Romans 12:16-18,21(Amplifed) Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty [conceited, self-important, exclusive], but associate with humble people [those with a realistic self-view]. Do not overestimate yourself. Never repay anyone evil for evil. Take thought for what is right and gracious and proper in the sight of everyone. If possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.…Do not be overcome and conquered by evil, but overcome evil with good.
Many of us have been in situations where there is strife among church members, friends, or business partners. We can be easily offended by a remark, feel sidelined when our opinions are not taken into consideration, or when we are picked upon or told off.
Pride is a scary thing. The openings passage tells us not to be haughty because when we think too highly of ourselves, everyone else will seem inferior to us. People are prone to priding themselves on their family or educational backgrounds and thus feel important and entitled, and it causes them to belittle others with words of sarcasm out of a superior attitude.
James 3:16 (NKJV) For where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there.
However, people who engage in strife will invite all kinds of evil, have no joy or peace, and only sleepless nights. They will succumb to carnality, be hot-tempered, known as fools, and separate even close friends. Surely, nobody would want any evil thing to be present in their home, office, or in their lives, but when one is envious, self-centred and insecure, and begins to strife, every form of evil—scheming to take revenge, lying, backbiting, playing company politics, and every intention to cause hurt to others—will surface. These sins will open a hole in the hedge that God has built around us for the devil to attack us, bringing about confusion because we will distort our words.
King Saul was someone who exhibited self-seeking and envy. His insecurity caused him to despise David and attempted to kill him. It shows all kinds of evil things are there when someone is insecure, full of envy and self-seeking. In contrast, David, out of his respect and love for the Lord’s anointed, refused to lay a finger on Saul or take vengeance into his own hands despite numerous opportunities. David even went the extra mile to kill the messenger who claimed to have killed King Saul and restored to Mephiboseth everything that belonged to King Saul when he was King of Israel. He selfishly showed forth sincere love for his covenant partner Jonathan’s sake.
Like David, we need to be the wise person who flees from strife, pursue peace and be a peacemaker. However, we won’t be able to live peaceably with everyone unless we choose to yield to the Holy Spirit. We must abide in God and allow the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus to reign in and through us.
Sermon Series: You Can Do It (Part 2)
远离纷争
罗马书12:16-18, 21 要彼此同心，不要志气高大，倒要俯就卑微的人。不要自以为聪明。不要以恶报恶。众人以为美的事，要留心去作。若是能行，总要尽力与众人和睦……你不可为恶所胜，反要以善胜恶。
我们当中有许多人都曾经遇到教会会友、朋友或商业伙伴之间起争执的情况。我们很容易 被一句评论冒犯，或者当我们的意见不被采纳，被挑剔或被指责时，就会觉得自己不被重视。
骄傲是一件可怕的事情。这段开篇的经文告诉我们不要骄傲，因为当我们把自己看得过高 的时候，就会看每个人似乎都不如我们。人们倾向于为自己的家庭或教育背 景感到自豪，觉得自己很重要，很有资格，乃至于以一种高高在上的姿态出言讥讽来贬低别人。
雅各书3:16 在何处有嫉妒、纷争，就在何处有扰乱和各样的坏事。
然而，人在纷争之中，必招来各样的恶事：没有喜乐，没有平安，只剩下无数无法入睡的夜晚。他们屈服于情欲，脾气暴躁，被称为傻瓜，连亲密的朋友都疏离。没有人会希望任何邪恶的东西出现在他们的家庭、 办公室和他们的生活中。但是，当一个人嫉妒、以自我为中心、缺乏安全感，并开始争斗时，各种各样的邪恶，比如阴谋报复、撒谎、诽谤、玩弄办公室政治，以及各种伤害 他人的意图就会浮出水面。这些罪会在神为我们所建造的篱笆上打开破口，让魔鬼 得以攻击我们，并且因为我们歪曲自己的言语，带来混乱的局面。
扫罗王的表现让我们看到何谓利己而又善妒之人。他的不安全感使他轻视大卫，并试图杀死他。这说明当一个人缺乏安全感，充满嫉妒和追逐私利的时候，各种各样的邪恶就会出现。相比之下，出于对这位耶和华受膏者 的尊敬和爱戴，大卫拒绝对扫罗动一根指头，也拒绝亲手复仇杀死扫罗王复仇，即使 他有好几次机会可以这样做。更有甚者，大卫甚至还杀死了那位声称杀了扫罗王的信使，并将扫罗王作以色列王时所拥有的一切都归还给了 米非波设。他为了他的盟友约拿单的缘故，无私地展露出真诚的爱。
像大卫一样，我们需要成为远离纷争的聪明人，追求和平，做与人和睦的人。除非我们选择降服于圣灵，否则我们无法与每个人和睦相处。我们必须住在神里面，并让基督耶稣 里生命之灵的律在我们里面掌权，也藉着我们掌权。
讲章系列：你能做到（第二部分）
Image Source：pixabay.com