Luke 6:20-26
20Looking at his disciples, he said:
"Blessed are you who are poor,
for yours is the kingdom of God.
21Blessed are you who hunger now,
for you will be satisfied.
Blessed are you who weep now,
for you will laugh.
22Blessed are you when men hate you,
when they exclude you and insult you
and reject your name as evil, because of the Son of Man.
23"Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your
reward in heaven. For that is how their fathers treated the prophets.
24"But woe to you who are rich,
for you have already received your comfort.
25Woe to you who are well fed now,
for you will go hungry.
Woe to you who laugh now,
for you will mourn and weep.
26Woe to you when all men speak well of you,
for that is how their fathers treated the false prophets."
Sometimes life sucks. It really just does... Sometimes the doctors have no cure. Sometimes the insurance won't cover it. Sometimes the car breaks down for no reason. And rarely do we receive acclaim for doing the right thing. Life is hard... especially for Christians. Jesus said men would hate us because of Him, because we're His followers. And do they ever!
We're all human. We all have flesh that we can't lay aside until we get to heaven. So naturally, we're all going to make mistakes. We will fall; and the world will point and laugh. Then when we do the right thing, they still point and laugh. It was never supposed to be easy, but there is hope. I mean, after all, we aren't working to please the world, are we? We're supposed to work to please God.
I think one of the biggest mistakes we as Christians can make is to get so wrapped up in what we're doing here and now, with the people in our lives, that we lose sight of our First Love. Yes, people are important; and we do need each other (Ecc. 4:12). However, we can become too dependent on others and what they think of us, that we let it influence our actions. We really should only be concerned with what God thinks of what we're doing, not our friends, and especially not the world. And when we're following what God wants for our lives, not everyone is going to like it.
So, if you're like me and sometimes feel like nobody loves you because of who you are, remember who your First Love is. He loves you more than any person possibly can. I leave you once again with a song. "Nobody Loves Me" by Derek Webb.
"I can always tell a liar
And I always know a thief
I know them like my family
Because brother I’m the chief
I’m a dangerous crusader
Because i need to tell the truth
So I’m turning over tables
In my own living room
Then I might nail indictments up
On every door in town
Because it’s not right or safe to let my conscience down
So I don’t care if...
Nobody loves me, nobody loves me
Nobody loves me but you
The truth is never sexy
So it’s not an easy sell
You can dress her like the culture
But she’ll shock ‘em just as well
Because she don’t need an apology for being who she is
And she don’t need your help making enemies
So I don’t care if...
Nobody loves me, nobody loves me
Nobody loves me but you
I’ll do whatever it takes to squeeze us into this wedding gown
I’ll say the words that rattle your nerves
Words like sin and faith alone...
Nobody loves me, nobody loves me
Nobody loves me but you"
