PODCAST
Gentle And Respectful
December 16th, 2017
Galatians 6:1-10
One of the lingering effects of the national elections in the United States in 2016 was the strident tone and angry rhetoric of the political environment. It seemed to coarsen the entire culture in ways that dismayed many people, even those not claiming to follow Christ.
If anything ought to characterize the followers of Jesus of Nazareth, it is a gentle respectfulness in our conversations with and about others, even those with whom we differ greatly.
In his letter to the churches in what is now Turkey in Asia Minor, the author of 1 Peter crafts some wonderful instruction for Christian living in an alien culture.
In a world like ours, we do not win others to Christ by diatribe, threat, and accusation. We win them by living authentically like Jesus, speaking truthfully, and loving deeply. Peter instructed his readers to remember that, even if they were suffering for doing good, they were to live with grace. Speak your hope clearly.
Author: Jesse C. Middendorf
December 16th, 2017 at 4:53 am
The scripture for today’s devotional should be 1 Peter 3:10-22.