“Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand.”
Have you ever wondered what it means to "let your moderation be known unto all men"? I found that it can also be translated as "gentleness." According to the Analytical Greek Lexicon, the Greek word can be translated as fair, reasonable and patient. Following is my interpretation of what it means to live in moderation: To live in moderation is to be fair. Christians should be fair in their dealings with people. People who are fair in their dealings can be trusted. If we are not, people will wonder about our relationship with Jesus. After all, Jesus was fair in His dealings with people in the Bible, and in His dealings with us today. We should be concerned that Jesus knows that we are fair, and that we can be trusted. We should be as good as our word. Our effectiveness as Christian witnesses depends on our fairness. To live in moderation is to be reasonable. This does not mean that mean that we should be reasonable to just get along with people, or to take the line of least resistance. It does not mean that we should compromise our Christian morality. Among other things, it means that we will not be difficult in our relationships with people, and that we will not be argumentative just to prove a point. This is particularly true in our relationships with people in church. Let’s just say that we should act like Christians in our Christian fellowship. (I have found that sometimes the most reasonable thing to do is to keep my mouth shut – if you know what I mean.) We need to practice moderation in our dealings in the world. If you have ever participated in church league softball, you will understand what I mean. lol To live in moderation is to be patient. This means that we should be patient with people. People who serve as waiters and waitresses say that the most difficult people that they deal with are people who come in after church. I have read and heard about this on several occasions. (We are also not known to be great tippers.) I find that people get on my patience sometimes by their attitudes. One of my pet peeves is snarky telephone operators. I just have to remind myself that I am either going to ruin my witness, or I will practice patience. (I will add that I also encounter nice telephone operators who do not try my patience.) All of these points tell us that we should be gracious in our dealings with people. We are reminded to let “our moderation be known unto all people.” It says that “the Lord is at hand.” I know that this is open to other interpretations, but I will say that we should let our moderation be known to all people because the Lord is aware of our actions. (Whether that is the interpretation of the “Lord is at hand” or not it is nevertheless true.) Bro. Joe
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AuthorDr. Joe Beauchamp is the author of this blog and website. Categories
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September 2021
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