Respect part 3
Either we ALL deserve respect, or NONE of us do. Because we're all the same. Acts 17:26, "And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation." One blood. Before the cross it was the blood of the first Adam. And on this side of the cross it is the blood of the last Adam--Jesus. I mean, I really just don't think we understand that we're all different parts of the SAME body. I don't think we understand how similar we are. And I'm not saying you aren't a unique snowflake. You absolutely are. There's nobody else quite like you. You were fearfully and wonderfully made. I'm simply trying to say we're all in this together. ALL of us. John 3:16 tells us that God so loved the WORLD. He didn't make distinctions between Jew and Gentile. Or any other groups of any kind. In fact, His chosen people were the very ones who rejected Jesus and nailed Him to a cross. So He grafted everbody--EVERYBODY--else in. Look at John 12:32 in the NLT, "And when I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw everyone to myself." Everyone. All of humanity. And then remember we saw in part one that all of creation is groaning and waiting for the manifestation of the Son(s) of God. Enough of this "us vs them" mentality. Enough of this "members only" religion. I have never in life asked someone what they believe with the intention of including or excluding them. Because quite frankly, I don't care what you believe. You can believe whatever you want. That's one of the foundations the United States was originally built on; Freedom of religion. I saw a meme today, and posted it online, that basically said, "The secret of life is minding your own business. Letting other people do what makes them happy, and doing what makes you happy." I LOVE THAT. As long as you're not hurting anybody... do you. Be you. And I'm going to love you either way. Whenever I finish preaching a message, I end with the tag line, "I love you... and there's nothing you can do about it." Because my love for you isn't based on YOU. It's not something that needs to be earned. It's simply me filling myself to overflowing with what I've already been filled with. Which is love. It's simply me obeying the New Commandment and loving others as Jesus loves me. It's simply me receiving and releasing--knowing and believing--the love of Christ. And what I believe--that I was created to be loved and to love others with that same love--doesn't worry about what you believe. Because you're a human being. And even though deserve has nothing to do with it, being a human being makes you worthy of love. Two important things, right? God and people. Love God and love people. Love God BY loving people. And, honestly, I think that's the least we can do for each other. But it turns out... the least you can do is the most you can do. Giving someone what you've got is probably exactly what they need. Whether it's a sympathetic ear, or just spending time with someone. The little things ARE the big things. And while trust may need to be earned... respect needs to be given. To one and all. Without judgment. Freely you have received... freely give. Because we're all in this together. We're all the same. We're all people. And we're all worthy of respect.