Have you ever been turned off about Jesus because of someone who mistreated you in Jesus’ name? Have you ever been pushed farther away from knowing the Lord because the most unkind and intolerant people you see in your life are Christians? Maybe you’ve even thought to yourself, “Jesus actually seems pretty great to me, but the people who claim to know Him make me want to run in the other direction.” Jesus said that His followers and students would be known by their love. The problem is that Christians are known for tons of other things besides their love. As a result, grace is distorted and the real Jesus is obscured. I don’t know that there is anything that makes Jesus more angry than someone giving people the wrong idea about Him. About a week before Jesus went to the cross, He rode into Jerusalem to applause and praises. He entered the temple and saw something that set Him off. Fast-handed businessmen were using God’s house as an opportunity to make a quick buck off of the outsiders and foreigners visiting Jerusalem. The outer court of the temple was supposed to be a place where foreigners could come and watch what it meant to know God. The whole thing was a pageantry that pointed to the grace of the cross, but it was being blurred by marketing and manipulation. Jesus lost it. He flipped tables and drove people out! He hates it when people distort grace. He hates it when God’s ‘followers’ use people for their own gain. He wants you to know Him and His endless love for you. He doesn’t want anything to come in between you being able to see Him clearly.
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