You Jesus-Loving Jerk

"My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry." {James 1:19}

I have struggled with being a mean person my entire life. Now, when I say mean, I'm not talking about cheesy sarcasm or friendly teasing, that just means that I'm friends with you. No, I'm talking about the cut-you-to-the-core mean, brutal comments and a temper that reminds me that even though I am indeed forgiven, I still have a disgusting sin nature. 

When I decided to wholeheartedly follow Jesus the summer before my freshman year, God slowly started breaking down the walls in my heart, showing me that my anger was worthless and disgusting compared to the light I walk in when I act like Jesus and hold my tongue. I have come so far since that point, but I would be lying to you if I said that fighting the temptation to be a total jerk was not a daily struggle. 

My devotions lately have been convicting me even more. I've been reading in 1 Peter (if you need a book of the Bible to read, you should read it...so thought provoking). 1 Peter 2:1 says, "Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind." A chapter later, in 1 Peter 3:8, it says, "Finally, all of you, live in harmony with one another; be sympathetic, love as brothers, be compassionate and humble." 

One of my favorite verses is 1 John 2:6, "Whoever claims to live in Him must walk as Jesus did." I've spent some time connecting the dots between those three verses (there are more I've been thinking about too, I just figured I'd stick with three). If we claim to be Christians, we've gotta walk like Jesus. Jesus did not walk around cutting people down, making power plays, and having snippy comebacks when He was impatient or wanted something to get done His way. I know that example sounds stupid, since He was a perfect Savior, but just think about that image. Are we walking like Jesus? 

Are we getting rid of malice and the nastiness and evil language that pours out of us? Are we sympathetic, compassionate, and loving towards people? Do we treat people with the dignity, respect and brotherly love that Jesus would have had towards them, even if they are "strange" or "not cool"? 

Or do we cut people down with our words, brushing them off as if they are worthless? Do we treat certain people better than others? Go read the beginning section of James 2, obviously that isn't biblical. Are we loving Jesus while acting like complete jerks at the same time? 

This was honestly less of a post than a rant God has put on my heart. I would like to apologize as well, I am not necessarily fond of people, but lately I have been impatient, bitter and brusque to the point of being sinful, and that's not okay. This spoke to my heart, and hopefully it speaks to yours as well. 

Simple challenge: love people like Jesus, all the time, every minute. It doesn't matter whether it's the grocery bagger, the President or the kid that people like to make fun of in youth group (because sadly, hypocrisy reigns in the church). Be different, be the Christian that actually acts like Christ, and people will start to take notice.