As a person who's awkward personality requires confrontation to be avoided, offending people is not usually on my list of things to do in a day.
I like to keep the peace. I like for people to like me and think well of me. I like to please.
As a waitress, my whole paycheck is dependent on whether people like me.
However, my meager means of survival are not the point of this.
But did you see how successfully I avoided the actual issue? My beating around the bush has reached black belt status.
I see a lot of people label Christians as being hateful and judgmental.
They like to point out the red-faced misogynist standing outside planned parenthood and declare; "That's why I don't like Christians. All of them are just like that man. Hateful, judgmental, uneducated, and hypocritical."
There are more flattering stereotypes but I didn't want to make the list too unbearably long.
While I am not denying that there are individuals who do not represent the blood of Jesus Christ well, I feel as if I need to clarify a key fallacy.
There is a difference between hating people and hating things people do.
For instance, I love my mother to death, but listening to her file her nails in the car makes my skin crawl.
It seems as if our world has confused these two things.
Like if you don't join the band-wagoners on the latest socially acceptable sin, you hate everyone who did.
Jesus does say to love all people as he does.
However, Jesus did not love, nor does he say to love all the sinful things people do.
For instance, Jesus spent time eating and drinking with tax collectors and prostitutes. Tax collectors were seen as sneaky and hated because they cheated people out of their money. Yet, Jesus loved them even if he did not love what they did.
In John chapter 8 a woman was caught in the act of adultery. The religious leaders of the day brought the woman to stand and be stoned, which was the law for such a crime. Jesus who was in the crowd declared "Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her" (vs.7). Slowly everyone in the crowd left, knowing they had sin in their life and could therefore not condemn her. Jesus looked up at the woman and told her he did not condemn her, but here is the part we cannot overlook. Jesus told her "Go now and leave your life of sin" (vs.11).
Jesus demonstrated perfect love to this woman. He did not condemn her. He did not act like other sinners were better than her. He did not act like other sins were more acceptable than hers. He showed her love and compassion but he condemned her sin. and he told her to leave her sin.
Jesus Christ loves people with an overwhelming love.
However, we cannot forget Jesus Christ hates sin with an unimaginable rage.
For instance, Jesus spent time eating and drinking with tax collectors and prostitutes. Tax collectors were seen as sneaky and hated because they cheated people out of their money. Yet, Jesus loved them even if he did not love what they did.
In John chapter 8 a woman was caught in the act of adultery. The religious leaders of the day brought the woman to stand and be stoned, which was the law for such a crime. Jesus who was in the crowd declared "Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her" (vs.7). Slowly everyone in the crowd left, knowing they had sin in their life and could therefore not condemn her. Jesus looked up at the woman and told her he did not condemn her, but here is the part we cannot overlook. Jesus told her "Go now and leave your life of sin" (vs.11).
Jesus demonstrated perfect love to this woman. He did not condemn her. He did not act like other sinners were better than her. He did not act like other sins were more acceptable than hers. He showed her love and compassion but he condemned her sin. and he told her to leave her sin.
Jesus Christ loves people with an overwhelming love.
However, we cannot forget Jesus Christ hates sin with an unimaginable rage.
In fact, Jesus hates sin so much that he physically cannot be anywhere near sin.
Jesus hates sin so much that he created Hell.
Jesus loves people so much that "he sent his one and only son" (John 3:16) to die on the cross for EVERYONE'S sin so that we might be able to be in his presence in Heaven one day.
To an unbeliever, the statement "I love you, but I hate your sin" sounds like "I love you but I hate you"
However, there is no greater love than calling someone out on their sin.
My Dad used to tell me all the time "I discipline you because I love you. I would not discipline you if I did not love you."
At the time I would roll my eyes and hand my cell phone over, but now I see even the biblical truth in his words.
If you saw someone about to walk over the edge of a cliff, you would not even think twice about stopping them.
You would run as fast as you could. You would yell as loud as your lungs would allow. You would grasp their t-shirt roughly, and you might pinch a little bit of their skin. You might bruise them as you fling them backward onto the hard dirt.
But that wouldn't matter, right? Because the greater danger was avoided. They didn't fall off the cliff and they are alive.
I think the biggest misunderstanding is most people do not see sin as a death sentence. Without Christ's redeeming love; without accepting his free gift of eternal salvation, our sin leads us on a straight path to Hell.
My sin of feeling jealous gets me to Hell just as quick as the sin of a murderer's.
Everyone is equally in need of a savior.
And what greater love is it to tell someone how your life was redeemed, and how they can be redeemed from their sin as well.
If you didn't care about someone, you wouldn't care if they spent an eternity in Hell.
You wouldn't care if their soul was separated from the incomprehensible love of Jesus Christ.
And you definitely wouldn't care if they lived a life drenched in sin, because what do you care of their soul or eternity?
The problem is, you cannot force someone to see sin as sin.
To an unbeliever, their sin is right. Perfectly acceptable. Maybe even legal.
The best thing you can do is love someone. Love them so fearlessly and unconditionally, that they won't question your motives when you lovingly point out the sin in their life.
The thing you need to understand is that you are going to offend people simply by not agreeing with something.
I remember when I moved in with my freshman roommates, the first question they asked me was if I drank and partied.
When my answer was in the negative, they became defensive. They told me they thought I was judgmental.
They called me judgmental simply because I said I didn't drink.
Even though I told them I didn't think any differently of them if they did, it was simply something I personally didn't do.
I think as Christians we have become so afraid of the stereotypes people already stick on us, that we have forgotten our most important calling--to love people.
To love people so much that we go to the ends of the earth declaring the gospel to unbelievers, offending them, most likely in an effort to save their soul.
Offending them because the gospel we offer tells them everything they have believed up to this point is a lie.
That is incredibly offending to hear, and most people would not want to tell someone that.
However, the question remains; do you love people enough to offend them in an effort to save their soul?
I think as Christians we have become so afraid of the stereotypes people already stick on us, that we have forgotten our most important calling--to love people.
To love people so much that we go to the ends of the earth declaring the gospel to unbelievers, offending them, most likely in an effort to save their soul.
Offending them because the gospel we offer tells them everything they have believed up to this point is a lie.
That is incredibly offending to hear, and most people would not want to tell someone that.
However, the question remains; do you love people enough to offend them in an effort to save their soul?
