If Jesus overturned tables one time, does it mean He would join looters in the street today?

Our nation is captivated by the unjust police killing of an innocent man named George Floyd. People have taken to the streets to show their support for Floyd and his family, and their disgust with the law enforcement officers that perpetrated the crime. Sadly, these events have almost been overshadowed by the resulting rioting and looting in the streets of numerous cities and towns across America. The desire for justice seems to be taking a back seat to the desire to exact revenge, destroy private property and steal from neighbors in these communities. 

I’ve seen more than one social media post claiming Jesus would be there, among the crowds, rioting and looting because, after all, He was the one that went into the temple and overturned tables and ran people out of God’s house; He was even armed (with a whip). But is that an apples to apples comparison or a logical fallacy? 

First, we need to understand why Jesus went into the temple. If you’ve never studied the background of this historical account (John 2:13-17) you would do well to look into it; and, might I suggest, refrain from making the claim that this is proof of what Jesus would do in the current situation. 

Jesus witnessed unrighteous men committing acts of theft and deception IN the temple. It would be similar to pulling up to your church and seeing that a pawn shop was being conducted in the sanctuary. I don’t mean to claim all pawn shops are places of theft and deception, but we all know that they are not known for being above board in all their transactions. As Jesus witnessed these acts of desecration in His Father’s house, He was eaten up by zeal for His Father’s house (John 2:17) and took decisive action to stop it. 

The critical point to remember is that Jesus was consumed with zeal for God’s house and wanted it to remain a place of prayer and worship. At no time did Jesus protest the government. He never organized a crowd to commit acts of violence in support of His cause. In fact, the biblical text makes a few things very clear: 

• The people were told to take what was theirs with them when they left. 
• Jesus poured the money of the moneychangers out on the street – He did not keep it. 
• There is no evidence that anyone was harmed. 
• There is no evidence that any destruction of property occurred. 
• It is entirely inconceivable that Jesus would do anything to bring physical harm on another person or the Temple.

While Jesus routinely called out injustice (woman caught in adultery)– particularly among the religious leaders – He never once committed an act of violence against another person. On the contrary, His “demonstrations” were often opportunities to teach His followers to be known by their peace and love for others.

In fact, when the government imprisoned His cousin, John the Baptist (an innocent man) (John 14:1-12), and then executed him, Jesus didn’t do anything. No riots, no marching, nothing. And when the mob came for Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane and His followers started to act violently (Matt. 26:47-56), with Peter cutting off a man’s ear, Jesus simply healed the man and allowed the “police” to arrest Him. He denounced the violent act and told Peter to stop. More poignantly, Jesus told Peter and His followers that “all who take up the sword will perish by the sword.” This lesson is worth consideration given our current cultural conditions.  

With these biblical texts in mind, we consider further whether Jesus would join rioters and looters in the streets of present-day America. 

To say that Jesus would support, or worse still, take part in illegal activity – such as looting, stealing, destroying property, harming innocent people – is to remove Jesus as the Messiah. This sin would disqualify Him from being the spotless Lamb able to take away the sin of the world. Of course, this requires us to call stealing, vandalism, assault and arson sin, which we would be correct in doing so. The circumstances around these actions do not change that they are illegal acts, and sinful. Placing the Son of God as one of the perpetrators of such acts would be to miss everything He actually did and taught during His life on earth. 

Love your enemies…(Matthew 5:44).
Turn the other cheek…(Matthew 5:38-42).
Do good to them that persecute you…(Matthew 5:43-48).

Do any of these teachings sound like the words of an angry riot leader? 

If you desire justice for a black man, murdered by police, then you must desire justice for every other person murdered by police. You must also desire justice for police officers murdered by rioters and criminals. Justice must be equal regardless of the skin color of the person or it is not justice. You must also desire justice for the many innocent victims of the rioters and looters: store owners, bystanders, first responders, and news media. If your justice has a skin tone, it is self-righteous and will be prone to injustice against others.  

We can seek justice, and should do so, in our communities. In so doing we must recognize that as long as sin is present there will never be perfect justice. Only when Jesus rules with His perfect justice can we expect equitable justice for all. This doesn’t mean we don’t try to create a society that is just for all, it simply means our efforts will fall short. This should not lead us to violence, but to a greater willingness to talk, listen, and work together for the good of our communities. 

If you want to look to Jesus as an example, and I sincerely encourage all to do so, look to His actual words and actions. Don’t superimpose Jesus into our culture today and assume what He would do; read His words, study His actions, and seek to do likewise.