When you hear 'Tit-for-tat', What do you think of?
Its Getting back at someone for something! Eye for an eye!
Dictionary: "some other retaliation in return for an injury from another."
Story of a nasty friend:
I have a friend who would not give it two thoughts about how he would treat me or anyone else for that matter.
It was impossible to talk to him about it because he obviously didn't see it the way everyone else did.
Until one day, I decided that I am going to treat him the same way she would treat me.
I applied the 'Tit-for-Tat' method.
I was set on giving him what he gave out.
In the beginning it worked out pretty ok,
And I enjoyed giving back to him what he gave. Then after a while we had an argument about how badly I was treating him.
Ironic don't you think?
Anyway, it tried to explain to him that he was the one who needed the lesson and I was only reciprocating what he was doing to me and others. Needless to say, it was a useless argument and no ground was made. So I apologised for treating him badly.
It didn't go to plan. I felt horrible and I was mad at myself for allowing myself to change. I left there more frustrated than I was before when I decide to adopt the 'tit-4-tat' attitude towards him.
However, I have learnt a valuable lesson out of that…
There are people in life who are nasty, arrogant, self-righteous, self-centred people who will not treat you well. And I must not allow their shortcomings to change who I am and who God encourages me to be.
Too often, we allow other people and society to influence us negatively in how we ought to treat other people. And sadly, this has become a social norm. For example: Think of the business world (whether corporate or at home: eg. Housekeeper, garden worker) – It has become acceptable for Bosses to treat their subordinates with disrespect and get away with it. And what makes it worse is if those 'Bosses' call themselves Christians.
This is not how Jesus acted or treated anyone. He treated everyone equally with love and respect, and those who were the victims, were the ones He defended.
We need to learn from Jesus in how to live our everyday lives. He gives us insight in how to do this.
Here is the instruction...
Matthew 7:7-12
7 "Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.
8 For everyone who asks receives; those who seek find; and to those who knock, the door will be opened.
9 "Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone?
10 Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake?
11 If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!
12 So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.
Here we see Jesus give us a very important instruction… Vs 12. "in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you,…"
This is no different than many other religions…
So what makes ours different?
Where do we start?
What is our foundation that will equip us to actually do to others what needs to be done?
Here it is...
Matthew 22:34
34 Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together.
35 One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question:
36 "Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?"
37 Jesus replied: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.'38 This is the first and greatest commandment.
39 And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbour as yourself.'
40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."
We start with love!
1st, Love God – Heart, Soul and mind = everything.
Why?
To love God is to know God, to know God is to imitate God.
2nd, Love your neighbour as you love yourself.
Why?
Look at the example of Jesus:
Jesus treated everyone well. As equals. He helped and loved everyone from the highest to the lowest rank, from the most evil to the really good. He loved them all.
We need to imitate God, like Jesus did, and allow his love to flow out of us. Sadly, This is a foreign concept to this world…
I often get into trouble for being such an affectionate person. If you haven't noticed by now, I'm a hugger. I like hugging. I love showing the love!
After all, I am in the business of love!
We live in a world that is desperate for love and people are desperate to feel loved, but when love is shown, then someone will have something to say about it.
I often tell my friends that I love them. People don't always understand that because the world dictates that if we say we love someone, it 'must be' because we are romantically attracted to them or we want something. It often puts people on the back-foot.
So I have a theory…
If I am the only one, on this planet, who shows the love of Christ to other people, I would stand out like a sore thumb and be labelled for it. But, if everyone in the world allowed themselves to show the love of Christ to the people around them, would I still stand out and be labelled? No ways! Because it would be the new norm.
So I won't stop loving!
We have the instruction to love everyone and to do good to others.
How do we do good for or to others?
Galatians 6
1 Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted.
2 Carry each other's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.
3 If any of you think you are something when you are nothing, you deceive yourselves.
4 Each of you should test your own actions. Then you can take pride in yourself, without comparing yourself to somebody else,
5 for each of you should carry your own load.
6 Nevertheless, those who receive instruction in the word should share all good things with their instructor.
7 Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. People reap what they sow.
8 Those who sow to please their sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; those who sow to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.
9 Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.
10 Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.
Building on that love is the instruction we need to fulfil. We must be willing to do (Action) good to all people.
"People reap what they sow" – How true is this? Extremely true.
My nasty friend, whom I told you about, finds it difficult to befriend people. What he sows is what he is receiving.
Every single day, I try find opportunities to do something good to someone. Not because I am wanting to tell you how good I am, but rather to tell you that I am training myself to follow this instruction that we have been given.
I have been SOOO amazingly blessed with good things.
Personal Story:
Earlier this year, I helped a couple and a baby, who were down and out, with money I saved for my upcoming holiday. It was R1000. When I met them, I did not want to help them but God convicted me to do so. So I did. I used all my money to help them out over the period of a weekend.
The next week, a couple in the congregation gifted me with R1000 for my holiday because God told them too do so.
God is faithful!
So, to whom do we do good?
Vs. 10 = ALL people
Even the bad people? YES!!
Check this out...
Romans 12:20-21
20 On the contrary:
"If your enemy is hungry, feed him;
if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head."
21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
This is God's 'Tit-4-Tat' strategy and He includes us in this. This is where God says, "Take the gloves off and do the opposite to what the world expects".
Story of doing the opposite: My friend Shaun, who was an Atheist, wanted to divorce his wife, who is a Christian. She refused. He went as far as having affairs in front of her to sway her to divorce him. Her conviction not to was that she made vows to God plans to stick to them.
His wife decided to pray for Shaun instead of quit. A few years later, Shaun gave his life to Jesus and now ministers to gangs.
She adopted God's Tit-4-Tat strategy. "overcome evil with good."
God doesn't get into a boxing ring, instead He got His Son to hang on a cross. For you.
We are instructed to show:
Love instead of hate,
Peace instead of war,
Grace instead of punishment,
Hug instead of a punch,
Friendship instead of being enemies,
Forgiveness instead of grudges,
Etc…
Why must we do good things to others?
Because we expect the good things for ourselves. "So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you,..."
Quote: Oswald Chamber, "If we believe in Jesus, it is not what we gain but what he pours through us that really counts."
That's the point of this text.
If everyone allowed themselves to imitate the love of God through themselves to other people, this world would be a different place.
Kimberley will be a different place.
Beaconsfield will be a different place.
BMC will be a different place.
Your families will be different.
The spiritual fight is to win souls for Jesus. If we don't do good to others, we won't be part of the process but we will be part of the problem.
Tit-4-Tat has to be where Jesus wins…
We have seen many video or heard of stories where animals do what they can to help other animals and people.
So, if animals know how to do good for others then how come is it difficult for us, who are superior beings in creation, to do the same?
We are better than animals – So let's start acting like it.
When the world comes rushing past on the highway of life and someone gets hit – let us be the first to help them. Jesus would expect that from us. Because if we were the ones to get hit on the highway of life then Jesus would expect someone help us.
Here's what we need to do:
1 – Love God
2 – Love your neighbour (Friend or enemy) and yourself
3 – Do 1 good thing every day (friend or enemy).
If we do this right, we will be imitating God here on earth.
And we will make Him proud of us.
Tit-4-Tat: We can Fight God's way – With love and goodness!
Communion:
We come with sin, rebellion, disobedience... But we get grace, love, mercy, forgiveness!
"how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!"
What will you do with this sermon?
Keep the SON in your eyes!
