"Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful." John 14:27
I while ago I recall seeing a bumper sticker proclaiming that "Mean People Suck!" At the time, I cannot say that I fully realized its depth of meaning; however, its reality has become crystal clear as of late. It seems that some people purpose themselves to treat others badly and to go out of their way to wreak havoc. Why is this? More importantly, how do followers of Christ respond?
This conversation is not directed to occassions when unbelieves offend us; it focuses on Christians who choose to act in ungodliness thus destroying the unity of the Spirit.
Living a life submitted to Christ assumes allegience to scriptural directives. Romans 12:18 challenge us to "be at peace with all men". Matthew 6:14 and Ephesians 4:32 urge us to "forgive others" so that we too will be forgiven by God. This is incrediblly powerful, yet at times seems almost impossible and unattainable.
When we are deeply offended by another, through our pain it is difficult to take the higher road of forgiveness and peace--let alone go to that person to talk out the issue (Matthew 18). Often times it is easier to carry the pain and in doing so expose the tragedy to those around us--creating further disunity. However, it is at these times that we need to cling to I Corinthians 13:5 which declares that love, "does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered". The NIV translation of this verse reads that love, "is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs".
Love "keep no record of wrongs". Seriously? Is this possible? Through Christ, all things are possible. As we submit to Christ and allow Him to speak into our heart, we can be positioned in the most beautiful setting of His peace. We are called to love. As easy as it sounds, it is the most difficult of commands. When we look through the eyes of Christ's love at those who appear to purpose themselves to discredit us or hurt us in some way, our perspective is vastly different than looking at them through our human eyes. A common saying is "hurting people hurt people". I couldn't agree more. When Christians are not choosing to live according to I Corinthians 13, their lives are not being lived according to God's relational plan. Nonetheless, we are called to live a life in harmony with biblical principles. We are called to love.
Love is recognized by looking at our heart. What flows from our heart in the midst of these types of trials clearly identifies where we are in the situation and if we are modeling I Corinthians 13.
Although I have not mastered the art of Christ's commands to love and forgive, I strive to live this life of peace. Love can only be accomplished in the Spirit. It is through the Spirit that love confronts or turns the other cheek. As we submit to the Lord and His purposes, He directs our steps in these trying situations.
May we continue to pray as Christ taught us as recorded in Luke 2, "thy kingdom come; thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven".
The road may be difficut at times, but the journey is worth the effort!
Saturday, November 20, 2010
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Perseverance
"If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit." Galatians 5:25
Our spiritual life is a wonderful journey. There are times when we may meander down the road spying the hidden beauty that surrounds us--where we allow our mind to contemplate this life, our place in it, as well as the life to come. Then, there are times when we journey at a fast pace where either our strength is supplied by the Spirit and God's kingdom is at hand or where our energy is supplied by our own efforts and the beating of our heart drowns the Spirit's voice. There are other times on the journey--usually after the most profound moves of God's Spirit in our lives--when we stumble and find ourselves face down in the dirt of life.
This narrative focuses on the times in our journey when we lose sight of God--doing life apart from God. Before I continue, allow me to interject that there are times along the journey when we face what appears to be insurmountable frustration and opposition, and although we do not necessarily realize it, we are in the center of God's will--this, however, will be the topic of a future blog.
Any journey worth taking requires persistence. When we find ourselves face down in the dirt, take courage. Being prostrate before God is wonderful. To call out to God and to seek His forgiveness and wisdom is exactly what we should do daily whether we feel defeated or not. God understands our frailty. Although Jesus was crucified so that humanity could be reunited to God the Father (Colossians 1:13-23), our spirit still dwells in a body that easily chases after desires contrary to God's desire for us. When we find ourselves in this situation, the best remedy is confession and repentance (I John 1:9; Ephesians 4:17-32; Ephesians 5:15-17).
Afterward we need to press on--"...forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead..." (Philippians 3:13). We need to keep our spiritual focus. As Paul declared, "that I may gain Christ, and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own..., but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith..." (Philippians 3:8-9).
And here is the victory: "...I press on so that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus." (Philippians 3:12). I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 3:14).
Take courage and do not give up on the journey!
Our spiritual life is a wonderful journey. There are times when we may meander down the road spying the hidden beauty that surrounds us--where we allow our mind to contemplate this life, our place in it, as well as the life to come. Then, there are times when we journey at a fast pace where either our strength is supplied by the Spirit and God's kingdom is at hand or where our energy is supplied by our own efforts and the beating of our heart drowns the Spirit's voice. There are other times on the journey--usually after the most profound moves of God's Spirit in our lives--when we stumble and find ourselves face down in the dirt of life.
This narrative focuses on the times in our journey when we lose sight of God--doing life apart from God. Before I continue, allow me to interject that there are times along the journey when we face what appears to be insurmountable frustration and opposition, and although we do not necessarily realize it, we are in the center of God's will--this, however, will be the topic of a future blog.
Any journey worth taking requires persistence. When we find ourselves face down in the dirt, take courage. Being prostrate before God is wonderful. To call out to God and to seek His forgiveness and wisdom is exactly what we should do daily whether we feel defeated or not. God understands our frailty. Although Jesus was crucified so that humanity could be reunited to God the Father (Colossians 1:13-23), our spirit still dwells in a body that easily chases after desires contrary to God's desire for us. When we find ourselves in this situation, the best remedy is confession and repentance (I John 1:9; Ephesians 4:17-32; Ephesians 5:15-17).
Afterward we need to press on--"...forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead..." (Philippians 3:13). We need to keep our spiritual focus. As Paul declared, "that I may gain Christ, and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own..., but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith..." (Philippians 3:8-9).
And here is the victory: "...I press on so that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus." (Philippians 3:12). I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 3:14).
Take courage and do not give up on the journey!
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Faith
"Faith is the assurance of things hoped for the conviction of things not seen" Hebrews 11:1
Do you think that God has failed you when you do not get from Him what you asked?
Many times Christians fall into the trap of seeing God as a magic genie who is supposed to make sure that they are happy and fulfilled. They live their lives expecting to have everything they desire and expect those desires to be met by God upon request. I do not view God this way. Many of the saints of old walked by faith yet never lived to see the manifestation of the desires they held so close to their heart (Hebrews 11). Did God fail them? Scripture assures us that He did not. Having faith is a trust relationship with God. We need to posture ourselves to open-handedly hold faith while humbly trusting that God's omnipotence is sufficient. We need to see ourselves as vessels of God to be used for His purposes while proclaiming as Christ did "not my will but thy will be done" (Luke 22:42).
The bottom line is to pray "Thy kingdom come thy will be done..."(Matthew 6:10). This attitude positions God on the throne while positioning us at His feet.
The longer I live I become more assured of the fact that God is in control. If I submit to Him, I am blessed with peace and joy.
However, do not think that faith is passive; it is not. We actively engage by faith (James 2). It is because of what we believe by faith that we make decisions and act accordingly. What a beautiful partnership with God!
If you are looking for a great read, try Philippians 4.
Enjoy the journey!
Do you think that God has failed you when you do not get from Him what you asked?
Many times Christians fall into the trap of seeing God as a magic genie who is supposed to make sure that they are happy and fulfilled. They live their lives expecting to have everything they desire and expect those desires to be met by God upon request. I do not view God this way. Many of the saints of old walked by faith yet never lived to see the manifestation of the desires they held so close to their heart (Hebrews 11). Did God fail them? Scripture assures us that He did not. Having faith is a trust relationship with God. We need to posture ourselves to open-handedly hold faith while humbly trusting that God's omnipotence is sufficient. We need to see ourselves as vessels of God to be used for His purposes while proclaiming as Christ did "not my will but thy will be done" (Luke 22:42).
The bottom line is to pray "Thy kingdom come thy will be done..."(Matthew 6:10). This attitude positions God on the throne while positioning us at His feet.
The longer I live I become more assured of the fact that God is in control. If I submit to Him, I am blessed with peace and joy.
However, do not think that faith is passive; it is not. We actively engage by faith (James 2). It is because of what we believe by faith that we make decisions and act accordingly. What a beautiful partnership with God!
If you are looking for a great read, try Philippians 4.
Enjoy the journey!
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)