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Jesus casting out the money changers at the temple (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
If your goal is to be nice all the time you must look away from injustice.
If your goal is to be popular in the social network, don’t take an unpopular stand or make an unpopular statement.
If you want to be like Jesus, you have to give up on being nice all the time because we live in a fallen and corrupted world.
Part of your time will be spent stating the truth in a pleasant manner that is easy for others to receive.
Sometimes you will need to, “Be angry and sin not”.
Jesus knew the tables of the money changers in the temple needed to be overturned in a way that would dislodge greed that was rooted by those in power.
The guys making the money were there because the religious elite allowed it, who no doubt took their cut of the money too.
Our meek and mild Good Shepherd used a whip on the greedy money changers while He shouted, “My Father said my house shall be a place of prayer, but you have made it a den of thieves! “
He wasn’t being very nice, was He?
Was it not because the Good Shepherd was busy driving off wolves?
Courage in the face of taking unpopular stand in an enormously risk laden situation is what made Jesus a Good Shepherd.
And He ultimately laid down His life for His sheep.
Still think you have what it takes to be like Jesus?
Or consider the Apostle Paul in Galatians when the pure truth of the Gospel was threatened by a group from James, the brother of Jesus .
These guys wanted to add a single work of the law to the finished work of Christ’s cross and told the Galatians this as well.
Paul said to the Galatians, “If anyone should bring another gospel than the one you have received, let him be accursed! “
He said a lot more colorful things than that as well, but you should really read it for yourself.
Take a challenge and just count the disproportionate amount of exclamation points and question marks contained in this small book of the Bible.
You will be left thinking the same thing I was.
Paul wasn’t being very nice either was he?
But Paul also wrote the famous Love chapter in 1 Corinthians 13.
Was he out of character?
Not at all.
Consider the precious blood of Christ and what it cost to buy us back from eternal judgement and separation from God.
Love isn’t always nice. But it is always right.
Im ashamed to die until i have won some victory for humanity. 