Colossians 1:1-14
Leave it to Paul to calm my spirit down. I'll admit I've had a bit of a Pentecostal streak the last few weeks. Not that there's anything wrong with that, after all I grew up in a Pentecostal church. It's just that to get riled up and in your face is not a style I'm comfortable with. I'm more of a calm, quiet, peaceful person who thinks that through my examples of being Christian I can be a better evangelist.
In my mid-20's I was taught that behavior breeds behavior, In other words, how I treat someone will be how they treat me. The phrase was taught as part of a management class on concern resolution (a fancy way of saying customer complaints). Even before attending this class I understood how I treat someone is how they will treat me. I think I learned that in my Pentecostal Sunday School.
How Paul helped to bring me back to being of a gentle spirit is with his reminder that I should lead a live worthy of God. I was reminded that I bear fruit in everything I do while I grow in my relationship with God. To be perfectly honest I would much rather bear fruit that listens to all sides and tries to find common ground than to be the person who says my way is the way.
I believe that if we profess ourselves to be Christians, our everyday life is under constant scrutiny. People will listen more carefully to our words and they will watch our actions a lot closer. The things we say and do will have a direct impact on how people evaluate Christ. The Christ I want to portray is the one who reached out to the societal fringes. This is the Christ who ate with those nobody else would eat with. This is the Christ who touched those others would not touch. This is the Christ who encourages us to speak our mind as we stand against injustices while at the same time be with those whom are being oppressed.
Being a Christian is a constant walk along the tightrope of society. We need to balance our actions and words in a way that shows God's unconditional acceptance. It isn't an easy task, but it's something we are expected to do.
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