What Jesus Said

I got a comment on a recent election post:

Jesus said love everyone, treat them kindly too, when your heart is filled with love, others will love you. That should be the thought after a partisan, ugly election by all involved.

Of course we should love people, but I want to focus on the last part of the commenters statement, “when your heart is filled with love, others will love you, too.”

Now, Jesus never said that. While he did to say to Love your neighbor and your enemy (and I guess that’s pretty well inclusive of everyone.) He didn’t promise a result for that love of getting anything back from other people. That’s not the point.

In fact, if loving others were a formula for getting love back, how do you think Christ himself ended up hanging on a wooden cross? In fact, Christ tells us to love our neighbors and love our enemies and here are the results that are promised:

If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you. If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.

Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also.-John 15:18-20 (KJ21)

The disciple is not above his master, nor the servant above his lord. It is enough for the disciple that he be as his master, and the servant as his lord. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebub, how much more shall they call them of his household!-Matt. 10:24, 25 (KJ21)

So all those Christian leaders who are so attacked and despised. From a mild-mannered family psychologist (James Dobson) to a reasonable and well-educated pastor (Bryan Fischer), or a young woman who is fighting to save the lives of innocent children (Brandi Swindell), or a grandfather who is willing to stand up to anyone including his own party leadership for what he believes to be right (Congressman-elect Bill Sali*) to a shy and aspiring writer (myself) shouldn’t lose sleep over the fact that some people don’t like us.

It doesn’t matter what is done, if you’re truly following God and Christ, you’ll encounter opposition-hateful opposition that attacks and slanders your character. In life, and particularly in this political arena, you need to know who you are and not let the attacks of others influence

We are further warned by the writer of James:

Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.-James 4:4

Now here, the author is not referring to individuals in the world, individuals who are not believers, for Christ himself was a friend to sinners. What he’s talking about is friendship with the world’s systems and values. That is what is most often asked of Christians to become more liked in the world by aligning themselves with anti-biblical values.

I will do my best to be patient, gracious, and kind in the political realm, as well as in all of life. I’ll pray for God’s grace in those moments where I might fail. But, I will not make my goal being liked by everyone because in that road where you compromise yourself so much to be loved by the entire world, you compromise on what matters most.

*I love writing “Congressman-elect Bill Sali”

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