Don't get mad; get even. Do unto others before they do unto you. We might call these rephrasings the "un-golden rule" but no matter how they are worded they are far removed from wisdom.
"Do not say, 'Thus I shall do to him as he has done to me; I will render to the man according to his work'" (Proverbs 24:29).
Getting even is natural; forgiving is supernatural. It is difficult to buy in to the truth that ""VENGEANCE IS MINE, I WILL REPAY," says the Lord" (Romans 12:19) because we prefer vengeance in our own time and way. Humanly, we hunger for justice rather than mercy. And yet before God we beg for mercy rather than justice.
It's troubling to pray the model prayer and utter the words, "forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors". Attaching the condition of human forgiveness to an appeal for divine forgiveness is unsettling at best. The measure we give is the measure we are destined to receive.
I would much rather grapple with deep theological concepts than the simple, understandable truth of forgiveness. It is less threatening to labor to understand an obscure teaching than to practice a plain one. But God's standard is not based solely on what we know; it involves what we do with what we know. As Jesus says, "By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another." (John 13:35). Genuine love is unwavering in principle yet always ready to practice forgiveness.
My passion is to understand and proclaim the great message of the kingdom of God, but perhaps the most compelling invitation to the kingdom is the practice of its standard of forgiveness today. People who practice the Golden Rule (Matthew 7:12) give evidence to the truth of the kingdom in a tangible and attractive way.
The reality of truth is the practice of it. Our mastery in understanding and proclaiming it is either supported or discredited through practice. May the world see in us the reality of kingdom truth through how we live and how we live with each other.
Steve
"Do not say, 'Thus I shall do to him as he has done to me; I will render to the man according to his work'" (Proverbs 24:29).
Getting even is natural; forgiving is supernatural. It is difficult to buy in to the truth that ""VENGEANCE IS MINE, I WILL REPAY," says the Lord" (Romans 12:19) because we prefer vengeance in our own time and way. Humanly, we hunger for justice rather than mercy. And yet before God we beg for mercy rather than justice.
It's troubling to pray the model prayer and utter the words, "forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors". Attaching the condition of human forgiveness to an appeal for divine forgiveness is unsettling at best. The measure we give is the measure we are destined to receive.
I would much rather grapple with deep theological concepts than the simple, understandable truth of forgiveness. It is less threatening to labor to understand an obscure teaching than to practice a plain one. But God's standard is not based solely on what we know; it involves what we do with what we know. As Jesus says, "By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another." (John 13:35). Genuine love is unwavering in principle yet always ready to practice forgiveness.
My passion is to understand and proclaim the great message of the kingdom of God, but perhaps the most compelling invitation to the kingdom is the practice of its standard of forgiveness today. People who practice the Golden Rule (Matthew 7:12) give evidence to the truth of the kingdom in a tangible and attractive way.
The reality of truth is the practice of it. Our mastery in understanding and proclaiming it is either supported or discredited through practice. May the world see in us the reality of kingdom truth through how we live and how we live with each other.
Steve
posted by steve @ 7:46 AM
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