Yorzhik said:
What you seem to be descibing is calling Steve a burnout and also calling Steve a levelheaded self-controlled individual just for balance. We'll call Lisa a slut and also call her proper young lady just for balance.
You don't even seem to know what balance is.
I'm not saying that it is necessary to call someone a slut, and then a perfect lady, because you are contradicting yourself.
Jesus didn't simply say, "Hey, Zacheus, you stupid shrimp! You are a theif and a liar!"
No. He said, "Zacheus - I would like you to join me to eat." This is equivalent to the whole school calling Lisa a slut, and then Lisa, feeling angry, resentful, unloved, and full of hatred, to come sit at your table - to show her kindness that no one else is. The kids would say, "You are eating with the whore???"
That's what Jesus did.
And what do you imagine that Jesus talked to him about? Did he mock him, and call him names? I'm guessing that he found out about Zacheus. He probably asked him about his family. He asked him what he liked to do for fun. And he probably asked him why he was a tax collector, and doing the things he did. I imagine that Zaccheus said that he was fearful of not providing for his family, or enjoyed wealth, or whatever, but soon discovered that, yes, God loved him, despite what everyone told him, about how he was disgusting, a cheat, and a theif.
A friend of mine once went to a retreat. People there were spirit filled christians, but the HS wasn't really moving. This guy started crying, and he said, "It's because of me! God won't come because of me!" He believed that he wasn't worthy of love. People said, Do you want to accept Jesus? He said yes, and asked God to fill him with his spirit, and immediately started speaking in tongues. He then became a strong spokesperson for God, drawing others to God.
Yes, the kindest thing to do to Lisa is call her a slut unrelentingly. That would be a blessing to her.
That would help her how? If all of the unsaved are calling her slut, and you simply chime in, and refuse to have anything to do with her, how will that save her? If anything, it will show you to be a cruel as the unsaved.
Do you take time to find out about her life? Do you know what her family life was like? Do you know why she is sexually active? Do you know about any abuse that was in the family? Do you know how she feels about herself? Do you know if she battles with suicide? Do you know if her mother is an alcoholic?
What do you know about her? Probably nothing, because you simply call her a slut, and shut down communication before you even begin.
Before you can preach to us about the meat of Romans 12, you might try digesting the milk of the bible. An overview of the bible would be a good place to start. Get an idea of what God is like and what He is dealing with. Then you can get into the details of Paul's heavy theological treatise.
I would suggest the same to you. If you can't see what Romans 12 is saying, think that it means that mocking and calling people names is all that God calls for, then it is you that needs to learn about the milk of the bible. Tough love is returning blessing when you are cursed, not simply walking through the streets pointing fingers and throwing your nose in the air.
