An Eternal Peacemaker

Posted: October 27th, 2010   Category: christian

My only true enemy is myself. Certainly there are some, even many whom I see as a threat for not making any effort to reform themselves but those people aren’t my personal enemies.  As often as I’m dismayed by “their” apparently unjustified actions and/or when I discover through “their” perceived majority an overwhelming sadness drifting over me, I need only look inward, for surely others see in me, similar shortfalls.

I’ve learned that biblically all forgivable sin is weighted the same.  Human laws suggest that harmful acts and omissions have varying degrees of wrongdoing attached to them.  This clearly illustrates contradictions between human judgement and perfect wisdom.  “The punishment should fit the crime” is a human theory of retributive justice, a morally acceptable, societal response to crimes.  This theory affords a degree of satisfaction to injured parties.  However, when we employ this approach individually or generally in our daily thinking, we do nothing more than dismiss our own wrongdoings and consistently overlook our indiscretions.

Of the Ten Commandments offered both in the Hebrew Bible and Old Testament of the Christian Bible, only two, when broken continuously are generally considered unforgivable.  They are 1) denying, maligning or rejecting God and his work or 2) not being forgiving ourselves.  The other 8 moral imperatives in those Commandments are weighted spiritually the same.  As an example, stealing and lying are considered equally as reprehensible as murder.

So when, displayed in the light of my moral imperfections, I elect to render judgements, to condemn or even choose to disapprove of others for their actions, I’m just as directly judging and condemning myself for my shortfalls.  We can choose not to replicate the poor choices of others, but we shouldn’t permanently condemn ourselves by judging others for their actions. Leave that deliberation and final conclusion to the great public defender and the only truly qualified Supreme Court Justice.  This is how one finds and becomes an eternal peacemaker.

JC CALKINS with COMMON SENSE 4 UNCOMMON PEOPLE

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