The Beautiful Word for Christmas by Mary E DeMuth

Author:Mary E DeMuth
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Zondervan
Published: 2017-08-01T04:00:00+00:00

DAY 17

How Well Do You Love Those Who Differ?

My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this:

Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and

slow to become angry, because human anger does not

produce the righteousness that God desires.

JAMES 1:19–20

Jesus spent time with people who had vastly different lifestyles from those considered “holy” in His day. Tax collectors and sinners flocked to Him. He invited them near and welcomed them into His circle. He was not afraid of other people’s opinions. He always spoke the truth, but seasoned it with grace. He reserved His harshest, most critical words for those who appeared religious but were hypocritical. He was so inviting to the masses that thousands followed Him.

Marcia has recently learned to be more like Jesus. In past years at Christmas dinner, she’d taken special pleasure in starting a political argument with her brother-in-law, who had voted for the other candidate in the last presidential election. She’d bickered with her son because she disagreed with his lifestyle. She’d even quibbled with her sister about how much sage should be in the dressing. She had little tolerance for those who had opinions different from hers, and she quickly became angry.

Today, though, thanks to Jesus’ gentle voice, Marcia is a wellspring of joy to her family, especially during the holidays. Her smile lights up a room. She defuses condemning conversations. And her nieces and nephews can’t wait to spend Christmas with Aunt Marcia.

How do we represent this irresistibility of Jesus during this Advent season when we interact with people who differ from us—sometimes around our holiday table? Would Jesus yell at someone who differed in her political opinion? Would He lash out and demean her? Would He scream? Do hollering and pouting and stirring up fear represent Jesus’ manner of doing things?

Consider this wisdom from Proverbs, remembering that Jesus is wisdom personified: “Fools give full vent to their rage, but the wise bring calm in the end” (29:11).

We are more like Jesus when we hold our tempers, when we choose not to stir up strife for the sake of proving our “correctness.” Our job is not to convince others of their wrongness and our rightness. It’s not to change people’s hearts. (Only God can change a heart.) Our job is to represent Jesus, how He talked, how He acted, and how He loved.

If you struggle with this, ask yourself: Do I truly believe God is in control? If I do, then why all the anger? Other people’s opinions cannot dethrone the beauty and power of God. He doesn’t need us to manage His reputation. Consider that Jesus, being perfect, differed from every single human being He interacted with. And yet, He loved. He accepted people where they were. Their healing was not dependent on their properly held views.

The litmus test is this: How well do you love those who differ from you? God will not hold us accountable as much for our “correct” opinions or fervor as He’ll call us to account for the way we love those who hold different views.

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