“What sorrow awaits the world, because it tempts people to sin. Temptations are inevitable, but what sorrow awaits the person who does the tempting. So if your hand or foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It’s better to enter eternal life with only one hand or one foot than to be thrown into eternal fire with both of your hands and feet. And if your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It’s better to enter eternal life with only one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell. (Matthew 18:7-9 NLT)

“I’m a sinner,” proclaimed Pope Francis in a recent interview. A Pope said he’s a…sinner? But the media will not play this, rather they choose to paraphrase his words to make them sound as he’s welcoming sin into the Church. In the interview, the Pope expressed that the Church has wasted too much time focusing on homosexuality and abortion…and I concur, to an extent. But what he meant was: sin is sin, and our duty as Christians is to practice mercy inside and outside of a church that needs healing. He then compared the church as a hospital that must mend the wounds of those who have been in serious battles. However, just because he made that statement doesn’t mean he’s diluting his stance on social issues. Right after his interview, he encouraged Catholic doctors to refuse to perform abortions and he excommunicated an Australian priest for supporting gay marriage…so is the Pope contradicting himself?

NOPE! He’s actually following John 17, where we often paraphrase: “be in the world, not of the world.” In this passage, Jesus is praying to Our Father to sanctify us with the truth because we don’t belong in this world. We may not be of the world, but we must still inhabit in it, practicing what Jesus did on Earth. As a former Catholic, I must say Pope Francis intrigues me. So far, he’s been unique in his papacy through humility and love for others. I’m truly a fan of his work, not because I’m joining the “media bandwagon,” but because I truly understand his message of mercy and compassion…and truth. A message that is often preached in our churches on Sundays, but soon forgotten on Mondays.

I read an article about a pastor who disguised himself as a homeless person in his own congregation. Unfortunately, he was rejected by his own flock…sounds familiar? Often times, we are so blinded by our plans, our friends, our families, our small circle that we don’t care to practice hospitality to strangers or unbelievers. We are too concerned about what movie we should rent or what we should have for dinner that we forget there are others who don’t have the luxury of a TV or the opportunity to enjoy a hot dinner, or even worse…they don’t have a place they can call home. And that, my friends, is what the Pope meant. Let us love. Let us heal. Let us forgive. Let us not be obsessed with sin. Let us care for the sinner. Let us be a light in this world!

“But while I am here in the world, I am the light of the world.” (John 9:5 NLT)

There’s a balance between sin and grace that is often misunderstood. If we are all about mercy and grace, then what’s the point of finding redemption in the blood of Christ? The Bible portrays Jesus as being forgiving towards the “worst of all sinners”: murderers, adulterers, tax collectors, prostitutes, etc. Jesus loves us, but he hates our sin. In fact, he commands us to cut our hands off if they cause us to sin!

The beauty of the Gospel is that His mercies are new every morning yet we choose to doubt…or we choose to abuse His grace. Just remember, it’s our choice.

Yesterday, Kenny and I chose to cut our hair really short in honor of my mom. Yesterday marks day one of her chemotherapy, and so far she hasn’t had any of the negative side effects!

Cutting my hair has been a spiritual process for me. As a child, my mother always liked my hair short…but I hated it because I felt like a boy! A promise to myself was to never cut my hair that short! I didn’t realize how shallow and rebellious that sounded until my mom was diagnosed with cancer. As she continues chemo, she will probably lose her hair and here I am with my snobby attitude.

So to add to the Bible, “if your hair causes you to sin, cut it off!”…unless you are Samson, of course!