Not the same Jesus

sick at heart...

got an accidental visit from somebody else's pastor.... a nice-seeming older gentleman.

Kind of a grandfatherly type who invited me to join the congregation sometime anyway.

A little more conversational stuff - polite niceties, you know

 and he made a remark about somebody who was a non-believer wanted to come sing in his church.

[my first hackles rising at the term "his church"]

And how he couldn't allow it.

Because he couldn't allow a non believer to to utter words of praise in his church.

Because that was hypocritical.

Ouch!  I wish I thought faster on my feet but I said that I thought the good Lord would love words of praise from anyone.

But no - the jaw set.
the teeth clenched.

Nope, words of praise from a nonbeliever was hypocrisy and an abomination in God's eyes.

The gentle little old grandfatherly type morphed into an angry self-righteous old man right before my eyes.


I wish I'd thought faster because he sounded like a Pharisee to me.
I wish I'd thought faster because I can't imagine Jesus would turn away anyone.

Because it's really God's house, isn't it?

I never did hear of God striking anyone dead for praising him in his house.

I can't imagine Jesus turning someone away or stopping them from praising the Father.

I guess it's okay that I didn't think faster.  Coming up with a one-liner wouldn't have gained me anything - and I'm not sure that poor angry man would be open to hearing what he didn't agree with.

I just know that my heart hurts with the mean-spirit.  I am struck with the self-righteousness for he clearly felt correct in his actions.

But I certainly won't visit "this man's church" because I would never be welcome.

Even though I profess to be a believer.

I don't think we believe in the same Jesus.