Jesus said some things that really surprised people, turning their world, or more precisely their world view, upside down.  Some of what He said might seem expected to us today, but some of it was FAR from what many first century Jews believed.  Let’s look at a few of them.

The Rich Young Ruler - Matt. 19:16-22

On one occasion, Jesus was asked by a young man, who was rich, what he needed to do to have eternal life.  This is a good question, assuming it comes from a good heart with good intentions, and not just someone trying to justify themselves to the newest rabbi in town.  Jesus told him he needed to keep the commandments.  The young man asked which ones and Jesus respond by naming some of the Ten Commandments.  The young man stated that he had done so since he was young(which is a good thing).  All sounded like it would end well.  But then, Jesus added one more thing . . . .  Jesus said that if the young man wanted to be perfect, he should sell everything he has, give it to the poor and then come and follow Jesus.  Sadly, the young man left, and we are told that the reason he left was because he had many possessions.

It would be easy to look on this young man and think he must have been greedy or he was really evil by virtue of his wealth.  But Jesus was trying to make a very important point(Matt. 19:23-26).  He told His disciples that it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle that for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.  Today, many “religious” people would probably agree with Jesus, assuming that by virtue of being rich, the rich young man was a bad person.  However, rich people were considered to be blessed by God.  Some of the richest people in the Old Testament were noted for the faithfulness to God.  People like Abraham(a man referred to as a friend of God), Job(of all the people on the earth, God singled out Job for his faithfulness – Job  and David(a man referred to as someone with a heart like God) were exceedingly wealthy.  And this causes Jesus’ disciples to ask, if the rich cannot be saved, then who can?  Why would they ask this?  Because the rich were presumed to be more blessed by God, so they must be more faithful to God.  And it was true to some(like Abraham, Job and David) were physically blessed as a result of their faithfulness to God.  Jesus’ response to His disciples was that although some might question how anyone could enter the kingdom of God, all things are possible with God, meaning that both rich and poor could enter the kingdom of God(because Jesus would make that possible with His sacrifice on the cross).

Jesus and the Poor – Matt. 26:6-13

One day Jesus was at the house of Simon(not Peter) and a woman brought a very expensive bottle of perfume and used it to anoint Jesus.  When Jesus’ own disciples saw it, they said this was a terrible waste.  It could have been sold and the money given to the poor.  Sounds good, right.  Give it to the poor.  But Jesus rebuked His disciples and told them she was going a good thing.   In addition, He stated that they would always have the poor(Matt. 26:11).  Most people today who claim to be religious likely think that giving to the poor must have been extremely important to Jesus, and it was, but it wasn’t what was most important.  Remember, these were some of Jesus’ closest followers that were claiming this was a terrible waste, but Jesus said it was not.

Thinking Like Jesus

It can be very tempting to “think for ourselves” and come up with what is right and what is wrong.  Jesus challenged His disciples and others who listened to Him speak.  He challenged their preconceived notions.  What happens when Jesus challenges our preconceived notions?   Do we try to sidestep it?  Do we attempt to differentiate it from what we are thinking or doing?  Do we makes exceptions for ourselves(that doesn’t really mean me or what I’m doing – even though it is exactly what we are doing)?

If you are not surprised or bothered by anything Jesus ever said, you probably aren’t listening.  I am not suggesting that Jesus was just trying to offend us, but rather that some of the things Jesus said and did are going to go against what many people would think.  And therein lies the problem.  We need to change the way we think.  We need to stop thinking like/about self, and start thinking like Jesus.  And don’t get frustrated.  It takes time.  It takes devotion(to Him).  It takes patience, but it’s worth it!  It takes wisdom(if you lack wisdom, ask God – James 1:5-8).  We can’t figure it out on our own.  We have to listen to Him, and He has a lot to say in the New Testament.  And His words are not just in the gospels(Matthew, Mark, Luke and John).  Jesus told His disciples that He had more to tell them, but they were not ready, so He would send the Spirit to lead them(John 16:12-13).  We have these additional teachings in the rest of the New Testament(Acts – Revelation), where God deals with issues that came up in the early church, as well as providing encouragement to remain faithful until Jesus’ return.  Let’s do that.   Let’s remain faithful until His return!