"Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamor and evil speaking, be put away from you with all malice.
and clamor, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice. 32. And be ye kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ sake hath forgiven you." I used the word "act" above when I could have used "live." But I think you understand the word "act" here because this pertains to how we react to people in our daily lives, at home, at work, shopping, etc. We need to look at these words in verse 32 and think seriously about them - me included. "Be ye kind to one another." Think about yourself, are you kind to other people, the people in your home, at your work, where you shop, and etc.? Do you have a kind heart? How do you treat people in your home, where you work and where you shop. It would be interesting to talk with people who work at, for example, Walmart. Would they tell us that people are kind. They would probably say that some are kind, but others are not kind. I try to remember this when I shop, for I represent Christ where I am shopping as well as at church. Are you kind to people in your home, at your workplace, at church (yep, there too), where you shop. Just think about it. In a few minutes (hours ?) Hope and I will be eating at a local restaurant and at, probably Walmart, will I be kind to the people that I encounter in those places? Be ye,,,,tenderhearted, or compassionate. This goes a little deeper into our lifestyles than kindness, for it reminds us that we are not only kind to people, but we treat them with compassion, reminding ourselves that this is how Jesus treated people. This is difficult to remember sometimes, because we encounter people who are definitely not compassionate. Maybe we need to act in public like we do at church (hopefully). Since I made my living working at churches, we forgot this sometimes even there. (I have four fingers pointing back at me, as I point at you.) "Forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.." This gives a hard example to follow, for Christ will forgive us for all of our sins. We need to think of some people that we have encountered, and ask ourselves if we have really and truly forgiven them. I will tell you that when you think of this, you will do some hard praying, as I am doing in my heart as I write this. I am asking the Lord to help me forgive, even as He forgave me from the cross. Look at your heart, have you forgiven people in your home, at your work, and especially at your church home? I made my living serving in churches and it is as difficult there as anywhere else to be kind, compassionate and forgiving. The devil is at work in your home, at your work, and at your church home. (And everywhere else!) This text actually points out how Christ treated people as He walked on the earth. He was kind, He was compassionate, and He forgave. Even from the cross, He said, "Father forgive them, for they know not what they do." We (notice that I wrote "we") need to take this text to heart and think about how we live our daily lives at our homes, at our workplaces, at our churches, or wherever we are. May we all take these words to heart! Bro. Joe
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AuthorDr. Joe Beauchamp is the author of this blog and website. Categories
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