We have finally made it to the end. This is the fourth and last installment of the Bully series that I will be doing for the newsletter. We have learned about what bullies are, what it may look like, and how we may potentially be bullies. The last thing I hope to share with you is about how to respond when you are being bullied.
First, I would like to restate the Gospel in hopes that we can bring it all back to Jesus and learn from His reaction.
Right before Jesus died on the cross, He was bullied. People wanted him to die, spit at him, beat him, yelled insults at him, mocked him, took away his clothes and made him wear ragged outfits that would humiliate anybody, put a thorny crown upon his head that pierced into him, forced him to drink bodily fluids, and made him carry the heavy, wooden cross that he would be crucified on. Jesus had to endure things we may never have to experience in our lifetimes.
Yet how did He react? We have to understand that Jesus has all the power in the world, that He could have easily decided to strike down all the people who bullied him and wanted him to die. He could have done it in an instant. But what did He do instead?
Because Jesus is all-knowing and LOVES us, He, instead, decided to be arrested, be bullied, be beaten, and die on the cross. He knew that He had to die on the cross as a sacrifice for all of our sins. What is the payment for sin? Death. What sort of death can repay a sin? A sinless death. Who can have a sinless death? Only God, the Father and creator.Therefore, Jesus' ability to resurrect and conquer death shows that He was in fact a sinless being and therefore God in man form. He knew that because He was sinless and God, He was the only person who could die the death to repay all of our sins. Even though everyone bullied Him, He loved us so incredibly much that He decided to choose a harder path and endure the bullying to show a greater love.
This is exactly how we should respond when we are bullied. This does NOT mean that we must die in a physical sense to show them greater love because we are not sinless nor God. Instead we must die in a spiritual sense to our natural desire to prove our bullies wrong, seek revenge on our bullies, or respond in a hateful, unloving manner. We decide to set aside our natural, yet sinful reactions and instead choose to react in a loving, godly way.
Why do we have to do that? Because Jesus died that death so that we could show love to others here on earth. The love we show on earth lasts for eternity and means much to God Himself.
Think twice before you respond angrily or hatefully to someone who bothers you, makes fun of you, causes harm to you, or hates you. Be safe and protect yourself, but never hate them back!
Luke 23:34 "Jesus said, 'Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.'"
Until next time,
First, I would like to restate the Gospel in hopes that we can bring it all back to Jesus and learn from His reaction.
Right before Jesus died on the cross, He was bullied. People wanted him to die, spit at him, beat him, yelled insults at him, mocked him, took away his clothes and made him wear ragged outfits that would humiliate anybody, put a thorny crown upon his head that pierced into him, forced him to drink bodily fluids, and made him carry the heavy, wooden cross that he would be crucified on. Jesus had to endure things we may never have to experience in our lifetimes.
Yet how did He react? We have to understand that Jesus has all the power in the world, that He could have easily decided to strike down all the people who bullied him and wanted him to die. He could have done it in an instant. But what did He do instead?
Because Jesus is all-knowing and LOVES us, He, instead, decided to be arrested, be bullied, be beaten, and die on the cross. He knew that He had to die on the cross as a sacrifice for all of our sins. What is the payment for sin? Death. What sort of death can repay a sin? A sinless death. Who can have a sinless death? Only God, the Father and creator.Therefore, Jesus' ability to resurrect and conquer death shows that He was in fact a sinless being and therefore God in man form. He knew that because He was sinless and God, He was the only person who could die the death to repay all of our sins. Even though everyone bullied Him, He loved us so incredibly much that He decided to choose a harder path and endure the bullying to show a greater love.
This is exactly how we should respond when we are bullied. This does NOT mean that we must die in a physical sense to show them greater love because we are not sinless nor God. Instead we must die in a spiritual sense to our natural desire to prove our bullies wrong, seek revenge on our bullies, or respond in a hateful, unloving manner. We decide to set aside our natural, yet sinful reactions and instead choose to react in a loving, godly way.
Why do we have to do that? Because Jesus died that death so that we could show love to others here on earth. The love we show on earth lasts for eternity and means much to God Himself.
Think twice before you respond angrily or hatefully to someone who bothers you, makes fun of you, causes harm to you, or hates you. Be safe and protect yourself, but never hate them back!
Luke 23:34 "Jesus said, 'Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.'"
Until next time,