THE STORY OF JESUS: Nehemiah 13
“I beat some of the men and pulled out their hair.” (Nehemiah 13:25)
Nehemiah resorts to violence to smarten the people up.
But does it work; does physical discipline root out bad behaviour?
Violence cannot cure the heart; nor can it establish God’s kingdom.
Not even Jesus could fix the temple through forcefully cleansing it.
Through Jesus, God shows us what it takes to overcome evil.
Jesus uses grace, mercy, love, self-denial, compassion to beat evil.
“Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” (Romans 12:21)
In the end, Jesus was consumed by His zeal for God (John 2:17).
By His being ‘beaten’, He broke the grip of sin, violence and death.
He turned the tables on Satan by NOT responding to evil with more evil.
Jesus models the revolution of grace He speaks of in Matthew 5-7.
THIS is how we are saved, and to THIS we are called!
As a Jesus follower, am I committed to pursuing the kingdom THIS way?
This is how God’s kingdom comes: by grace, not violence!
What do you sense the Lord saying to you?
PRAYER
Lord, the kind of leadership I need to provide is not a strong hand, but a servant’s hand. Help me not to beat Your followers, but to bless them with grace towards You!