There is no escaping the counter message of Jesus Christ. He leads us away from delusion and the slavery to the passions, and that always creates conflict with a world that prefers delusion.
Thanks Father. On point and time. Responses sure do speak volumes about people’s nature and faith. A heart transforming to reflect Christ’s Love doesn’t need too many words to be heard. Maybe none at all. Curiosity and compassion instead of confrontation and…
Simply, humbly, gently, and with great love for Christ (and the Christ in them).
Father, Pray for me that I can pull this off more often.
The hardest part about being a Christian, a true follower of Jesus Christ, is to forgive others you believe to be your “enemy.”
It is counterintuitive to most people to forgive others who have done harm to you or who threaten to do harm to you, to turn the other cheek, but that’s precisely what Christians are called to do. Imagine if you
could be someone who is defusing hatred in our community and being the peacemakers - people who love one another and accept the other without prejudging them. As everyday Christians we should be doing the hard work of being a tolerant and loving person in a society that often wants to keep prejudices alive. Jesus - God wants us to love one another and that is simply incompatible with spreading hate and lies about the other. Civilized discourse is the only way to get rid of the hate and division and find the common ground to pave the way to a more civilized society - a truly Christian society.
Thanks Joe. While I agree that we should always work for civilized discourse and understanding, the frank reality is that if they hated Jesus, they will hate us too. I try to make peace with that reality by not expecting to be respected when my faith comes into conflict with the spirit of the age. There really is no peace possible between Light and Dark.
Thanks Father. On point and time. Responses sure do speak volumes about people’s nature and faith. A heart transforming to reflect Christ’s Love doesn’t need too many words to be heard. Maybe none at all. Curiosity and compassion instead of confrontation and…
Simply, humbly, gently, and with great love for Christ (and the Christ in them).
Father, Pray for me that I can pull this off more often.
I will. Pray for me as well!
The hardest part about being a Christian, a true follower of Jesus Christ, is to forgive others you believe to be your “enemy.”
It is counterintuitive to most people to forgive others who have done harm to you or who threaten to do harm to you, to turn the other cheek, but that’s precisely what Christians are called to do. Imagine if you
could be someone who is defusing hatred in our community and being the peacemakers - people who love one another and accept the other without prejudging them. As everyday Christians we should be doing the hard work of being a tolerant and loving person in a society that often wants to keep prejudices alive. Jesus - God wants us to love one another and that is simply incompatible with spreading hate and lies about the other. Civilized discourse is the only way to get rid of the hate and division and find the common ground to pave the way to a more civilized society - a truly Christian society.
Thanks Joe. While I agree that we should always work for civilized discourse and understanding, the frank reality is that if they hated Jesus, they will hate us too. I try to make peace with that reality by not expecting to be respected when my faith comes into conflict with the spirit of the age. There really is no peace possible between Light and Dark.
Lord, have mercy.
I’m afraid you are correct about no peace between Light and Darkness. But I do think most people are “good” at their core.