Settle matters quickly with your adversary who
is taking you to court. Do it while you are still with him on the way, or he
may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer,
and you may be thrown into prison. I tell you the truth, you will not get out
until you have paid the last penny. (Matthew 5:25, 26)
Jesus used the scenario of going to court here, but the principle applies to any disputes you may have with people.
Jesus used the scenario of going to court here, but the principle applies to any disputes you may have with people.
God’s Kingdom functions on a
completely different system than that of the world. The world believes in the
survival of the strongest and that the greater you become, the more acceptable
you are. It believes that the richer you are, the more popular and influential
you are, and that you will be remembered according to the amount of power you
have.
God’s Kingdom says that whoever
exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted
(Matthew 23:12). If your enemy takes you to court, you have two options: act
according to the world’s principles or God’s principles. You either play tough
and proud, exalting yourself, or you humble yourself. If you choose the world’s
principles, you submit yourself to the world’s judgment and ruthlessness. If
you choose to live by the Spirit, by God’s principles, He will overrule the
world on your behalf. In John 16:33, Jesus said, “I have
told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will
have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” In other words, there is nothing
in this world that Jesus can’t handle; therefore, if you rely on Him to deal
with the trouble the world gives you, you will have peace.
I have had occasions in which I
stood before the choice: should I prosecute or should I forgive? I chose to
forgive. A number of times it involved a lot of money, which I lost. On the
other hand, I have had occasions where I have wronged people, but
then I called on the Lord, praying this word He gave me: “Because I love you,
You said, Lord, that You will rescue me. You will protect me, for I acknowledge
Your name. I call upon You, and You will answer me; You will be with me in
trouble; You will deliver me and honour me. With long life will You satisfy me
and show me Your salvation. Please rescue and protect me Lord, (Psalm
91:14-16).
Every time, the Lord came through for me,
rescuing me from the unthinkable. I have sown humility and forgiveness. Because
it pleased the Lord, and since it is according to His Word and will, I have
reaped forgiveness. This has given me some stunning testimonies.
That is why Jesus said to come to
terms quickly with your accuser. In other words, you must be the
least. Humble yourself and adopt a give-and-take attitude. Pride often causes
stubbornness. Then our decisions are dictated by our pride. These decisions are
usually unwise and lead to mistakes. Humility, on the other hand, pleases the
Lord and prompts Him to exalt you and judge in your favour. If we act in pride
and arrogance, the Lord steps out of the way. Then our adversary may hand us
over to the judgement of the worldly system.
Christians are pilgrims in a foreign
world, sent from a different Kingdom. As with any tourist or immigrant, we have
to interact with the locals. In this case, however, the Christian acts
according to the behaviour principles of his King and not that of the foreign
world, because the King supports His principles.
For children and adults who are prepared to learn in a childlike way. For more information see http://t-a-c.co.za.
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