Imitate The God Who Sees
Shifting in her seat, she couldn’t sit still. Her right leg bounced up and down, transferring a slight wiggle to the seat next to her. Scrolling on her phone, short reels popped up and rolled by. She didn’t stop to watch a video; her mind raced too much to comprehend it anyway.
She can’t believe she is in this situation. If people here really got to know her, what would they do? How will they treat her once the word gets out?
Her friend warned her not to come here. This new church will never accept her.
“Church people are judgy. They will want to fix you to make you like them before they will accept you.” She hissed.
She put down her phone to dry her sweaty palms. Butterflies fluttered in her belly as she waited for the service to begin. Would this place provide the hope she longed for?
She risked a glance as another woman slipped into the aisle near her. She was greeted with a gentle smile. Alarmed, she returned to her phone, escaping the threat of social interaction.
Can you relate to this scene? Have you seen it out in the world as I have? It really doesn’t matter what she did or what was done to her. This emotional turmoil runs deep in our culture. Divisiveness and cancel culture threaten rejection.
HOW CAN WE BE DIFFERENT?
The Gospel is an invitation, not a measuring stick.. However, Jesus knows people are messy. He was there at the beginning, participating in creation. He saw the creation of man and then became man. He sees His creation as a masterpiece, woven together in a mother’s womb, with a standing invitation for all to be one with Him.
How do we bridge that divide, the one that anticipates rejection and is uncertain of what it means to be accepted?
We are to see people differently.
We look past the sin, offenses, grief, and shame that mar the true person. The church doesn’t label others as garbage; we embrace the person created in God’s image.
Paul encouraged the church of Ephesus with these words in 2 Corinthians 5:15-17 (NLT) “He died for everyone so that those who receive his new life will no longer live for themselves. Instead, they will live for Christ, who died and was raised for them. So we have stopped evaluating others from a human point of view. At one time we thought of Christ merely from a human point of view. How differently we know him now! This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!”
We are to be hope bearers.
The world judges and points fingers. Others see the mistakes that ring louder than the true person. Remember Paul’s instruction in Romans 12:1-2 (NLT) “And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. 2 Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.”
We build trust.
We are in this relationship for the long term. We are not there to win them over and move on. We are there because we are the eyes and ears as well as the hands and feet of Jesus.
Thank you, Paul, for reminding us of this in Romans 12:16 (NLT) “Live in harmony with each other. Don’t be too proud to enjoy the company of ordinary people. And don’t think you know it all!17 Never pay back evil with more evil. Do things in such a way that everyone can see you are honorable. 18 Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone.”
People matter.
We serve the God who sees, and we are to see others the way He does. Trust is fragile, and it needs to be nurtured.
My prayer is that you see yourself as God’s masterpiece and that you can spread that to others. Ask the Lord to reveal to you the one who needs you. She might be sitting right next to you!
