GOD IS KIND,
BUT...
In the
beginning, the elohim created skies and earth.
Welcome back. Let's think about God
as kind.
This will be my last post about, “Love
is kind.”
I have no illusions about the world. Anyone
who knows anything about human history knows what wretched murderers human
beings are. Pick any age when humans lived, and we find there is no time in
this country, or any country, where people were living as if God’s kingdom on
earth is coming.
In most recent history, Israel is
blowing up U.N. safe havens, Palestinians are sending rockets into cities, and Syria,
having murdered thousands of its citizens, continues to murder more.
Children, right now, are fleeing
their countries for fear of being murdered.
They escape into a country whose citizens’ faces are contorted with hate,
whose voices scream hate, and whose hearts reveal to the world such vile hatred
that is ever nigh and ever possible in our nation.
With all of this as we live now, on
this day, we cannot have any illusions about kindness.
So why? Why even think that God is love; love is
kind; therefore, God is kind?
The reason is simple. The kingdom of
God is coming as long as we Christians bring it to the world. I do not have to
love or believe in love, but I do. It makes sense to me.
It makes sense to me that someone,
even if I am the only one in the world, someone must love. When there are
people seeking refuge, the reality of this world should always be that
Christians are that one group of people they need never fear.
Indeed, Christians are that one
group of people who love them more than they love themselves, more than they
love God, more than their country loves them, and always more than hate filled
humanity loathes them.
Love is no passion. It is no feeling.
It is a discipline. It is a choice. We choose each and every time to forgive,
to love.
We love each and every time: seventy-seven times or four hundred ninety
times.
In our lives the kind deed count
begins and ends with that grace of our God of love which compels us to love as
God loves. Love happens when we refuse to hate by the grace of our God of love
that permeates within us from every atom of our being as we live in the ground
of all being.
Whether we like it or not, wish it
or not, regret it or not, we must refuse to hate or harm our fellow humanity.
Kindness is slower than bullets. Kind
words penetrate faster and lodge deeper than invectives.
Yesterday, during a conference for
new teachers, a presenter asked if there were any Christians in the room. Just
about everybody raised their hand, including myself. Then, she asked if there
were any Muslims. Two people raised their hands: one woman, wearing a hijab, and I.
When I went to Central Office today
to receive my ID badge, I stood in line for a few minutes. Suddenly, there she
was standing behind me, her countenance radiating such kindness and sweetness
within her lovely hijab.
I started a conversation with her,
small talk for the most part, but she kept the conversation going. She was
delightful.
I did not ask her about her faith or
try to share my faith, but I did tell her that I had raised my hand with her
yesterday. She was surprised. When she asked why, I said, that I was an
ordained Southern Baptist minister who numbered himself among all peoples of
faith.
The Greek word that’s translated “kind”
is chresteuomai. It means “beneficial,”
“gentle,” and “being of service to others.”
The Latin Vulgate translated the word into “benigna,” from which we get
our word “benign.”
Someone needs to show people that
they may know us by our love. I will do it by God even if it kills me.
Why?
The answer is simple: we better
start showing our faith or it will not last another millennium. It may not last
another century.
And that would be a tragedy for on
paper and in a real life, such as we’ve seen in Christ, kindness is beautiful.
So, my brothers and sisters, emulate
our God of love. Be kind. If you screw it up. Don’t despair. Just do better as
many next times as you can.
Blessings…