But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it. ~Ephesians 4:7 (NIV)
We are only able to walk in as much light as we have been given by the Lord. We are told in Philippians 3:16 “only let us live up to what we have already attained.” (NIV) What we have attained has been by the grace of God. Everything you have accomplished in life stems from who God made you and where He put you. We can honor God with that truth, or we can try to take the credit for ourselves but one day every knee is going to bow to Jesus Christ and acknowledge that He is the author of every success. An understanding of that truth helps us to walk in daily humility with the Lord. In Ephesians 4 God teaches us about unity in the church which is obtained by humility and peace. He tells us in verse 3-4 “Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.” (NIV) Scripture teaches Jesus is coming back for a church without a spot or a blemish and we are supposed to become that church with His help, but we have some work to do, and that work starts with ourselves, not our spouse or our kids or even our neighbor. We must work with God on becoming all He has created us to be, while at the same time, forgiving others for not being where "we believe" they should be.
Do you know what it means to “bear with one another in love”? It means we are compassionate, understanding, and merciful. It means we don’t keep an account of wrongs suffered. One of the biggest obstacles to forgiving what we perceive as the faults of others and accepting them where they are in life is that we don’t forgive ourselves of our own faults and accept ourselves for where we are in life. Of course, pride plays a role in every sin, but if we are honest with ourselves, pride is just warped confidence. You and I are a one-of-a-kind masterpiece made by God himself and we are becoming more like Christ every day through the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit. Notice all those things the Lord is doing in and for us? If we keep that in perspective, we will treat others well because we know how we got to where we are. We have all been made in God’s image no matter what we believe because the Lord said so. If He accepts us as we are then we should accept others as they are because we all fall short. Not liking yourself for your faults and inadequacies is not humility. It’s that twisted pride again and it will cause us to judge others as we judge ourselves. Are you beating yourself up or building yourself up? Ask God to give you a humble and gentle spirit. If you have trouble forgiving yourself for your weaknesses, ask Him to help you so that you can bear with others in their weaknesses. That is what compassion is all about. Start with the people at home and at work, those that you spend your time with. As you humble yourself and become gentle, you lift the Lord up because you are letting Him shine through you. Jesus said when He is lifted up, He will draw all men to Himself. Our job is to let God's love shine through us, its Gods job to correct and clean people up. He said He would make us fishers of men…not cleaners!
Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. ~Ephesians 4:29 (NIV)
Are you beating yourself up or building yourself up?
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