JESUS AND THE RELIGIOUS

It is no secret Jesus often upset several within the religious community of his day. As a matter of fact, to say he “upset” them is to put it mildly. John, in his gospel tells us, “Again his opponents picked up stones to stone him …” (John 10:31, ©NIV) This was not the first time people tried to kill Jesus. They were not just upset; they wanted him dead and we should not be surprised.I say this because there are few things I can say I know with unwavering, absolute certainty. One of them is this: “If you often communicate in a public setting you will upset someone.” Jesus was no exception. However, rather than cheer Jesus on as someone who stuck it to the narrow-minded religious folks; we should consider what there is to learn from Jesus’ inability to keep himself out of trouble.Remember, Jesus did not dislike those who wanted him dead. In fact, when he approached Jerusalem the week of his death he wept over the city and those who hated him the most. Even when he was in agony on the cross and was mocked by his fervent opponents – Jesus prayed for their forgiveness.It is this attitude of Jesus that has much to teach us. One of the things I find fascinating about Jesus is for as much as he upset the religious that was never his main goal. Jesus said of himself he was sent to “proclaim good news to the poor … to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor” (Luke 4:18,19 ©NIV). It was this message that was seen as a threat and heresy by many religious leaders.Yet, while those with a lot of skin in the religious game could not tolerate Jesus or his message there were others – on the margins of religion and society – who could not get enough of it. They were the hookers, the militant rebels, the “sinners” and the tax collectors (think powerful, corrupt, white-collar worker).And no matter how upset the ultra religious became with regard to Jesus’ message he refused to stop proclaiming it. Which teaches us that when we care more about the prevailing religious attitudes, biases and preferences than communicating hope to those on the margins, chances are good we have stepped away from the heart of Jesus’ message.It’s not that Jesus did not care for and love the religious who hated him – he did. But he did not care how angry they were about his message. His focus was proclaiming the good news for all people. Jesus knew that any gospel that is not good news for everyone is not the good news of God. And this drove the ultra-religious absolutely bonkers.It did then and it does now.In our world today there is no shortage of angry religious people picking up rocks to kill others. Of course, they are not literal rocks and the angry religious people are not going to actually murder anyone. But, who are we kidding?If we are angry with our sister or brother and slander them (For example: we resort to name calling, character assassination and posting slanderous blogs and articles about them as a way of dismissing them) we are in “danger of the fires of hell.” Jesus said that. Today we pick up words rather than rocks and seek to diminish souls rather than take a life.This teaches us that while ultra-religious people have been around for thousands of years – they have changed very little. They care more about their group, their set of beliefs, their political persuasion and their worldview than the heart of Jesus.This is why Jesus faced such dangerous opposition in his day. He was sent to proclaim freedom and liberation. And the ultra-religious are deeply suspicious of anyone who talks about such things. And Jesus talked about these things non-stop - never to anger the religious, but to “set the oppressed free.”Hedid this because he knew there were millions in his day that needed to hear it (including the ultra-religious) and billions and billions of people who would one day walk the earth long after he was gone that needed to hear it too.This should be a challenge for us. I say this, because, if I am honest it’s fun to upset the ultra-religious. As a matter of fact, if I am more honest, there have been times when I purposely set out to offend, shock and upset others. Few things are more stupid or irresponsible. In those immature times I deserve every bit of backlash I get. Anytime we set out to antagonize another we have ceased to proclaim the good news of Jesus.If we are to imitate Jesus and proclaim his good news it will be for everyone – religious and non-religious. It is not up to us who gets angry and who does not. We must commit to speak with the same love, mercy, compassion and grace Jesus did. With the full understanding some will be angry. And that’s when another challenge arises.When stones are picked up and the damming stares are cast our way, even then, we are to love those who want us dead with the same love Jesus did.And even then … May we never blink in the face of angry men and women who pick up stones to kill us. May our greatest concern never be pleasing the powers-that-be or toeing the “party line.” But may we be ruthless in our determination to proclaim the good news of Jesus that is for all people.