June 25 ~ Ephesians 4:32
Instead, be kind and merciful, and forgive others, just as God forgave you because of Christ.
Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version © 1991,1992, 1995 by American Bible Society, Used by Permission.
I’ve been thinking about the resident at my grandmother’s Assisted Living Facility who lashed out at me and another resident over Holy Communion. Honestly, his reaction about a Christian ritual did not seem all that kind – nor “Christian!” And just as honestly, my first thought was, “Ha! If we hold a Holy Communion service here, maybe you shouldn’t be included!” But then I started to think about the offering of Holy Communion and its meaning… and I was struck that this man not only deserves to participate as much as the next guy – maybe He needs to be offered the body and blood of Christ even more!
We don’t get to pick and choose. This is not our business… nor does such behavior reflect our faith in Jesus and our service to Him. Jesus has every right to judge us… but He freely offers grace and mercy to any who ask. He gave His very life for us to have the right to God's forgiveness. If we want to be like Jesus, we have to show His unconditional love to everyone – even those we deem to be “unlovely” and/or those who lash out and behave in a manner in which we don’t approve.
On any given day, each of us commits more sins than we would care to count. And to God, these all hold the same weight… unless we are committing blasphemy (cursing God and denying Him). So this means when we point a finger at the other guy, four are pointing back at us! Makes it a little harder to judge the other guy, doesn’t it?!
Instead of trying to “play God,” wouldn’t we be better off spending our time seeking His will for our lives… and offering the same grace, mercy and forgiveness He offers us to the other guy? Isn’t it time we modeled true Christian behavior for the whole world to see and let God be in charge? Who do you need to truly forgive today? Where have you judged inappropriately? Are you operating fully in God’s grace and mercy – and extending it to others? Isn’t it time you did?
©2012 Debbie Robus
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