Most of us like to be right, I know I do. I like to be right about sports predictions, I like to be right with my children, I like to be right about people, I like to be right about the Bible. Recently I heard Bob Goff, author of Love Does, say, “I’m not trying to be right, I’m trying to be Jesus.”

What would our world look like if Christians were trying to be Jesus rather than trying to be right? How would our world be different if we stopped debating, stopped arguing, stopped demanding our rights, and just acted like Jesus?

When we look at Jesus we see him doing a lot of things that we can learn from, but being right was not one of them. If Jesus had been interested in being right we would see him debating and arguing with the religious leaders of his day. Instead, we see Jesus caring more about people than caring about being right. If we want to be like Jesus here are two things we can learn from him.

LOVE THE UNLOVABLE

The first thing we can do is to love the unloveable. You don’t have to look very hard to see how Jesus loved the unlovable, the outcast.

Jesus spent time with outcasts such as, Samaritans, lepers, tax collectors and women. One memorable occurrence was the day Jesus met a Samaritan woman at a well. This woman who had several strikes against her – she was a Samaritan, she was a woman and her record with men was not great. It is easy to see in this story how shocked this woman was that Jesus wanted to talk to her. Jesus spent time with her and it changed her life as well as the lives of many in her town.

Jesus calls us to love the outcasts in our world. Think about those in your community who Jesus would spend time with if he was here. Would he visit the homeless shelter or hang out with the guy on the street holding the cardboard sign? Would Jesus visit the sick in the hospital? Would he visit the widow in your neighborhood who feels so alone? Think about who Jesus would spend time with in your community and make a point to talk to them, visit with them, say hello and let them know you care.

EMBRACE THE INTERRUPTIONS

I hate interruptions, especially when I have a lot to do.

I think one big, maybe huge, difference between me and Jesus is that he embraced interruptions.

Jesus woke up every day knowing he had a lot to do. He was sent to this earth with some very important objections. He came to show us God, he came to show us how God loves the world, and ultimately he came to redeem all of mankind.  When we read about Jesus days on this earth we see that he was constantly interrupted.

One of those times Jesus was interrupted is recorded in Mark chapter 5. Jesus was on his way to heal a young girl. There was a high powered man whose daughter was sick and Jesus was headed to heal her when he was interrupted by a sick woman. Jesus was walking through a very crowded area when he stopped and asked, “Who touched my clothes?” It was a crowded area and it could have been a number of people and that is what his apostles pointed out to him. But Jesus knew that someone had touched him and they were healed immediately. That is when the woman who had been bleeding for twelve years stepped forward and admitted it was her.

When I read that story I notice that Jesus does not treat interruptions the way I do. He was not upset with the woman, he did not treat her like she was a bother or unimportant. Jesus stopped and said, “Daughter, your faith has healed you.”

Doctors appointments, illness, broken things, upset people, telephone calls and many other things can all be interruptions in our days. Interruptions usually mean a change in our plans. The interruptions in our lives may be God’s way of getting our attention. The next time your plans are interrupted, stop and ask God to let you see what he wants you to see or learn in the interruption.

If we want to be Jesus in our world we need to learn to love those who are outcasts and embrace the interruptions that come our way.

Which of these do you struggle with, loving the unlovable or embracing interruptions?

To read more about some of the women Jesus encountered check out my book Changed by Jesus.