Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels,
and have not charity,
I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal.
And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three;
but the greatest of these is charity. 1 Corinthians 13:1 & 13
It is interesting to me that the King James Version
chose the word Charity while most other versions use the word love
It makes me think of a giving of love, much like when Jesus said,
For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye?
do not even the publicans the same? Matthew 5:46
It’s easy to love those who love us
not so easy to love the unlovely
The Lord commands us to do so, even when they are putrid
Love your enemies
No matter what they do,
love them anyway
But I say unto you, Love your enemies,
bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you,
and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;
That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven:
for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good,
and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. Matthew 5:44-45
They might be appalling
Keep loving
Keep letting the Lord love them through you
People can be awful
People can be mean
People can be careless, insensitive, selfish, inconsiderate
and the list goes on
Jesus told us to turn the other cheek
But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil:
but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek,
turn to him the other also. Matthew 5:39
Sounds weak to the flesh
Answer in love is what Jesus is saying
Remember, Jesus reached out and healed the ear that had just been sliced off by Peter who was trying to protect Jesus
That is not weakness, that was Jesus’ willingness to fulfill God’s purpose
So hard for our natural minds to comprehend
Jesus knew situations with people would be hard
He knew firsthand what it was like to be betrayed, to be abused by men
Here He was, the perfect human being, God in the flesh
Still, He suffered at the hands of men
Vengeance belongs to the Lord
While Stephen was being stoned,
he prayed for the people stoning him,
Lord lay this not at their charge
It is true, that was not in Stephen’s strength,
that was directly from the Lord
When Paul was locked up, he prayed and loved his captors
He wanted them to be saved Acts 16
While we are not Jesus or Paul or Stephen,
we also have access to the same Holy Spirit who helped them,
who enabled them to be a strong example of God’s Love
I heard a Professed Christian Chaplain say
that he didn’t have to be nice to racists
He had already condemned them
While racism is detestable, it is not an unpardonable sin
It is abhorrent and is very far from the heart of God
That does not mean those people
are outside of the boundaries of God’s Love and mercy
and that they cannot be forgiven
We do not know their hearts
and our prayers to the Father need to be sent for them in Jesus’ name
What is impossible with man is possible with God
Racism is a sin of pride and hatred, true
Jesus came not for the righteous but to lead sinners to repentance
It is not the well who need a physician Jesus said
So, the next time you find yourself deciding
who is worthy and who is not to receive God’s grace and love,
remember how much you have been forgiven for
and let Jesus love through you, even the most difficult people
Who then is a faithful and wise servant,
whom his lord hath made ruler over his household,
to give them meat in due season?
Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing. Verily I say unto you, That he shall make him ruler over all his goods.
But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart,
My lord delayeth his coming;
And shall begin to smite his fellowservants,
and to eat and drink with the drunken;
The lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him,
and in an hour that he is not aware of,
And shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Matthew 24:45-51
Scriptural References:
Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrariwise blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing.
1 Peter 3:9
Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath:
for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.
Romans 12:19
Then Simon Peter having a sword drew it,
and smote the high priest’s servant, and cut off his right ear.
The servant’s name was Malchus.
Then said Jesus unto Peter, Put up thy sword into the sheath:
the cup which my Father hath given me, shall I not drink it?
John 18:10-11
And Jesus answered and said, Suffer ye thus far.
And he touched his ear, and healed him.
Luke 22:51
And they stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and saying,
Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.
And he kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord,
lay not this sin to their charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep.
Acts 7:59-60
But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them,
With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.
Matthew 19:26
I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.
Luke 5:32