Good Morning Everyone,
Our theme for this month: “Family”
Our Bible verse for today: “Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.” Colossians 3:12-14 (NIV)
Our thought for today: “Bear with one another in patience and love.”
The subject before us this morning, which we’ve carried over from yesterday’s devotional message, is “How should we deal with dysfunctional behavior which is over and above the normal dysfunction that always exists within any group of inherently imperfect people?”
In Colossians chapter three the Apostle Paul was writing about rules for holy living and he provided us with basic guidelines to govern the conduct of our day-to-day interactions with each other. In verses 12-14 he was making the point that the virtues that need to characterize our interactions with each other are compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, forgiveness, and love.
That’s the starting place. When it comes to dealing with each other we have to be thick-skinned and not easily offended. I personally believe that how easily offended a person is, is a direct measure of how spiritually mature that person is. The more spiritually mature you are, the less easily offended you are. The quicker you are to take offense, the more immature you are.
I think my marriage relationship to Linda can serve as an example here. In the early years we loved each other very much, but we were so different that we had to learn how to live together. At times we were like two porcupines that just kept poking at and annoying each other.
But as our relationship matured, and as we grew as individuals and as a couple, we learned how to live in peace and harmony. Many of the differences remained (even today after almost forty-one years as a couple and thirty-nine years of marriage), but the differences don’t really matter much anymore. We’ve learned to bear each other’s little idiosyncrasies with patience and love. That’s what Paul was writing about in Colossians chapter three and this is how we need to deal with each other. Patience and love is to be our default mode.
But that still begs the question of what we should do when an individual in our family, or church family, or group, is conducting themselves in a way that is so far beyond the norm, and so out of bounds of acceptable behavior, that it cannot simply be shrugged off or ignored. We’ll address that tomorrow. For now, be patient with one another. Show kindness and compassion. Don’t be easily offended.
God Bless,
Pastor Jim
Oak Hill Baptist Church 