Oh boy! This passage is a tough one. Father, please help us get every nugget of gold you have planted within these heartfelt cries of Paul's heart. ~Amen.
I'm going to deal with this all at once...
2:17-24 "Now you, if you call yourself a Jew; if you rely on the law and brag about your relationship with God; if you know his will and approve of what is superior because you are instructed by the law; if you are convinced that you are a guide for the blind, a light for those who are in the dark, an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of infants, because you have found in the law the embodiment of knowledge and truth--you, then, who teach others, do you not teach yourself? You who preach against stealing, do you steal? You who say that people should not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who brag about the law, do you dishonor God by breaking the law? As it is written: 'God's name is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.'"
God gets so angry when His people act like hypocrites. He'd rather have a bunch of ragged Christians struggling every day with sin than a bunch of religious snobs claiming to be without sin who have no idea what causes grief to His heart. Truly, He would have a bunch of humble, radical, laid-down lovers who know they are completely saved by grace, but also know they are no better or worse than any other person on the planet. Oh that we would be transformed by the power of Grace and Love and Mercy and not cast our eyes upon anyone in judgment, pride, snobbery, or evil hypocrisy. I know so many Christian leaders who fit this description, and I know so many unsaved people who hate Christians because of it. God wants us to be like Jesus, and He was kindness, faithfulness, gentleness, joy, etc., personified! Any area in which we judge another is an area to look within our own heart and ask God where the offense is...where are we living in unforgiveness? Where are we living in denial? Where are we living in judgment against our brothers and sisters? And not in self-condemnation, but in an attitude of "Where have I missed the message of Jesus' radical love and forgiveness for me so that I cannot offer the same radical love and forgiveness to my brothers and sisters?"
Father, melt our hearts with Your love. Help us to fully comprehend and understand the depth and breadth of Your incredible love for us. Let us live to know and understand this one aspect of You, so that we can share this radical love in all its fullness to others and see them saved and set free, carrying Your LOVE DNA. Father, radically wreck us with Your love so that we will never look on another in pride or arrogance again. Father, humble our hearts with Your great affection and love for us. Never let us go. Father, break all the lies in our lives that keep us oppressed with thoughts of self-hatred, thoughts of condemnation and guilt. These are actually the worst culprits for judgment and arrogance. The most arrogant people I know are actually the ones who hate themselves the most. It's always been such a strange paradox to me, but I'm beginning to understand it. Because where there is no love, there is always judgment. We are called to love you with our whole beings...to pour ourselves out and allow you to transform us and fill us with Your new wine of joy, the fullness of Your Son Jesus manifested in the Holy Spirit at work within us. We are called to love our neighbors as we love ourselves. If we do not have a revelation of Your intense and vast love for us, we will not be able to love ourselves. If we do not love ourselves, we cannot love our sisters and brothers. Help us, Father. Help us Love ourselves. Break the lies. Help us love our bodies, our minds, our hearts, our souls, our spirits. Help us grow in love for You and love for ourselves, so we can actually be true teachers, true lights, living vessels carrying Living Hope. Change us. Mold us. Shape us. All in Your Love. Break the lies that we learn through suffering. No one learns anything through pain. They learn through love so the pain has a purpose. Father, change our minds. Bring us to true repentance. Amen.
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