1First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people 1 Timothy 2:1 ESV The second use of the word all in that line. Read it again, but emphasize that word. That was a very...convicting... word for me the first time I read it. Do we only pray for those we love? Do we only intercede for those we care about? Can we, without malice, intercede for those we hate? To those who have wronged us? Realistically, even if we convince ourselves to do it, can we do it with anything but resentment in our hearts as grimy people? No. Youre a liar once if you think you can, and get that little boost in pride, too. You cannot force yourself to change your heart. Thats not how anger and bitterness work (and yes, you can convince yourself of anything once, but again, that becomes a pride and vanity issue and you know Im right on this and that were all scum in this sense) Think about it. Someone cuts you off in traffic to get over a couple more lanes, then realizes theres a slowdown in that lane he just entered. Would you let him in again? He deserves it! Is there a possibility of you letting him in? Maybe. Is there a possibility of you letting him in without saying (or thinking, naturally) Im going to be the bigger person and be better than him, even though I dont like him.? No. Absolutely not. So then where is the love? It is absent from our hearts. There is no love for the person in any of those possibilities, and furthermore in ANY of our interactions with others. Without the absence of the pride and vanity issue, without the absence of the hatred and filth that is in our hearts in one way or another, we cannot do so in love, and therefore should not force ourselves to do so for the mere matter of fact, either. So how, then? How can we pray for those who have wronged us without becoming a hypocrite? How? it all goes back to the basics. It all goes back to knowing that Jesus Christ paid that penalty for us, the one we deserve for falling short in all things; because He WAS murdered. but overcame the grave, and that through Him, and because of Him, we are graced with the ability to love for literally no reason other than that He is God, just as He did for us. It no longer is an issue of where is the motive in praying for all people? It is a motive of Christ did it for us, therefore we should do it for all people too. The love he continues to show me puts these heart issues in check.
Posted on: Wed, 03 Dec 2014 07:54:50 +0000
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