Pages

Friday, June 26, 2009

What If We Are Supposed To Actually Do It?

6 comments:

Crispin Schroeder said...

Very challenging thoughts Brian! Though they are words right out of the New Testament and though I have been in churches my whole life who claim wholehearted devotion to the Bible (particularly the New Testament), they seem so alien to modern American Christianity. It is much easier to rationalize or spiritualize such passages away, to make them more about something other than the actual way we live, but I think that if we actually live the way of Jesus it will put us at odds with much of what has become associated with Christianity these days.
Believe me I would like it much better if I could just return evil for evil and injustice for injustice particularly if I felt righteously justified in doing so, but I can't help but wrestle with these same things lately, feeling God drawing me on to a place that is so counter to the way I would act in and of myself.
Good blog!

Chad Estes said...

I like this Brian- good processing. I just read this quote this morning that I think fits the discussion.

"The Kingdom doesn't seek to change the political order of things by fleshly effort. It rather makes changes in the spiritual order that affect the lives of men and women at a deeper current. As citizens of the Kingdom, our allegiance is not to the political parties of this earth, but to the politics of Jesus. For He alone is our Lord and our King. Therefore the Kingdom works quietly and secretly among men and women (Matt. 4:26-28). It's not a religious, political, or military power that cannot be resisted. It abhors violence, hatred, and injustice." - Frank Viola

brian jeansonne said...

Likewise, Chad....I recently read this quote:

"From a Kingdom perspective, if it's got 'flesh and blood' - if it's human - it's not our enemy. To the contrary, if it's got 'flesh and blood' it's someone we're commanded to love and thus someone we're fighting for - even if they regard us as their enemy. From a Kingdom perspective, our struggle is never against other humans. Our struggle is rather for them and against the evil that works to oppress both them and us." - Gred Boyd

Thanks for weighing in guys!

Pi Man said...

Nice Brian. And nice posts by the respondents I might add. TA

LBerteau said...

I want to encourage you to go after what God has illuminated for you. I find when God speaks to me in this way, I must do something about it now or lose it.

It's so easy to go back to the way things used to be. If you're too busy to put this into practice today, it's that much easier to put it off tomorrow. And next week, it will seem like something great you should get back to when you have some time.
Next month, it won't even register as something profound. It will just be another thing you know about God. A piece of information.

Do we truly understand God's command if we don't heed his call today? If we don't, tomorrow we may not understand at all.

steven hamilton said...

awesome! let's wash up and love our enemies...we might start looking like Jesus