The Two Ways - Saturday November 17, 2012
We know love by this, that He laid down His life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. 1 John 3:16
There are two primary ways by which to live in relationship with others: the broad and the narrow. The broad is the road most traveled. The narrow is the least traveled, but as Robert Frost says in "The Road Not Taken": "Two roads diverged in a wood, and I, / I took the one less traveled by, / And that has made all the difference."
The broad road is the way of Cain (1 John 3:12-15). The narrow road is the way of Christ (1 John 3:16-19). The way of Cain is the way of jealousy, envy, hatred, and murder. The way of Cain answers the question, "Where is your brother?" with "Am I my brother's keeper?" I am very familiar with the way of Cain; I believe there is a little bit of Cain in each one of us. It seems so normal to carry jealousy, envy, and selfish ambition in our hearts that we hardly recognize its stranglehold on us. If we take the time to look at our relationships, we can see Cain's handiwork.
The way of Christ is the way of love that chooses to love before it feels love. It is a love that costs. It is a love that serves and helps to meet a need in someone else. It is love that is unprovoked. It reaches out to lift up the least. It considers the rival as more important. And it does good to the enemy. This kind of love changes a heart and a home.
I am glad Christ has loved me this way. His love reached me, the least. His love considered me so much more important than Himself that He left glory, became a human, became a bondservant, and died like a criminal in order to set me free. His love conquered me!
Choose the road less traveled by.
Submitted by:
Doug Brown
Lee's Summit Community Church
Lee's Summit, Missouri
One-Year Reading Plan:
Ezekiel 35:1-36:38
James 1:1-18
Psalms 116:1-19
Proverbs 27:23-27
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