No Offense - Week 3

 A few weeks ago, I was watching a news show where they had two people from different political perspectives talking about an issue.  This wasn’t a show set up to create division and drama, it was actually a show to promote dialogue and discussion.  I don’t remember what the issue was, but I do remember that they each shared their views and then realized that they both believed that what they were saying was right and the other person was wrong.  It wasn’t that they held different opinions on a topic or had different solutions to a problem, they each genuinely believed that the truth they held was not the truth that the other held.  In a good-natured way, they said, and this is the problem we have as a nation. 

 If we have strong personal, political, social, economic, and theological beliefs, then deep down we believe, with certainty, that we are right and if others don’t see it our way, then they are wrong.  There is no problem with this kind of certainty.  Having confidence in what we believe is a good thing, but is the most important thing in life being right?  Is our highest priority in life to be right? 

 Jesus was surrounded by a lot of people who believed they were right about everything, and for the most part, they were.  They were called Pharisees.  These were religious leaders who really did know everything about the law, and they knew which of the 600+ laws you needed to follow and when.  They believed they were smarter, more faithful, and just better than those around them.  Because of how they saw themselves, it was easy for them to look down on those who believed, lived, and acted differently.  One day, when Jesus was surrounded by people who had this kind of confidence and knew they were right, He told them this parable. 

 Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector.  I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’

 “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’

 “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”  Luke 18:10-14

 The Pharisee in Jesus' story would have been a visibly righteous man.  He would have made a show of following all of God's law and made sure that people knew that he not only knew all the laws to follow but that he was faithful and obedient in following them.  The Pharisee says to God, thank you that I know what is right and that I do what is right and that I am not like those around me who are sinners.   

 The tax collector would have been a visible sinner.  Everyone knew who the tax collector was in town, and they were despised because they were seen as traitors to God’s people.  Tax collectors worked with the Roman government, the enemy of Israel, and they often cheated their own family and friends to get what they needed to give to Rome and then have what they wanted for themselves.  They were known to everyone, and everyone knew them as sinners.  In Jesus' parable, when it came time to pray, the tax collector begged for mercy because of his sin. 

 The Pharisee said, I’m righteous and he’s a sinner.  The tax collector said, I’m a sinner and I know it.  I need God’s grace.  Jesus said to those who were always interested in being right that it was the tax collector who was justified.  It was the tax collector who God honored.  It was the tax collector who was right. 

 In telling this parable, Jesus is telling us that life and faith is not just about what’s right and wrong, it’s also pride and humility.  God isn’t just concerned about whether we know what is right and wrong, and always do what is right, He is also concerned about how we love and care for others.  He is concerned about whether we are trusting in ourselves for salvation or if we are trusting in Him. He is concerned about how we see ourselves and how we see others.  Being right may not be as important as the attitude of our heart. 

 This isn’t to diminish what we believe is right and wrong or how we believe God calls us to live.  As followers of Jesus, we do believe that the way Jesus lived is important and that the truth Jesus taught is absolute truth.  Jesus even said, I am the way and the truth and the life.  So, believing and sharing and teaching the truth is important.  Knowing what is right and wrong is important.  What we need to be careful of is slipping into an attitude of feeling like we are always right, which allows us to look down on those who for whatever reason might disagree. 

 When we are constantly offended by the views of others because we believe our views to be right and they are wrong, it’s easy to grow in our contempt for them.  If you see a friend share all kinds of political messages on social media that you don’t agree with, or that offend you, it’s easy to begin to not just hate what they post but to hate them.  How can they believe those things?  How can they be so wrong?  We might start out by thinking that they are just misinformed but then we might shift to thinking that they are bad. 

 Let me bring this home to the church and what we need to guard against.  In the church, we are guardians of the way, truth and life of Jesus so part of what we do is assess situations and teachings and movements.  We ask ourselves if what we hear is true and in line with Jesus?  Is the way of others truly the way of Jesus?  It’s important to evaluate and assess what we see going on, but it can be easy for us to slip from assessing things to judging things.  It’s very easy to go from assessing people to judging them and then looking down on them. 

 This is what the Pharisees were doing at the time of Jesus.  They knew what was right about all things in the law.  They knew all the ways people had to follow the law.  They judged what was acceptable and not acceptable for people under the law.  The problem was that in time they started to care more about the law than the people.  They looked with contempt at anyone who they knew was wrong and it can be easy for us to do the same thing. 

 One reason it is so easy for us to go from assessing truth to having contempt for others is because we are all sinners, and our hearts are easily deceived.   The Bible says the heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Jeremiah 17:9.  As right as we think we are, we might actually be wrong.  If our views aren’t wrong, then maybe our approach in dealing with the situation is wrong.  Are we as loving and gracious and kind as we need to be?  Are we more concerned about being right and being seen by others as being right or are we more focused on loving others in a way that makes a difference? 

 Jesus wasn’t just concerned about what was right and wrong, He was also concerned about pride and humility.  Don’t be so sure of being right that you end up being wrong.  Let me say that again, don’t be so sure of being right that you end up being wrong.  People were not drawn to Jesus because of how right He was but because of how loving and gracious He was.  Sinners were drawn to Jesus not because He told them what was right and wrong and how they had to live their lives but because He showed them how much He loved them. 

 Look at some of the examples of Jesus’ life where if He had only been concerned about what was right, things would have looked very different. 

 Jesus was known for going to parties at the homes of sinners where there was a lot of eating and drinking.  This kind of association for a righteous person was wrong and if Jesus had gone to these homes and told everyone they were wrong and that they needed to change how they were living, He never would have been invited back.  But He was invited back and in time His love for people began to make a difference. 

At one dinner, a prostitute crashed the meal and poured oil all over Jesus' head and then wiped His feet with her tears.  The homeowner had contempt for the woman and even questioned what kind of man Jesus was because He allowed this well-known sinner to do this.  What Jesus did was wrong, but His love and acceptance of this woman and her gift made a difference. 

 On His way to Jerusalem, Jesus passed through a town and saw a tax collector that everyone knew.  Jesus said, I want to eat at your house today, and so He went and ate with Zacchaeus.  This wasn’t the right thing to do, and yet because He did it, it made a difference in the tax collector’s life.  He changed his ways and honored God.

 On a hot afternoon, Jesus stopped to rest at a well and saw a woman gathering water.  She was there at noon because none of the righteous women in town wanted to associate with her.  Her lifestyle was wrong.  She had had too many husbands and had given up on marriage all together so was now just living with a man.  Jesus shouldn’t have spoken to her, but He did.  He wasn’t worried about being right, He wanted to love her and see if that love would make a difference, and it did. 

 People weren’t drawn to Jesus because He was right and told them how wrong they were and that that needed to change, they were drawn to Him because of how His love made them feel. They felt honored, valued, cared for and included by Jesus and that unconditional love made the difference.  As followers of Jesus, we need to remember that the world isn’t going to be drawn to Jesus because of how right we are.  They are drawn to Jesus because of how our love for them makes them feel. 

 One of the final words Jesus gave his disciples was this,

My children, I will be with you only a little longer. You will look for me, and just as I told the Jews, so I tell you now: Where I am going, you cannot come.

 A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.  By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.  John 13:33-35

 Jesus shared this with His disciples after the Last Supper.  He only had a few more hours with them and He was speaking with incredible love and compassion.  When Jesus said, my children, the word for children is an intimate word a father would use to talk to his children.  It is the only time Jesus used this word.  He is speaking to them as God the Father saying, my children, the world will know you are my disciples if you will love one another.  It’s not about being right or wrong, it's also about pride and humility.  It’s about showing love. 

 If our priority and posture is to always be right, this is what happens:

  I’m right! 

 

It’s a vicious circle. 

 Jesus was the only truly right person who ever lived.  He was absolute truth and righteousness  He is the only one who can be morally superior and judge people's actions and attitudes and He is the only one who could have chosen to be angry and offended, but Jesus chose not to live that way.  We have to choose a different way. 

 Instead of a priority and posture of being right, what if we chose a priority and posture of gratitude.

I’m forgiven!

Jesus didn’t draw people to himself, or into a relationship with God, because of how right He was.  If Jesus, who was always right, didn’t do that, how can we possibly think we can draw people to Him by how right we are when we aren’t always going to be right.  We change people by loving them, not by judging them. 

 The first part of 1 Corinthians 13, the love chapter, goes like this,

If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing.  1 Corinthians 13:1-2

 If I have all knowledge and speak all that is true but do not have love, I am nothing.  Love is what makes the difference.  Truth and wisdom are needed, but without love they are nothing.  As the church, we need to lead with love.  We need to prioritize love.  We don’t give up on the truth.  We don’t let go of our faith and the way of Jesus; we just choose to begin from a place of love knowing that it was love that changed our lives. 

 What helps me grow in faith is not hearing people tell me what is right and wrong but by experiencing the love of Jesus in them.  When love draws us closer to Jesus, then His love has the power to make a difference.  So, let’s prioritize love and allow the love of God flowing through us to change our world. 

 

Next Steps

No Offense - Week 3

 

Read Luke 18:10-14

●     Where do you feel right and justified in pointing out what is wrong? 

●     How does Jesus show us that pride and humility are equally important?

●     Where might pride be an issue in your life?

●     Where is humility needed?

 Read Jeremiah 17:9. 

●     Why do we need to be careful about feeling so “right” about things? 

●     When have you been right about something but then either been wrong or done the wrong thing?

 Look at these examples of Jesus prioritizing love.

●     Matthew 9:10-17 - Jesus eats and drinks with sinners.

●     Luke 7:35-50 - Jesus anointed by a sinful woman. 

●     Luke 19:1-10 - Jesus eats with a tax collector.

●     John 4:4-42 - Jesus and the woman at the well.

How does each story show Jesus' priority of love?

How can these examples shape our attitudes and actions?

 How can you prioritize forgiveness and grace?