Is being nice a sin?

[ValleyGal]

I think of being nice as being a sin and I don't think what Jesus did was nice but it was right and the Father's will. In tenth grade World History my teacher taught me that "nice" was a bad word to use when I was describing the cotton gin. She gave me the punishment of looking in a thesaurus for a better word to use so I did. She was a good Christian black woman and later on I wrote to her that she was my favorite teacher in a letter a couple years later. About Jesus, he wasn't nice because he whipped the money changers but that wasn't a sin, it is what He was supposed to do. I don't like it when people are nice to me or expect me to be nice and my earthly father is not very nice but is strict but he is a good father and he really isn't nice to a lot of people but I think that is a good thing.

Okay. First off, you are WRONG that Jesus whipped the money changers. That is nothing more than an erroneous inference. The Bible says he created a whip out of rope and drove the money changers out....it does NOT say he whipped them.

Is that rude enough for you?

Or I could say the same thing tactfully (nicely): I believe you are referring to John 2:15, Mark 11:15, or Matthew 21:12 - none of which state he whipped the money changers; rather, he "drove" them out, turned tables, and scattered their money. Sometimes having difficult conversations are part of facing truth, and so I encourage you to research the verses more carefully so as not to believe in something that is inferred rather than stated.

There is nothing wrong with using tact and being nice. The Bible talks about kindness, gentleness, self-control, peace-seeking. You can be firm and assertive and still be tactful, kind, gentle, and peaceful.

The other part of this is that Jesus had a righteous anger. It was against those who abused the Temple of God. It had nothing to do with the people themselves, or about himself. It had to do with an injustice. His outburst motivated him to demonstrate spiritual justice, not to further his own cause. When you are "not nice" you need to check your motives, check your goals, and check your ego.

 

[Landon Caeli]

I think of being nice as being a sin and I don't think what Jesus did was nice but it was right and the Father's will. In tenth grade World History my teacher taught me that "nice" was a bad word to use when I was describing the cotton gin. She gave me the punishment of looking in a thesaurus for a better word to use so I did. She was a good Christian black woman and later on I wrote to her that she was my favorite teacher in a letter a couple years later. About Jesus, he wasn't nice because he whipped the money changers but that wasn't a sin, it is what He was supposed to do. I don't like it when people are nice to me or expect me to be nice and my earthly father is not very nice but is strict but he is a good father and he really isn't nice to a lot of people but I think that is a good thing.

I like to be nice. I have 4 daughters, and I am usually very nice to them... Unless they fight -then I turn on them swiftly, like a wild snake.

But I do value niceness, and I urge my kids to be nice to one another. It's one of the most important things in the world to me.

 

[Landon Caeli]

Okay. First off, you are WRONG that Jesus whipped the money changers. That is nothing more than an erroneous inference. The Bible says he created a whip out of rope and drove the money changers out....it does NOT say he whipped them.

Is that rude enough for you?

Or I could say the same thing tactfully (nicely): I believe you are referring to John 2:15, Mark 11:15, or Matthew 21:12 - none of which state he whipped the money changers; rather, he "drove" them out, turned tables, and scattered their money. Sometimes having difficult conversations are part of facing truth, and so I encourage you to research the verses more carefully so as not to believe in something that is inferred rather than stated.

There is nothing wrong with using tact and being nice. The Bible talks about kindness, gentleness, self-control, peace-seeking. You can be firm and assertive and still be tactful, kind, gentle, and peaceful.

The other part of this is that Jesus had a righteous anger. It was against those who abused the Temple of God. It had nothing to do with the people themselves, or about himself. It had to do with an injustice. His outburst motivated him to demonstrate spiritual justice, not to further his own cause. When you are "not nice" you need to check your motives, check your goals, and check your ego.

I agree. The bible does not say that Jesus actually whipped the moneychangers.

 

[Radrook]

In certain subcultures being nice is viewed as being weak. So persons who are part of those cultures avoid being nice for the sake of survival.

 

[St_Worm2]

There's some overlap, but not much. Kind people can be nice, some of the time. Nice people can be thoroughly vicious.

H Ff, I think I've always held the two as being basically the same (as others above have mentioned), but if you define "nice" people in some other way than I do, like duplicitous and insincere , then of course, what I think doesn't work for your definition of "nice" people.

Webster's defines "nice" as,

1. pleasing; agreeable; delightful
2. amiably pleasant; kind,​

so I would NEVER define a "vicious" person as a "nice" person.

I guess I would never choose to define God as "nice" or "fair" either, rather, I think of Him as "kind" and "just"/"loving". Kindness is the "second ingredient" (if you will) in love ("patience" is the first .. see 1 Corinthians 13:4), and Romans 2:4 tells us that it's God's "kindness" that leads us to repentance, so the concept, be it kindness or niceness, is definitely a Godly trait.

He has shown Himself to be kind because it is such an integral part of being loving towards others, and we are to follow His lead in this as in all things.

Yours in Christ,
David

 

[Anguspure]

I think of being nice as being a sin and I don't think what Jesus did was nice but it was right and the Father's will. In tenth grade World History my teacher taught me that "nice" was a bad word to use when I was describing the cotton gin. She gave me the punishment of looking in a thesaurus for a better word to use so I did. She was a good Christian black woman and later on I wrote to her that she was my favorite teacher in a letter a couple years later. About Jesus, he wasn't nice because he whipped the money changers but that wasn't a sin, it is what He was supposed to do. I don't like it when people are nice to me or expect me to be nice and my earthly father is not very nice but is strict but he is a good father and he really isn't nice to a lot of people but I think that is a good thing.

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

All of this sounds very nice to me. Nice to the point of excruciating when I'm faced with loving some people. Mind you, I'm sometimes the "some people", so I hope somebody will Love me to.

 

[S.O.J.I.A.]

no, but being a hypocrite is.

 

[roamer_1]

Nice people can be thoroughly vicious.

???
It seems we have different schemas on what constitutes "nice."

So it seems you have had no experience with Southern women...

 

[paul becke]

I think of being nice as being a sin and I don't think what Jesus did was nice but it was right and the Father's will. In tenth grade World History my teacher taught me that "nice" was a bad word to use when I was describing the cotton gin. She gave me the punishment of looking in a thesaurus for a better word to use so I did. She was a good Christian black woman and later on I wrote to her that she was my favorite teacher in a letter a couple years later. About Jesus, he wasn't nice because he whipped the money changers but that wasn't a sin, it is what He was supposed to do. I don't like it when people are nice to me or expect me to be nice and my earthly father is not very nice but is strict but he is a good father and he really isn't nice to a lot of people but I think that is a good thing.

You make two good points :

I think your teacher meant that 'nice' is a very vague, bland word, like 'lovely' and 'picturesque'. Fine in normal conversation, but somewhat lacking for the written word, which we expect to be a little more 'high falutin'(!).. or should I say. 'scholarly'.

On the other hand, you have chiefly focused on the more profound issue of 'niceness' being mistaken for Christian virtue in all circumstances ; and your choice of Christ's ministry to illustrate your point, could hardly be improved upon. He certainly didn't wear his heart on his sleeve, indeed was most of the time very rough-spoken. Same with John the Baptist. His diatribes were also dynamite, incandescent.

I think part of the reason was that he wasn't going to accept equal status with his interlocutors ; in normal human relations in conversation, there is a little 'give and take' on both sides. He wasn't intersted in that, had neither a reason to do so, nor the time to waste, nor the desire to have his words confused in people's minds with competing assertions. As has been said of the decalogue, they are Ten Commandments, as only God could lay down with authority, not Ten Suggestions. That would be part of the resaon why the people said he spoke with authority. He acted like a kind of velvet fist in an iron glove ! But here's thing - everyone could read his heart - even the Pharisees, who hated what they were hearing ! But the people, whom they regarded as a rabble, could see through their honeyed words, mindful of the reality of their more covert actions.

 

[Godlovesmetwo]

In certain subcultures being nice is viewed as being weak. So persons who are part of those cultures avoid being nice for the sake of survival.

I think "prison" culture might be one.

 

[Radrook]

I think "prison" culture might be one.

Same with street gang culture.

 

[Landon Caeli]

Same with street gang culture.

I think we can all agree that it should never be that way.

...I feel very fortunate that my community is not that way. I prefer the tropical island mentality.

...

 

[Radrook]

I think we can all agree that it should never be that way.

...I feel very fortunate that my community is not that way. I prefer the tropical island mentality.

...

True, it should never be that way. We are very far from the Edenic ambience God intended for mankind! Some of us more than others of course. Hopefully the biblical prophecies of peace on Earth will be fulfilled soon.

Revelation 21:4 ►
New International Version
He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death' or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."

 

[Long Island Pilgrim]

I think I know what you mean.

There is an office worker in management where I live and she bought an special cookie toaster oven and she puts fresh cookies on a plate for guests that come into the office. That's really nice of her. Too bad she doesn't do her actual job.

 

[Godlovesmetwo]

she puts fresh cookies on a plate for guests that come into the office. That's really nice of her. Too bad she doesn't do her actual job.

You just reminded me all the office politics of my previous job. There are so many "types". There are genuinely hard workers who don't politic, stay quiet and nice to be around. The there the hard workers who want some credit for all the hard work they do. They like to gossip about the lazy ones. Then there are the one who know how to look like they work hard. Know how to impress the bosses. In fact they are the laziest people in the office.
Then there the genuinely lazy ones who don't hide it. They don't care and these people I find nice to be around as long as you aren't sharing the same project.
So in concussion, i will say nice people who don't work hard at the workplace are not on the bottom of my list, at least.

 

[Godlovesmetwo]

So it seems you have had no experience with Southern women...

Not much with North, East or West either.

 

[FutureAndAHope]

God is primarily "love", as the bible says. Love is always nice, but some times demands action which is not pleasant to return situations to a pleasant state. Moses removed the Canaanites due to their sin, of sacrificing children to false and sexually driven gods. Jesus removed the money changers in the temple because they were exploiting people, essentially they were not being driven by God's love rather a love for money.

However back to the word nice, I believe God is more nice than less nice. He would have us be gentle, kind, generous, patient, all nice things. He would have us correct people in a spirit of gentleness, again in a pleasant not hard hearted way.

God is not crule in nature rather pleasant, long suffering and kind.

 

[Landon Caeli]

You just reminded me all the office politics of my previous job. There are so many "types". There are genuinely hard workers who don't politic, stay quiet and nice to be around. The there the hard workers who want some credit for all the hard work they do. They like to gossip about the lazy ones. Then there are the one who know how to look like they work hard. Know how to impress the bosses. In fact they are the laziest people in the office.
Then there the genuinely lazy ones who don't hide it. They don't care and these people I find nice to be around as long as you aren't sharing the same project.
So in concussion, i will say nice people who don't work hard at the workplace are not on the bottom of my list, at least.

There's a lot of truth in that, I have to agree.

 

[JacksBratt]

I think of being nice as being a sin and I don't think what Jesus did was nice but it was right and the Father's will. In tenth grade World History my teacher taught me that "nice" was a bad word to use when I was describing the cotton gin. She gave me the punishment of looking in a thesaurus for a better word to use so I did. She was a good Christian black woman and later on I wrote to her that she was my favorite teacher in a letter a couple years later. About Jesus, he wasn't nice because he whipped the money changers but that wasn't a sin, it is what He was supposed to do. I don't like it when people are nice to me or expect me to be nice and my earthly father is not very nice but is strict but he is a good father and he really isn't nice to a lot of people but I think that is a good thing.

Of course "nice" is a terrible terrible sin. Who could ever believe that Christ would want us to be "nice"? Just check out the definition below...... Awful awful despicable characteristics to have as a follower of Christ.

Nice:
adjective, nicer, nicest.

1.
pleasing; agreeable; delightful:
a nice visit.

2.
amiably pleasant; kind:
They are always nice to strangers.
3. characterized by, showing, or requiring great accuracy, precision, skill, tact, care, or delicacy:

Instead, we should be the opposite:
Antonyms: nasty, awful, [URL='http://englishthesaurus.net/antonym/evil']evil, evilness, [URL='http://englishthesaurus.net/antonym/bad']bad, badness, [URL='http://englishthesaurus.net/antonym/unrespectable']unrespectable, rude.[/URL]
[/URL][/URL]
Ya, that's better. We should be more like that as it shows that we are children of Christ......

People.........Seriously??????

Nice = Sin......Please pinch me and wake me up. This is another deceptive Satanic twisting of truth...

Remember those words in the garden " you will not surely die"

Well, twist and spin the world and make Nice a sin...

Being NICE is a Blessing. It is the outward display of Christ in your heart.

 

[dqhall]

I am not supposed to offend anyone, but may oppose or try to correct their unjust statements. I am not supposed to collaborate with the wicked to gain their friendship. That is not to aid and abet those who seek to harm Christians.

The Parable of the Unforgiving Servant (World English Bible - no copyright - public domain)

21Then Peter came and said to him, "Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Until seven times?" 22Jesus said to him, "I don't tell you until seven times, but, until seventy times seven.
23Therefore the Kingdom of Heaven is like a certain king, who wanted to reconcile accounts with his servants. 24When he had begun to reconcile, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents. 25But because he couldn't pay, his lord commanded him to be sold, with his wife, his children, and all that he had, and payment to be made. 26The servant therefore fell down and kneeled before him, saying, 'Lord, have patience with me, and I will repay you all!' 27The lord of that servant, being moved with compassion, released him, and forgave him the debt. 28"But that servant went out, and found one of his fellow servants, who owed him one hundred denarii, and he grabbed him, and took him by the throat, saying, 'Pay me what you owe!' 29"So his fellow servant fell down at his feet and begged him, saying, 'Have patience with me, and I will repay you!' 30He would not, but went and cast him into prison, until he should pay back that which was due. 31So when his fellow servants saw what was done, they were exceedingly sorry, and came and told to their lord all that was done. 32Then his lord called him in, and said to him, 'You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt, because you begged me. 33Shouldn't you also have had mercy on your fellow servant, even as I had mercy on you?' 34His lord was angry, and delivered him to the tormentors, until he should pay all that was due to him. 35So my heavenly Father will also do to you, if you don't each forgive your brother from your hearts for his misdeeds."