Wednesday, September 9, 2009

Tolerance

In my country, inter-religious marriage is common thingy. I believe other countries do the same. We have different races and religions marry each other because love holds no boundaries. My wife and I are in different religion. She is in Buddhism and I am born again Christian. We have been married some 10 years by next year and we have 2 beautiful girls God has blessed us.

She is serious readers, those people who usually over read with all kind of books. My house in no time turns into a bookshop. Another thing of my wife is she loves creative things such as baking, arts and crafts and writing. As two human being, we have different views in politics, life, way we bring up our little angels, religion, etc….. Talking about religion she has been supportive in my Christian ministry like cooking for cell group, fundraising for church, helping fellow cell members in other issue or even disciplines my angels to pray before sleep. She sometimes questions some teaching about Christianity and compare with real life and her religion. She would sometimes discipline me and remind me about what the bible teaches. I think is a healthy thing to have a wife as understanding and tolerance like her. During Chinese celebration Buddhism will offer food to their Gods and my in laws knows I will not partake any prayed food. They would separate those foods for me. In return, I help to ferry them to their Buddhism celebration. I believe we have a sense of tolerance of own believe and respect of each other religion.

If the world we live in practice like what we do we are in near heaven. However, the reality of religion tolerance is worst than you can imagine. Why tolerance is so difficult to practice. We see that the world has no religious tolerance and we admit it is one major issue constantly challenge by all leaders of this world seeing in mainstream news or television how leaders solve their religion differences by declaring war, killing each other, ethnic cleansing, community caste or even holocaust. How man make it easy way to achieve supremacy in religion and easy way to expect other to follow what they want others to believe. But really does God expect man behave or take the course of action to be that way? How did God handle tolerance?

There are many issues required tolerance and self restraint for us to leave peacefully. No different in Jesus life but the different is He is omnipotent and the level of tolerance He up hold is wisdom.

Let’s look at John 3:17. "For God sent His Son into the world not to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved." Similarly, in the book of Romans, Paul mentioned the same theme: "There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus." Christianity does not carry a message of intolerance or condemnation, but a message of reconciliation and salvation.

Let’s look at how Christ exercised tolerance in ways that amazed the people. There is one instance He encountered during His years of ministry. A woman "caught in the act" of adultery was brought to Him. It was all a ploy. Christ had said He came to fulfill the law. Jewish leaders thought they knew the law, so they decided to confront Jesus with a "simple" case. Under "the law," a woman "caught in the act" had to be killed. (Keep in mind that the people doing the "catching" took her to Christ. They didn't bother following their own interpretation of the law.) In ancient Roman time Jerusalem under Roman empire applied Roman law. Roman laws allowed people to be executed, but only for reasons allowed under Roman laws. Capital offenses under Jewish law didn't count. So what is the ploy? If Christ followed the Jewish law, He would violate Roman law and could be executed for that offense.

Christ demonstrated the message that God had shared since the days of the prophets. "He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?" How Christ turned the tables on His antagonists and made them the Jewish Leader their failures to act justly. To the woman Jesus showed mercy. As she turned to walk away, He told her to go and sin no more. It is another way of saying "walk humbly with your God."

Today's social activists seem to have lost the message and direction to take. Ponder and emulate exactly the same way that Jesus addressed the woman caught in adultery. He would act justly and show mercy. He would tell the person to go and sin no more. He would leave a message of love and tolerance.

Where is tolerance? It is not in today's social activism. It is in the Christian walk and way of life. If God is not tolerance with us imagine we will be wipe out like Noah's time.

Take time to ponder yourself what makes you so fire up. What makes you such indifferent? Is this necessary for you to do so or you can just make it immaterial to your life? Jesus teaches us to love one another and forgive one another. Even Jesus has to go through the trial like everyone else. Forgive one another as God forgive you.


God Bless

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