- May 22, 2013
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Now, in the United States, we have what is called the "cancel culture". What I understand is that cancel culture is partly a reaction to how evangelicals are working to pass laws which end things like gay marriage and abortion and transgender surgery.There are people who don't want Christians to stop abortion and gay marriage and transgender stuff; so they use cancel culture to keep Christians from getting political power against their treasured wrong things. Cancel culture can try to shut down political Christian activities, by finding ways to wreck a person's reputation, cause someone to lose a job or business, lose property, or they might stop someone from using the media for evangelical activist purposes.
But, even though this is horrible, we can cancel our own selves from finding out how to love. And failing to love can be so much more harmful than losing your good name and job and property or whatever. And it seems to me that Jesus had more of a problem with hypocrites, than with tax collectors and immoral people.
So, here I would like to share about how we need to avoid canceling our own selves from discovering how God our Father has us loving.
Forgiveness is one thing I think of. We can become like Jesus and strong in His way of loving, by being generously forgiving. Of course, we need to trust God to correct us and mature us so we are generously forgiving. And this can help us to do well in our close relationships: the love which has us being all-forgiving is also the love which makes us able to share in intimate relating of marriage and close friendships; but while I am being unforgiving against anyone, this can cancel me from living in God's generously forgiving love which also is the only real family caring and sharing love.
And so, we need to stay ready in prayer for cancel culture people, ready to love and care about them, ready with forgiveness. We can not live in God's love in sweet and sensitive sharing, and at the same time be negative and nasty against problem people.
We might already know how Jesus on the cross prayed >
"Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do." (in Luke 23:34)
Jesus prayed with care and forgiveness for the ones who were so busy hating and torturing and murdering Jesus who is God's own Son.
And Jesus on the cross is our example!!!
**We** need to care with compassion for wrong people, instead of just criticizing and fearing what they seem able to do. Fear of certain people can also cancel us from the loving we can have with ones close to us. Jesus says >
"'And I say to you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do.'" (Luke 12:4)
If we stay with God and depend on how He is able, then enemy people can not keep us from becoming like Jesus and growing in how we love in sharing with Him.
Jesus on the cross prayed >
"Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do." (in Luke 23:34)
So, right while evil people were trying to cancel Jesus, He was busy with loving, doing all He accomplished on the cross . . . creating. Our Father used that horrible time for His all-loving good.
So it is for us, then, how with God, no matter what wrong people do, God is able to use it for His all-loving good, even creating with us what we do to love problem people >
But, of course, we need to be all-loving with Him, not only concerned and worrying about how things are going for us and ones close to us.
"For if you love those who love you, what reward have you?" Jesus says in Matthew 5:46.
So our own selfish loving can cancel us in ways deeper and more harmful than what even Satanic people might be able to do to us.
So, I find it does me good to always trust God to correct and grow me so I am ready for love and forgiveness with any person. If I invest in prayer of caring about and blessing any impossible person, this can help me to be ready to love that person when we are together; we can be good examples to help wrong people find out how to love.
This includes how God corrects our character to be like Jesus so we love like Jesus. It is not only changing and reforming our acting and what we are thinking, but deeper we need character correction. I think Hebrews 12:4-14 is talking about this.
But, even though this is horrible, we can cancel our own selves from finding out how to love. And failing to love can be so much more harmful than losing your good name and job and property or whatever. And it seems to me that Jesus had more of a problem with hypocrites, than with tax collectors and immoral people.
So, here I would like to share about how we need to avoid canceling our own selves from discovering how God our Father has us loving.
Forgiveness is one thing I think of. We can become like Jesus and strong in His way of loving, by being generously forgiving. Of course, we need to trust God to correct us and mature us so we are generously forgiving. And this can help us to do well in our close relationships: the love which has us being all-forgiving is also the love which makes us able to share in intimate relating of marriage and close friendships; but while I am being unforgiving against anyone, this can cancel me from living in God's generously forgiving love which also is the only real family caring and sharing love.
And so, we need to stay ready in prayer for cancel culture people, ready to love and care about them, ready with forgiveness. We can not live in God's love in sweet and sensitive sharing, and at the same time be negative and nasty against problem people.
We might already know how Jesus on the cross prayed >
"Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do." (in Luke 23:34)
Jesus prayed with care and forgiveness for the ones who were so busy hating and torturing and murdering Jesus who is God's own Son.
And Jesus on the cross is our example!!!
**We** need to care with compassion for wrong people, instead of just criticizing and fearing what they seem able to do. Fear of certain people can also cancel us from the loving we can have with ones close to us. Jesus says >
"'And I say to you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do.'" (Luke 12:4)
If we stay with God and depend on how He is able, then enemy people can not keep us from becoming like Jesus and growing in how we love in sharing with Him.
Jesus on the cross prayed >
"Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do." (in Luke 23:34)
So, right while evil people were trying to cancel Jesus, He was busy with loving, doing all He accomplished on the cross . . . creating. Our Father used that horrible time for His all-loving good.
So it is for us, then, how with God, no matter what wrong people do, God is able to use it for His all-loving good, even creating with us what we do to love problem people >
But, of course, we need to be all-loving with Him, not only concerned and worrying about how things are going for us and ones close to us.
"For if you love those who love you, what reward have you?" Jesus says in Matthew 5:46.
So our own selfish loving can cancel us in ways deeper and more harmful than what even Satanic people might be able to do to us.
So, I find it does me good to always trust God to correct and grow me so I am ready for love and forgiveness with any person. If I invest in prayer of caring about and blessing any impossible person, this can help me to be ready to love that person when we are together; we can be good examples to help wrong people find out how to love.
This includes how God corrects our character to be like Jesus so we love like Jesus. It is not only changing and reforming our acting and what we are thinking, but deeper we need character correction. I think Hebrews 12:4-14 is talking about this.
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