Be Who You Were Made To Be
Luke 13:31-34
Yesterday marked the begining of a season of primary elections across our country. Our attention for the next few months will be drawn to the major political parties’ of our country selection of their nominees for the general election in November.
In our own city there is a political issue campaign brewing about zoning code reforms (if you want to learn about both sides, you can visit: www.makelakewoodlivable.com and www.lakewoodcitizensalliance.com for a perspective of both sides). I am involved with one of the campaigns and believe strongly in our side. I have written about my position on social media platforms like Facebook and Nextdoor.
And there was such an interesting reaction I received on Nextdoor, which is more neighborhood centric, given that I do not hide that I am also a Methodist pastor when I write about what I think. The reaction was often angry from the opposing side, but they had interesting commentary about me being a pastor while doing this.
“Why aren’t you more concerned about your flock than this issue?” “Why are you so mean? Pastors are supposed to be nice.”
For one thing, I don’t consider myself someone who has a “flock” because I don’t believe the folks I am blessed to be in ministry with at my church are sheep. We are all sheep and Jesus is our shepherd; that is my theology. And, for another thing, while I can’t control whether or not people see me as mean (I am certainly not trying to be), I think it is so interesting that niceness is something Pastors are supposed to be.
I don’t think any of us were made to be nice. We were made to be kind!
I have done a lot of work in my life trying to smooth my edges when it comes to how I speak and definitely how I argue. But we seem to be living in a time where if someone decides to stand on something they believe, that means they are combative and agressive. We have falsely idealized peacekeeping, smoothing over conflict, and avoiding tough conversations.
We seem to be living in a culture where we are supposed to change who we are to suit what the world would have us be. If we are fat, the world says we should be thin. If we are opinionated and not a white man, then we should stay silent. If we are religious, then we have no right to speak to politics. The list goes on.
Maybe you have this assumption that Jesus’ ministry can be summed up in the stories like where he told the children to “come to me” or when he healed the daughter of Jairus. We don’t emphasize Jesus’ more… opinionated side. We dont put the passage where he said “Do not think I have come to bring peace to the earth; I have not come to bring peace, but a sword” on a bumper sticker for our car!
Jesus had harsh words for those he believed promoted or maintained injustice. He called the pharisees a brood of vipers. In the passage we will be exploring this week in worship, he calls King Heord “that fox.”
But Jesus was still kind. And Jesus never resorted to violence. I think there is a balance we can strike between kindness and candidness. And I also believe that at the end of the day, we need to be who God made us to be, do what is ours to do, and remember that that is subject to change. Jesus didn’t proclaim his fate at the cross at the beginning of his ministry, but he came to understand how that would be the end result of his work as he lived the life God called him to live.
Courage isn’t just about doing the things that are difficult and speaking the truth publicly, courage is also about embracing when the call changes, and when we change with it.
