IS IT RIGHT OR WRONG?

(Part 2 of "Don't be a Pharisee...)

Have you ever asked yourself "Is this right or wrong?"

Indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, the synagogue ruler said to the people.  “There are six days for work.  So come and be healed on those days, not on the Sabbath.”

 (Luke 13)

The first thing that the teachers of the law did was to ask themselves, "Is this right or wrong?"  This is something we tend to do every day of our lives, whether the moral dilemma is huge or insignificant, this is an easy trap to fall into.  Should I?  Shouldn’t I?  It is right, or is it wrong.  I believe that Jesus came to teach us to stop asking ourselves this question.

I believe, Jesus was never concerned about right or wrong, here’s why.  The temple leaders are saying how it would be perfectly okay to heal on any of the other six days of the week, just, not today Jesus, it’s the Sabbath!  And clearly, since you have done something wrong, you must be wrong.  A logical and acceptable response, I think?

But then Jesus turned that around and responded: "Well it’s not really about right or wrong is it?  Especially since you all take your donkey for a drink on a sabbath, should it be thirsty.  So, really, it’s a question of loving and unloving.  If I love this woman, a daughter of Abraham, then I should share GOD’s love with her.  If I love her, as GOD wants me to love her, intelligently, then I won’t wait until tomorrow – she may not be here.  I may not be here.  I have an opportunity to love her now.  So I’m going to do it - NOW." (That's my extended version...)

We can always look back and think about how we would have reacted, or responded, differently in situations that seem to stick in our minds.  But it's not so much about what we did as much as it should be about WHY we did it.  The pharisees and teachers of the law got stuck in the 'what to do' and 'what not to do' because they had forgotten about 'why' they were doing it AND for 'who' they were doing it!

In Ephesians 6:7 we are reminded that we should do our best, our very best, as if we're doing it for GOD and not for anyone else.

I want to encourage you to love intelligently, to be an encourager by stopping yourself from thinking in a way that boxes people and situations into right and wrong. It's hard, but I believe that Jesus challenges us to think and love outside of the box!