Youth On The Rock : View topic

avsje

HOW FAR ARE WE TO GO WITH THIS? I know the Bible says to forgive 77 x 7 times (per day?), but are we never to fight? God and His angels fought and the Israelites fought often; using God's help and guidance. When am I allowed to kick b_tt? I know that christians are to be meek and forgiving, but no where do I read in the Bible where I am supposed to be a frig'en door mat! Yes, I am angry right now because I am going through something that would have even your leaders jumping. I believe in God and I believe in prayer, but I am also "from the streets". The only way I was taught to get someone off my back was to knock them off! So again I ask, how far are we to go with this? If I have proven myself as a christian with patience and meekness then after a long struggle; blow up....Is that such a bad thing? How much can someone take?

Zagadka

Hopefully this article will help you with your trials.

God speed to you.

Christian doormats not for sale
by Mei Yip

“If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also” (Matthew 5:39b). Taking a moment to reflect, I am overwhelmed by the scope of this command. “Lord, I love you and all, but... I don’t want to be a doormat!” How can I be passive when I am struck, not once, but on many occasions?

Contrary to popular belief, Jesus does not ask His followers to be doormats, made for dirty feet to trample. It is not necessarily “Christian virtue,” nor is it “Christ-like humility” when Christians allow others to take advantage of them.

Jesus, in his perfect humility, did not let others push him around unless he was advancing the specific will of God. Whenever He was tested, questioned, and mocked, the last thing He did was silence himself, even when He did not have to prove anything. He often answered by speaking the words of Israel's prophets, the mouth-pieces of God. He did this in order to show that he was fulfilling their predictions, revealing little by little His identity and His mission.

And how did Jesus answer His fiercest enemy, Satan? When the devil tempted Jesus in the desert, He did not succumb to the temptations. He stood his ground and held firmly to His Father's plan, which required that Jesus lead a perfect life. Jesus would be the perfect and final sacrifice for the sins of the world. Thus, He stood up for Himself through the Word, and the devil left him (Matthew 4).

Also, when the Pharisees and Saducees tested Jesus by demanding a sign, did he yield? No, Jesus did not (Matthew 10:1-4). Likewise, when He was questioned about the observance of the Sabbath, He would not be quieted by their contentiousness (Mark 2:18-28).

We can clearly see that Christ had no whims about rebuking people. This is because He focused on His Father every moment of His life; the Son of God cared nothing for the opinions of men. His teachings were nothing less than revolutionary and His life shocked all those acquainted with Him.

Even at His arrest and through the painful crucifixion, He appeared passive to Pilate and the Roman soldiers who kicked and spit on Him. The physical pain was great, but the emotional, psychological, and spiritual pain must have been something no human could withstand or understand. This is why Jesus's final, passionate cry of pain was not about the body, but about His spirit: "Father, Father, why have you forsaken me?"

As Christ was a servant of God the Father by voluntarily seeking God’s and not His own will, Christians must follow Christ’s example, "Just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many" (Matthew 20:28). We must “deny [ourselves] and take up [our] cross and follow [Christ]” (Mark 8:34), just as Christ denied Himself.

Do we Christians have this sort of servant's attitude? The first problem is with the word "doormat." As soon as this word enters our heads as we serve others, a red light should turn on. "Doormat" denotes something that is used, and has no choice in the matter. But we Christians can not help but love our precious Jesus, and so we willingly serve Him and serve others, which He commands and which He teaches us to do. Because we did not deserve what He gave to us, giving of ourselves is so much easier.

Jesus’s most significant command was to love, to love even our enemies. In truly loving a person, through prayer, we will understand how much to give and to whom. And while we should not neglect our own needs to fulfill others’ needs, upon little honest reflection, I venture to say that very few of us are at that point where we should concern ourselves about it.

However, we are weak and imperfect, unable to give without end as Jesus did. So when we attempt to give beyond our faiths, we do not rely on God. This can lead to resenting the people we serve because they do not appreciate our efforts and sacrifices. This is where each Christian must draw the line: at the place where servanthood becomes a burdensome obligation. God tells us to give joyfully, not while counting the costs.

But there are other forms of doormat-ism, not just in giving love, money, or time. What are we to do when others step all over us emotionally, or manipulate our friendship for their gain? Through prayer and perseverence, we can know when we are pushed to that point, when our giving is no longer righteous before God. We need to have the courage and the prayer lives necessary for correcting and rebuking as Christ did in his day.

We need to remember who rules over us. Better yet, we always need to be aware of who is at this moment ruling us, by scrutinizing our actions and motivations. Many times, we allow idols to rule over us. The focus should be following God and seeking to please God, not men. The verse from Galatians 1:10 reads, “Am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ.” This should be in our hearts and minds as we face adversity and “doormatism” as Christians.

In following Jesus, often times, we do seem and sometimes feel like doormats. But when this happens, we need to remember God’s will, and with Christ as the center, “in humility consider others better than ourselves” (Philippians 2:3). Knowing God will meet our needs and the needs of the people we serve, and remembering Jesus’ grace toward us will help us become true servants.

D_oLp

look dude, let me add something to that article:
undying faith in Christ
even in the worst, most desperate times, you have to look beyond your enemies, beyond your anger, beyong everything physical...you have to look towards Him for strength, look towards Him for help
look @ all the times God's helped His witnesses through their turmoil, and their hardships
and plus, if youre worried about being labelled as a wuss (not saying you are one, but just in case), or losing a reputation you've faught for, just remember that the only thing that matters in life is God, and His will being carried out
i mean, how long will you be here for? 50 years? 70? 80? 100? thats all a blink of an eye in the never-ending vastness we call eternity!
ask Him for help, and it shall be given unto you