How Are Christians to Act Towards Non-Christians and Sinners?

Yesterday I started reflecting on the theme of how we, as Christians, should interact with and treat people who aren't Christians.  One would think this shouldn't need to be a topic, but clearly this appears to be an issue.  Historically it has caused some terrible situations, persecutions and even wars. Taking that reflection even further, I was reflecting on how we, as Christians, should interact with and treat sinners, which although similar is not the same thing.

If I start with a few foundations, that should be widely accepted, then I think I can come to some clarity.  First, I need to understand that Jesus is the perfect representation of the Father (Heb 1:3).  He represents the Father perfectly in His words and actions.  If I see a difference in the way God is described in the Old Testament as compared to Jesus, I must choose the description of Jesus, because He is the perfect representation, the fullest revelation we have of the Father God. Thus, while God is described and His motivations are listed in the Old Testament, I must compare them to the revelation of the Father in Jesus, and let that color my understanding of God's motivation and chacateristics in the Old Testament.

Second, Jesus fulfilled the requirements of the Old Covenant of the Law (Heb 8:1-13), and we are no longer under those rules and regulations.  We are under the a New Covenant, established by His blood (Luke 22:20), and this new covenant is a covenant of love, where our commands are to love as Jesus loved (John 13:34). Thus, the Old Covenant, and its law, its ways of treating others that are not God's children (Jews) is no longer our foundation.  The Old Testament pointed to Jesus, to His sacrifice and our salvation, being a type and shadow, but it is fulfilled and replaced by Jesus (Heb. 8:13).

Third, as "Gentile believers" the the Old Covenant Law and requirements never applied to us anyway.  This Covenant of the Law was given to the Hebrews, but those who are not of Jewish decent were not under the Law.  This question came up early on in the church and the Apostles gathered and decided that the law didn't apply to Gentiles (See Acts 15:1-29). They only asked that the new Gentile believers abstain from food sacrificed to idols, blood,  meat from strangled animals, and sexual immorality.  That is the complete list.

In summary, when we read scripture, we look at the Old Testament as partial revelation of God, and His characteristics and nature.  We see the perfect representation of the Father in Jesus.  We look at the laws and requirements and know they never applied to us, and should be understood to be pointing towards Jesus, again our perfect representation of the Father.  We are under a new covenant established by His blood, and we have a new commandment to love one another as Jesus loved us.  The rules,  judgments and punishments of the Old Covenant do not apply to us, nor should they apply to our thinking and actions.

It is from this foundation that I can now consider the questions of how to treat those who are not Christians, and those who are sinners.  I cover this foundation because my observation is that often our Christian experience is clouded by vestiges of the old rules, judgments and punishments that have some how carried over into our life as the Body of Christ.  I am not saying there isn't sin, or anything like that, but I am saying that our attitude towards sin, sinners and the lost needs to come in line with the Covenant we are living under, and the demonstrated attitude of Jesus, as He represented the Father.

So our questions should be  -  how does Jesus deal with sinners?  How does Jesus deal with sin?  How does Jesus deal with the lost? When we look at His life, we see some pretty clear examples, and these should become our chosen response, for we are called to represent Jesus, to become Christ-like. Looking at scripture, I can see several examples of how Jesus dealt with sinners.  In fact the whole of the Gospels represents Jesus' dealing with sinners, for according to Scripture all have sinned (Rom 3:23), thus every person He interacted with was a "sinner".  Jesus describes His motivation, and the Father's motivation in the  famous scripture John 3:16, saying that it was because of love that He came.  Thus, His foundational motivation is love towards interacting with sinners.  We see this over and over again as He meets anyone and everyone.  I often go to the story of the  woman at the well (John 4:1-42) as a great example of Jesus interacting with a "well-known" sinner.  He doesn't treat her with contempt, He doesn't reject her, He doesn't judge her, and He doesn't even tell her to stop sinning (I know that is a shock)!   I believe that He went to that well at the specific time to meet her, for she became the conduit for most in her town to receive salvation!  I guess this is a great example of Jesus' attitude towards sinners and the lost.

As I look at this interaction between Jesus and the woman, I see no punishment (the proper penalty for adultery is stoning under the Law).  I see an invitation to relationship and  conversation.  Jesus was the one who initiated the conversation at the well.  He didn't wait for her to come to her senses in His presence, He opened His mouth and engaged her in conversation like she was a "real" person.  She even exclaims how strange that was, for He was a Jew and she a Samaritan, and they weren't "supposed" to talk.  Jesus demonstrates how the Father feels about sinners and the lost, by breaking through that religious rule (it was one of the rules of the Jews - see John 4:4) and engaging her in life-altering conversation.  It is my observation that sometimes in the church we are taught to avoid the world, the lost, and the sinners as much as possible, to help us remain pure and righteous.  We are taught and encouraged to focus our relationships and energy, our time and money on the church, and those in it.  To me that seems a bit like putting out light under a bushel basket (See Matt 5:15-16).  Jesus, although He spent plenty of time instructing and teaching His disciples, never lost sight of the fact that He was sent to the lost, nor did He lose His compassion for them (see Matt 9:35-38).

As I look at other examples from the life of Jesus, I see His reaction to sin, which is most often tied into His response to people who are sinning.  We do see Him describe a much broader definition of sin during His sermon on the Mount (Matt 5-7).  Jesus describes sin as being more of a heart issue, rather than just outward behavior.  He goes through a few of the Laws and in every case, expands the definition of sin to include much more than the actual act.  For example in Matt 5:21-22 He is discussing murder, and says that from His and the Father's perspective (assumed) that if you are angry with your brother or sister, you are also subject to judgment.  There is much distance between being angry and murder, and yet both are subject to judgment (the Greek here means guilty), and thus we can define them both as sin.  

Yet in spite of this greater understanding and definition of sin, if I go back to Jesus' statement in John 3:16-17, it is clear He came into this world be cause of His love, to save the world and not condemn it.  He even says that He didn't come to judge, even though He could, but rather He came to save the world (John 12:47).  Thus, while Jesus talks about judgement and guilt, He wasn't doing so to judge and condemn, but to help people see their need for salvation, for a new Covenant and better commandments.

Continuing on in Matthew, Jesus then makes a very interesting statement concerning enemies - as follows:  (Matthew 5:43-45 NIV:)  “You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' [44] But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, [45] that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous."

Jesus is once again providing revelation of the heart of the Father here, for that is exactly what He is doing, loving the lost, the sinners, even those that are His enemies, by sending Jesus to bring salvation and make it available to all!  Taking that further though, Jesus says that the Father is actually pouring blessings on both the righteous and unrighteous.  He is specifically describing the Father's heart towards His enemies and it is no different that His heart towards His sons and daughters. In fact, there are several Psalms where David and some of the other authors are lamenting the fact that bad and evil people seem to prosper and be blessed.  If all the silver and all the Gold are God's (Hag 2:8) does this not mean that He is blessing those that were considered evil and sinners?  Again, we see this heart of the Father acted out by Jesus, constantly.  He was healing and delivering, working miracles, and releasing blessing to those that were not Israel, and even to known sinners.  Jesus finishes that bit on loving your enemies by calling us to us to be perfect as the Father is perfect (Matt 5:48).  Thus we again see the heart of the Father revealed by Jesus, we are to love and bless and pray for those who would be considered our enemies!  How much more those that are not are our enemies but our brothers and sisters who are lost or sinners?!

Taking this one step further to put this into action, would that not mean that should pray for the success of those who are sinners?  Should we not pray for the success of those that are lost?  Should we not be for them, even as the Father is for them?  He pours forth blessing no less on them, then on us, His sons and daughters, should we not do the same? Can we love the sinner, and hate the sin?  Can we be for the sinner, praying for their success, their blessing, their promotion, even though they are "sinners".  I hope so, for I know that I am a sinner, as are we all!  Can we do the same for the lost?  Again, while we were still sinners and lost, the Father demonstrated His love for us by sending Jesus!  Jesus even says the Father is like the shepherd who leaves the ninety-nine sheep to find the  one who is lost (See Luke 15).  The Father's heart is represented in the story of the Prodigal son, and His response to this son when He returns from being lost.  He pours blessings upon the son that was lost, and demonstrates that His heart was always for this son, even though he was sinning in a foreign land.

So the last question that we are often confronted with, is if we are for our enemies, praying for them and loving them, if we are blessing sinners, aren't we condoning their sin, or condoning their lifestyle of evil?  Could not God the Father only send rain to the fields of the righteous?  We see Him specifically blessing the flocks of Jacob, and clearly if He is God He could do something as simple as directed rain.  If all the silver and gold are His could He not give it to only the righteous, thus showing the unrighteous His displeasure with their life?  If God in His perfection blesses both the righteous and unrighteous, and loves His enemies, should we not do the same?  Does blessing them, praying for them and loving the unrighteous and the sinner constitute condoning their life-style?  Apparently not!  Jesus specifically talks about mercy and judgment requiring sacrifice in the following verses - Matthew 9:11-13 NIV: "When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” [12] On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. [13] But go and learn what this means: 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice.' For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”  Finally, James provides the following statement - "mercy triumphs over judgment (James 2: 13b).

I could definitely go on, but I think this foundation is sufficient for me to stand on, and to make sure my life and my words mirror what I see in Jesus and His life.  He loved all, regardless of their state, their sin, their own feelings towards God.  He blessed and healed, and interacted with them, while they were still sinners!  He didn't limit Himself to the chosen people, but many times was blessing and touching those that were outside (like the woman at the well).  He was for them, was loving them, and was extending the invitation to relationship to them all!  He didn't punish, didn't reject, didn't separate Himself from them, but instead waded into their midst!  I am called to represent Jesus here on earth, and thus, my actions, my thinking, my words need to line up with Him.

 Amen!  Lord forgive me for any wrong attitudes, actions or thoughts!  Help me to represent Your and Your heart in all that I do!