Sunday, November 23, 2008

Contempt of Character

For the next few weeks, we are going to delve into the book of Proverbs and look at the endless treasure trove of "one liners" that can serve us all as we go about our walks for and with Christ. Solomon has been heralded as one of the wisest men ever to walk this earth, save Jesus Himself, and we can learn so much about how to live out our daily lives by just reading the superficial meaning of his words. We are going to look beyond just the words and see what God was really using this man for.

"A man who lacks judgment derides his neighbor, but a man of understanding holds his tongue." (Prov 11:12 NIV)

Often times we live out our lives holding a certain contempt or resentment towards those who may have hurt us or caused us pain. We see the world through a narrow looking glass where we are the victim and the world is our oppressor. With this attitude, we tend to demean or "deride" those we only think we know. We become prejudiced. We become jaded. Life takes on a demeanor of deep seeded anger towards our circumstances, 99 out of 100 which we created ourselves. Let's flip the pancake and look at the other side.

Through Solomon, God was talking about how we treat those we don't know, those whose circumstances we may not fully understand or care to understand. Each person that we meet is a unique individual fully created by God and in His magnificent image. We must treat each and every one of them as such. There is no sin greater than another; there is no wrong against someone that is so heinous that we must become the judge, jury and executioner. It's not our place. Again, we try to take the place of God when we act as such. It's our job to introduce and help nurture a relationship with Jesus Christ through firm principles and loving strength. The example we set through our words and actions, may be the example that someone looks at as the character of Jesus Christ. Think about that next time we want to speak before thinking.

Pulling the 10.5 out of my mouth,
Jesus Freak Out!

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