Just when we think that Jesus was an anti-institutional rebel, he throws a curve ball at us.
It is popular today to denounce the institutional church for her faults. Yes, there are many but at the same time, all is not lost. Jesus was confronted by the religious leaders of his day and indeed they had many faults as well. Yet, he stopped to recognize honest, sincere faith. Did he approve of the egocentrism of the teachers of the law? Obviously not from what follows. Yet he did not condemn the good hearts of those who worked within the system.
My children and my grandchildren will one day stand in judgment over my efforts to teach and guide. Will they see a man who conformed to the religious norms of his day or one who was swept along by the anti-institutional trends of the times? Will they see a conformist or a confrontationalist? Hopefully they will see neither since Jesus was neither. Hopefully they will see an honest man who recognized and honored sincere faith in whatever situation he encountered it.
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