Show me a passage in the Bible where Christ mocks the church.
Seriously, show me. Find me one where He makes fun of His followers. Where He calls them names, even in jest. Where He belittles them.
Know of any? I don’t. Maybe I missed it, and if I did, please correct me. But I do not know of any place in the Bible where Jesus mocks the church.
Corrects them, rebukes their behavior, gets angry and flips over tables- yes. Mocks them- no.
We need to stop making fun of people.
We need to stop calling names. We need to stop belittling. We need to stop shaming, discriminating, and abusing others. There is no place for this kind of behavior in Christianity, unless I am sorely mistaken- again, in which case please correct me.
This is hard. I know. Controlling your tongue is hard. I know. It’s hard for me, too. But it is vital. If we truly want to love in a way that is examplary of the love of God, we MUST keep the words of our mouth from being ones that mock others.
I don’t care if they can’t hear you, if you don’t mean it, if it’s supposed to be a joke, if the individual in question doesn’t seem to mind, or if you always talk like that and that’s “just how you are.” Your tongue is powerful. James chapter one calls it the rudder which is small, yet powerful, and controls the direction of the entire ship.
Where are your words steering you? Where are MY words steering ME? Call me out on this, guys. I don’t want to be full of nice-sounding ideas and not living them out.
Your words matter.
If we are to love others as Christ loved the church, then we MUST NOT BELITTLE OTHERS, EVEN IN JEST. That’s it. That’s how it is.
It’s not funny to put people down. It’s not ok. And it is definitely not Godly. It is hurtful, it is despicable, and it is wrong.
So let’s stop. We can, you know. Not on our own, of course- a task like setting out to control your tongue requires the infinite grace and strength of God. Rely on Him for it, because He is the only One Who can provide it.
We can do this.
So let’s do it.
When I was about eleven years old I went to summer camp for the first time. Before my sister and I left, my mother talked to us about something. She explained that we needed to mindful of our behavior at camp, not only because it is important to be kind and respectful, but also because we would be a representation of both our family and Christ to the people around us. That stuck with me. Now, with so many of us daily browsing and posting to social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, Instagram, and blogs such as this, our representation is no longer limited to the people we are around in person- it is far-reaching, even global at times. It is certainly a far more widespread representation of yourself to post on the internet than it is to say something in person; on the internet, the dozens or hundreds of people you are connected with may see it. That is an enormous audience. I feel very strongly that we need to be mindful of that audience, of that representation,
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