by Patricia Backora If your typical modern churchgoer could travel back in time and be on the scene when Jesus

preached to the scribes and the Pharisees in Matthew Chapter 23, what might be that person's reaction? Would he say "Way to go, Jesus!" Or would he say, "Tone it down, Jesus! You're right, but it's wrong to get so emotional about it! You'll only destroy Your own credibility if you resort to name-calling! Put on a smiley face! Stop being so judgmental! Those Pharisees need a big hug, they don't need to be told they're bad people! That's no way to build bridges!" Today it's taboo to use sarcasm to illustrate spiritual truth. But does God Himself ever use sarcasm to wake His people up and show them how foolish their religious errors are? Did Jesus ever do it? It was perfectly fine for the scribes and Pharisees to tithe on the tiny herbs in their garden (Matt.23:23). At that time Jesus had not yet gone to the Cross, so the people of God still lived under the Law and were required to observe its many ceremonial ordinances. If you owned a veggie garden you tithed on the harvest of that garden. That wasn't where the Pharisees erred. It had everything to do with what they left undone in their lives. Jesus okays their Old Covenant tithing but in the same breath he berates these scholarly men for neglecting the weightier matters of the Law: judgment, mercy and faith. In verse 24 Jesus calls them blind guides who strain at a gnat and swallow a camel. Those blind leaders of the blind would split lots of theological hairs to appear sinless in front of their neighbors, but they were sinning worse than anybody else in society because they neglected the spiritual intent behind the Law of Moses: judgment, mercy and faith. Can you imagine somebody using a tea strainer to strain a mosquito out of their tea, and a great big camel slips through a hole in that strainer? Talk about having a sense of humor! Notice verse 27. Jesus compares these men to whitewashed tombs, outwardly beautiful but full of dead men's bones and rottenness within. Is that any way to talk about men of the cloth who could boast of more formal education than Jesus ever had on earth? Jesus didn't let the fact He hailed from the working classes stop Him from speaking out in defense of the truth.

Does Jesus tone down his language in order to build bridges to meet these revered religious leaders half way? Look at verse 33: Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell? The King James version is pretty blunt in how it uses the "d" word. Other versions substitute the softer word "condemnation". But I think that first word sends more shivers up a reader's spine. It's not a nice word to use in polite conversation. In olden days, a little kid might get whacked with the fly swatter if an adult heard him say damn or hell, even if he himself used far worse language than this. If you wondered where some deceased dictator went you would ask Daddy if he "went to the devil" or "to torment" in place of the "h" word. But Jesus used the "d" and the "h" word a lot when addressing his religious foes. He also labeled them serpents and vipers, which are poisonous snakes. Jesus wasn't always sweet in His approach to people. Gentle Jesus could talk tough when He had to! What would our imaginary time traveler have said to Jesus when He cleaned out His Father's House in John 2:13-17? Jesus walked in on a scenario which had taken place in the Temple ever since any of His neighbors could remember: a livestock market would be held in the Court of the Gentiles whenever pilgrims came to Jerusalem for the annual feasts. And for their convenience, money changers would happily exchange foreigners' pagan coins for the kosher Shekel of the Sanctuary. So what was so wrong with that? Weren't the moneychangers performing a vital service? Imagine their shock when this humbly-clad, angry Man from Galilee charges in with a homemade whip. He charges through the crowds and flings open the pigeon cages. The birds escape, flapping their wings and squawking for joy. Likewise Jesus unhitches the sheep and cattle from their posts and the mother of all stampedes starts. Tables are knocked over. Filthy lucre jingles onto the pavement. Greedy men scamper to scoop up a as much ill-gotten gain as possible as Jesus shouts something similar to this: "Get this junk out of here! Don't turn My Father's House into a flea market!" What would our modern time traveler's response have been to all this? Most likely he would have said: "Cool it, Jesus. Just take a deep breath and count to ten. Youve gotten Yourself all hot and bothered. You don't look like the Gentle Jesus I saw in the picture at church. And even if those guys are in the wrong, it takes two to quarrel and You should check Your own attitude first. Remember what You said about how people should first get the two-by-four out of their own eye before

getting the speck out of somebody else's? You know You're a bigger Man than these guys, so it's up to You to be the first to hold out the olive branch. Oh please stop! What you're doing isn't very helpful. A bit more diplomacy and a lot less emotion, please. Let me have that whip, Jesus. Thats a good fellow now. Let's sit down and talk this out until You regain Your composure. Please, Jesus. Why not try a more constructive way to clear these beasts out of the Temple? Why not scatter a few M&M's on the way out, and then they'll follow a trail of treats till they're all outside? What a dumb idea! The heat must be baking my brain. M&M's haven't even been invented yet, have they? Why not try a few pistachio nuts then? Why are You acting so angry in this hallowed place? Just look at those bucking bulls scaring away the worshippers! They shouldn't be running around loose like that. Doesn't Jerusalem have a leash law? And then there's health and safety regulations. Look at those pigeons circling above the heads of Your enemies like vultures. They aren't wearing diapers, you know!" "Please, Jesus," the visitor from the future would plead. "Be reasonable. You've got Your legacy to consider. Make peace, not whips. Two wrongs never make a right. You're way too civilized to use that nasty thing on anybody anyway. Nothing is ever settled by getting mad. Times are hard and a guy's gotta make an honest shekel. Money exchangers have gotta eat too. What's all the fuss about anyway? Technically You're right when You say buying and selling is going on in the Temple. But this is just the Court of the Gentiles, not the Holy of Holies. This is where pilgrims from every corner of the earth come to pay their respects. Don't make a mountain out of a molehill, Jesus. You know, You really could use a good PR man to airbrush your image. A wardrobe consultant would work wonders for Your ministry and some porcelain veneers would help Your smile a lot." Seriously though, why did Jesus resort to righteous indignation in this scenario? Why did He weave a whip out of cords and run through the Temple marketplace shouting? Why didn't Jesus use a subtler approach? After all, we're talking about the smartest Man Who ever lived. It's much easier to take candy away from a two-year-old if you offer him an alternative treat. So why didn't Jesus just go up and softly whisper to the buyers and the sellers that the local Camel Racetrack might be a better place to conduct business than the Temple? Because the zeal of His Father's House ate Him up (Psalms 69:9; John 2:17)! Today it's okay to show a bit of enthusiasmso long as it blows over quickly and doesn't escalate into that same holy zeal that consumed Christ. It's perfectly okay to win a few converts with free cookies and movies. Even the greediest preachers put their stamp of approval on the kind of

evangelism which brings more cash cows into the congregation to be turned into merchandise (2 Pet.2:3). But it's a sin to have a zeal that is all-consuming enough to make a scene and drive the greed out of God's Temple. Jesus dealt with some mighty grim subjects but He did see the irony in human behavior. One of my favorite passages has to do with investing in your eternal future. Luke 16 starts off with the Parable of the Unjust Steward. A certain rich man had a steward whom he suspected of wasting the assets entrusted to his management. So the rich man summoned the steward to come and give an account of his stewardship in preparation for being fired. The steward was in a pickle. He really wasn't suited for any other work. He was too weak to dig ditches, and he was too ashamed to beg on the streets. So he got an idea, that "wash-my-hands-and-I'll-wash-yours" sort of thing. He found the debts people owed his master and fiddled with the figures. He rewrote the amounts of wheat and olive oil owed by each man as low as he could without running the risk of the master noticing the reduction in the accounts receivable. This man wanted the debtors to be indebted enough to him so that when he lost his job they would put him up in their own homes. When the head honcho found out what the steward had been up to he had to admit it was a clever survival tactic on his part. Jesus does not condone dishonesty but He said that people of this world tend to be more shrewd in their affairs than the children of light. Jesus says in Luke 16 9: And I say unto you, Make to yourselves friends of the mammon of unrighteousness; that when ye fail, they may receive you into everlasting habitations. What is Jesus really saying here? Jesus had always warned people to beware of covetousness (Luke 12:15). Has He done an about-face on the issue? At first glance, Jesus seems to be contradicting Himself by urging His listeners to make friends of the mammon of unrighteousness. The only way that verse would harmonize with Jesus' negative view of mammon is if Jesus were using humor to stimulate his listeners to think. Perhaps the unjust steward padded his nest in this world, but that's not quite as good as making provision for the world to come. If unrighteous mammon could buy you your eternal habitation, only the rich would make it to heaven! Jesus speaks in the following verses about being faithful in little things, because if we are unfaithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will entrust eternal riches to us? Jesus says in verse 13: No man can serve

two masters: for he will either hate the one and love the other; or else he will hold to the one and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon. Was Jesus always polite in what He said? In Luke 13:31 a Pharisee warned Jesus that King Herod was out gunning for Him. Jesus responds to the alleged threat by calling the ruler of His land a fox in verse 32. Herod Antipas is said to have had a face like a fox, and he might have been devious like one, but calling Herod a fox is hardly a mark of respect! Nowhere do you read of Jesus loudly rebuking a tax collector or a harlot during His earthly ministry. Many of them were ready and willing to repent. Those humble social outcasts were in no position to look down scornfully on the poor Carpenter from Nazareth. They approached Jesus meekly and contritely. As bad as greedy tax collectors are, making merchandise of bad doctrine is infinitely more sinful. As horrible as physical harlotry is, prostituting the Word of God for personal gain is much more sordid. Christ could not build bridges with religious oppressors who made their converts "twice the son of hell as themselves" (Matt.23:15). In II Kings Chapter 18 the prophet Elijah has challenged the prophets of Baal to an offering contest to prove before all the people who is the true God of Israel. If the God of Elijah consumes Elijah's sacrifice with fire, then it proves He is the one true God. But Baal is also given his chance to consume his own sacrifice. Elijah is such a gentleman he lets the prophets of Baal go first in the contest. They build their own altar and prepare their sacrifice on it. All morning long they cry and plead with Baal to send down fire to consume their sacrifice. But nothing ever happens. It is now noon. In verse 27 Elijah begins to mock those false prophets. He says: Cry aloud, for he is a god; either he is talking, or he is pursuing (some translations hint that means a trip to the outhouse), or he is in a journey, or peradventure he sleepeth, and must be awaked. Can you imagine a holy prophet of God cracking jokes instead of solemnly telling those prophets that Baal was powerless to show up and consume the sacrifice? Instead, Elijah tells them Baal must be taking a siesta, or maybe he's reading the sports page in the bathroom! What a gem of a verse!

Does God always speak gently to the wicked? His overall priority does seem to have shifted from judgment in the Old Testament to mercy in this dispensation, but even this brief window of opportunity for sinners to respond to that mercy will someday end. I think the big problem is that God's mercy and forbearance toward the ungodly are being taken for granted, and people forget that He would be completely justified in withdrawing mercy from those who hate Him. According to Scripture, this is how it could be for sinners if God gave up on them: Proverbs 1:24 Because I have called, and ye refused: I have stretched out my hand and no man regarded: Verse 25 But ye have set at nought all my counsel, and would none of my reproof: Verse 26 I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh; Verse 27 When your fear cometh as desolation, and your destruction cometh as a whirlwind; when distress and anguish come upon you. Verse 28 Then shall they call upon me, but I will not answer; they shall seek me early, but shall not find me; Verse 29 For that they hated knowledge, and did not choose the fear of the Lord: Verse 30 They would none of my counsel: they despised all my reproof. Verse 31 Therefore they shall eat of the fruit of their own way, and be filled with their own devices. In this passage God has given certain people ample space to repent. Yet they ignored His pleas and despised His dealings in their lives. God finally reaches the point where He actually mocks when their fear comes upon them. In Psalms 2:4 God's attitude toward heathens who have fought against His authority is this: He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision. Psalms 37:12-13 says: The wicked plotteth against the just, and gnasheth upon him with his teeth. The Lord shall laugh at him: for he seeth that his day is coming. We live in an Age of Grace, but all should beware of the danger of taking the gentleness of Jesus for granted. It is sheer folly to push God too far. He is a consuming fire (Heb.12:29). Death bed repentances do occur but you can't bank on them! Somebody's ticker may suddenly give out. Another person might die suddenly in a car wreck and wouldn't have the chance to call upon Christ for salvation from sin.

Sugar has replaced the salt in the Gospel message. Christ's message is all about repentance and salvation from sin, not just saving souls from hell. Reassurance that sinners are really good people deep down inside has replaced conviction for sin and an awareness of its seriousness in the sight of an infinitely holy God. It is okay to fight the devilso long as you don't get angry with him. Some put away the two-edged Sword of the Spirit, because they think all you need is love, sweet love to scare Old Scratch away. You must never hold any negative feelings toward fishers for funds who are giving Jesus true Gospel a bad reputation among sinners (2 Pet.2:3). For the sake of "love" and "peace" the truth must remain hidden under a bushel basket. Love for who? The thief in the pulpit who scares God's children with religious lies to get what he wants out of them? Is that showing love to the victims of pulpit abuse, or don't they even count? Religious sharks are no respecter of persons. They brainwash everybody from every walk of life. All that matters is they've got enough celebrity, glamor and wealth to sanitize their corrupt doctrines. They will happily extort tithes out of poor grannies, teenagers, and bedfast invalids as well as rich businessmen. They're even glad when unpaid housewives tithe on their grocery money. Preachers who exact tithes out of people on welfare dont stop to consider theyre pinching funds from the government (and its taxpayers) which doles out that money to keep people from starving to death! Poor Christians who have studied the Bible and discovered that tithing has nothing to do with cash contributions are called stingy Scrooges who are too selfish to have a giving heart. You might be scripturally correct but you can still be accused of opposing false legalism on grounds of rebellion or selfishness. Talk about darned if you do, darned if you don't. If you aren't content to remain under bondage to spiritual abusers you don't really love Jesus. And as for this business of being selfish, it doesn't matter if non-tithers are the very same ones who have fed others out of their own poverty or have always been there for ungrateful relatives who couldn't be bothered to return the tiniest favor when it was their turn to be gracious. Giving food to the hungry or doing somebody a favor which really works a hardship on you doesn't count as giving. Sitting up till the wee hours studying the Word doesn't count as giving. Putting in long hours to work on a writing assignment doesn't count as giving. Only cold, hard cash counts. Not a one-time offering, but a commitment to be a cash cow the clergy can regularly milk. No matter if you're an unsalaried homemaker, a caregiver for a disabled person or a beggar

out on the street, giving always means money put in the collection plate and nothing else. And if you really love the Lord as you ought to, you'll even divulge the numbers on your plastic card so your spiritual guru can withdraw regular donations by standing order. Talk about the horseleach of Proverbs 30:15! Some people wonder if Jesus was only referring to roasted bulls and goats when He said He'd rather have mercy than sacrifice (Matt.12:7). Shut up and submit. It's somebody else's job to tell you what to believe. It's your job to pay him to do it. Never swim against the current because you'll have to do it all alone and there's safety in numbers. Don't make waves. Be a soldier for Christ, but just for marching in dress parades and handing out candy. Hear no evil, see no evil. All that matters is that bad doctrines which rob the poor of peace must be left alone in peace "for the sake of peace." But what sort of peace is built on peaceful coexistence with lies? The fire has gone out of the prophets voice. When were baptized with the Holy Ghost, the Fire of God comes with it (Acts Matt.3:11; Luke 3:16;2:3). Beware of quenching that fire which purifies the Temple. Gods Word is like a fire shut up in our bones (Jere.20:9). If we dont deliver the message God gives us we will feel an unrest from that Holy Fire within. Christ offers forgiveness and restoration to the repentant, but He isn't there to convince unrepentant crooks and scoundrels that they're okay. The thunder in the prophet's voice has been replaced by soothing lullabyes. Instead of confronting a hardened sinner with his need to flee the wrath to come, just go "Howdy, neighbor!" and give him a big goofy grin. No wonder the devil has no fear of the lukewarm Church! Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and shew My people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins (Isaiah 58:1). ***** http://banpreachergreed.tripod.com http://waronbullying.tripod.com http://kingdomage.tripod.com