Just as you want others to do for you, do the same for them.  If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them.     Luke 6:31-32

In the last couple years there was this “Be Kind” campaign. I would see it on t-shirts and on bumper stickers. They encouraged us to treat others with kindness.

The term, the Golden Rule, is not mentioned in the Bible, but we often quote Luke 6:31 and refer to it as the golden rule. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you, right? Treat others the way you want to be treated. But sadly, we live in a world where people have become so prideful and self-absorbed, we don’t see much kindness.

People treat others with contempt. People are prideful. I didn’t see any big changes brought on by that “Be Kind” campaign. There is still road rage. People are still being mean to others. There is still mass murder going on. So, I can’t see where it brought about any positive changes.

Maybe we should initiate a “Turn to Jesus” campaign. We can’t truly be kind until we become followers and imitators of Christ. We can’t imitate Christ if we don’t know Christ. We can’t truly follow Him if we don’t pick up our cross and deny ourselves. We have to let go of ourselves. This is what deliberate sinners just can’t do. They can’t let go of themselves.

Jesus clearly tells us He is including our enemies when He instructs us to treat others as we would like to be treated. Your enemy may not have treated you well, but as Christians we are to rise above that. We are to show them Christ’s love.

He says anyone can be kind to those who are good to them, because even sinners do that. He wants us to extend our love and kindness to those who have mistreated us.

Our pride stops us from doing this. Now you know God hates pride and considers it an abomination (Proverbs 16:5). The definition of abomination is something that causes disgust or hatred or a feeling of hatred. You don’t want God to become disgusted with you. If you have pride in your heart, you better let it go.

Pride will cause you to speak ill of others. Pride will cause you to gloat when your enemy falls (Proverbs 24:17). Pride will never serve you well, just let it go. Give it over to God and give Him the glory, honor and praise. Don’t strut around hoping to impress mere mortals, humble yourself and surrender to God.

When we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior we are sanctified, set apart. We are not supposed to look like everyone else. We are not supposed to sound like everyone else. We are supposed to be imitators of Jesus Christ.

My friend, going with the flesh or our feelings or our emotions is easy. Anyone, even the sinner, can do that. Going with God takes work. It takes practice. It takes commitment. In order to do our best to live as Christ lived, we must surrender our lives to Him. This includes how we talk and how we treat others.

Many people think because they believe in Jesus, they are good to go. I used to believe this as well. We are told in James 2:19, “You believe that God is one; you do well. The demons also believe-and they shudder.” Even the demons believe in God and tremble with fear before Him. Even sinners are good to those who are good to them.

So, I ask you today are you a Christian? If I asked your friends if they thought you were a Christian, what do you think they would say? Would that be news to them? Or can they see the light of Christ shining through you?

As the end draws near, we need to draw near to God (James 4:8). We need to surrender ourselves to Him. When we get to heaven no one will care about who mistreated who. The only thing that will matter is how well you represented Him and how much glory, honor and praise you gave to Him while you were here on earth.

Don’t let your pride be your downfall because even sinners can do that. Toughen up and start living for Jesus today.

Have a great day!