Were there any ways that Jesus challenged the way people thought?

Answer 1

Jesus repeatedly challenged people both directly in conversation with those whom He encountered and indirectly through His life and teaching.

One example is when He healed the man with the withered hand in the synagogue on the Sabbath. The synagogue ruler was angry about this and Jesus pointed out that the same man would not hesitate to get an animal out of a ditch on the Sabbath, thus exposing his hypocrisy and wrong priorities.

Answer 2

What he claimed to be true merely by his existing was the main and potentially only way he challenged how people thought. Jesus continually challenged the way people thought, and His teachings still challenge our thinking to this day. Good examples are found by seeking out His "But I say" statements recorded in Matthew. Matthew 5:21, 22 - "You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment.' But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment. And whoever says to his brother, 'Raca!' shall be in danger of the council. But whoever says, 'You fool!' shall be in danger of hell fire." Matthew 5:27, 28 - "You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not commit adultery.' But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart." Matthew 5:31-35 -"Furthermore it has been said, 'Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.' But I say to youthat whoever divorces his wife for any reason except sexual immorality causes her to commit adultery; and whoever marries a woman who is divorced commits adultery." Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform your oaths to the Lord.' But I say to you, do not swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is God's throne; nor by the earth, for it is His footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King." Matthew 5:43-45 - "You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust." Matthew 12:36 - But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment.These are just a few of the most obvious examples of Jesus challenging peoples' thinking; there are numerous others. The gospel writers often mention the reaction to His teachings, too: Matthew 7:28, 29 - And so it was, when Jesus had ended these sayings, that the people were astonished at His teaching, for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes. Matthew 22:33 - And when the multitudes heard this, they were astonished at His teaching.Why were the people so astonished at Jesus' teaching? Because it challenged the way they thought. ----

Answer 3

A:Yes. According to Mark chapter 7, a Gentile woman asked him to help her daughter. Jesus refused, calling Gentiles 'dogs' but relented and agreed to help the woman when she humbly accepted that description.

Another Answer:

No. The Scholars of the New King James Version of The Bible concur that the above event was in fact a test of the Samaritan woman's faith (besides a metaphor of the time indicating Jesus' priority of coming to the Jews first). Continuing on to the end of the verse will reveal the answering of the mother's request and the statement of her great faith.