Think Twice, Respond Once

We live in a time where it is so easy to respond to conflict with a text rather than confronting a person face to face. We can easily comment on a social media post with whatever comes to mind because our opinion is the only one that matters, and it's necessary for the world to hear it. We don’t pause to consider the feelings of others or the impact our comments may have. Perhaps you have been at the receiving end of one of these interactions, perhaps you have been the one to respond with impulsiveness.

Today, as I reflect on Palm Sunday, the point that stuck out to me was that Jesus came in peace. In Zechariah 9:9 (CSB) Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem was predicted, “Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion! Shout in triumph, Daughter Jerusalem! Look, your King is coming to you; he is righteous and victorious, humble and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.” The Jews believed this prophecy to be about a King that would come fight for them and free them from the control of the Roman empire. They received Jesus into their town, rolling out the “red carpet”, so to speak, laying out a path of clothing and palm branches. They praised him shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest heaven!” Matthew 21:5 (CSB)

How quickly they turned on Jesus. Within a week, the same crowd was yelling “Crucify him!” Matthew 27:22 (CSB) They demanded the release of a violent criminal in place of Jesus, who came in peace. What they didn’t know is that Jesus did come to start a revolution, just not by way of an angry uprising meant to overthrow the current system of government. Jesus was revolutionary in the fact that they no longer had to make sacrifices for sin. He came to take on our sin so that there was a final way for us to be forgiven as long as we believe in God and ask for repentance. Jesus was revolutionary in the fact that, after his death, the Holy Spirit was released to be our Comforter. The presence of God no longer had to be carried around in the ark of the covenant. His presence could now be in us and would be with us wherever we went. Jesus came in peace, and all of this was made possible because he willingly gave up his life for us.

May your words not take someone down in an ocean of waves, but may they have a ripple effect like the gentle flow of a river. The next time someone says, or posts, something that sets you off on an angry path and you get your fingers ready to respond in a way that will put them in their place, think of this example of Jesus. I’m sure you’ve heard the saying “Measure twice, cut once,” but I want to encourage you to “Think twice, respond once.” Don’t let anything come out of your mouth that you will regret as words cannot be taken back. Let your kindness be revolutionary and, in that way, may God open doors for you to have conversations about His love and His calling for repentance.