| Another important quality for us to remember is that of kindness and gentleness. We live in a world where many people are selfish, and will do almost anything to get their own way. This often translates into bullying, either physically or verbally. This has gotten to be such a problem that it is common to see signs in stores, offices, and public buildings, advising people that verbal abuse and offensive language will not be tolerated. Sometimes physical bullying becomes so serious that people are badly hurt or even killed. I read on the internet a few days ago about a young girl who was so badly beaten by her older half-brother that she died later in hospital. Why did he beat her? Because she had supposedly eaten his snacks that were in the refrigerator. |
| You and I as Christians ought to stand out in the middle of all this, and show our kindness and gentleness to all. This does not mean that we act like “doormats,” and let people do whatever they want to us. No, there is a time to reach someone’s conscience when they do wrong to us, and the Lord Jesus did the same. For example, when the high priest asked Him, “Art thou the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?”, the Lord Jesus answered him, “I am: and ye shall see the Son of Man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven” (Mark 14:61-62). He owned up to who He was, yet He also told him that there was a day coming when He, the Lord Jesus, would come in power and glory to judge this world. But He submitted to the humiliation and suffering at that time. We are to do the same, and to exhibit gentleness to all men. |
