Grace before Truth. Ministry must be kind.

 When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” Jn 8:12 NIV

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus tells his disciples, that if we live in his light, we too will be the light of the world and the salt of the earth, not because of our own goodness, but if we allow Jesus to live in us and work through us.

“You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? …
“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Mt 5:13–14 NIV

Jesus appoints and empowers his followers to minister his goodness, but we must do this in the right spirit.

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. Jn 1:14 NIV

Grace comes before truth. If we judge, accuse and attack people with truth, we are not ministering grace. We are not living in the love of God. Our ministry is worse than useless.

Warm salt water is an effective antiseptic and medicine, but if a doctor rubs salt into your wounds, it is harmful and cruel.

If you approach a drug addicted prostitute aggressively by preaching judgement, you only add to the torments of a suffering human being.

As a young man in my twenties, I saw a psychiatrist to help with my depression and anxiety. Then I became a converted Christian believer. I joined a church where nearly every sermon was an aggressive lecture pressuring me to repent, obey and submit, over and over again.

I experienced the love of God when I prayed and worshipped but the preaching progressively increased my suffering and anxiety, until I spoke out angrily and I was excommunicated, leading to a severe mental illness.

If a doctor performs major surgery on his patients over and over again, he will kill them. Surgery is sometimes necessary, but if it is a routine medical treatment, it is life destroying

In the same way, an evangelist who confronts people with their sinfulness can save lives but a pastor who preaches this way every week is dangerous monster.

Jesus confronted self righteous religious leaders with the judgement of God for their sins, but He did not minister to other people like this. Jesus was known as the friend of sinners.

Jesus is still calling us to come to Him to receive mercy.

“Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Mt 11:28 NASB95