Add the Beatitudes to an open Jam session and watch the magic happen. Road-tested at two DOC churches. Both experienced significant growth and enhanced image.
“How Would Jesus Jam?” is a Tuesday morning workshop at the 2025 DOC General Assembly on how to get started at your church. 28 pages, big type, lots of illustrations. 15 songs to get you started.
Released to the public domain; reproduce at will.
For more about the use of Music to build community, you might enjoy “THE GREAT BAND LEADER.”
I’m a sideman. I sing harmony because I can’t hit the notes on the melody. I play bass because it’s one note at a time, and only four strings. I play sax because it was band or PE; I can’t run a mile, and sax is surely the easiest of all band instruments. I often marched with a baritone sax because, living in the bass line, it has the simplest parts.
I’ve also been a roadie, threading ridiculously large equipment up winding stairs onto tiny little stages. I’ve played tambourine, pretended to sing, and run the light show. I’ve played bass fiddle in a prison chapel, at political rallies, and at farmers’ markets.
The Short Circuits. Fox. Blackstone. BA and the Buicks. The Bees. The Wild Bushmen. The Tucker Brothers. I managed a little stage time in all of those bands. Arlo Guthrie said we sing good harmony behind him at a Hurricane Andrew benefit. I met Dion briefly in a Walk to Emmaus serenade. He suggested I had a sound he was looking for, but fool that I was, I let it slide. Who knows how many opportunities I’ve missed to turn a sideline into a career?
One of the joys of pastoral ministry was working in an overall musical environment. At its best, church gives everybody a chance to shine and encourages budding talent. Gospel and liturgical music are vast libraries of often free material. As a sideman, I’ve been able to support and fortify others as they take the lead. And, with so many opportunities to worship in song, church is a rich environment for uncovering hidden talent.
Best of all, music requires people. It draws people to support. It draws people who listen. It prepares the mind to receive the Word of God for the People of God. A bigger venue, a bigger band, a bigger choir, requires more people and draws more people. A different band, a smaller venue, a more intimate choral group, these draw different people, and that’s good, too.
Music can target young people, rural sentiment, urban folk, parents, children, faithful Christians, nonbelievers – all good, because another person is another beloved soul that deserves attention and respect.
The Kingdom of God needs sidemen and leaders, listeners and singers, supporters and curiosity seekers, cooks and promoters, fans and skeptics. No one stays in a role forever. In sincere Gospel music, we are all sidemen and women. We play our parts with an ear to blending with everyone else and an eye to making sure everyone feels welcome and included.
Music is not the important thing; people – that’s what’s important. In church, we gather to worship, and depart to serve. But when it comes to bringing people in, elevating the humble, delivering the Word, and opening our hearts to hear it, music is a great vehicle for celebration and fellowship. There are others (food banks, troop support, fundraising, evangelism drives) that work as well or better than music. Some of them work better WITH music. All of it works together to the Glory of God IF – ah, the big IF – all glory goes to God, leadership belongs to Christ, and everyone’s goal is to serve others. Otherwise music, like anything else, becomes a source of tension, conflict, and fatigue.
The band needs roadies, sound techs, musicians, fans, and everything else. A great band leader can make everyone feel drawn in, like they are all members of the band. Jesus is a great band leader. He knows a roadie’s labor, a sideman’s rejection, the roar of the crowd and the heartbreak of an empty room. Jesus is a great band leader.
If there’s a song in your heart, share it. Share it to the glory of God and God alone. Share it with others, and let them rejoice with you. Just bring your heart and follow the Great Band Leader.
This Sunday (1/12/2025) celebrates a mystery: Why did sinless Jesus get baptized?
“Now when all the people were baptized, it came to pass, that Jesus also being baptized, and praying, the heaven was opened, and the Holy Ghost descended in a bodily shape like a dove upon him, and a voice came from heaven, which said, Thou art my beloved Son; in thee I am well pleased.” (Luke 3:21-22)
Luke passes by it like of course Jesus was baptized; all the people were baptized. But when Jesus was baptized, the Holy Spirit came down upon him. Theologically, we get it; until Jesus, the Holy Spirit would just drop in for a visit; in Jesus, the Spirit finds a vessel worthy to dwell in.
John skips the Christmas narrative entirely and starts with a quick summary of Jesus in eternity – no easy trick. We don’t actually see the baptism in John’s narrative, but we hear John the Baptist describe it. “And John bare record, saying, I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it abode upon him. And I knew him not: but he that sent me to baptize with water, the same said unto me, Upon who thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remain on him, the same is he which baptizeth with the Holy Ghost. And I saw, and bare record that this is the Son of God.” (John 1:32-34)
In Matthew, when John the Baptist suggests that Jesus should be baptizing him and not vice versa, Jesus said it was “to fulfil all righteousness.” So, even in his sinless state, there was righteousness to be fulfilled in his life. Some translate that as simply “do things right”. It was right for John to baptize Jesus and everyone else who requested it. It was right for Jesus to experience the baptism. He enjoyed what every pastor hopes for: a Holy Spirit baptism to go with the water baptism.
I cannot say if baptism is required for salvation. In scripture as in life, the Holy Spirit may come, before, during, after, or completely without water baptism. I can say it was vitally important to the early church, as was the sharing of communion and fellowship.
Why was Jesus baptized? He came to the water covered with the dust of this world. Water baptism, though symbolic of repentance, was still accepted as a physical cleansing. The priest prays God forgive the sins of his people, above and beyond his own. We suffer from the sins of others as well as our own. Jesus was indeed baptized for the remission of sins – but not his own. The sins forgiven that day included Peter’s denial, Judas’ betrayal, Thomas’ doubt, Pilot’s arrogance, gambling soldiers and Paul’s assault on the faith.
It’s fair to wonder if they accepted that forgiveness.
Jesus died for the sins of the world. He was baptized for the sins of the world. That day, he forgave years of absence from church while we found ourselves. He forgave the gossip that endangers fellowship. When we as children and youth went astray, he prayed, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” He forgave us when the Holy Spirit descended upon him – maybe before!
Jesus was baptized to fulfill all righteousness – to do everything the right way.
Paul said we flee sin because we have died with Christ in baptism. “Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.” (Romans 6:4)
We are invited to model our lives after the life of Jesus. We are also reminded that there is a dusty world to walk through. Jesus suffered as we do; pick your suffering. Isaiah said in anticipation, “He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.” (Isaiah 53:3) The Ethiopian eunuch in Acts 8 was reading from there when Philip met him, witnessed to him, and baptized him.
“In this world you will have trouble,” Jesus said, “But fear not; I have overcome the world.” We aren’t given an escape from the dust of this world. We are taught to wash feet. We are taught to wear shoes. That should get us through until Jesus comes again.
A word about aging…
I had a full career as a writer from day one through my mid-40s. As a military contractor, my employer had access to all the government networks that would eventually become the internet. I was literally in on the ground floor.
That gave me the resume to dare to apply for a job in web design. At the interview, one of the young entrepreneurs said, “but would you be comfortable working with people who are so much younger than you?”
Ouch.
With 22 years in ministry, I’m technically at retirement age. To me, that would be a long, silly vacation without the funds to enjoy it. “Do you have plans for retirement?” No, I do not.
I was blessed to retire from writing to become a programmer – and yes, I worked for and with people a lot younger than I was. Then, I was blessed to retire from programming to become a pastor. If I ever retired again, I’d be a musician – though I can’t imagine making more music than I make for church.
I am not an old sage. I am surrounded by people more spiritual and committed than I am. They are 30 years younger, and 20 years older, and everything in between. They’ve done a lot of living, too, so I don’t presume to know more or less than they do. I know some things; they know others. We share. It all works out.
Ageism may be the last acceptable prejudice in our society. I’ve had the honor of watching a lot of people age. I don’t chuckle over jokes about hearing, speed, vision, grey hair, or baldness. They aren’t funny. I’m also an adamant supporter of the generations that have followed us. They have their share of deadbeats, but they are otherwise the most responsible, ethical, and intelligent people I’ve ever met.
Jesus’ ministry on Earth was over in his mid-30s. Abraham was called at age 75. Moses saw the burning bush at 40, but didn’t lead the Exodus until he was 80. Samuel was called in his early teens.
God will use whom God will use. God gives us wisdom, sometimes from the mouth of babes. God gives us joy and new beginnings; they shouldn’t be suspect just because they come later in life.
Am I old? Chronologically, getting there. Physically, oh yeah, with daily reminders that the body is a rental that has to go back to the Vendor one day. Mentally? That’s a tough one. Experience has its perks, and its baggage. At this point, I just have to trust that God’s tossed salad needs me here.
God can do something brand new with your life, and it can start at any age. God forgive me if I have elevated myself at someone’s expense just because they were younger or older. We don’t select the year of our birth; it’s as locked in as skin color and gender. We all live TODAY, and none of is guaranteed another day.
I will try to draw good things from the treasure of my heart. I will seek the face of God in every person I meet. I will accept God’s gifts as they share them. I will affirm their dreams and potential. And I will try to not to judge them by age, for by the standards I judge, I will be judged as well.
The next stop on our annual journey through the holidays is Epiphany, January 6. In western traditions, Epiphany marks the arrival of the Magi to visit Jesus. It also makes a convenient bookend on the Twelve Days of Christmas.
To reiterate my favorite aside, “We Three Kings from Orient Are” were not. The Magi were Zorastrian priests, astrologers and/or magicians from Iran, then known as Persia. There were probably more than three, and almost certainly not all men. Given the role of women in ancient Persia, they likely supplied the gold, frankincense, and myrrh in the first place.
(And, to settle an old joke, they actually did stop at Herod’s and asked for directions. Clearly, there were women in the camp!)
Sometimes, our traditions get in the way of our Epiphany. It’s a little thing, but if we think the three kings were just three rich male rulers, we can miss the bigger picture. Where the Bible is silent, we fill in the blanks. The Magi were complete outsiders, pagans and foreigners who were probably celebrating to have been invited to the event by the heavens themselves. God moved the very constellations of heaven to lead them to seek the Messiah.
The Middle East was afire with expectations of a Messiah. Religion and Government were on the lookout for a troublemaker who would use the Messiah’s mantle to lead a revolution. Jesus’ one-to-three-year public ministry would have been even shorter had He declared His identity openly.
From prison, John the Baptist sent disciples to ask Jesus, “Are you The One who is to come? Or should we look for another?” Jesus answered indirectly, but with evidence that comes with yet another Epiphany.
Luke 7 reveals that “in that same hour He cured many of their infirmities and plagues, and of evil spirits; and unto many that were blind He gave sight.” Jesus said simply, “Go and tell John what you have seen and heard: The blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the Gospel is preached to the poor.”
John knew the prophesies of Isaiah, who said the Messiah would preach to the poor, heal the sick, and even raise the dead. There are many great generals and leaders, but none has ever provided such convincing evidence of God’s endorsement. Just tell John what you’ve seen and heard; he’ll figure it out.
The proof is in the pudding, as they say. Some might ask, “Is Guyton Christian Church truly a Christ-Centered church?” All we have to do, like Jesus did, is point to the evidence:
Continue reading “Next Stop: Epiphany” You can see our steeple from the center of town. We own the corner, including the Disciples Post and the Slab. There will be a Sale on the Trail on October 22. Clearly, we have advantages the other churches do not have. It is not a stretch to say that in terms of location, we are THE church in downtown Guyton!
God has granted us this great location and visibility. We have unique musical talent, capable of performing completely unplugged, and at the drop of a hat. We have often taken that show on the road, playing at community events, showing up whenever we have an invitation and a place to sit.
On Oct. 22, I propose that we invite ourselves to the Slab, under a tent or tents, to present an unplugged Gospel concert during Sale on the Trail. I propose we set up picnic tables an serve up some of that great Moore Lemonade, close enough to hear the music without amplifiers.
That would be a prelude to a 4 o’clock event in The Depot, where we would share the Gospel in Word and song. The Oct. 23 service would be an especially musical service in the Sanctuary followed by a fellowship meal in the Christian Center.
Sounds like a lot of work. We have frequently turned down these opportunities because it’s too hot, or too much trouble. Usually, we abandon our corner for parked cars. This time, I say we rope off the Slab, strike up the band, and let hundreds of people passing by get a feeling for our hospitality, and our music.
When I got here, there was great excitement over new possibilities – then Covid hit. We have recovered, drawing roughly as many people Sunday mornings as we did before the pandemic – about 70 worshippers when both services are combined. We had one great revival, then another just before the lockdown. But before and after, it was too easy to ignore the crowds.
What would Jesus do? At festivals in Jerusalem, He would use the opportunity to preach and teach. He would feed people. And though He preferred to heal in private, He would not turn aside from those who needed Him.
There’s a festival in Guyton on Oct.22, and it’s on our doorstep. What will we do?
Let your imagination go wild. Maybe a mini-mall of vendors to draw people closer. A table with two elders and a big sign that says “Need Prayer?” Maybe we could mount a giant Chalice on the downtown side of the Christian Center, then say, “Right there! That’s our church!”
A lot of our musicians want an unplugged event. We can do that. Maybe you want to print flyers and hand them out. We can do that, too! What could we do if everyone who wants to grow the church showed up and pitched in? Sounds like a revival to me!
I’m presenting a broad outline of an event to showcase Guyton Christian Church. We’d draw musicians who want to play and people who want to listen – all of whom need to hear the Gospel. It’s good PR for our Gospel Jam and Bluegrass Service.
We have about seven weeks to get ready. That’s enough time, but it isn’t exactly long-range planning. If we all pitch in and apply our best talents, we can make it work. We could go farther, turning the Christian Center and the Depot into rest and cooling stations for the event. Think of the times we said, “What we should have done …” This time, I hope we can do what we “should have done” on so many previous opportunities.
Let’s go for a little “wow” factor: Wow, free lemonade? Shade to sit in? A free concert? Children’s activities? Wow, what a generous and loving church! Wow, that’s how a church SHOULD be! Wow, we might have found a church after all!
If we wanted, we could get on the phone a few days before and throw together a great bluegrass band from our ever-ready pool of talented members and friends. I’ve seen this church throw lavish fellowship meals and receptions with just two days’ notice. If that’s what we can do at the last minute, imagine what we can do with seven weeks’ lead time!
This is bigger than any one person or committee. What do you want the community to think of our church? How can we express that in an event? What can we do to inspire people to consider our church when they’re looking for a church? That’s a conversation for every group, every class, and every committee.
It’s easy to say we don’t have to do this. We don’t have to grow. We don’t have to change a thing. Still, I hear the growing concerns that we aren’t growing fast enough to replace those we lose. Not true, but perception is everything, so let’s have at it!
If you agree that we are not living up to our full potential as a church, then NOW is the time to do something about it! God honors every honest effort, so fear not! If we draw even one new person to the Sunday morning service, we will call it a win. If not, we still win, because we served the Lord and tried to reach His people.
You (yes, YOU, dear reader!) can do something to make this event a success. A bake sale, a cake walk, an animal display, a vegetable stand, a children’s activity, an art project … Send me an email (pastorjoeltucker@me.com) with your private ideas or concerns. Talk amongst yourselves and see how your circle of friends can work together to promote Guyton Christian Church.
“Why is Pastor Joel walking with a cane?” Fair question. Here’s why:
“Thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me.” I don’t deserve a handicap sticker, and I need the walk, anyway. I don’t welcome the attention, but part of ministry is getting people’s attention. It’s my conductor’s baton, my ringmaster’s cane, my shepherd’s crook, my drumstick — and, stealing from the series “House”, “Hold my metaphor.”
So, don’t worry. Pastor’s having fun and taking care of himself. It’s no sin for all y’all to do the same.
MARK 9:38-50
And John answered him, saying, Master, we saw one casting out devils in thy name, and he followeth not us; and we forbad him, because he followeth not us.
But Jesus said, Forbid him not: for there is no man which shall do a miracle in my name, that can lightly speak evil of me. For he that is not against us is for our part.
For whosoever shall give you a cup of water to drink in my name, because ye belong to Christ, verily I say unto you, he shall not lose his reward.
And whosoever shall offend one of these little ones that believe in m e, it is better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he were cast into the sea.
And if thy hand offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter into life maimed, ;than having two hands to go into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched:
Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.
And if thy foot offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter halt into life, than having two feet to be cast into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched:
Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.
And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out: it is better for thee to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire:
Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.
For everyone shall be salted with fire, and every sacrifice shall be salted with salt.
Salt is good: but if the salt have lost his saltness, wherewith will ye season it: Have salt in yourselves, and have peace with one another.
One of the great debates is preaching trivia is what did Jesus mean by salt? The need for salt is ancient knowledge. In common terms, salt is a seasoning, a preservative, a medicine, a cleanser, and an essential element in most living organisms. It’s as fundamental to life as water, breath and bread.
The body is bread. Add salt, and it’s better. It becomes inviting, something you might even crave, like a cracker or a potato chip. Eat too much, and you’re going to need a deep drought of that living water. Salt makes food more appetizing. Salt makes you thirsty.
I was convicted by a radio preacher the other day. He said that God has no use for our worldly displays. He probably would not appreciate my propensity for music and theatrics. But I remember that bread, water, air, and salt are very worldly elements. Jesus used real food on two occasions to feed the multitudes real, worldly food. Jesus preached about the Spirit, but he illustrated that through common, worldly things.
Salt. I can sprinkle it on so-so food and make it worth eating. I can add a lot and make a small dish go further as a garnish or a condiment. It has value all by itself, but especially in combination with food.
“For everyone shall be salted with fire, and every sacrifice shall be salted with salt.” So everyone will have trials and troubles. What about the sacrifice? Jesus was the last a sacrifice. He was salted with a little bit of worldly goodness. He had a sense of humor. He had compassion for the less fortunate. Everyone is salted with fire, but the sacrifice is salted with something else. The sacrifice is salted with the best of life.
I tend to think of salt as a sprinkling of compassion, forgiveness, and hospitality. Maybe it’s just a touch of whatever we’re missing to be more inviting.
They will know we are Christians by our love. How do we win souls into the Kingdom of God? Well, everybody needs a little salt, even if they don’t need too much. Some need more than others.
Salt is good — but can you taste it? Has it lost its saltiness? How are you going to season salt? We know it still has saltiness if it still satisfies hunger and encourages thirst, like salt.
“Have salt in yourselves, and have peace one with another.” In the end, I truly don’t know what salt is. Symbolically, Lot’s wife turned into a pillar of salt because she turned her eyes away from salvation and back toward her dying world. She wanted more physical, and got it all.
We need just a little, but it’s a vital ingredient. Exactly what it is eludes me. You figure it out. What makes the Body of Christ more savory? What makes people thirsty for the Word, or for Christian Fellowship? Find that, and you’ve found salt.
Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Now both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding. And when they ran out of wine, the mother of Jesus said to Him, “They have no wine.”
Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me? My hour has not yet come.”
His mother said to the servants, “Whatever He says to you, do it.”
Now there were set there six waterpots of stone, according to the manner of purification of the Jews, containing twenty or thirty gallons apiece. Jesus said to them, “Fill the waterpots with water.” And they filled them up to the brim. And He said to them, “Draw some out now, and take it to the master of the feast.” And they took it. When the master of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom. And he said to him, “Every man at the beginning sets out the good wine, and when the guests have well drunk, then the inferior. You have kept the good wine until now!”
This beginning of signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory; and His disciples believed in Him.
— John 2:1-11
The book of John uses seven signs to demonstrate the Deity of Jesus. The first is the changing of water into wine at the wedding in Cana. The others were the healing of the royal official’s son in Capernaum (John4:46-54), the healing of the paralytic at Bethesda (John 5:1-5), feeding the 5,000 (John 6:5-14), walking on water (John 6:16-24), healing the man blind from birth (John 9:1-7), and the raising of Lazarus (John 11:1-45). The first 11 chapters of John are sometimes referred to as the Book of Signs.
The story of changing water into wine and raising Lazarus are only in the book of John. The rest of the miracles are similar to stories in the other Gospels. But these are in the book of John for very specific reasons. Some think it’s a map of the new creation, with seven miracles in tandem with the seven days of creation.
In this first miracle, Jesus converts the water in six vessels used in ceremonial washing. The word tells us they hold 20 to 30 gallons. Jesus made 120 to 180 gallons of wine, and the host of the feast tells us it is better than the wine served first. The host and the guests didn’t know where the wine had come from, but the disciples and the servants knew. The implication is that Jesus did it so that His disciples would believe.
In a Christian wedding ceremony, the preacher usually mentions that Jesus’ presence at a wedding in Cana is His endorsement of marriage. I think that’s true. Later, Jesus would say that even if it’s good not to marry, living as a bachelor isn’t for everyone. Jesus not only attended this wedding, but He blessed this wedding with the wine. Wine is an ancient symbol of God’s bounty, blessing and joy, and we certainly recognize Jesus as the source of new wine. So this story shows that in Jesus, God is generous; God is not opposed to human joy and fellowship; and God is not against marriage. This is all good news for us.
Some thinkers also see this miracle as a hat tip to pagan beliefs. Bacchus was the Roman god of agriculture, fertility, and wine, a very important god to Roman pagans. By turning water into wine, Jesus proved Himself to be superior to Bacchus.
Wine certainly had a different significance in Jesus’ day. It was medicinal, ceremonial, and practical. But it would be very convenient to me if Jesus had avoided drinking wine, instead of making it and using it in religious ceremonies.
Some of you know that the church I last served had a very active recovery ministry, addressing drug and alcohol addiction. That tends to cloud my view of wine and all the references to wine in the New Testament. The Temperance Movement to outlaw alcohol started in the churches. Preaching would be easier for me if Jesus had avoided wine. And you know what that means? That means that compared to Jesus, I’m a stick in the mud. Sometimes I think I can be holier than Jesus. Sometimes I think misery, loneliness and seriousness are more holy than happiness and celebration. So maybe I have something to learn from this, the first of Jesus’ miracles in the gospel of John. Maybe we all can learn something from this.
Have you ever heard of a church or sect that practiced shunning? You know, a church where if someone falls from the faith, gets divorced, or gets in trouble, everybody avoids that person? Jesus wasn’t like that. The Jews in Jesus’ day shunned Samaritans, single women, and the lame. Jesus didn’t shun anybody. If that’s true, then how can we call it Christian to shun people? Jesus welcomed everyone from the woman at the well to the thief on the cross. That’s the example we’re called to follow. But some people want to be holier than Jesus.
Have you ever heard of churches that wouldn’t have fellowship dinners because they thought it was unholy? I don’t think Jesus would agree with that. Jesus was always sitting at the table with His disciples and tax collectors. After preaching all day, Jesus served dinner on the grounds for 5,000 people, and He didn’t check anyone’s membership card. I don’t think Jesus would call that unholy – but some people want to be holier than Jesus.
Of course you know, that doesn’t make sense. We can’t hope to be as holy as Jesus. So when it looks like Jesus is doing something we would avoid, something like healing lepers or talking theology with loose Samaritan women, maybe we need to rethink what holiness is. When we worry about Paul eating with Gentiles or disciples who eat without washing their hands or Jesus letting a strange woman wash his feet with her hair, maybe we need to rethink what holiness is.
Jesus was not about fasting and suffering and shunning people. Jesus celebrated life and fellowship. Jesus enjoyed a good feast. Jesus was generous in blessing others – and Jesus wants us to be generous, too.
Do you know that Jesus told His Disciples to be perfect? He did! But His definition of perfect I different from ours. “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for he makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even tax collectors do the same? And if you greet your brethren only, what do you do more than others? Do not even tax collectors do so? Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.” (Matthew 5:43-48)
It is not possible to be holier than Jesus, but we need to see what Jesus meant by holiness. Jesus wants us to be perfect, but we need to see what Jesus calls perfect. Jesus says perfect is impartial, loving and generous to others no matter what. Jesus was perfect. God was perfect. And Jesus wants us to be perfect, too. Love the unloveable, bless those who curse, and pray for those who use you. That’s the first sign that we are Christians.
Eleven worshippers were killed on the Sabbath at Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh, PA. A few days earlier, two shoppers were shot in Jeffersontown, KY, after the gunman failed to enter a black church, where 70 worshippers had been gathered a half hour earlier. The gunmen were obviously unstable and very, very angry.
It is always wrong to kill because of someone’s race, nationality, religion, or opinions. As with the first murder, when Cain killed his brother Abel, murder begins with anger. Anger is a natural human emotion, but one that our faith requires us to reign in and control. Like the LORD told Cain, “sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it.” (Genesis 4:7b)
“My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man’s anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires.” (James 1:19-20) Paul quotes Psalm 4:4 when he says, “’In your anger do not sin.’ Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold.” (Ephesians 4:26)
The problem with anger is that it gives the devil a foothold. That’s why Jesus equates anger with murder. “You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment.” (Matthew 5:21-22a)
Anger is like smoking. Each little puff seems harmless enough, but each one weakens us and brings us closer to sickness and death. Each little angry word or thought seems like no big deal, but if they build up, they bring us closer and closer to making bad decisions, harming others, or destroying friendships.
But what about those people and groups who seem to deserve our wrath? The Bible is clear on taking revenge. Paul sums it up in Romans 12:
“Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God’s wrath. For it is written, ‘It is mine to avenge; I will repay,’ says the Lord. On the contrary: ‘If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.’ Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”
We should be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to become angry. Some people do not live by these words, so it is even more important that we keep them in mind. One person’s anger inspires another, and before you know it, friends break up, marriages fail, churches split, or some unstable person goes on a rampage. But if we’re quick to listen and slow to speak, we won’t be making things worse.
In these days of heated rhetoric and divergent opinions, let’s remember what God’s Word says about anger, and pray that Jesus will help us be patient and forgiving.
Rev. Joel Tucker's Blog 