Really??

He pronounced a series of “Woes” against the Pharisees and called them whitewashed tombs. One time he called them a brood of vipers.

He often spoke of heaven, hell, and judgment. There is a place where people will be thrown; it is outer darkness with the weeping and gnashing of teeth. In one of his stories, a wealthy man is sent to this place of torment, where he begs for mercy.

Jesus called a woman a dog one time. He told a rich man to sell everything he possessed and give it to the poor. He told one of his would-be disciples to “let the dead bury their own dead” when he said he needed to bury his father.

Still, other times he referred to people as sinners. Once he called his disciples dull. And he even called one of them Satan. He overturned the money changers’ tables at the temple not once but twice. He purposely killed a fig tree. He was the direct cause of the death of thousands of pigs. He was scary enough that the people begged him to leave their town.  

These are just a few of the things Jesus did during his ministry. There is a long list of times he was straightforward, blunt, and showed no concern for people’s feelings because they needed to hear the truth.

Whenever anyone tells me that Jesus was all about love, I realize they have never read the entire life of Jesus as recorded in the Bible. Often Jesus appears more shocking than loving. His brand of love acknowledges sin and the need for change. He was brutally honest and did not mince his words. He knew that it was not loving to leave people in their sin.

Jesus understood that people need to hear the truth even when it is hard. Ultimately, people need to bring their lives in line with God’s desires; if he looked the other way, that would not be the loving thing to do.

Was Jesus all about love? The surprising answer is YES. But his type of love is not soft for people who want to continue living outside of God’s will.