Daily Devotions
How Jesus Taught Three Different Types of People
Reading for November 8th: John 9-10
Weekly reading for November 8-14: John 6-10
Jesus stood up and said to her, "Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?" She said, "No one, Lord." And Jesus said, "Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more."
John 8:10-11
I read something on leadership that showed how Jesus dealt with three types of people in his ministry:
1. Burdened people are those who have gone through a life crisis: a serious illness, divorce, death, financial crisis, etc. Their crisis is all they can think about. It consumes them to the point that they become paralyzed, temporarily immobilized by the burden they are carrying.
What burdened people need is comfort. They are in pain. They don't need rebuke or harsh correction. They know they are lost. You don't need to tell them that. They need a gentle touch and reassurance of God's love and care for them.
2. Unteachable people are those who are shaped by their overconfidence. They see no need for help or correction, and are resistant to anyone who would presume to teach them anything.
These people need confrontation. Jesus' harshest rebukes were reserved for people in this category. He would call them hypocrites, whitewashed tombs, and children of the devil (Matthew 23; John 8:44).
3. Stable people are not like the first two categories; they are both teachable and free from any crises. Most Christians would fall into this category.
What do stable people need? They need to feel uncomfortable. They need to be challenged to think beyond their safe, predictable lives to Jesus' radical call of discipleship. They need to be challenged to sell all they have and give to the poor (Matthew 19:16-22), to go into all the world and preach the gospel (Mark 16:15), to take up their cross and follow Jesus (Mark 8:34).
Father, help us to admonish the idle, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, and to be patient with all.
