearance, his carpenter clothing took a beating out in the desert and Lazarus suggested that he get new clothes. He now wore a black shirt with no sleeves, dark blue cargo pants, a white jacket with a hood, and black coverings on his wrists and ankles. He also had a brown shoulder bag that hung on the chair he sat in.

Jesus sat at the head of the table, with Mary (Not Mary Magdalene or Mary the Mother of Jesus, mind you) sitting on his right and Lazarus on his left. Two guests, a pig named Rueben and a wolf named Sanchez, sat at the end of the table. Martha was the one serving, getting the drinks and food for the visitors.

"I don't understand…" said Lazarus, as he poured Jesus a drink and sat down. "If Joseph died and left you his job, a good set of tools, a workshop, and contacts, why don't you use it?"

"Lazarus, I have other work." Jesus replied, taking a sip of drink.

"Is that what you mean by the kingdom?" asked Mary, who was a young sheep.

"Yes!" said Reuben, a pig with a large stomach. "The Kingdom of God; Last time you came, you were just fixing the door."

"Well, is the door still opening smoothly?" Jesus joked. Everyone laughed at that: the door wasn't really a moving door anymore, it just stayed there.

"What I don't understand is-" Sanchez was about to start when Martha, who was an older sheep than Mary, interrupted him.

"Jesus!" Martha angrily spoke up, placing down a basket of food on the table. "Don't you care that my sister has left me to do all the work?! Order her to help me!"

Mary turned her head and looked at the wall, her expression turning to one of shame.

"Martha…" Jesus said gently. "Martha… you're always hurrying around and so worried. You do so much for everyone else, but… don't miss the one thing that matters for you. Have a seat and listen…"

Martha's angry expression softened and she sat down between Lazarus and Sanchez.

"Well…" Jesus started. "I can still mend doors, but I'm building something new."

"God's Kingdom?" Mary asked hopefully.

"On earth, as it is in Heaven." Jesus replied smiling. They all continued their dinner as Jesus talked about the kingdom of heaven, everyone listening intensely.