What Goes Around, Comes Around
.
1 Peter 3:8-16
8. Finally, all of you, have unity of spirit, sympathy, love of the brethren, a tender heart and a humble mind. 9. Do not return evil for evil or reviling for reviling; but on the contrary bless, for to this you have been called, that you may obtain a blessing. 10. For "He that would love life and see good days, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking guile; 11. let him turn away from evil and do right; let him seek peace and pursue it. 12. For the eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those that do evil." 13. Now who is there to harm you if you are zealous for what is right? 14. But even if you do suffer for righteousness' sake, you will be blessed. Have no fear of them, nor be troubled, 15. but in your hearts reverence Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to make a defense to any one who calls you to account for the hope that is in you, yet do it with gentleness and reverence; 16. and keep your conscience clear, so that, when you are abused, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame.
Everything listed in verses 8 and 9 sounds pretty much counter to modern society, doesn’t it? We are encouraged, more expected to be individuals, self-sufficient; have a “take no prisoners” attitude, have a sharp wit and a hard heart. That’s how you “make it.” Right? If you look around at the modern world, that’s what you might think. TV shows and advertisers want you to think that. Winning is everything—at any cost! The losers can “eat my dust!”
But when we become Christians, we’re not to live “of the world.” We’re to adhere to a higher set of values and standards. We’re to measure success by different instruments. We’re to be counter-cultural. Victory is now determined by how many souls we’ve brought to Christ. Winning is standing firm in our convictions, even when others sneer at our naivety. When they ask us, “How in the world can you be happy, when the whole world is falling apart around us?” You are able to tell them, “Jesus.” But we’re to explain that we know what’s going on in the world, we watch the evening news, we read the paper, and we listen to the radio. But we’re not concerned because we trust and believe that God is in charge—not man. And that even if the world ends tomorrow, we know our future.
Oh, we’ll be made fun of probably. Others may even think we’ve lost our minds! But if we keep it up, if we’re consistent in our attitude and behavior, they will take notice! We can’t be smug about it, though. We must portray Christ to them. When they see us, they are to see Jesus in their midst. That takes a lot of practice! It takes intention and focus. It takes prayer and conviction. But it is our natural response to the gift of eternal life in heaven. So how can we be sad? How can we mourn? If we are doing absolutely everything we can do to make this world a better place, giving God the glory for any good we do, and modeling the love and inner peace of our Lord and Savior, then we can rest assured we will rejoice in heaven at the end of time.
I can remember my mom telling me as a child, “What goes around, comes around.” I can’t think of a better way to sum up my thoughts this morning!
I hope today that love, peace and humility reign in your hearts. And that what comes around to you is that same love, peace and humility!
Mary
