Fear of Different
“Going on from that place, he went into their synagogue, and a man with a shriveled hand was there. Looking for a reason to bring charges against Jesus, they asked him, ‘Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?’
He said to them, ‘If any of you has a sheep and it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will you not take hold of it and lift it out? How much more valuable is a person than a sheep! Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath.’
Then he said to the man, ‘Stretch out your hand.’ So he stretched it out and it was completely restored, just as sound as the other. But the Pharisees went out and plotted how they might kill Jesus.”
Today’s Text: Matthew 12:1-21 (Living Life Daily Devotional)
Christians have a way of being impressed by outward acts of spirituality. It’s not that there is anything wrong with outward acts of spirituality, as long as they come from a genuine relationship with our Lord. In fact, we need outward acts of spirituality to form into spiritual traditions so that we might have avenues and platforms for building spiritual communities—that is, churches.
But again, our outward acts of spirituality, our spiritual traditions, mean absolutely nothing without a genuine relationship with our Lord. And the most reliable indicator of a genuine relationship with Jesus may be how we treat the “outsider” and those who are “different.”
It’s very easy to hide our inner attitudes in a crowd of people who are just like “me.” Our attitudes rise to the surface, however, when situations become uncomfortable. Sometimes (to our shame), whenever God (in His sovereign grace) drops someone who is “different” into a community, the people may repel away from the outsider, like adding a drop of soap into a dish of oil.
Most of the time, people don’t think to consider that what makes us the “same” in one community can make us very “different” in another community.
Having grown up in places like Florida, North Carolina, Kentucky, and West Virginia, I have always been an outsider. And to be honest, I have always been a little “different,” especially as a kid.
I have met and known some incredibly kind and inviting people, but I have also met people who acted as if my presence was a threat to their very existence.
Christians must never be like that. And we must never protect our spiritual traditions at the cost of genuine compassion and mercy toward others.
Of course, we should exercise an appropriate level of vigilance and caution with any stranger. But we must not mistake thinking the worst about someone for vigilance.
Who knows? God might place people like that into communities to test and refine their worship.
Father, You are God, and we are Your people. Forgive us whenever we treat those who are different from us with indifference, disdain, or contempt. Protect us from those who might truly harm our community. But give us wisdom to love those you have called to us. In Jesus’s name. Amen.
