When we look at both faith and politics, we find a lot of rhetoric. Lots of words. Some may be just filler, but all are chosen—to persuade, reassure, distract, disarm, deflect, encourage, motivate, etc.
(As is often the case, I find myself questioning the writing of this reflection at all, knowing that I am writing words while also scrutinizing their use. Oh, the common tension of this blog…and this particular series, reflecting on the intersection of faith and politics.)
If we want to be like Jesus, then we should probably look towards Jesus’ choice of words to drive how we should choose our words in conversation. Here is where things get messy though. Some of Jesus’ words are easy on the ear and easy to recite, this is true. However, when we look at the totality of Jesus’ words, many of them are also jarring, and in some cases even appalling to our modern day sensibilities. How do we respond to this reality?
The quick answer is to simply write this topic off as, “those were different times” or “Jesus would use different words if He was around today.” This is a slippery theoretical slope though, that could lead to us missing out on important lessons Jesus has for us. Or, even worse, this could lead us to the point of molding Jesus into who we want Him to be and missing out on who He really is entirely.
So, the question remains, should we speak using Jesus’ words or not?
Perhaps the answer for how we should use words (and how we should expect others to use words) does not so much come from the exact word choices of Jesus, but how He responds to the word choices of His disciples. Here we find that when Jesus responds to their words it is often a rebuke, or at least a stern lesson.
Recall how indignant Jesus is with James and John when they ask about sitting at His side in the Kingdom of God. (Mark 10:35-45) And, a bit more subtly, consider how Jesus hears the disciples arguing over who is the greatest and then surprises them by basically saying none of them are, since the greatest would never desire such a status. (Mark 9:33-37)
And, even when they are right, the disciples are usually asked to keep silent. When Peter guesses correctly Jesus’ divinity, Jesus commands the disciples to keep quiet about this. Notably too, just a few sentences later Jesus rebukes Peter harshly when he attempts to derail Jesus from heading to the cross, saying “Get behind me, Satan.” (Mark 8:27-33) When correct, asked to keep quiet; and when wrong, identified as the Devil! Peter must have been greatly confused.
The good news for us is that we can see the bigger picture if we so choose, thanks to the record of the Gospels. We can see that there are some simple, yet difficult lessons here, when it comes to choosing words. We should choose our words wisely, often choosing to keep quiet than speaking at all. We should also realize that words are a reflection of what is in our heart and in our thoughts. And when it comes to the words that we choose to utter (and the words we should expect from others) we should choose humility over greatness.
Relevant Reformation 