35 Then one of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, and saying,
36 "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?"
37 Jesus said to him, "'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.'
38 This is the first and great commandment.
39 And the second is like it: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'
40 On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets."
First and foremost, we are called to love God. That has enormous implications for the way we regard and live our lives. If we belong to Christ, who loved us first, we respond with adoration and gratitude to the One Who has saved us. So, we're called to love God fully. But it doesn't stop there - that attitude of love is to be released in our relationships. We have a responsibility to be compassionate, to be conduits of Christ's character and to regard others in the same way that He does.
In Luke 6, we find a passage from Scripture that includes what is commonly described as the "Golden Rule."
27 "But I say to you who hear: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you,
28 bless those who curse you, and pray for those who spitefully use you.
29 To him who strikes you on the one cheek, offer the other also. And from him who takes away your cloak, do not withhold your tunic either.
30 Give to everyone who asks of you. And from him who takes away your goods do not ask them back.
31 And just as you want men to do to you, you also do to them likewise.
White supremacists march and attract conflict in Virginia; anarchists perpetrate violence in California.
The extremists are gaining a lot of attention, while the rank-and-file Americans are just attempting to go to work each day, raise their families, and live their lives.
Residents of south Texas are anxious about what their homes are going to be like when they return after the waters subside.
There is all sorts of polarization in our land, but there does seem to a dividing line between the America that is portrayed in the media and the "real" America, which we desperately want to live in, and, as members of the body of Christ, have an impact in.
Scott Rasmussen, the pollster, wrote a provocative piece published at the Townhall.com website. In it, he stated:
Now, Rasmussen understands the business model here: conflict sells. But, he believes that there is a better version of our great nation:
The good news, the really good news, is that Christ died not for a better world, but to make better people, with spirits recreated in His image; more accurately stated, to make new people. And, then He dispatches us to live our lives with a higher calling and to seek to be His representatives in our communities. Look at the community volunteers - 63 million of them - that Rasmussen is calling attention to; I would say that a significant number would be people motivated by faith.
Just today, I had the chance to attend the kickoff celebration for the Alabama State Combined Campaign, through which state employees can support charitable, valuable work in their communities through payroll deduction. Faith Radio stands proud to be a member of the campaign, because we believe that spiritual principles, rooted in Scripture, can help bring positive change in the lives of people.
So, we are called to serve - with compassion...and civility. It's hard to build relationships and effectively minister to people with whom you have polarizing disagreement. Let me tell you about Foster Friess - you make have heard of him. His organization, Patriot Voices, tweeted out last week:
In 1974, Friess formed a financial firm called Friess Associates. In 1978, he announced a new Chairman of the Board, according to the Turning Point USA website:
What a great example - demonstrating compassion and civility. We can be civil without compromise - and we can be challenged to reach out to people with whom we disagree; and by the way, disagreement is not "hate," which seems to be a mantra of the media. We make better communities as we see people for who they are - made in the image of God, be willing to be used of Him, and to be known for our spirit of compassion.
+++++
In Luke 6, we find a passage from Scripture that includes what is commonly described as the "Golden Rule."
27 "But I say to you who hear: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you,
28 bless those who curse you, and pray for those who spitefully use you.
29 To him who strikes you on the one cheek, offer the other also. And from him who takes away your cloak, do not withhold your tunic either.
30 Give to everyone who asks of you. And from him who takes away your goods do not ask them back.
31 And just as you want men to do to you, you also do to them likewise.
White supremacists march and attract conflict in Virginia; anarchists perpetrate violence in California.
The extremists are gaining a lot of attention, while the rank-and-file Americans are just attempting to go to work each day, raise their families, and live their lives.
Residents of south Texas are anxious about what their homes are going to be like when they return after the waters subside.
There is all sorts of polarization in our land, but there does seem to a dividing line between the America that is portrayed in the media and the "real" America, which we desperately want to live in, and, as members of the body of Christ, have an impact in.
Scott Rasmussen, the pollster, wrote a provocative piece published at the Townhall.com website. In it, he stated:
In TV-Newsland, America is presented as a hopelessly divided nation where hate-filled people battle over how they can get the government to give them what they want. Extremists of all political persuasions are presented as reflecting the real views of everyday Americans. It's a scary world in which every symbolic event can be used to demonstrate that most Americans are stupid, racist, socialist or whatever other condescending view the elites wish to project.Be careful: too much consumption of TV news, including prime-time cable news shows, as well as Internet news sources, can cause discouragement and cynicism.
Now, Rasmussen understands the business model here: conflict sells. But, he believes that there is a better version of our great nation:
More than 90 percent of Americans don't watch the evening news and experience an entirely different America. It's an America where most people want to work hard, play hard, take care of their families, help their neighbors and do what they can to make their corner of the world a little bit better. When someone falls on hard times, others look for ways to help out.Now, here's the most important paragraph:
In this real version of America, there are 63 million community volunteers, 27 million entrepreneurs and tens of millions of others who serve their community in different ways. Rather than begging for a dysfunctional political system to bail them out, the vast majority of Americans recognize that these community servants are the people who can actually get things done and solve the problems before us.While this is not an expressly Christian article, I think it hits on some themes that I like to explore periodically on The Meeting House. We have to make sure that we are not being taken in by the news and information peddlers that would want to tell us what to think, how to think, and how to respond emotionally to the discouraging news of the day.
The good news, the really good news, is that Christ died not for a better world, but to make better people, with spirits recreated in His image; more accurately stated, to make new people. And, then He dispatches us to live our lives with a higher calling and to seek to be His representatives in our communities. Look at the community volunteers - 63 million of them - that Rasmussen is calling attention to; I would say that a significant number would be people motivated by faith.
Just today, I had the chance to attend the kickoff celebration for the Alabama State Combined Campaign, through which state employees can support charitable, valuable work in their communities through payroll deduction. Faith Radio stands proud to be a member of the campaign, because we believe that spiritual principles, rooted in Scripture, can help bring positive change in the lives of people.
So, we are called to serve - with compassion...and civility. It's hard to build relationships and effectively minister to people with whom you have polarizing disagreement. Let me tell you about Foster Friess - you make have heard of him. His organization, Patriot Voices, tweeted out last week:
Join @FosterFriess"Return to Civility Coffee Challenge!" He will cover cost. Sign up at http://fosterfriess.com Share photo #return2civilityHe announced he would reimburse $25 to the first 1,000 people to sign up and share their story of meeting with someone with whom they disagreed last Friday.
In 1974, Friess formed a financial firm called Friess Associates. In 1978, he announced a new Chairman of the Board, according to the Turning Point USA website:
In October of 1978, Foster says, “I did one of those ‘born again’ things and invited Jesus to become the ‘Chairman of the Board; of my life,” a decision to which he credits all subsequent successes, including those which saw the firm grow to a $15 billion portfolio and his personal relationships restored.He serves on the Advisory Council of Turning Point USA, and according to the profile, he and his wife Lynn...
...gain their philanthropic inspiration from Galatians 6:2: “When we carry one another’s burdens we fulfill the law of Christ,” and Matthew 25:35-40, “When you do it for the least of my brethren, you do it for Me.” From supporting families of disabled children in Jackson, Wyoming, to assisting victims of Hurricane Katrina and the Haitian earthquake, Lynn and Foster engage in a wide scope of philanthropic activities.So, he is calling for civility. Who did he invite for a cup of coffee? He chose a Missouri state senator named Maria Chappelle-Nadal. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported on the meeting:
The Missouri state senator made headlines recently after she wrote on Facebook that she hoped for the assassination of President Donald Trump. Democrats and Republicans have called for her to resign, despite Chappelle-Nadal’s apologies for the post.The article continues:
Friess, a Wisconsin native, was struck by her comments and wanted to get to know her better, according to an employee.He also commended her for her "courage" to apologize. The Senator is calling each member of the Senate to ask for forgiveness.
On Sunday, he said that he forgives her for the comments that she made. The two pointed to the idea of forgiveness as a value that doesn’t get espoused often enough. Like much of the common ground the two unlikely friends found, it comes from a background in their respective faiths.
What a great example - demonstrating compassion and civility. We can be civil without compromise - and we can be challenged to reach out to people with whom we disagree; and by the way, disagreement is not "hate," which seems to be a mantra of the media. We make better communities as we see people for who they are - made in the image of God, be willing to be used of Him, and to be known for our spirit of compassion.
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