Jesus went on a tirade.
It’s a shame a lot of people who go to church don’t realize it. However, it occupies the entire 23rd chapter of Matthew’s gospel. He started by exposing the hypocrisy of the religious leaders’ do-as-I-say-not-as-I-do example to the people. Then He said not only would they not go to heaven but they were blocking the way for others. Finally, He put it in the starkest of terms when He said that those they thought were being led to glory through their leadership would become “twice as much a child of hell as yourselves” (15).
Throughout the chapter, Jesus calls these people “hypocrites” seven times. He uses the phrase “Woe to you” in speaking to them seven times. He calls them “blind guides” (16 & 24), “blind fools!” (17), “blind men” (19), “blind Pharisee!” (26), “whitewashed tombs” (27), “sons of those who murdered the prophets” (31), “serpents” and “brood of vipers” (33), killers, torturers, and persecutors (34).
Whatever happened to love your neighbor?
The fact is some things are supposed to make us mad. He nicknamed James and John “sons of thunder” (probably because they asked Him if He wanted them to call down fire from heaven on the Samaritans who didn’t want Jesus coming through their town [Luke 9:54]). When Peter was reminded by the authorities that he had already been warned about teaching about Jesus, he looked the “authority” squarely in the eye and said, “We must obey God rather than men” (Acts 5:29). When Paul and Barnabas went to Cyprus to speak to Sergius Paulus who had invited them to come to share the word of God, a local magician tried to persuade Sergius to turn on them. Paul looked at the magician and said, “You son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness” (among other things) and then boldly proclaimed “You will be blind and unable to see…” (Acts 13:10-11). Guess what happened?
James said, “Come now, you rich, weep and howl for the miseries that are coming upon you” (James 5:1). John wrote “Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil” (1 John 3:8). Jude lamented “these people blaspheme all that they do not understand, and they are destroyed by all that they, like unreasoning animals, understand instinctively” (Jude 10). Whew! When you refer to some people as “unreasoning animals” you are cutting to the quick.
This is harsh talk from Jesus and the apostles dealing with critical issues and mean and hateful people. Let me be very clear on this point. This is not the norm. There is more in the gospels and epistles about prayer, sacrifice, and tolerance than there is about righteous indignation. However, the New Testament makes no attempt to hide the anger and consternation of the Son of God or His followers…when warranted.
What is the common thread in nearly all the instances of New Testament righteous indignation? It’s not necessarily opposing ideologies. Neither is it some type of bad (sinful) behavior. Rather, in almost all the cases of holy anger in the New Testament, it has to do with harm being perpetuated on others and/or preventing others from embracing faith and holiness. Crucify Jesus and He says, “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34). But think that God doesn’t notice when the innocent are harmed (emotionally, physically, or spiritually) and He says “Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.”
Think about that for a moment. “[C]auses…[someone] to sin.” There are three things I believe the people of God should be screaming in righteous indignation about that fit the bill of causing others to sin or harming the innocent that many in Christianity have been embarrassingly quiet on hoping that they might just go away.
Abortion
On the whole, American Christianity learned to tolerate Roe v. Wade for more than four decades. Yes, there were ‘March for Life’ events throughout the nation every January. And yes, there were indeed voices being raised in defense of life throughout Roe’s terrible history (National Right to Life Committee, Americans United for Life, and American Family Association just to name a few). But how often did you hear sermons on the sanctity of life? Where was the united voice from the church that abortion always ended an innocent human being’s life? Catholics were pretty good about this but the Protestants (generally speaking) thought abortion was a political issue that didn’t belong in the pulpit.
Since the overturn of Roe v. Wade by the Dobbs decision, many churchgoers seem to think the issue has been settled. Now there is no need to talk about abortion. The reality, however, is that abortion is on the rise rather than declining. Since abortion is now up to states to decide, blue states have expanded abortion rights. Children are still being murdered. Future doctors are promising full-term abortions in the future.
If the overwhelming majority of those who claim salvation in Christ were to rise up and with a very loud voice say “Enough of this nonsense!” abortion would be over in a day.
Redefining Marriage
When you tinker with marriage you are messing around with a covenant that goes all the way back to Genesis and which was affirmed by Jesus:
“Have you not read that he who created them from the beginning made them male and female, and said, ‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh’? What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.” (Matthew 19:4-6)
Redefining marriage through the Obergefell v. Hodges decision did not alter God’s view or purpose in marriage. All it did was to green light sinful people’s desires giving it the veneer of legitimacy. However, the harm done to children as well as those toying with getting involved in sexual sin is incalculable. I have no desire to pick on homosexuals. Heterosexuals have just as many sins to bear and harm just as many children. But heterosexual sin(s) have never been legitimized and promoted within the church and neither should homosexual sin(s). It is time for the church to rise up and say “Enough of this nonsense!” about all sexual immorality. Adultery is wrong. It undermines the family and hurts kids. Same-sex marriages are illegitimate before God and specifically attacks the family. Why in the world would any Christian think the church is not the place to speak up about any kind of sexual sin? Did not the Apostle Paul say Flee from sexual immorality (1 Corinthians 6:18)? How is welcoming or ignoring it in our midst fleeing from it?
Terrorism
In America, we have enjoyed several centuries where very little of it has taken place in our sight. The terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, brought it to our doorstep. Our churches filled up for about a month. Then things quickly returned to normal. Now it’s almost as if it is an urban myth. The outrage of the atrocities that Hamas perpetrated upon Israel on October 7, 2023, lasted less than a week. Then the mask of antisemitism was ripped off in cultures and countries throughout the world. Sympathy for the terrorists became the ‘in’ thing. We began to hear people say that Israel deserved the slaughter of its children, the raping of its women, and the murder of civilians. Not just from their mortal enemies but from our own college and university students here in America!
When will the church say “Enough of this nonsense!”?
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There are some things that by their nature warrant a tirade from loving and meek Christians. Jesus was the most tolerant and forgiving Man ever. But if you read the gospels you will find that even He had a limit. The same can be said for His disciples.
Whenever it is possible we absolutely should join hands and hearts to pray for those we disagree with. I am fully aware of "love your enemies" and "judge not." But I refuse to ignore Matthew 23 either. In some cases, as with the Pharisees, an out-and-out tirade is the most loving thing to do. There is a little statement in the book of Acts that speaks of "some believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees" (Acts 15:5). Did you catch that? Pharisees who believed in Jesus? Yes! Apparently, some of them took to heart what He said in His tirade against them and changed their minds and their course.
Abortion is murder. Same-sex marriages are not legitimate before God. Terrorism is not something to get used to and eventually support. It’s time for a loud and long singular Christian tirade over these matters…from the pulpits, on social media, at the watercoolers, in our living rooms, and on our university campuses.
