Dang! Just Be Nice!
Wanna know why people hate Christians so dang much?! (I probably don’t even need to ask this question, or even write this post for that matter) You already know why folks hate Christians so much… and for those of you hold-outs that still think the world hates us Christians because we’re so godly, wake up. I’m not talking about the good kind of hate that Jesus said to get ready for over in John 15 (verses 18:21) I’m talking about the kind of hating we don’t want to be getting from the world.
Yes, if you love Jesus, some people are going to hate you and work against you because they oppose Christ and everything that’s like Him. That’s a good thing to endure because you’re really walking with Jesus when you get that kind of thing aimed at you, but that’s not what I’m talking about here. What I’m talking about is people who are completely turned off toward God because of Christians. I’m talking about the kind of people who look at the way Jesus was and then look at the way certain Christians are and then scratch their heads, saying, “Now wait just a second… what is the deal here?”
The other day I saw that a certain dude was throwing his proverbial hat in the ring for the next presidential race in the U.S. and it made my stomach turn… not because I am against that guy. (This is not a political blog) It made my stomach turn because it made me remember the last presidential race in the U.S. and the way some people are so incredibly loud, rude, cruel, condescending and downright mean. Here’s the worst part about it: outspoken and well-known Christians were among the loudest and meanest of anyone three years ago. I had non-Christian friends call me and write me messages asking why on earth these Christians were so volatile and vitriolic. Folks, this is not the way to win the world!
Look at what Isaiah said the Messiah would be like: “Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him, and he will bring justice to the nations. He will not shout or cry out, or raise his voice in the streets. A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out. In faithfulness he will bring forth justice” (Isaiah 42:1-3)
Now, the folks who love Jesus ought to be like Him. In fact, Jesus said that people would not know we are His because of our values, politics or our fine sounding arguments, but by our love. Period. You and I can’t undo all of the hate people have toward Christians overnight, but you can do this: you can really, honestly love the people you see everyday. Love them. Don’t criticize or judge. Find out what their needs are and meet them. Tell people you’re praying for them. Put your arm around someone that’s hurting. care about someone who can’t give you anything in return. Love people. Ask Jesus to give you the strength for it, and then just love people. In other words, be nice. I mean, that’s how you want folks to treat you… wow, that’s almost like something Jesus would have said… dang. Loving people is what you need to be about. It’s a revolutionary, radical concept for a lot of Christians, but you know what, it shouldn’t be radical. It should be normal.
In Colossians 4 Paul said, “Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt…”