One Thing I Hate about You

I’m tempted to dislike someone. Not just anyone, but a particular someone. The source of my dislike is a person who mouthed off to my nine-year-old boy. I didn’t hear it, but my son told us about the incident. On two separate ocassions, this person told my son to “shut your mouth” during baseball practice.

Not long after the first occurrence, I was outside doing some yardwork, when this snippet of a verse ran through my head:

“Regard no one from a worldly point of view...”

I recognized the verse. It’s from 2 Corinthians 5:14-16:

For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again. So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer.

Paul is saying that he and others once regarded Christ “as just a person” and not as who he really is — the one that died for everyone’s sins. So, in the same manner, I ought not to regard this other person from a worldly point of view, but as one for whom Christ died.

So now I’m busted. That means this person is not really just the loud-mouthed jerk I think she is. It means she’s either a Christian or she’s not. If so, then she’s my sister in Christ. (Ouch.) If not, then I ought to be more concerned about her salvation than how much I or my son have been wronged. (Ouch again.)

The Bible talks a lot about suffering as a Christian. Many people take that to mean bad things, like sickness, are going to happen to us. But I think otherwise. Godly suffering is suffering for doing the right thing. And that manifests both externally and internally. Externally, we can suffer pursecution for doing the right thing. But internally, we suffer in the flesh by doing the right thing.

Here’s what I mean.

While this issue with my son needs to be addressed, my flesh would like to handle things quite differently than the Spirit of God would:

For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want. - Galatians 5:17 (NIV)

While neither the sinful nature (i.e., the flesh) or the Spirit referred to in this verse are me, the conflict takes place within me. I suffer emotionally while this takes place, as I stuggle to yield to the Spirit within me rather than my flesh.

Ergo, the suffering...