God created humans to bear His image. To bear God's image means that we are to demonstrate God's character: His love, grace, mercy, and kindness in the world around us.
How do we do that?
It starts with love. Jesus taught that our greatest responsibility is to love God and to love people.
He said to him, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and most important command. The second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets depend on these two commands.” (Matthew 22:37-40; CSB)
The best way we can live this life of love is to be kind and caring to those around us. In a word we are to serve. Serving is the foundation of the purpose that God created us to do.
It is logical that our purpose is wrapped up in serving others, but it doesn't make sense that our healing is too?
In fact, it seems contradictory to say our healing and our wholeness are found in giving our lives away.
Conventional wisdom teaches that we need to take care of ourselves first before we have the capacity to help other people. Some Christians even teach that we need to love ourselves before we can truly love others.
The truth that our healing is found in giving ourselves away is another example of the upside down nature of the Gospel. Wholeness is found in sacrifice and healing is found in serving others.
One of the reasons why our healing is found in serving is because we are are broken by our sin and selfishness, which leads to broken relationships. Our sin has led to a damaged relationship with God which leads to a damaged relationship with other people. Since we are created to live in relationships, to have damaged relationships means we cannot be the people God created us to be.
One of the reasons why our healing is found in serving is because we are are broken by our sin and selfishness, which leads to broken relationships. Our sin has led to a damaged relationship with God which leads to a damaged relationship with other people. Since we are created to live in relationships, to have damaged relationships means we cannot be the people God created us to be.
We lack wholeness when our relationships are not what they should be.
So how do we build relationships?
It begins with reaching out to people in love. In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus taught:
Matthew 5:23-24 (CSB)“So if you are offering your gift on the altar, and there you remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled with your brother or sister, and then come and offer your gift.”
We are to take the initiative for reconciliation happen. Even if we have been wronged it is up to us to do what needs to be done to make things right. There is no guarantee that broken relationships will be repaired, but our relationships will remain broken if we do nothing. We find healing and wholeness when we do what is in our power to make things right in a relationship.
Not only do we need to reach out to people in love, but we also have to stop following our flesh. Paul gave the Galatians this warning:
Galatians 5:13-15 (CSB)For you were called to be free, brothers and sisters; only don’t use this freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but serve one another through love. For the whole law is fulfilled in one statement: Love your neighbor as yourself. But if you bite and devour one another, watch out, or you will be consumed by one another.
Our flesh will lead us to be selfish, which in turns destroys relationships and holds us back from pursuing our purpose to love. To find wholeness and healing we need to be led by the Spirit. How do we know when we are led by the Spirit? We know the Spirit is leading when we experience the desire to help, serve, forgive, and encourage people.
In our journey to become the people that God created us to be we need to know what we can do, those things that are under our control. How we follow Jesus is under our control and that is what I focused on here. There are times in our pursuit of wholeness when we need more help. This is when we should get counseling. A good counselor will help you to find the path of healing that you need.
The thought I want to leave you with today is that healing isn’t discovered in more self-care, but it is found in reaching out to people in love. Healthy relationships have a healing effect on our lives.
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