It's so hard when your treated unfairly to have a super attitude about it. I often find myself spinning down that spiral. You know that place where more and more angry thoughts and unpleasant words and feelings feed my hurt. I justify myself. I did not deserve this, who do "they" think "they" are. (who ever they may be) Especially if I did not do anything to deserve the mistreatment. Now nobody likes to be treated badly, it hurts, our feelings and our pride. We in our human nature want to defend ourselves and have the other person see how they have hurt us. See where they are wrong. But as we look at the offense, what they have done to us, we begin to judge them. All the while complaining we are being judged. If God is sovereign and we know He is, then He alone has allowed whatever the misdeed was to occur. Now He is not the author or originator of the sin, but He in His divine wisdom allows whatever He wills. For our good and His glory, though we may never know this side of eternity what the reasons are.
Ah the glorious body of Christ. A place of safety, of refuge, of peace and love right? It should be, but often times its not. Our expectations of others in the body are higher than those of people in the world. We expect "church" people to be above reproach. What about leaders in the body? Now this is a touchy subject. When leaders hurt us, we can be doubly hurt, pretty dumbfounded and disillusioned. Should these people be held to a higher standard? Yes. Does it mean they will behave that way? No. People are people are people. We all in our human nature have our issues, leaders or not. But we have to remember that church or people in it are not God. People are going to let us down, no matter how much or how little they love us. Simply because they are imperfect people. Just like you, and just like me. God sees their hearts and He sees ours, and we will all be judged accordingly. By God, not each other. Thank God. He has an infinite amount of grace and mercy that you and I do not possess apart from him.
In John 13:34 Jesus says "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. 35 By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” They will know we are Jesus' disciples by our love for one another? wait. Isn't it true we probably have more compassion on the malnourished bum on the street corner than the person sitting several pews in front of us, in a dress a little to short.
As Julie stood at the alter one crazy rushed Sunday morning, finally breathing a sigh of relief, she was on time for worship, today would be a blessed day. Sue a pious older woman found the time and quite frankly the nerve to walk up to her playing with a piece of her shoulder length hair and say to Julie "its a shame your hair hasn't grown long enough to cover your cleavage". Now Julie loved the Lord desperately. She had a hard working Husband, 3 children, a job, a house to clean and no time or money to go buy new clothes, and the clothes she wore were not inappropriate, though Julie was very beautiful. Tears sprang immediately into Julies eyes, and she ran to the bathroom. What Sue never knew was that Julie spent all of her life feeling rejected by the women in her life. To make matters worse, she had a disease named alopecia. This meant she had no hair. The beautiful hair on her head, that so many woman were jealous of was a wig. Her hair would never, could never grow. There could tend to be more backbiting , deep hurts and judgemental, critical words from those who go to church than those who don't. This is a shame. What a bad example we have become!
In John 13, I read this and it made me weep. Thinking about my own attitude toward people that have hurt me, or treated me unjustly.
So when He had washed their feet, taken His garments, and sat down again, He said to them, “Do you know what I have done to you? 13 You call Me Teacher and Lord, and you say well, for so I am. 14 If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. 15 For I have given you an example, that you should do as I have done to you. 16 Most assuredly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master; nor is he who is sent greater than he who sent him. 17 If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them.
Jesus washed all of their feet. Knowing who would betray him. Knowing who would deny him and yet he loved them in their filth and dirt, and cleansed them. Humbly he washed their feet. To some of you this may seem impossible, but its the Lords strength that enables us to pray for those who persecute us, and to do good to them. We need to wash our neighbors feet. Literally if that's what God calls you to do, but figuratively for most of us. We need to love them, those who we call our fellow believers. Love them in their filth and grime, just like we would love and do good to those who do not know the Lord, in order that they may see Christ in us. We need to accept that ALL of us have our own dirt, and sometimes it makes us harder to love. But Jesus loves us, so we need to love each other. The Lord says we will be blessed if we do those things. Now we are not to do these things to be blessed, but know as we sacrifice and look to Jesus for our strength to love and forgive, He will bless us.
Lord thank you for this illumination of your holy word. Thank you for revealing to me the error of my ways. Help anyone who reads this to be able to with your strength to love and forgive whomever they need to in their life. In your word you say in Luke 12:48 For everyone to whom much is given, from him much will be required; and to whom much has been committed, of him they will ask the more. So you have opened my eyes to this, help me with your strength be able to walk in it. Amen
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