Mar 10, 2019
Breathe and direct your thoughts to contacting God.
KJV
44 But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse
you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which
despitefully use you, and persecute you;
45 That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven:
for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and
sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.
46 For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not
even the publicans the same?
47 And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than
others? do not even the publicans so?
48 Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven
is perfect.
NASB
43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor
and hate your enemy.’
44 But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who
persecute you,
45 so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He
causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on
the righteous and the unrighteous.
46 For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do
not even the tax collectors do the same?
47 If you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than
others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same?
48 Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is
perfect.
What does this scripture mean to you?
Has it had a different effect this reading as compared to times
past?
How does this scripture make you feel?
Continue breathing deeply as you ponder this meaning.
Meditation on scripture / bible verse meditation:
This scripture was recommended by my wife. It also lined up with a conversation I had with a friend. She told me of a story where her brother didn’t speak to her anymore because she didn’t hold the same denominational beliefs. She expressed her sadness that someone who professed Christian faith could hold such harmful views about her and her eternal prospects.
Unfortunately as humans we have a long successful history of excluding others. People selectively separate themselves into tribes, groups, nations, or ideologies. People make arguments that religion has caused so much conflict such as religious extremism, I disagree profoundly. I think human power struggles and conflict are at the root of all of these conflicts and they are inherent in the way we, as fallen humans, deal with each other. This is evident in current political discourse. There is nothing inherently wrong with humans wanting to come together to set policy but it is at the root of human control and power and therefore causes deep dischord.
I went to hear an orthodox priest from Jordan speak. He said
something about extremism that has stuck with me. The extremism you
have the most control over is your own. You have the freedom even
right now, to jettison hate from your heart right now. You have the
ability to become radically loving.
Meditation of Prayer:
Pray as directed by the Spirit.
Dedicate these moments to the patient waiting, when you feel ready
ask God for understanding you desire from Him.
Meditation of God and His Glory / Hesychasm:
I invite you to sit in silence feeling being patient for your own
faults and trials.
Summarize what insights you have gained during this meditation and meditate and visualize positive change in your life:
Details:
Final Question: How can being honest with God about your failings help.?
Final Thought:
Despite all the conflict that we perceive, you can choose to love.
You can choose to let go of human differences and power struggles
at allow God to be the judge for others. Our goal as Christians
should be to follow the greatest two commandments, Love God and
Love each other. May we embrace this mindset and allow others to be
different from us. We can become more self aware of how we view
people who hold different beliefs. If the situation requires it, we
can correct each other with love. Christ’s greatest legacy is love.
May we follow this example and place our fellow neighbors.
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