Jesus, Lessons for Life 5
Emotion in Ministry
As Jesus began his ministry, we see that He could and did become emotional with some of the things He encountered.
On an early trip to Jerusalem we can see emotions displayed, including zeal and anger, manifested in Jesus’ behavior. When he observed that his Father’s house was being used as a marketplace for selling animals and changing money, Jesus drove the merchants from the temple courts.
John 2:13 When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, Jesus went up to Jerusalem.
14 In the temple courts he found men selling cattle, sheep and doves, and others sitting at tables exchanging money.
15 So he made a whip out of cords, and drove all from the temple area, both sheep and cattle; he scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables.
16 To those who sold doves he said, “Get these out of here! How dare you turn my Father’s house into a market!”
17 His disciples remembered that it is written: “Zeal for your house will consume me.”
Key Lesson — Ministry is not absent of human emotions
Our savior demonstrated emotions. Emotions and feelings are a part of our human condition. The lesson here is that emotions are real. They were even real for Christ.
Key Lesson — Christ’s emotions were related to acts against God, not against self.
What most of us must strive to understand is, “what should be the basis for strong emotion? When are they appropriate?” In this example of Jesus’ anger, it is anger at what people were doing to dishonor God. It was not because someone had hurt Christ, or said something bad to Jesus. Rather, his anger was aroused because of this flagrant disrespect of God the Father.
For a lot of us, we are most angry when someone hurts us or offends us.
That was not the case here. As we will see in later scriptures, when Christ was under personal attack, to the point of facing death, his reaction was silence, and forgiveness.
As we ponder this amazing example of Christ’s humanity, full of emotion, let’s strive to look past the simple fact that he displayed emotion, and seek the core of what provoked the emotions.
Blessings in your studies,
Larry
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