Ha! Like you haven't heard!
If you're like me, you've probably wanted to throw your computer/phone/tablet/dog across the room more than once over the last few days. Whether you agree or disagree with the ruling. Why? Because of the incredible array of ridiculous, maddening, judgmental, hate-filled responses that have been vomited into the various interweb forums over and over and over... yeah, you know what I'm saying.
And it's come from both sides of the issue.
I'm a pastor. I can't help but weigh in. I'm frustrated at the Christian community, and I'm frustrated at the homosexual community and everyone in between. For many reasons. But I've got to address the community I am most familiar with.
That's right Christians, I'm talking to you. I don't have a voice amongst my homosexual (dare I say it) brothers and sisters. But I do have a voice amongst you. I'm one of you. I have a right to say what I'm about to say.
Many of you sound a lot like James and John right now.
If you stop reading now, you'll feel good about yourselves. John was amazingly close to Jesus and had his heart. James was one of Jesus' brothers. John wrote several powerful New Testament books. James is the one who told us that pure religion is taking care of orphans and widows. If you like the way that sounds, stop reading because they weren't always like that, and I'm about to remind you why.
There's a short passage in Luke 9, where Jesus goes to Samaria, not long before His crucifixion. And the Samaritans rejected Him. Maybe because Jesus was a Jew. Maybe because they didn't want to hear His message. Maybe because Jesus was preaching the Kingdom of God, and they didn't want to embrace the Kingdom of God. Maybe they wanted Jesus to accept them the way they were, and felt like they didn't need to repent of anything. Regardless of the reason, they rejected Him.
And that made James and John furious. How dare they reject Jesus, the Son of God? And because James and John were disciples, His representatives, His specially called and chosen and men, they needed to do something.
"Lord, shall we call down fire from heaven to consume them as Elijah did?"
On Friday, we learned that there are many in this country who do not believe the Bible should have anything to say in the matter of marriage. If this were a country comprised completely of Christians, I would be more likely to understand the outrage. But it's not. Do I wish that everyone in this country knew Jesus? Yes!
But not everyone knows Jesus - therefore not everyone is going to do things the way He would do it.
The problem is that the moment we start calling down fire and judgment on this country BECAUSE they are not doing it the way He would do it - WE are not doing it the way Jesus would do it either!
Jesus' response to James and John was clear: He rebuked them, saying "You don't know what spirit you are of."
If Jesus didn't want them to call down fire THEN, something tells me He doesn't want US to call down fire NOW.
Jesus never beat up any tax collectors, but He did make a scene in the temple. He never belittled a prostitute, but He did call the religious leaders "white washed tombs who made those who are lost twice the sons of hell that they themselves were."
Ouch.
People who don't know Jesus are going to act like people who don't know Jesus. I know, deep truths right there. But come on - what do we expect? We're judging the world, but we're not examining ourselves.
Peter makes a statement followed by a question in 1 Peter 4:17 -
"For the time has come for judgment to begin at the house of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the end of those who do not obey the gospel of God?"
I'll tell you what the end will be. Many of them will come to know the transforming love of Jesus. If we allow His righteous judgment to fall on us, and transform us, the world will want what we have. They will want Jesus. That will be the end result.
Right now, much of the world wants us to shut up because we sound like James and John trying to call down fire.
But if we allow our hearts to be transformed by the Spirit of God and not the spirit of this world, we might start sounding a little more like the James and John who helped author the New Testament:
James 1:22-25 - Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. 23 Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror 24 and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. 25 But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do.
John 13:34-35 - “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 35 By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”
The Gospel makes everything better. We need to get better at the Gospel.
Photo Credit: Matt Popovich via Compfight cc
