Key Verse
19Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. 20Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.
Something To Think About
Who are you to judge me? Where do you get off telling me that I am wrong? Don’t push your morality on me! You’re just a bigoted homophobe. That might be your belief but it’s not mine. You should just accept everyone’s belief. How can she call herself a Christian acting like that? She is such a hypocrite.
How many times have you heard things like this? Maybe you’ve even said some of these things yourself. In today’s world, we are constantly pressured to just accept everything. The new definition of tolerance today means avoiding offending someone. This often times flys in the face of Biblical truth. So, how do we as 21st Century Christians speak truth in today’s climate of tolerance?
The first thing we have to remember is that people won’t understand the truth until they know the Savior. We should always be ready to share Jesus’ sacrifice and resurrection for them when they are ready to hear the message. Look at the key verse once again. It’s actually two parts. Part one says to make disciples of all nations. The second part says to teach these new disciples to live like Christ. If we reverse that and tell people that they have to live like Christ before they believe in Him, nothing else we tell them will make sense.
Most importantly, along with truth the second thing we need to practice is love. We must learn to embrace everyone while not embracing all beliefs. We need to learn how to listen to and learn from all people without necessarily agreeing with them. We must aggressively practice love by actively seeking to promote the good of another person.
So how do we do this in the real world?
When Tolerance says, “You must approve of what I do.” Love says, “I will love you, even when your behavior offends me.”
When Tolerance says, “You must agree with me.” Love says, “I will listen to and learn from you without necessarily agreeing with you. I will speak the truth because I believe the truth will set you free.”
When Tolerance says, “You must allow me to have my way.” Love says, ” I will love you even though I know you’re way isn’t the right way. When you are ready to receive it, I will tell you about the right way.”
A principle that I say frequently is, “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.” Purposefully develop love relationships with those people around you think are the farthest away from Christ. Through your love, following Jesus’ example, you will have an impact on them.
Let’s Discuss
How do you respond when people say, “You can’t legislate morality!” or “Don’t force your morality on me!”
Why is it important to belong to a group of Christian friends as it relates to tolerance?
Jesus said, “Don’t throw pearls down in front of pigs.”(Mat 7:1-6) What did he mean by throwing pearls down in front of pigs and how does it apply to our topic of tolerance?
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