“Jesus said to them [the religious leaders], ‘I tell you the
truth, tax collectors and prostitutes will go ahead of you into the kingdom of
God!” (Matt 21:31)
I’m struck by how some of “fiery” preachers would scare away
prostitutes. They would have terrified and shamed the Samaritan woman, who Jesus met at
the well (John 4:4-26). Unlike Jesus, they would have straight off condemned her for cohabitating with a man and
for having had five husbands previously trying to get her to repent out of fear of
hell’s fires. They end where Jesus began, such as with the woman caught in adultery, whom Jesus showed intervening love, grace, and mercy before telling her not to sin anymore (John 8:1-11). Strange how Scripture shows us that Jesus approached even the “worst”
of sinners radically different than those who say they represent him today mainly by preaching a messages of
moral rectitude and condemnation of "sinner". Then they have the audacity to call "sinners" (addressing most of their regular attendees) to repent by quoting from John 3:16: "For this is the way God loved the
world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him
will not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son
into the world to condemn the world, but that the world should be saved through
him".
This blog was partly inspired by a video message from Paul Washer that Caleb posted the other day. In the past I have come across many such videos by Paul Washer
that inspired me. He points fingers where Jesus did, not the “sinners”, but the false
shepherds and false prophets who profess to represent the God of Scripture by
their messages of condemnation. They reveal God as mainly a Relentless Judge out
for revengeful justice against “sinners”. Jesus didn’t go around condemning “sinners”
for being imperfect humans, but He instead recognized how “sinners” like all
humanity apart from His redeeming-love are under the dominion of Satan (the
Evil One, the Tempter, the Slanderer, the
Deceiver, the Marketing-King of Sin City). Christ showed “sinners” love
by first offering to set them free from the Oppressor of their soul (the inflictor
of depression, anxiety, fear, regret, sorrow, hopelessness, lovelessness,
stress, addiction, etc.). Then He called them to follow Him in setting other “sinners”
free from the grip of what controls their soul when they chase after imaginary possible
futures that never quench the thirst of their soul for affection, belonging,
acceptance, purpose, etc. The real war is not found in “correcting” sinful
behavior, but the war lies internally in the heart of a person. Hence, we who profess to follow Christ should carefully take note that: Christ did NOT
come to establish a Moral Police Force.
