When it comes to getting great at loving others, we can’t look to a better example than Jesus. But most people would be surprised to find out how tough Jesus was.
Jesus most definitely loved people, but he was no doormat. He was not “nice” in the way we tend to understand it.
Now, before you call me sacrilegious for saying that, think about it. Jesus flipped over tables in a synagogue in anger over how God’s house was being used (John 2:15). He spilled people’s money and wares all over the place and ticked off a lot of people in the process. Does that seem like a “nice Christian” thing to do?
Jesus also confronted religious leaders, saying things like, “You belong to your father, the devil” (John 8:44). He called them hypocrites and snakes and said, “You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when you have succeeded, you make them twice as much a child of hell as you are” (Matthew 23:15). Are those “nice” things to say?
Jesus wasn’t a people-pleaser or a pushover with his friends either. He was always real and he let them know when they were out of line. One time he even said this to Peter: “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns” (Matthew 16:23).
Was Jesus motivated by love in everything he did? You bet he was. But true love is strong and sometimes confrontational. “Nice” dances around the issues, and that’s not what Jesus did. If we want to love people well—the way Jesus does—we need to realize something very important. Loving is not the same thing as people-pleasing.
None of us love perfectly. We get manipulative and sometimes put conditions on our affection, so we have to catch ourselves. Since all of us are dealing with this issue, we need to put up boundaries and enforce them in our relationships. Through it all, the most important thing to remember is you don’t need to keep everyone happy all the time.
Have you developed a few misunderstandings about what it means to love like Jesus? Think about how he functioned in his relationships—how he stood up for what was right and wasn’t afraid to confront people when they were in the wrong. Despite the need around him, Jesus often went off alone to pray and recharge. He took care of himself.
It’s time to let go of old, religious beliefs about what it means to be a Christian and take a look at Jesus’s example with fresh eyes. Let Jesus inspire you to live, laugh and enjoy life while being a great example of someone who loves unconditionally—his way.
Adapted from The Spirit Contemporary Life: Unleashing the Miraculous in Your Everyday World by Leon Fontaine. Get your copy today!
