When someone cuts you off in traffic, how do you respond? Do you yell harshly, gesture angrily, or perhaps even drive vengefully? This is not the way Jesus responded when he was crossed. When he was wronged by others -- even purposefully and spitefully -- he did not scream or threaten or fume. When he was mocked and scourged and falsely accused before Pilate, he never retaliated with hateful words. Can you honestly say that anyone has harmed you more than Jesus was abused before his death? Perhaps you feel betrayed by a close friend. So was he. Or maybe others have spread rumors about you. They did the same, and worse, to him. Perhaps you have even suffered physically, mentally, or emotionally at the hands of cruel people. So did he. How was Jesus able to respond so graciously in the face of such horrible and unfair treatment? Peter gives us the secret: he committed himself to God, who judges righteously. Jesus had complete faith in the justice of God. Do you? Can you trust God to right the wrongs that have been done to you, to punish those who have wronged you? To the extent that you nurse a personal vendetta, you can rest assured that you have not yet grasped, or embraced, the justice and wisdom of God.
Posted on: Wed, 23 Jul 2014 13:18:56 +0000
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