Hey Liberals, Jesus Wasn't A Commie!

     "HEY MAN, JESUS WAS A COMMIE!"  This is a common argument used by many liberals to justify a system so corrupt and evil that the only way to give credit to it is to say the "big man" was even a proponent of it.  However, Jesus was most definitely NOT a Communist, and while he did advocate social justice, it wasn't in the way the liberals would have you believe.  Jesus, in fact, was not on any political side because he...being God...understood that no human government could rid the world of the poor, the hungry, the needy, the oppressed, the greedy or any other "social injustice".  Even while working on this post, I came across a story that actor Matthew Modine had created a short film titled "Jesus was a Commie".  Give me a break.  Before I could even finish writing, somebody makes a film advocating this flawed view of Christianity.  Being a Christian, I will try to put to rest this notion through my own feeble human understanding of Jesus' true teaching.
     As previously stated, the first thing a true follower of Christ, or anyone for that matter, should understand is that Jesus had a job to do, and it wasn't to advocate communism.  That job was to save us from our sins.  Pretty simple.  That didn't leave much room to advocate Marx's theory of capital or Adam Smith's theory of the invisible hand (although Jesus' teachings fall more in line with the free-market than communism).  Jesus had a limited time (around 33 years) to teach his disciples, preach to the people and give us enough material to learn how to be saved and live a life as a follower of Him.  I would say the least of Jesus' worries was trying to establish the principles of class struggle and collectivism on His creation.    
     Aside from this, a very important point to remember is that Jesus was NOT a political figure.  Jesus was the son of God, and our savior.  From the time Jesus was born, the Jewish people were looking for a secular king who would be a savior to them.  The wise men in Matthew 2:2 looked for the "king of the Jews" to come and worship after they were shown a star in the east.  When Jesus was about to be put to death by Pilate, he was asked if he truly was the king of the Jews, and Jesus replied, "you say so".  The Jews themselves believed that Jesus was their king and would rule over them, and were disappointed when he was put to death by the Romans.  Jesus never described himself as a political figure, and any attempt by man to label him as such was quickly countered.  Jesus' response to Pilate sums this up by saying that it is us who pin him as a political figure; he never claimed to be king, that's what we expected.
     "But....Jesus said spread the wealth man!"  Jesus' parables dealing with charity, loving your neighbor and all the things a good communist would identify with, were not actually things a communist would identify with.  Jesus was an advocate of DIVINE social justice, something no human government can achieve (though liberals will try).  His principles regarding our fellow man were not things that could be forced by the State, but had to come after a relationship with Christ was established.  In John 12:24, as Mary is washing Jesus' feet with expensive oil, he reminds Judas what his priorities should be.  He says: "you will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me."  In Mark 14:7 Jesus is quoted as saying "you can help them any time you want."  Charity comes second to having a relationship with Christ.  After that we can help all the people we want.
     Jesus never told anybody to spread the wealth or said that the State had the right to do so.  Jesus' economic teachings (if there were any), boiled down to giving only because of your faith, and not being attached to any worldly possessions you may have.  When he tells the rich man to sell his possessions, it is because earthly things will not get you into heaven.  When he says it's harder for a rich man to get into heaven than a camel to get through the eye of a needle, he is saying that people put their faith in stuff rather than Him.  The disciples then ask Jesus, who can get into heaven if not a rich man?  Jesus says no-one, except through him.  And when the disciples sell their possessions and have everything in common?  Stalin wasn't telling them to do so, they did it because they had a fellowship with each other throught the Holy Spirit, not under the iron fist of a dictator.

So liberals, Jesus wasn't a Commie.  Sorry.