Looking for faults in others
by Charles Bertelsmeier
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Very truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life (John 5:24).
Read John 5:21–29
Jesus healed a man who had been living with disability for 38 years. He performed this miracle on a Sabbath (or holy day), so he was roundly chastised by the religious police for breaking God’s law. Jesus used this opportunity to explain to the religious police – and the watching crowd – that we cannot achieve the relationship our Heavenly Father wants to have with us by religiously keeping a set of rules.
Our relationship as God’s dearly loved children is now, not some time in the future. Jesus confirms this by saying we have already ‘crossed over from death to life’. When Jesus died on the cross, we died too. And when Jesus came back to life after three days, we were born again into a new life as God’s children – into the heavenly family. This was confirmed in our baptism when we were given our new birth certificate – the gift of the Holy Spirit.
So now we no longer have to worry about whether we are doing everything we must do to keep in God’s good books. As children of the heavenly family, the Holy Spirit is working within us so that we become more like Jesus in our care and concern for one another.
A challenge for us is to daily review our motivation for what we do and how we respond to situations. I recently heard an episode on the radio about a man complaining about his wife. When he made a cup of tea or coffee for himself, he would ask his wife if she would like one, too, and she mostly did. But she would drink only half the cup before it got cold and unpleasant. Later, she would ask for another cup, even though she still had a half-full cup. This irritated the man to the extent that he was prepared to ring a radio station to have a whinge.
Now, I can imagine that those reading this are thinking about ways to solve the situation. However, the point I would like to make is that the man could decide that his wife has done nothing wrong, so he has no right to be irritated with her. He could pray about his negative feelings and ask God to lift this chip off his shoulder. Then, each time he brings his wife a cup of tea or coffee, he offers it with love, making it just the way she likes it. And having been given the gift, she is free to use it how she likes to.
Having just written that, I am now pointing a finger at myself.
Holy Spirit, thank you for the ways you are working in our lives to change the way we react to situations. We especially ask for your help in not finding the faults in others but instead seeking how we can bless them – motivated by your love for us. Amen.
Charles is a retired engineer who has worked on communications projects for the air force, army and navy. He lives in a retirement village in the outer north-western suburbs of Sydney with his wife, Diane. Together, they have four children and eight grandchildren, all of whom they love spending time with. Charles keeps busy caring for their pot plants and a community vegetable garden, researching his family history and volunteering at LifeWay Lutheran Church.
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