Been There, Done That
May 24th, 2008
When you reach the kingdom of heaven, will Jesus know you? Will he welcome you or will he cast you out and call you an evil doer? It is taught that for those who parade their religion around and wear it like a badge, there will be no heaven. In simpler words, don’t go around thinking you are better than others because you know God, or you may just find yourself locked outside Heaven’s gate
Jesus teaches: Blessed are the poor, the meek, the merciful, the righteous. Arrogant, self serving souls will not be invited into His kingdom. He also teaches not to show off when praying and to love your enemy as you love yourself. If we supply gifts for those who have less than us, including our enemy, God will provide for us. Jesus has warned us to make sure our motives match our gifts and not to flaunt our religion for personal gain. If our heart is pure, God will take care of us during times of suffering and sorrow.
God teaches us to love. Love thy neighbor, love God, and love your enemy. The love He is talking about is not all about chocolate and flowers or presents and companionship. The love He speaks of is loyalty and respect, caring and understanding. It doesn’t matter if your enemy hates you, that’s life, bad things happen. What matters is how you react to that hate. Returning your enemy’s feelings with spitefulness and disrespect is not what God wants, nor does He want you to be overly nice and set yourself up for hurt. All he asks is that you treat him with dignity and respect and help him out in his time of need.
Life is difficult. It is often tough, domineering, sad, disgusting, and full of tragic events. This will never change. It has been so since the dawn of time. We can handle life’s suffering by holding God’s hand and allowing him to mentor us and provide for us. He’s lived through life’s bad times. Remember, Jesus’ life was one of tragedy and a sorrowful outcome. When learning to cope with hard times, keep God in mind. He has been there, done that and he probably has the t-shirt!