do you ever wonder the things that went through Jesus' mind when he sat down with sinners to eat? do you think he cringed or was simply saddened by the things He saw and heard? do you think anyone ever stood up and said, "but He's Jesus. we can't have this conversation or do these things in his presence"?
i know that i am no where near Jesus' stature, though i try to get closer to Him and his holiness on a daily basis, but i find it amusing how people respond when i am around.
i was sitting down with some friends from work--one of my jobs is a sports bar--and we were talking about anything and everything when the topic of sexuality and homosexuality came up. i knew the conversation was about to go off the deep end, but i was not going to stop it and act prudish about it. almost immediately one of my friends who is particularly resistant to subjects of God and faith jumped in to defend me and my "unspoiled ears." my friend was very emphatic...
"but he's a pastor. we can't have this conversation around him. it's just not right."
my response is one of my stock responses, "don't stop on my account. if you would have the conversation without me around, don't stop just because i'm here."
allow me to make an aside. if the Holy Spirit wants to convict someone that what they are doing or saying is wrong then let Him do his work. while i may be a catalyst for his work, i am not there to make them change on my account. i believe that it is unrealistic to expect (big theological term alert, danger, danger) unregenerate people to act regenerate. to simplify that, i don't expect people without a relationship with Christ to strive to follow after Christ and his holiness.
it's times like these that i wonder what was going through Jesus' mind. here He is the creator of the universe, the Son of God, sitting at a table full of broken and damaged people with all that hullaballoo going on. and what did He do? He loved them in the way that they needed to be loved. i think that meant that He did not stand up and say, "how can you say and do those things in the presence of God, i mean me? have you no shame?" rather He would speak to them in their need and comfort them in their brokenness.
what good is it to my unbelieving friends if at every turn i am a wet blanket? how would i ever get the time to get to know them better if i were to take offense at everything they said and did that the Bible called sin? they would turn and run from me. i am deeply interested in these people and i want to know what makes them tick. i want to know what excites them, what they live for, and if it is satisfying. so that when they realize that it is not satisfying, that i can show them what is infinitely satisfying.
i just find it amusing how many of them are willing to stand up and call to everyone else's attention that i am a pastor. enough of my random musings for this evening. goodnight.
3 comments:
haha -- welcome to my world.
I always think it's funny too.
I really like this entry. It made me think about this: No matter the company, pastors, friends, teachers, cops, bosses, I think it's important that people be themselves,and stand up for their own ideas and opionions. Otherwise, they're just pretending...if there's something we feel we can't discuss in front of a certain archetype, maybe we should ask why? Are we secretly ashamed or prideful in our beliefs? If so, are we really on the side of that particular fence that fits who we are? Or are we just trying to fit in in one too many groups? Maybe we should re-examine that idea and our stance on it? While I think that we should all be respectful of one another, I don't think we should censor our beliefs depending on the company we're in.
alley, all in all i think that you are right. i think that this post comes out of a deeper conviction than people want to admit. take my friend, i think there is a moral qualm that they had with the conversation and the route that it was taking that they did not want to go down. i think that they understood that it was questionable at best, and to be fair it was. i was just not going to stop the conversation because i wanted to hear where everyone was going to go with it. further i did not want to be the proverbial "wet blanket" and wear out my welcome in the group.
i do think that it is important for people to be themselves otherwise as a pastor or a "wannabe pastor" i won't be able to meaningfully engage them. i want to meet people where they are, not where they think they should be around me. i have my unglorious flaws which recently have been unceremoniously revealed to me and i expect that others have theirs as well. to hide them because they perceive me as a "moral" figure is a waste of my time as well as theirs.
thanks for your comments.
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