Do not accuse another for no reason—when no harm has been done. ~Proverbs 3:30
“Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” ~Matthew 7:1-2
“Forgive us our sins, as we also have forgiven those who sin against us.” ~Matthew 6:12
We humans are interesting. We suffer small offenses and, instead of going to the offender, we go to our friends. Our friends usually aren’t impartial observers, but encouragers and reinforcers of our perceptions. The end result is that we often go to war over silly stuff.
Sadly, too often, we prefer that war because we feel justified, rather than examining ourselves, apologizing for our part, and leaving the offender to God, if there was really an offense at all. If satan can keep us divided, destroy our community and fracture our churches, he loves it. That is the reason Jesus referred to him as, “the Father of lies.” Lies are his weapon of choice. For some reason, in our sinful nature, we find his lies tasty morsels that we just can’t wait to share.
We are all guilty. This is why Jesus recommended a better way. Go to the offender and show him his fault. Perhaps a better way to say it today is, share with him, or her, how you were hurt by their actions. If they won’t admit to their wrong, or apologize for hurting you, bring someone else, preferably a mutual friend to help. Only if the offender is clearly in the wrong and unwilling to make amends, do you close the door to the relationship, forgiving them for your sake, but patiently waiting and hoping for reconciliation as the fruit of obeying Jesus.
Too often we are more interested in being justified, demanding our rights and judging the offender wrong. We do not hear the offender’s side, and too often, we don’t really care about hearing it either. This is how mole hills become mountains. So often, no harm has really been done by someone we see as the offender. More often than not, it’s only our pride that has been wounded, and God isn’t really impressed by our pride anyway. It’s better to let so many things go and not mention them again. How often have you had grace rather than judgment extended to you?
We are all sinners saved by grace. We have all been the offender from time to time, not just the offended. God Himself is the most offended of all by our sin, yet, Paul tells us that, “God demonstrated His own love for us in this: while we were still sinners, (offenders, His enemies), Christ died for us.” (Rom. 5:8) He took our mountain of offenses on Himself because a reconciled relationship was more important to Him than His rights. When we can do the same for others, we are demonstrating His wisdom, preferring a reconciled relationship when possible.
Prayer: Father, thank You for sharing Your Wisdom and for holding it out there forever, written down in black and white in Your Word, the Bible. Even though so many of us ignore it, we so desperately need to be reminded of it so that we can return to it when we wake up through faith in Jesus. So, now Lord, help me to be a good neighbor, to be a channel of Your Peace, to be a peace maker and Your servant who helps to make the world a better place through attitudes and acts of love, mercy and grace, just like You do. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Song: The Prayer of Saint Francis”
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