One facet of Jesus' character has be weighing on my mind lately. With the coming of Easter, I have been reflecting on Jesus' journey to the cross, and His response (or lack thereof) has been challenging me.
Jesus was falsely arrested. He was mocked and beaten by Jewish leaders. He was deserted by His disciples. He was questioned by rulers. Crowds, who just days before had heralded Him as their king, screamed for Jesus' death. Jesus was whipped, forced to carry His own cross, and nailed to that cross. All the while, He was being mocked, berated, and cursed.
He never said a word in anger.
He never opened His mouth in rage.
He had no accusing words, hurtful retorts, or vengeful speeches.
Jesus was nothing but respectful and gracefully went through the trial that He faced. He kept the end goal in mind, and remained true to His destiny.
Often, we go through trials and attacks - mind you, no where near the level of attack that Jesus faced. Yet, we "forget" who we are and say things out of character. We arm ourselves with vengeful weapons and go into defense mode. We snap and say things we don't mean. We hurt those who hurt us. We do things that we regret.
We are called to be like Christ. We are challenged to be more like Him.
I am working on having Jesus' character in the face of an attack. I'm working on keeping my mouth closed to nonsense and only speaking words seasoned with grace and respect. I'm working on recognizing the enemy and not giving him any ground in adverse situations. I'm working on keeping my end goal in mind, and staying true to my God-given destiny.
We are all works in progress. Let's just make sure we're working to progress!
Verse of the Day: For God called you to do good, even if it means suffering, just as Christ suffered for you. He is your example, and you must follow in his steps. 1 Peter 2:21
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