Going with Jesus Instead of Staying With the Pharisees

          Have you ever wondered how some people could be so open minded?  Well, many have wondered how some people could be so closed-minded!  We live in a strange world and in a strange time!  Many things are rapidly becoming acceptable while other things are quickly becoming unacceptable.  It is becoming harder and harder to maneuver our way through these chaotic days.  But finding our way, as Christians, will not be accomplished by retreating to our bunkers, fall-out shelters, or our padded seat sanctuaries.  I have searched carefully in both English, and the original Greek and words like “hide,” “withdraw,” and “retreat” do not appear in The Great Commission of the Lord (Mat. 28:19-20).  Instead the disciples of Jesus were commissioned to “go.”  The religious leaders of Jesus’ day were not “going” anywhere.  Their whole function seemingly was to “stay” and “maintain” all sameness, and prevent the proverbial boat from being rocked.  They had taken the Scripture and then added further requirements – rules and regulations and traditions which had become equated sadly, but only in their minds, with God’s own words.

          William Barclay famously said, “In every generation there are those who seek to be stricter than God.”  The Pharisees, of New Testament fame, have plenty of modern-day descendants.  These are ones who believe Christianity is most evident by strict adherence to rules; mostly rules of man’s own making.  In his book Accidental Pharisees: Avoiding Pride, Exclusivity, and the Other Dangers of Overzealous Faith, author Larry Osborne discusses those who have erected fences outside God’s own fences as though they were seeking to gain God’s favor by attempting to be even stricter than God’s guidelines on any number of issues!  This has taken plenty of ridiculous forms as man-made rules have been erected all around the perimeters of God’s own Word.  Ironically, and unknowingly, many have effectively said, God’s Word does not go far enough, therefore we must add a little more!  Not wise, and certainly not helpful.  And, quite often these man-made add-ons become deterrents and stumbling blocks for lost people to become a part of the Kingdom.  Instead of removing obstacles, many have erected more!

          One wonders how the woman at the well (John 4) or the woman caught in adultery (John 8) might be treated by some in the modern day church.  Sadly, many Christians are afraid to get their hands dirty working in the world.  Reaching out and intentionally building relationships takes work.  There is a discomfort factor with leaving our lofty perches and getting down in the dirt (spiritually speaking) where many people live and operate.  Jesus was called “a friend of sinners” and I am not sure many churches or many individual Christians really understand that as well as they should.  Jesus showed many undesirables (tax collectors, prostitutes, murderers, thieves, etc.) compassion and love and told them to go forth and don’t sin anymore. There must be an unmistakable intentionality for our part that must undergird everything.  Unfortunately many are being repelled by the same church to which they should be attracted.

          I talked with someone not long ago who was afraid to attend church because she had tattoos on her arm.  She acted as though that was a truly legitimate excuse not to come.  When I questioned her why she could possibly think that, she began to explain how her uncle was a pastor and that she would certainly not be welcome in his church.  When people feel more hate than love; more exclusion than inclusion, emanating from a church, something is terribly wrong and Christ’s attitude toward sinners is not on display.

          I also talked recently with someone who reduced just about all she knew of Christianity to her perception of what she called “the homophobia of Christians.”  As we talked at length, she was amazed to hear what the Bible itself actually had to say and what I, as a Christian pastor, had to say.  She was completely caught off guard that my understanding of the issue was far greater than her own.  She admitted thinking that Christians simply were ignorant people who had no interest in learning and were closed minded.  Unfortunately she was not used to Christians who could or would intelligibly discuss issues of importance.  Alarmingly, many believers are not equipped and they never get around to becoming equipped to defend God’s Word and engage the culture.

          In the famous book In His Steps, first published in 1896, author Charles M. Sheldon famously asks the question “What would Jesus do?”  The book itself has sold over 30 million copies worldwide and was the inspiration behind a Christian campaign and merchandizing frenzy in the 1990s.  Many were wearing bracelets and wearing t-shirts with WWJD (What Would Jesus Do).  I think it is extremely important to ask ourselves that question often as we face all sorts of situations; but I also think it would be insightful if we were to also ask ourselves, from time to time, “What would the Pharisees do?”  My observations, over many years, lead me to believe that many church members are much more closely aligning themselves with the attitude and behavior of the Pharisees than with Jesus.         

          Far too many Christians have been guilty of attacking lost souls rather than reaching out to them with a measure of love and compassion and relaying to them the truth we are all just poor wretched sinners.  And, that our only hope comes through Jesus Christ. Lost people are going to look, act, and talk like lost people.  Their ideas and attitudes are going to be consistent with those of lost people. They desperately need what we hopefully already have – a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.  Are you reaching out to people as an extension of the love Christ has shown to you, or are you far more worried about rules, regulations and traditions like the Pharisees?  Are you willing to “go” as Jesus commissioned or are you resigned to “stay” behind as did the Pharisees?

In Christ,

Dr. Allen Raynor, Pastor