Showing Grace

Showing Grace

And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you. Ephesians 4:32

I am becoming more and more convinced that one of the reasons why we don’t experience the full blessing of God in our ministries and in our churches is because we struggle with the being kind, tenderhearted and forgiving one another.

I have found in recent days a growing number of believers who actually act worse than the world. There is an entitlement mentality growing were people feel that they can say whatever they want, whenever they want, and however they want to say it. I’ve seen some pretty “ugly” words spew forth from the mouths of those who claim to be the redeemed.

We are losing the concept of tenderness. We tolerate people on our terms, but if someone crosses us – look out. This ought not to be in the body of Christ.

And then there is forgiveness. I find that people are remembering what they should forget and forgetting what they should remember. We keep lists – detailed lists of grievances, cut no slack when someone makes a mistake, and yet we want others to be gracious and forgiving when it comes to our “character” flaws.

Henry Blackaby writes that “we show forgiveness because we, too, fall short of God’s ideal. Knowing that God has graciously saved us from destruction motivates us to forgive others when they offend us. Often we are less patient with our fellow Christians than we are with non-believers. We expect more of Christians, and we feel betrayed when they fail us. When this happens, we need to look closely at the cross and remember the forgiveness WE received THERE. We must set aside the self-centered attitude that leads to impatience and criticism of others.”

Is there someone in your life right now who you need to forgive? To be kind towards? To be tendered hearted? I am sure that if there is, you already know who it is and what you need to do. You have the choice – you can do what GOD expects from you and obey, or live in disobedience. What choice will you make? – Bill Welte is President and CEO of America’s Keswick

GPS – God’s Positioning System: Ezekiel 1-4; Psalm 43; Proverbs 17

Compass Pointers: Being judgmental and condemning is not one of the gifts of the Spirit. Billy Graham 

Navigation Rules to Memorize: Level 1: John 4:13-14; Level 2: John 4:34-38

Anchored to the Rock: The measure of our love for others can largely be determined by the frequency and earnestness of our prayers for them! A. W. Pink