The Lord bless you, the Lord keep you, he turn his face to you and have mercy on yours.
Be right or be happy ?
Matthew 22:37-40. Many teachings of Jesus consern charity. This is the main message of the Gospel summarized in the passage above. Our Master and Savior mention here one of the greatest secrets of his creation.: reverence for God and love among men. On his first letter, John quotes that love of god.
1John 4:20 With this sentence, John includes his doctrine of the love of God. This clarifies what love is. But one question remains: „How to love“ as God as? Today we will talk about it. Our topic is to be right or happy? This sentence has become commonplace today when people want to end difficult discussions for which they no longer have any arguments. Brothers, that is not topic here. Let us see how this sentence can help us if we use it as an understanding of God´s love. It is not my intention to diminish the value of charity, great benevolent works or even evangelical missions or helping the needy. These initiatives deserve respect, and when it comes to representations of God´s love we are not the ones to judge. Here we will talk about everyday life, the details of our behavior. Who could describe situations in which we are tested to practice God´s love for this sentence?
„You get up at the bakery to buy the last peace of chocolate cace, and You hear the kid behind You say to his mother „There is only one peace of chocolate cake left!“ „At the supermarket checkout, You wait patiently with Your cart and someone comes with the same items behind You, „The neighbour´s dog escapes and makes dirt in Your yard“. You give someone a small amount and they will never touch You again. We can continue to imagine situations, but the important thing is to know that in order to decide when to be „right“ prevents us from being „happy“, differentation is required. This distinction, which must be made almost instantaneously in the face of the situation, can only be done by the Holy Spirit. Therefore we must seek this wisdom every day through the presence of the Holy Spirit by praying and reading the Word of God.
James 1:5
If not, we risk being listless in the face of injustice, and that is not what pleases God. Psalm 5:4 God does not want us to give ourselves to the godless to do what they want. Nor should we close our eyes to evil in order to „set the reason for happyness aside“. God wants us to trust him to satisfy our needs. The difference is in the motivation to do good. James 3: 13-14
As a practical rule for our daily training we can imagine anger, revenge and the feeling of being cheated. When these feelings are present, there is no love from God. Even if we do not complain to our neighbour about his dog, who believes we would please God, but anger is present in us, it is a „dead work“, because our heart is important to God ! God had already given the Israelites some practical rules to train love for the needy. Let us look at the text of the Old Testament: Deut 24: 19-22 This law is repeated at least three times in the Old Testament: Deut. 24:19-22, Lev. 19:9-10 and Lev. 23:22 So let us read again. Did You notice the emphasis on the last sentence? „Remember that You were slaves in Egypt. That is why I urge You to obey this law.“ Brothers, God makes clear that this law is not just for the needy. God can provide the needy in an infinite way. He is God ! This law teaches the Israelites generosity ba reminding them (which is in their hearts) that they too were slaves and must thank for their freedom by being generous! We do not need to demand of this world everything that „belongs“ to us. Sometimes we can lift some of these rights in favor of people, for example, an offer of generosity. Romans 12: 1-2 There may be situations where we know someone is“exploting“ us. In some situations we can ignore this fact by offering that person our forgiveness, our love and even the „profit“ they have. Thank You, Lord, for working out my feelings and allowing me to share the blessings the Lord has on my life with others. May I be a living testemony of Your love in my daily life. Amen !