Respect is the opposite of contempt. I have learned to give the person their God-given dignity and the respect that comes with that dignity even if they do not respect themselves. The movie The Green Mile is an example of that. There are so many in the Christian community and the world who do not respect sinners as a person. Hate and contempt consume a soul every time and destroys every relationship that they have.
Chose to speak the respect. You will not feel nor want even to simply say it, but you must! It relieves a huge burden and releases the responsibility of the response to God Almighty and He will repay with interest if the person refuses to repent.
I look for contempt when I am counseling a couple. When I see it, I know the relationship is doomed. Like finding an aggressive cancer on the liver, if there is not radical surgery and just as aggressive removal of the cancer, the cancer will consume the body. Same with contempt and the soul. If there is not radical removal of the contempt then the contempt will spread in the soul and consume the soul.
Do not trust your emotions nor even your mind in this spiritual matter. You know what your Lord expects of you. Obey Him and confess your respect of the person's dignity. It will keep you out of some dark places. May God grant you the grace of His presence as you follow Him through this valley.
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Contempt
I am learning how much God despises CONTEMPT. Jesus warned His disciples that to think or speak of someone with contempt made you guilty enough to go to hell. See Matthew 5-7.
Contempt is to the soul what cancer is to the body - it spreads. I have noticed if the person has contempt for one person in their life, even if it is themselves, the contempt will spread through the whole of their life. UGLY. and they will not know it.
I heard of a seminary professor who verbally attacked two homosexual men who lived next to him. He expressed his contempt and not love toward them. He is right to have contempt for their lifestyle but not to allow the contempt to roll over onto the person.
A friend allowed some very ugly things about me to be said a while back and it is hard to not have contempt for him. I have learned how to pray for him, lifting him up before the LORD God Almighty and just being still before God without mentioning anything about him. Just like holding a child up before the LORD, quiet and listening. Most of the time the LORD does not say anything. This last time, after lifting up this person, the LORD asked me to lift up my pain and hurt to Him. I was surprised how deep the pain was. It was relieving, to some degree, to let go. While it is frustrating to be still healing from a wound that is over three years old, I recognize that deep wounds take a long time to heal. Keep out of the ditches. Make sure contempt never rolls over onto the person.
Contempt is to the soul what cancer is to the body - it spreads. I have noticed if the person has contempt for one person in their life, even if it is themselves, the contempt will spread through the whole of their life. UGLY. and they will not know it.
I heard of a seminary professor who verbally attacked two homosexual men who lived next to him. He expressed his contempt and not love toward them. He is right to have contempt for their lifestyle but not to allow the contempt to roll over onto the person.
A friend allowed some very ugly things about me to be said a while back and it is hard to not have contempt for him. I have learned how to pray for him, lifting him up before the LORD God Almighty and just being still before God without mentioning anything about him. Just like holding a child up before the LORD, quiet and listening. Most of the time the LORD does not say anything. This last time, after lifting up this person, the LORD asked me to lift up my pain and hurt to Him. I was surprised how deep the pain was. It was relieving, to some degree, to let go. While it is frustrating to be still healing from a wound that is over three years old, I recognize that deep wounds take a long time to heal. Keep out of the ditches. Make sure contempt never rolls over onto the person.
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