“Brotherly kindness” is from the Greek Word philadelphia which means “an affectionate involvement of our lives with others”, especially with brothers and sisters in Christ.
Commitment to Jesus Christ means commitment to His people!
God’s Word gives instructions to the church in its relations with one another, “And we urge you, brethren, admonish the unruly, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with all men. See that no one repays another with evil for evil, but always seek after that which is good for one another and for all men.” (1 Thessalonians 5:14-15)
Years ago the ship USS PUEBLO was captured by North Korea. Thirteen of the crew were put in one room and given assigned chairs. Everyday a Korean soldier would suddenly come in and beat the sailor in the first chair. This went on for three days. This sailor was slowly being beaten to death.
Finally, the other prisoners began to take the place of the man being beaten. Each sailor knew what would happen when he sat in the first chair. He knew what was coming. He knew he would be beaten. But out of concern for his fellow sailor, each took his chair!
As a Christian, when was the last time “in brotherly kindness” you sat in the chair of someone who was suffering? The chair of pain, of loneliness, of heartache, of grief, of poverty or of helplessness? Why not start today? Go ahead, pull up a chair!
No comments:
Post a Comment