2 Corinthians Chapter 5: Verses 12 -16 (NLT)
Are we commending ourselves to you again? No, we are giving you a reason to be proud of us so you can answer those who brag about having a spectacular ministry rather than having a sincere heart. If it seems we are crazy, it is to bring glory to God. And if we are in our right minds, it is for your benefit. Either way, Christ’s love controls us. Since we believe that Christ died for all, we also believe that we have all died to our old life. He died for everyone so that those who receive his new life will no longer live for themselves. Instead, they will live for Christ, who died and was raised for them. So we have stopped evaluating others from a human point of view. At one time we thought of Christ merely from a human point of view. How differently we know him now!
It seems that Paul was sometimes judged by people on his appearance and presentation and indeed was regarded as some as a wee bit crazy – as he put it, people made judgements from a worldly point of view. However, as he explained, as a follower of Jesus, he had to look at people from a different point of view. Also he was very aware that his role was to represent Christ, and that was the most important thing. He advised the Corinthian church that they too should not judge other people from a worldly perspective.
For me this is a continuation of what I heard Nicky Gumbel say yesterday that we shouldn’t put pressure on others to perform perfectly. We may not verbalise that expectation to individuals, but we might be thinking it. We need to remember that Jesus loves us just as we are, warts and all, even although he also knows the attitude of our hearts and our innermost thoughts. We need to be careful to look at others as if we were seeing them through Jesus’ eyes.
Dear Lord,
I am grateful that You take me as I am and then work within me to change my heart and attitude, not the other way around. Help me to be careful how I view others who You love just as dearly as You love me. I ask in Jesus’ Name. Amen.