Good Morning Friends,
“Many followed Jesus, and he healed all their
sick, warning them not to tell who he was. This was to fulfill what was spoken
through the prophet Isaiah: ‘Here is my servant whom I have chosen, the one I
love, in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him, and he will proclaim
justice to the nations. He will not quarrel or cry out; no one will hear his
voice in the streets. A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick
he will not snuff out, till he leads justice to victory. In his name the
nations will put their hope.’” (Matthew 12:15-21)
Let me pick out one message from the passage
that Jesus quoted and comment on it: “A bruised reed he will not break, and a
smoldering wick he will not snuff out.”
What does God do when someone is struggling,
barely hanging on? I believe what Isaiah was saying and what Jesus was
emphasizing was that God doesn’t kick a person when he’s down. He doesn’t step
on the fingers of the person hanging on to the edge of the ledge. He doesn’t
move the ladder when the person is stretched from the highest rung.
Paul encouraged the Galatians, “if someone is
caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently.” (Galatians
6:1) When someone is hurting, don’t turn away from him, instead, run to him
with help. It is not condemnation that the sinner needs, but gentle
restoration.
Paul challenged the Thessalonians, “We urge
you, brothers, warn those who are idle, encourage the timid, help the weak, be
patient with everyone.” (1 Thessalonians 5:14)
To follow the advice of Paul to the Galatians
and the Thessalonians is to follow in the footsteps of Jesus. His goal was to
help the individual. Everything Jesus did was done out of love for the weak and
the sinful. Even those times when He directly confronted and rebuked sin, it
was for the good of the sinner.
He loved even those who were hurting and gently
guided those who were far from God back to Him. Oh, that we would walk in the
steps of Jesus!
His, by Grace, Steve
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