"What Made You Like That?"
This question was put to a friend by her five year old granddaughter who could not understand why her Grandma didn't follow the tradition of Christmas. The child sympathetically asked her Grandma, "What made you like that?" ... as though there must be something wrong with her that needed to be fixed. This started me thinking that we could all ask ourselves the same question, regarding how we interact with and treat other believers and the world at large. The way we respond, and in many instances attack, gives grounds for many of them to ask us the same thing. We might do well to take an honest look at our behavior ... and see it through anothers eyes. Are we really being as 'Christ-like' and 'Spirit led' as we imagine ourselves to be? Or are we so convinced of our own 'righteousness' and 'infallibility' that we never even consider the possibility that we could be in error ourselves? (Gasp!)
Often times, if the truth be know, what we call 'being right!' is nothing more than the fact that 'our particular point-of-view,' is different from anothers. It's amazing how quickly everyone becomes an authoritarian in matters of scriptural interpretation. When someone sees things differently from our understanding, we feel justified in charging forward with all the self-righteous bravado we can muster. What comes from that is never even remotely 'Christ-like' or 'Spirit led' ... it is 'flesh,' pure and simple. The sad part is, this conduct 'tears-down' far more than it 'builds-up.' We can very easily convince ourselves that we are warning of 'hidden dangers' or 'false teaching,' without taking into consideration that the way we choose to go about doing this... reveals far more about our own level of spiritual maturity and understanding than we care to realize. And all the while ... the world is watching. Jesus said, "By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another" John 13:35. If we were to go by this standard alone, few of us would even qualify to be called Jesus' disciples, because there is very little demonstration of 'loving one another' being evidenced in the world today... especially among those who call themselves 'believers.'
We are so divided up into our different denominational camps and mind-sets, that we are hard pressed to show love to those within our own chosen belief system, let alone those with opposing teachings. Jesus instructed us in how to conduct ourselves when disputes arise... "Moreover if thy brother shall trespass (to miss the mark, err) against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone: if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother. But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established. And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church: but if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican" Matthew 18:15-17.
He also commanded us that we love one another... "This is My commandment: that you love one another [just] as I have loved you" John 15:12. Did you notice that there are no escape clauses in this commandment? The apostles repeated this requirement throughout the New Testament.
"Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently"1 Peter 1:22.
"Finally, be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous: Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrariwise blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing. For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile: Let him eschew evil, and do good; let him seek peace, and ensue it. For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers: but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil" 1 Peter 3:8-12.
"With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love; Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace" Ephesians 4:2-3.
"Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers. And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you" Ephesians 4:29-32.
We know that we are living in the 'last days'.. that 'apostasy' is rampant throughout the Church world ... that the love of many has 'waxed cold.' This knowledge should stir us to 'ask, seek and knock' even more fervently, lest we too, fall short. "Let us therefore, as many as be perfect, be thus minded: and if in any thing ye be otherwise minded, God shall reveal even this unto you" Philippians 3:15. And we can be confident ... "But when we [fall short and] are judged by the Lord, we are disciplined and chastened, so that we may not [finally] be condemned [to eternal punishment along] with the world" (1 Corinthians 11:32), because "... whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth" Hebrews 12:6. Today, far too many have taken upon themselves the role of fault finder, nit-picker extraordinaire, to judge their brethren, passing out both verdict and sentence, without ever bothering to give the accused a hearing. This medium of the Internet allows for excessive boldness... that might be a little more tempered if the dishing out were face to face.
Jesus declared... "For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again" Matthew 7:2. "But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment. For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned" Matthew 12:36-37. This information alone should give us pause in our rush to pass judgment on others. We all have a full time job judging our own hearts and motives, without thinking that we can pass judgment on the heart of someone else. In Revelation 2:23, Jesus said that "I am he which searcheth the reins and hearts: and I will give unto every one of you according to your works."
Presently, we do not have all knowledge, our understanding is still in the process of being renewed, as we surrender to the working of the Holy Spirit... "For we know in part, and we prophesy in part. But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away. When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things. For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known. And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity" 1 Corinthians 13:9-13. We do know that we are called to grow up in Christ. We are called 'to walk by faith,' 'to judge by the Spirit,' (which does not mean that we get to call our opinion 'the spirit of God'). And yes, we are called to 'love one another.' That's a pretty tall order, and one that we are incapable of filling in our own strength. Thank God, we don't have to try to accomplish anything from our own understanding or ability, because... "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me" Philippians 4:13.
So as we walk through each day, let us first and foremost, judge our own hearts. "If any man speak, let him speak as the oracles of God; if any man minister, let him do it as of the ability which God giveth: that God in all things may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom be praise and dominion for ever and ever. Amen" 1 Peter 4:11.
And bear in mind, the world is watching. Our neighbors, our co-workers, our family, everyone we encounter throughout our day are watching how we conduct ourselves. And you can be sure that many of them are wondering... "What made you like that?"
Let's pray that they are asking because they see the reflection of Christ in all that we say and do, and not because we have a critical, judgmental spirit. Walking in love is a tough order to fill, but it is our duty as followers of Christ. We need to remember that we are 'God's workmanship.' "For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them" Ephesians 2:10. Like James and John in the 9th Chapter of Luke, we can be just as guilty of operating from a well-intentioned but wrong attitude, and deserving of the Lord's rebuke. "But he turned, and rebuked them, and said, Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of" Luke 9:55.
We had better judge our own hearts, what spirit are we operating from, because there is no question that others will be doing plenty of judging of all that we say and do. And pay strict attention to the manner in which we handle the Word of God, taking heed to Paul's warning found here... "According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise masterbuilder, I have laid the foundation, and another buildeth thereon. But let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon" (1 Corinthians 3:10), let us take heed as to how we are building. Do we feel the need to respond in like manner when others come against us? Do we resort to self-defense, self-justification, in support of 'our position?' If so, then maybe we need to do some 'self-examination' of just how dead to 'self' we are. I would hope that we can at least acknowledge that we seldom see ourselves as others see us. As believers, we are representatives of Christ in this world. We should consider that others will hear our words, see our actions, and ask the question, 'what made them like that?' Are they seeing and hearing a reflection of the Son of God in all that we say and do, or not?
"Finally, brethren, farewell. Be perfect, be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace shall be with you" 2 Corinthians 13:11.
Amen & Amen
Cathy Morris
1/17/2009
Related Articles
0 comments:
Post a Comment