Compassion and Rebukes - Jesus Sets the Example

Well, I wanted to just quickly talk a little bit about my my pastor's sermon on Sunday. It was a really good sermon. All of his sermons are really good, and I appreciate Almost every sermon I've ever heard in my entire life.

But let's just be honest some of them stick with us more than others and sometimes things will jump out about someone's sermon more so than others and I've got some notes here and if you can see this is written in crayon because You know when you have kids and a worship service, and they're under four years old a lot of times.

You have crayons readily available for taking notes. But anyway, there's two things. I want to know about this sermon that I thought were Fantastic. The first thing was something regarding my son, so my four-year-old son stays in the service with us and our two-year-old does sometimes too, but He gets pretty.

He doesn't have like a like an off switch or like a Volume switch so sometimes we'll take him out if he's a little bit extra spicy, but anyway so my pastor was in in the book of John and we're talking about the cleansing of the temple and so in the cleansing of the temple the story at one point.

You know Jesus makes the the whip and He and he he drives out the the people that are selling and Engaging in commerce in the temple, and he tells them get out like he he shouts it. And my pastor when he was reading this part of the passage.

He raised his voice. He's a very mild-mannered guy in general. You know you very much, so even keeled kind of a preacher. But he raised his voice and said get out. You know kind of as if he He was imagining what Jesus probably sounded like when he was doing this because he had such a zeal For the Lord and so my son looks at me, and he kind of got his attention.

He goes daddy daddy Pastor Jerry was being real and I did I kind of told him yeah, you know that's right because Jesus had such zeal. He was angry about what was happening in his father's house, and so he drove them out with a loud voice.

He he wanted them to get out and stop doing what they were doing sometimes it's okay to use a loud voice and so I thought that was so important you know because I Really want my son to come to understand and come to know the real Jesus not the fake.

You know surfer dude like hippie Jesus that everyone talks about the people you know the people like the Jesus. That's very you know mild-mannered all the time kind of almost like Spock just like almost so emotionless.

Sometimes and that's not the Jesus that's that the Bible presents the job the Bible presents a Jesus who You know he wept tears of anger when he saw that Lazarus Lazarus died the Bible Presents a Jesus that was angry at times because he has such zeal for the Lord and all of that kind of stuff.

The Bible Presents a Jesus that yes did speak gently to certain people. But depending on the circumstances there were different things that were appropriate for different people. And so the real Jesus is one that I want my son to know.

I don't want him to know the hippie. You know surfer dude Jesus that all he does all day is talk about the lilies and the daffodils. Jesus does talk about the lilies and the daffodils he invented them he invented beauty he invented nature these things were his idea so He did do that.

But he also was you know lots of people lots of lots of big Eva types that that wanna that want to tell you that We need we need to talk kindly to each other all the time and we have to talk in gentle tones.

All these same guys love that one quote from CS Lewis book where is like is talking about Aslan is he safe. No, he's not safe, but he is good. Well. What does that even mean to some of you big Eva types?

He's not safe. What does that mean I? Know people who have written entire books called your Jesus is too safe, okay? I agree with you, but but but but but what do you mean by that because the Jesus that I know Oftentimes spoke in aggressive tones, and that's actually the second point I want to talk about again my pastor was talking about this image of Jesus.

Let's just be honest that the cleansing of the temple is a violent scene. Jesus makes a whip of cords, and he didn't do that just for fun. He didn't do that just for effect. He was using it. Okay, so it was a violent scene that we're talking about in it when it comes to the cleansing of the temple.

He did probably shout Get out. And so so what's that all about. So my pastor made a really good observation, and it's an observation I've thought about before just because of my situations that I find myself in but but I've never quite put it this way and He said this he said look Jesus.

He had compassion on people. Especially the crowds. Jesus had compassion on those who were being led astray by the leadership. He had compassion on those common folks that didn't have a copy of the Bible with them.

They didn't know Necessarily how to read all the time they they were they believed what they were taught by the Pharisees and believed what they were taught. By the leadership and things like that he had compassion on those people right and he had zeal and Aggressive words and direct speech and rebukes.

For those that were leading them astray for the Pharisees, and if you look it's probably not completely. You know every case is like this, but but the trend is when he's talking to the Pharisees. That's when he uses aggressive tones.

That's when he uses things that insult them. To get his point across. That's when he rebukes. When he's talking to the crowds the common folks the everyday Joe's in the pew so to speak Joe six-pack in the pews.

He has compassion. He has patience. He has gentle words for women when he talks to women who've been led astray by Pharisees gentle words. You see this is the thing guys I've been criticized often for this kind of thing my tone and things like that.

But the reality is that the even the social justice this the social justice warriors even get this wrong. They've got it exactly twisted if you look right now. I Bet you and pick any social justice movement reformed Christian that you want any one of them and within the last week or two they have been vicious and slandered.

Common everyday folks the contempt for the man in the pew. Yeah, I'm talking about the guys who voted for Trump. I'm talking about the guys who are Republicans who like the Second Amendment. I'm talking about these everyday Joe's in the pews people just regular folks the congregations the crowds.

That's who Big Eva is vicious towards. That's who gets called fools by Matt Chandler. That's who gets. That's who they rip. You see that's the exact opposite of what Jesus did. Jesus rips the Pharisees.

Jesus rips those who are teaching bad Doctrine who are leading the the congregations in the crowds astray. That's who Jesus rips. But who does social justice warriors? Who do they rip? They rip you and me regular Joe's.

Regular Joe's that's who they lie about. Jesus didn't lie about anybody. But you see the social justice warriors not only are they vicious towards the crowd the crowds and the congregations the regular Joe's.

But they lie about them all the time. The crowds are gets or who gets called racist the crowds are gets who called gets called white supremacist. The crowds are the one that's always the crowds always the regular Joe's like you and me.

They're the ones that Big Eva has disdain for palpable disdain for. You can just see how they how they think about everyday Joe's. I've seen it. I'm telling you look at any social justice warrior right now that look at their tweet log in the last two weeks.

You will find disdain slander and just vicious words about the crowds. The exact people that Jesus had patience kindness Compassion and gentleness for. And what will you see with Big Eva the social justice warriors as well?

You will see the opposite when it comes to the leadership. Jesus ripped the leadership. Jesus spoke directly to the leadership. Jesus insulted the leadership. He rebuked the leadership. What does Big Eva do?

They circle the wagons. They circle the wagons. They don't call anybody out. It's the exact opposite of Jesus's example of what Jesus did and. So, yeah, you know, I absolutely defend the regular Joe's that I see out there being ripped by by by conference speakers by authors by By by seminary presidents by by pastors.

God forbid pastors ripping their own congregations. I've seen people rip their own congregations calling them fools laughing and yucking it up about how they had to leave the church because they got. Because the pastors went too far into this social justice critical theory stuff.

That's sinful man. That's sinful. That's not what Jesus did. Jesus did the exact opposite so social justice words are they're wrong about a lot of things. But this is one of them. This is one of them get mad at me for calling out leaders.

I don't even lie about them even slander them. Nothing like that. I just call them out with aggressive sounding words. Just like Jesus did. I'm not perfect, but I'm following Jesus's example. Those who are leading the crowds astray, that's who I rep.

I have compassion on the crowds. I feel bad for them. I say it all the time my videos man. I feel bad. I don't. I don't I Say this all the time my videos. I don't completely hold, you know Black and brown brothers and sisters in Christ that buy into this stuff.

I don't completely hold them totally responsible. Yeah that everyone's responsible for their own beliefs, of course. But I feel bad for that people who've been led astray who've been told by their leadership and it's okay not to forgive but it's okay to Cut to try to take a position of authority in these areas even when you have none.

It's okay to withhold forgiveness and and to have these feelings in your heart against the white man because they've held you down man. They've oppressed you you're the victim. I feel bad for people who've been taught that because it's bad enough man when you're a minority.

You have that in you. I have family members like this you have that in you already you want to blame somebody else for your Problems that's already inside of you. It's hard enough to live like that and then you have credible Christians credible sounding Christians.

Encouraging you in that it's hard for them man. I've got compassion for those people but the people teaching that stuff I've got rebukes for you and I think I'm following Jesus as an example in that you are turning Jesus as an example on its head ripping the crowds and protecting the leadership.

Anyway, I hope this is helpful. God bless.