As I sit here this morning, fighting the onslaught of another migraine, I had a thought... I have seen numerous videos that verbally and spiritually assault the muslim faith, as well as other faiths. Being a Christian I sought the word of God through prayer and he led me to the book of the prophet Micah. Micah 4:3-5 ...they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks: nation shall not lift up a sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more. But they shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree; and none shall make them afraid: for the mouth of the LORD of hosts hat spoken it. For all people will walk every one in the name of his god, and we will walk in the name of the LORD our God for ever and ever. (KJV) The ending of that passage states that everyone will walk in the name of their god and that we will walk in the name of our God, People of the islamic faith have very strong beliefs. Yes there are extremists that are carrying out terroristic acts, however there are Christians that are doing the same thing. Take for instance Westboro Baptist Church, by spreading their extremism, they have allowed other parts of the world to think that Baptists are a bunch of extremists, and that is how Christians are. If you call yourself a Christian, would like to be considered among the Westboro extremists? The most pointed way of treating other religions (like Islam) that I learn from the New Testament is in Acts 17:16-34. The apostle Paul visits Athens, Greece and speaks about his faith to their leading religious philosophers. It was a religiously pluralistic city, more like our post-modern culture today than mono-religious Jerusalem was in Pauls day. As Paul spoke to the Greek peoples, he explained his own faith and even spoke mildly about theirs. He sis not burn their books, he did not tear down their statues, he did not cut off the heads of unbelievers, he simply shared with them about his God and how he believed him to be correct. All that to say this: Jesus taught that we should love the Lord your God, and then to love others as you love yourself. (Matthew 22:36-40, Deuteronomy 6:5, Leviticus 19:18) However at the same time we should not be unequally yoked with unbelievers (2 Corinthians 6:14) some folks think this is just for married couple, but this also means in friendships. You can be friends with non-believers, but if you spend a lot of time you will begin to lose your own faith and then waver from your own beliefs. Loving others shows them the love that God has shown us. Gods grace and mercy are two of the greatest gifts that we could ever receive, and it comes through a saving belief in Christ Jesus. Just because someone does not believe as you believe, does not mean that you are the one to condemn them. Jesus commanded that we love each other, that every man and woman we meet is our neighbor. If we show Gods love to them through our actions, then they will want to have the faith and beliefs that we have. If we are always seen as bitter and angry at those that believe differently than we believe, then they will have no reason to come over to our way of thinking. So as we go forth in the days ahead, even through persecution (2 Timothy 3:11-13, John 15:20, 2 Corinthians 4:8-10) please remember to show others the love that God has shown us. Even in the case of the muslim extremists, if we have faith in Christ Jesus, and believe that we have an eternal home in Heaven, what really is the worst thing that they can do to us? What did Paul suffer while he wrote 2/3 of the New Testament, What did Jesus endure while being scourged and then walking that road carrying his own cross that He would be crucified on, and then hanging on that cross taking on the sins of the world, so that we can have an eternal home in Heaven?
Posted on: Mon, 08 Sep 2014 16:06:17 +0000
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