The words of verse 2 stepped off the page and grabbed hold of me. Simple and straightforward for sure. And yet, at the same time, they deeply challenged the general ‘me-centered’ nature of my life.
Each of us should please our neighbors for their good, to build them up (2).
I soak in those words…
Each of us should please our neighbors: so I (we) should live to please our neighbors. To do that means I cannot live to please myself, which is so often how I live life! This is a radical approach to life!
… for their good: these words put an exclamation point on Paul’s message but also provide some ordinal direction. My heart hears that I am to please my neighbors for their good. I hear echoes of faith in that statement. I should please them in ways that directs them to or strengthens them in the Lord. It is not simply doing what they want and allowing myself to be walked over… but shining Jesus out to them.
… to build them up: this seems to confirm my hunch about ‘for their good’. I am to please them to build them up, to strengthen them, to bless them, to encourage them.
And so this is how I should live.
The nudge of the Spirit is to set my sights to live like this today…
Lord, this requires a reorientation of my thinking. Strengthen me to make this change today. I pray in Jesus’ name. Amen
No comments:
Post a Comment