Jesus was a Revolutionary

Take a deep breath, self...breathe...breathe.  I don't know if anyone reads this, as I only have a few followers on my actual blog...but I do post the link to my facebook for everyone to read, so sometimes it makes me really nervous to share how I truly feel because I come from such a conservative place, and have a whole lot of super conservative friends and family that might take things I say as a personal attack. I NEVER want things that I say to make people feel singled out. This is just something that has been on my heart and mind lately with all the crazy going on in the political world. If you think I'm talking to you, that's totally on you, because I write this from my heart with no one particular person in mind...except all the politicians and news people that cannot seem to stop saying really crazy things.

Jesus was not a conservative man. He probably wouldn't be a republican in today's America. Gasp! Also, this is not me implying he would be a democrat, either. He would probably hate politics...
I know what you guys are thinking. "Leah has become a bleeding heart liberal...Leah has "fallen away"...we just need to love her back to where she needs to be..." 

Bear in mind while reading this, that I do believe in sin, and I do have beliefs on the big issues according to the Bible, which I believe to be the infallible word of God.  However, that is not my point right now. My point is for Christians to try to look through the eyes of our Lord...at the person, not how they choose to live. I strive to look at people...not their choices. I know that I forget at times that I cannot expect people to make decisions the same way that I would because not everyone believes what I do. My world would be super small if I surrounded myself only with people I agree with and that agree with me. I'm not saying I'm perfect. I'm very imperfect, in fact. I judge people when they speak poorly, I say way too many snide things about clothes that people wear, I'm the MOST stubborn individual, I have a hard time admitting when I'm wrong, I gossip, I argue even when I know I'm wrong, I am horrible at asking forgiveness, I lock my doors when people walk by my car if I'm at a stoplight in the government housing section of Birmingham, as if everyone there will rob me, and I could go on, but this isn't about me. I say all that to ensure that my readers know I'm not preaching at you guys...I'm just as much at fault as any other person.

I'm not liberal. I'm not conservative. I'm not libertarian. I'm not democratic. I'm not republican. I don't know what I am, but I try to be reasonable. My heart bleeds...but not because I feel sorry for everyone. I believe in social justice. I believe with my whole heart Jesus fought for social justice, and against injustice, and that I should too. People not having equal rights hurts my heart. Jesus commanded us to go to the "least of these." He called for us to take special care of the poor, the widow, the hungry, the unloveable. He spoke to women in public places when that kind of thing was unheard of. He dined with those shunned by society. He touched those that were unclean...and in that society, HIS society, that made Him unclean...He wasn't even supposed to walk on the same side of the street as them. He walked with those that people hated (even when people could see Him.)  He called people out on what they were doing wrong, called religious leaders out on their legalism, and didn't apologize for that, but also didn't stop loving them because of those things. Peter denied that he knew Jesus THREE times before Jesus DIED for him and Jesus STILL died for him. Do you HONESTLY think, if you were to sit down and think about it, your own prejudice aside, that Jesus wouldn't do that very same thing today, reach out to the "scrubs" of society?  Can you even think that way? Can you put your own prejudice aside and view people the way that He would?

I feel like all of these sentences should start with "I believe" because He didn't personally tell me these things, so pardon the redundancy.
I believe Jesus would not look at a man and think "Oh he's gay," and not talk to him because of that. I believe He would not protest on the side of the road disguising His cries of hatred as "love" for girls that are walking into an abortion clinic. I believe He would not stop talking to someone that was an alcoholic. I believe He would not shun someone in church if they weren't dressed the right way. I believe He would not try to take someone's freedom to CHOOSE whether or not they'll follow Him. I believe He WOULD walk alongside that man and share His love with him, while listening to what he has to say so that he would in turn listen to Him. I believe He wouldn't care what people said if they saw them talking, because He cared about people, not appearances. I believe He WOULD be there for those that are hurting because of a choice that they made, whether or not He agreed with that choice, and offer love, offer everything He could give. I believe He WOULD be the person to drive that someone home if they found themselves in a situation where they had too much to drink. I believe He wouldn't care what people thought when they saw His car parked outside a bar at 4 in the morning. I believe He WOULD sit by that strangely dressed visitor, and probably take them out to lunch afterward.  Finally, I believe He WOULD openly share that He is the way, but that it must be chosen and that He has given people the ability to choose. What is love if it's not real, after all? 

Don't misunderstand me. I know Jesus was clear about what was sin and what was not. He did not, however, stop seeing the person. I believe that is our biggest problem today. We see people's choices; past, present, and future, and stop seeing THEM. We take away people's rights because of their choices...sometimes not even their choices, but how can we do that? What makes one person okay to decide what another person can or can't do? It's not okay.

I find myself flabbergasted at the prejudice in our society. I know it's naive but I cannot grasp how the color of someone's skin immediately defines them. How a girl with a short haircut is automatically labeled "butch."  How an accent can suddenly make someone unintelligent. How the way someone is dressed defines who they are before they ever say a word. What is going on here? Jesus, fully God and fully man, walked the earth a vagabond. He was homeless. He most likely smelled bad, was dirty, and had a whole bunch of men who looked similar following Him, calling Him the Messiah. People probably thought He was CRAZY!!  He came to this earth in a humble form, which I believe was the point. It's not about how you look...we're all human. We're all imperfect. We disagree. Why does that make those that disagree with us bad? Those that are different from us abnormal? Have we really come as far as we like to think we have in this country?  This IS 2012, right? Why do people have to fight for rights? Why did women have to fight to vote?...black people have to fight to drink from the same water fountain as white people?...why are people STILL fighting for equality? What group is going to be next to have to prove their worth to have a voice? Why is this necessary? Why can't all humans be treated like humans, period? I have probably said this a thousand times in this post alone, but who gets to decide what person deserves more than any other person? I mean, I believe the Lord can make that kind of decision, but I don't think any PERSON should get to make that call.

I'm not better than anyone because I'm a Christian. I can't choose for someone whether or not they follow Christ. I CAN be clear about who I am and what I believe, and I can do that without demeaning someone. I can absolutely express what I believe to be sin without making a person feel worthless. I can express that I think someone is wrong without making them feel small. I refuse to not love someone because they choose not to follow Christ...and I will take every opportunity that I have to share Him with people, and I won't give up; sometimes people choose to follow Him because of the Holy Spirit using me as an instrument...sometimes they don't. That's something I cannot control...all I can control is my faithfulness to spread the gospel, which I strive to do whenever I'm given the opportunity. I LOVE Jesus with all my heart, and of course I want people to choose Him. But, if I'm judging them at every corner, how will I ever have an opportunity to share that love and how real it is in my life and the way that it has changed me? I won't. I love God. I love people. I don't really see how you can be a Christian without loving...people. No descriptions...just people.