Ep. 32: Was Jesus A Mean Guy?

For some people, the picture of Jesus they have in their head is of a super nice, friendly guy who smiled all the time and went around hugging everyone. He would never say anything harsh, critical, or offensive and would most certainly never hurt anyone’s feelings … and then they actually read the Bible. Suddenly they read Jesus saying some pretty harsh stuff and aren’t sure quite what to do with it?

Did he really just say I have to hate my parents to follow him? Did he really tell someone they couldn’t even go to their father’s funeral or that we can’t even say goodbye to our parents if we want to follow him? And what should we make of all that fire he was spitting at the Jewish religious leaders? Was Jesus actually kind of a mean person?

In this episode of the Like Stars Podcast, I am kicking off a 4 part “mini-series” looking at some of the hard and difficult aspects of the picture the Gospels paint of Jesus - including race relations, slavery, being wrong about his own return, and in this case, not always speaking in what we would think of as a kind and compassionate manner.

I also introduce the first of 4 free ebook/audiobook giveaways to my YouTube Subscribers. Make sure and check that out!

And if you have any questions or comments for a future episode, email me at pete@risecitychurch.com or leave them in the comments section.