MEEKNESS IS NOT WEAKNESS
Ephesians 4:32
Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.
One of the dumbest things I've ever heard of being done in the woods happened when we lived on Kodiak Island Alaska. A couple of young men took their pickup truck to the local dump where you could always find a Kodiak Brown Bear waiting for a hand out.
One of the guys climbed in the back of the truck and waited for the enormous bear to approach. When it got to.the tail gait of his truck he held out a bag of garbage. When the bear reached up for it he pulled it back. He teased the bear like this a few times and then he did something completely unbelievable... when the bear reach up to grasp the bag with his teeth the guy reached out and slapped the beast on the side of his face!
Now bears might look slow and cumbersome... they aren't. That bear reacted so quickly I'm sure you could barely see it. He swung a paw towards the young man's head. Good thing for the young man the bears aim was slightly off and only one claw caught on the back of his ear; tearing it down the middle with a horizontal rip. He was very lucky.
Like this grizzly bear situation, a quick reaction to someone hurting us is generally not a good thing. When we are attacked or hurt our first reaction is usually to hurt the other person back. But as much as our human heart wants to inflict physical or emotional pain, it does no good for either party.
In the verse from Ephesians 4:32, it tells us to forgive one another... There are no conditions attached other than to do it as "God, in Christ forgave you". Humans took God's own Son and beat Him and hung Him on a cross by driving huge nails through His hands and feet. God could have taken out the entire group there that day. He could have said, that's enough and wiped out all mankind. But He didn't. Instead He forgave those that asked for forgiveness. Even on the cross Jesus said about these that hung Him there, "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do" (Luke 23:34).
Wow! We want to retaliate against getting our feelings hurt and Jesus is calling on His Father to forgive the very men that just nailed His hands and feet to a disgusting cross.
Forgiveness is not showing weakness... It's showing true strength, through godly meekness. It's easy to lash out at someone that is hurting us or our family. But, giving the hurt up to God and forgiving the one that hurt us is tough... But through God is can be done and we can be blessed because of it.
In Matthew 6:14-15 it tells us that we must forgive to be forgiven.
"14 For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses."
Next time you're attacked or hurt, start with a kind response and forgive. Practice that and after a while it becomes easier and others will be amazed at your strength. And God will be pleased with your life.
Remember, forgiveness and meekness are the answer.
Meekness is not weakness
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