September 27 (Ephesians 4:18)
They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that
is in them, due to their hardness of heart.
(ESV)
When I was in
fifth grade, I got glasses for the first time.
In those early, bespectacled days, I marveled at leaves on trees and all
the other details of the world I could now see…and my parents were mortified. Why had I not told them I could not see those
things? My answer was simple. I had assumed everyone saw the world the way
I did.
We often make the
same mistaken assumption. We are
frustrated, angry even, when people around us do not live Christian lives. Setting aside the whole speck in someone else’s
eye issue, does it ever occur to us that the people behaving in unchristian
ways may not be followers of Christ? Paul
makes it clear that there are many people who are separated from God. They do not understand the truth about
life. Their hearts are hard and their
minds are dark.
If we saw a man stumbling
down the road, blind drunk, would we fault him for not making an Olympic time in
the 800 meter race? We would, hopefully,
show him what he could do, explain what it would take to get there, and then
help him accomplish it.
Father, thank You for helping me see the truth of life by the grace of the Holy Spirit. When I see that someone is not living in You, help me not to write that person off because of his or her sin. Help me to see that person clearly and do what I can to lead him or her to Jesus. Amen.
Copyright © 2015 by Steven R. Perkins
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