THE MORE EXCELLENT WAY

 

There is a whole lot of HATE going around. The inordinate amount of vehement hate and hostility toward families, neighbors, employees, employers, police authorities, and government leaders is unprecedented. The mean, cruel, vile and vicious things being said are extremely toxic. With every hateful word we are unleashing a contagion far more lethal than any virus known to humanity. “The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell” (James 3:6NIV). Sadly, many of the people expressing such hatred claim to be Christians. This is not of GOD! It is devilish.

Satan, that old serpent the devil, is a thief. His agenda is to steal, kill and destroy. “He [Satan] was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it” (John 8:44). Consider the source. Are you believing a false narrative and then perpetuating the lie? If so, what does that say about you? Even Jesus, on one occasion, had to tell the Apostle Peter, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men” (Matthew 16:23 NKJV).

God’s way is the way of LOVE, goodness and kindness permeated with mercy. We must be ever mindful of the saying, “There but by the grace of God go I.” We are all flawed humans. We have all failed and are subject to every kind of sin. Jesus Christ is the only perfect person. We must stop catering to our carnal appetites, human logic and fleshly personal preferences. We need to totally surrender ourselves to the Lord Jesus Christ so that He can live His life in us and express His love through us. Jesus is love incarnate! His words are pure and lovely, good and true. What about your words? Can the same be said about you?

Maybe your words are okay, but what about your attitudes? According to Jesus, having the right words without the right attitudes is not right. You must have the right attitude. He went on to explain in Matthew 5:21-22, that if you have an angry attitude toward someone then it is the same as murder. Being angry toward someone is very serious. God reiterated this in 1 John 3:14-15, “Anyone who does not love remains in death. Anyone who hates a brother or sister is a murderer.” Perhaps we should all have an attitude check!

According to Jesus, we should love our enemies and even pray for them. “But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you” (Matthew 5:44). “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth” (1 Corinthians 13:4-6). Does this describe your life?

LOVE is the antidote to HATE. “Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love” (1 John 4:7-8 NIV). “And this is His command: to believe in the name of His Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as He commanded us” (1 John 3:23). You need to be sure that you have believed in Christ. To believe in Christ means to receive Christ into your life as your Lord and Savior. Once you do, Christ, who is the Source of Love, can enable you to express God’s unconditional love. The fruit of the Holy Spirit is love. So, if you allow God’s Spirit to take control of you and fill you, He will cause you to love others. Then you will be able to say with our Lord, “Father forgive them” (Luke 23:34).

What the world needs is LOVE—God’s love—and a whole lot of it. We all go through hard times and encounter hateful, hurtful people. Every day on the news there are more reports of global tragedy. Let’s face it; it’s a hard cruel world, but God’s love covers it all! What this old world needs is a good dose of God’s love. God’s love can take it. God’s love can fix it. And God’s love can enable you to deal with it, whatever it may be!

LOVE YOUR ENEMIES & PRAY FOR THEM

 

Superabounding Love – https://www.sourceministries.net/go/2013/04/superabounding-love/

Dr. Lewis Gregory Source Ministries © 2021

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