Nothing Personal
AllThingsCreativ
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I'm the talk of the city, and you can hear em whisperin
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Wednesday, March 2, 2016
I Hear What You're Saying, But....
So this past Sunday, I caught a tail end of a discussion lesson a ministry leader was conducting with middle school students. I want to say the lesson was about turning the other cheek. Now, trying to explain "turning the other cheek" and "love your enemies" is really hard, especially explaining it to 12-14 year old. Then came the statement, "I hear what you're saying, but...." It made me think of how we try to find loopholes in certain things we really want to do, especially when it comes to Godly things.
If you allow me to go the Bible on this, "Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, 'Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?'" (Matthew 18: 21). Now keep in mind, this is asked after Jesus tells them how to handle a person that offends them and the steps they must take. At one point, if the offending person will not listen to you, you and someone else, or you and the whole church, that person then is excommunicated. So even a bullish person has a chance to be forgiven. But even before you take it to witnesses and the community, you should make efforts to forgive them yourself, without trying to find a loophole.
Earlier this week I heard that unconditional love has no loopholes, especially among friends. One more time, "Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins," (1 Peter 4:8). That being said, we should not try to find loopholes or excuses as to why we will not forgive each other. Yes, we have been mistreated and wronged, but lets be honest about it. If I am going to tell on anybody else, I have to tell on myself first. We have offended so many others as well and rather we want to admit or not, we have been forgiven or at least been given the benefit of the doubt on our behavior.
I know it is easy to say and much harder to do but that is why God deals with us on our motives, not just our morals. He wants us to know that we are in the same danger as Phineas Gage, we have a beam in our eye but trying to tell someone else about the splinter in theirs. Lets take the beam out and then with love, we can remove the splinter.
Nothing Personal
AllThingsCreativ
Golden Brown Homemade Cookies
NeoPhytePoets
AMPED
If you allow me to go the Bible on this, "Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, 'Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?'" (Matthew 18: 21). Now keep in mind, this is asked after Jesus tells them how to handle a person that offends them and the steps they must take. At one point, if the offending person will not listen to you, you and someone else, or you and the whole church, that person then is excommunicated. So even a bullish person has a chance to be forgiven. But even before you take it to witnesses and the community, you should make efforts to forgive them yourself, without trying to find a loophole.
Earlier this week I heard that unconditional love has no loopholes, especially among friends. One more time, "Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins," (1 Peter 4:8). That being said, we should not try to find loopholes or excuses as to why we will not forgive each other. Yes, we have been mistreated and wronged, but lets be honest about it. If I am going to tell on anybody else, I have to tell on myself first. We have offended so many others as well and rather we want to admit or not, we have been forgiven or at least been given the benefit of the doubt on our behavior.
I know it is easy to say and much harder to do but that is why God deals with us on our motives, not just our morals. He wants us to know that we are in the same danger as Phineas Gage, we have a beam in our eye but trying to tell someone else about the splinter in theirs. Lets take the beam out and then with love, we can remove the splinter.
Nothing Personal
AllThingsCreativ
Golden Brown Homemade Cookies
NeoPhytePoets
AMPED
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