Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"
Can we humans learn to treat each other as God treats us? Jesus told a parable of a man to whom the king forgave a "ten thousand talents" debt and then went out and grabbed a poor wretch by the throat who owed him a mere hundred denarii, "Pay me!" Jesus taught the principle that we must forgive others as God has forgiven us (Matt. 18:21-35). But that of course is impossible unless we understand the principle of corporate guilt--that we of ourselves have no righteousness, it is all imputed to us from Christ, its only source.
Enlightened by the Holy Spirit to understand and appreciate what Christ has done for us, we immediately look upon others in a new light. We reason from cause to effect; we sense that if our circumstances from birth had been the same (even pre-natal!), we might have turned out no better than this person we are tempted to despise or to hate. It's not a matter of superficial, transient emotion; it's a principle--the sin of someone else would be our sin but for the grace of Christ! This is not mollycoddling sinners, excusing responsibility, abolishing morality; no, it is redemptive human relations. It is "letting the mind of Christ be in" us.
Despised by the world in personal or international relationships, this heavenly principle ofagape transcends all religions and cultures. It costs far less than even one stealth bomber. And it works miracles in saving individuals and nations from ruinous violence.
Is it the same as Gandhi's Hindu principle? No, it is miles apart, because it is based on the Bible principles of objective gospel truth, on what Christ accomplished for the world. The Bible speaks of Him as "the Saviour of the world" (John 4:42), "the Saviour of all men" (1 Tim. 4:10). The rock-solid objective foundation of the gospel saves all who believe it from fanaticism or self-destructive naïveté.
Can a national or state government exercise the principle of agape? No, for it is a secular institution; but those who administer the government can personally exercise that principle. Without any union of church and state, they can, like Daniel of old, individually and personally seek wisdom from God at every step (see Dan. 9:1-5, for example). "Righteousness exalteth a nation" (Prov. 14:34). All nations need it!
--Robert J. Wieland
From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: April 4, 1999.
Copyright © 2012 by "Dial Daily Bread."
Be sure to check your e-mail for "Dial Daily Bread" again tomorrow.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please forward these messages to your friends and encourage them to subscribe. The "Dial Daily Bread" Web site resides at: http://1888message.org/dailybread/
To subscribe send an e-mail message with "subscribe" in the body of the message to:dailybread@1888message.org
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Robert J. Wieland's inspirational "Dial Daily Bread" messages are availalbe via e-mail to anyone who wishes to receive a daily portion of uplifting Good News. "Dial Daily Bread" is FREE. Due to travel or other circumstances, there may be intervals when "Dial Daily Bread" will not be sent.
