Nothing To Fight About

"We love people to the extent Jesus does"

ONLY GOD knows the heart. Only He knows people’s thoughts and motives. Where we base our guesses on people’s expressions and behaviors, He knows their inner being. We have to stop speculating, stop making unjust judgments. Maybe that person is mad at you, maybe they had a bad night’s sleep, or maybe something painful happened to them. So they spoke sharply, you only know one thing at that moment —God said to love one another.

“A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.” (John 13:34-35)

This goes across all boundary lines. It means those in the church and those out of it. It includes the people you like and the ones you don’t. It has no exceptions for those who are unruly, outspoken, mentally challenged, of an opposite political group, of lesser or greater education, or of another culture. We are told to be peacemakers (Matthew 5:9), that’s someone who makes peace. Peace is who we are. We seek peace and pursue it to the point of laying down what we want to do or say in favor of there being peace (1 Peter 3:11). And because we are filled with peace, our lack of attention from others, that we don’t get our agenda, doesn’t eat at us.

We love people to the extent Jesus does and have no desire to talk about them behind their back. Even if asked for our opinion. Jesus defended the woman caught in adultery. He called the Centurion’s faith the greatest in all of Israel. He gave the thief Paradise.

“Let him eschew evil, and do good; let him seek peace, and ensue it.” (1 Peter 3:11)

Are we blackbirds or warblers? In the winter, the warblers come and enjoy my bird feeders. I love to watch them come and go. The blackbirds also show up, but they are birds of a different type. They will empty everything in minutes. Suddenly, the smaller birds which I enjoy have nothing, and if I refill things, they don’t get much of it for the blackbirds usually return. It’s a continual battle unless I take the feeders down. Then what is there for me to enjoy?

We won’t enjoy the results of our ungodly, unkind behavior. Strife and anger only create more strife and anger, until we’re filled with it and can’t hear God at all. We’re looking for direction, but unable to find it. All we hear is hatred. Romans 1 describes the descent of sinful behavior and applies equally to the sin of people and the sin of devils. The Remedy Translation is particularly sharp. We must see that sin destroys anyone who keeps doing it. The only end of sin is death. What form it takes depends on salvation. For devils there is none available. For people, there is, but even then, we can turn our backs on God’s love in us, for us, and from us.

One single thought is not sin. If rejected because of God’s Truth. One thought allowed to take hold, to become a thought pattern, will come out in our speech. And what we don’t actually know that we’ve decided on otherwise is deception. We believe the lie we’ve decided on. We act like the devil. Whereas Jesus turned the Pharisee Saul, who murdered Christians, into the apostle Paul, who loved them.

Pray for people instead of complaining. God gave us His self-control. And pray for others to be blessed and not destroyed. When God changes the heart, yours or theirs, then the battle we’ve created is over. We have nothing to fight about anyway. God’s love places sin as far as the east is from the west. Our heart must be the same.

“Only by pride cometh contention.” (Proverbs 13:10)

“Perverse people stir up contention; gossip makes best friends into enemies.” (Proverbs 16:28 VOICE)

“When you run out of wood, the fire goes out; when the gossip ends, the quarrel dies down.” (Proverbs 26:20 MSG)

“It is written in the psalms, If you love life and want to live a good, long time, Then be careful what you say. Don’t tell lies or spread gossip or talk about improper things.” (1 Peter 3:10 VOICE)


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Suzanne D. Williams, Author
www.suzannedwilliams.com
www.feelgoodromance.com