What Did Jesus Do? (How do we respond to bullies?)

Recently in a discussion regarding bullying the question was asked, “What would Jesus do?”  Yes, it is good to know what Jesus would do in response to various things in life we face, but in this situation we don’t have to ask the question WWJD, but rather WDJD (What Did Jesus Do?).  Jesus gave us a pattern to follow when it comes to responding to those who do us wrong.

 It was prophesied over 400 years ahead of time.

Isaiah 53:5–7 (NKJV) ⁵But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed. ⁶All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, every one, to his own way; And the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all. ⁷He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He opened not His mouth; He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, And as a sheep before its shearers is silent, So He opened not His mouth.

Then it was confirmed by eye witness account under the direction of the Holy Spirit.

1 Peter 2:21–24 (NKJV) ²¹For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps: ²²“Who committed no sin, Nor was deceit found in His mouth”; ²³who, when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously; ²⁴who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness—by whose stripes you were healed.

If we answer the question, “How does God want us to respond?”  Peter tells us in

1 Peter 3:8–12 (NKJV) ⁸Finally, all of you be of one mind, having compassion for one another; love as brothers, be tenderhearted, be courteous; ⁹not returning evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary blessing, knowing that you were called to this, that you may inherit a blessing. ¹⁰For “He who would love life And see good days, Let him refrain his tongue from evil, And his lips from speaking deceit. ¹¹Let him turn away from evil and do good; Let him seek peace and pursue it. ¹²For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, And His ears are open to their prayers; But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”

This is pretty amazing considering this is the guy Jesus had to tell to put away his sword.  (cf. Mt. 26:52)  His life and outlook had totally changed once he saw the risen Christ and was indwelled by the Holy Spirit!

Don't Reveal Your Christianity at Work?

Recently, a teen who was hired at a local fast food establishment was told that while working, she was to give no evidence of being a Christian.  She is not to show or demonstrate her Christianity while she works… no crosses, conversations, etc.

I am wondering if, as believers, we should not respond with the following statement.

“I can abide not wearing a cross on my clothing or jewelry that represents my beliefs, but I cannot work here and not show my Christianity.  You see, my relationship with God will be demonstrated in my respect for you as my employer and/or supervisor.  It will require me to respect you to your face and in your absence.  My Christianity will also require me to be honest in my reporting of time, when I arrive at work, and when I take my breaks, as well as how I take care of your property and handle your finances or money.  My beliefs will be demonstrated as I work hard and do a reliable job whether it be scrubbing toilets, mopping the floor, or serving customers.  You see, I don’t work just for my paycheck or to please you, I work to give honor and glory to Jesus Christ my Creator, and He expects not only hard work, but a good attitude as I do my work both inwardly and outwardly.  As a Christian, I will demonstrate love to my co-workers and customers, because I want to honor my God and obey Him who first loved me.  My speech while I work will also give glory to God, in that I choose to honor Him by speaking no profanity or obscenity, nor will I speak any lie or falsehood.  This may require me, if asked, to give credit to Jesus as my Savior or my Guide in life.

You see, because the Holy Spirit lives within me and guides me as I go through my day, if you hire me you will get an honest, hard-working, obedient, trustworthy, and loving employee.  To promise that I could work for you and hide my Christianity would be dishonest of me and unloyal to my Savior, but I do look forward to the opportunity of being employed with you and helping you to maintain and serve a quality product, with quality service.”

These principles are taken from I Peter 2:18-25 and the lives of Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the book of Daniel.

Oh, that all believers would demonstrate Jesus Christ in their actions and attitudes in the workplace.  Then, employers would be asking for more Christians in their workforce!

 This illustration was part of a full sermon on I Peter 2:11-25 entitled “Submitting in an Unsubmissive World!”.  You can listen in at www.sermon.net/fbclittletonil . If you have any questions I can be reached at pllindow@fbclittletonil.org.

2 Reminders From Melting Snow

Seeing the last of the melting snow reminded me of a song we sang Sunday morning.  "The earth shall soon melt like snow" indeed 1Peter 3:10 says, "elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works in it will be burned up."  yes, the melting snow can remind us of the coming judgment of God on those who don't believe.

But the melting snow also reminds us that the new life of Spring is almost here.  The new life of spring can remind us of the new heaven and earth that God promises for believers in vs. 13!

Where have you placed your hope? In Jesus Christ?

The Story of a Train

Recently, while walking through town, I saw Bill and some other young men walking on what I thought were train tracks.  I said to Him, “Bill, if you keep walking on there you will get hit by a train.”    Later Tom, the father of one of the boys said to me, “There is no such thing as a train.  Why do you bother the boys with such ridiculous ideas?”  Another Father , Sam, said, “I don’t know if there are trains or not I’ve never seen one so I think it would be loving if you just let the boys alone and let them decide if they think there is a train or not.  Then you can have your beliefs about trains and Tom can have his belief about trains and we can just love each other and get along.” 

Well, I had never seen a train before either, but I had heard from others that had seen one, some who had even ridden on one, and one that was nearly run over by one.  I heard others talk of some who were less fortunate and they were destroyed by a train.  I had also seen houses from Sears that I was told were delivered by the train.  I had seen piles of coal that came off of a train, as well as piles of sand and grain.  So my faith that there were trains was not a blind faith rather it was a faith built upon observations and testimony!  Because I so strongly believe that there are trains I have to encourage Bill and his friends to stay off the tracks.  If I am wrong I will have “bothered” them and cost them a few extra steps.  Yet, if Tom and Sam continue with their attitude and influence and they are wrong there is a good possibility that Bill and/or his friends will be run down by a train.

In a similar way my faith in God is not a blind faith, therefore I have to be faithful to share my belief with others that they too might avoid His just punishment of sin…