A Kind Word
“And, behold, one of them which were with Jesus stretched out his hand, and drew his sword, and struck a servant of the high priest’s, and smote off his ear. Then said Jesus unto him, Put up again thy sword into his place: for all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword.”
(Matthew 26:51,52 KJV)
When people say something critical, sarcastic, abusive and harsh to me, my first reaction is to say something unkind to them. Jesus tells us that we need to put our swords down. We should answer with kind words when we are attacked verbally. It is very hard to do, and indeed, it is impossible to do without the help of Jesus. I have asked Him many times to put a zipper on my mouth so I won’t say unkind things to someone.
I have felt many times, and if you are honest with yourselves I’m sure you have felt the same way, that I was justified in being angry and saying something critical in return. The only one who was ever justified in saying critical words back is Jesus because He never did anything wrong; He never sinned one time. All of us have hurt someone at some time.
If we have made a heart commitment to Jesus, old things are passed away and all things have become new. Jesus has given us a new heart, a heart filled with His Love. We need to ask Him to help us react with love and kindness when we are hurt. It may mean that we have to go to Him every hour of the day for help.
The next time someone says harsh and critical words to us, let’s react like Jesus has commanded us to do, with forgiveness and unconditional love. We should strive to love others as Jesus Loves us.
Joanne Lowe
June 15, 2006
joannelowe8@cox.net