John 13:15 For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you.
This scripture takes place at the feast of the Passover, before Christ went to Gethsemane. After the feast, He washed the feet of the twelve apostles and bade them to do the same unto others.
To me, this means we should serve the people around us and do what we can to help people. Christ made such a wonderful example here. He knew that Judas was about to betray him, but He washed Judas’ feet all the same. We should be like unto Christ and still serve, help and be kind to those who treat us wrong, whether it be an actuality or just our perception.
This can be hard sometimes. For me, it’s my natural inclination to avoid the people who are being mean to me. I’m really not a confrontational person and most of the time I’d just really like to avoid the issue, but that doesn’t fix it and it makes me unhappy and somewhat resentful towards the people who are unkind to me. My mom and dad have been really great in teaching me to serve the people who are unkind to me at work. Sometimes it backfires and makes them more mad, but most of the time it works and makes the problems go away.
While it may not always turn out the way I’d like it to, I feel a peace within myself because I know I did the right thing and have acted in a way that Christ would want me to act. I know I tried and put forth the effort and that’s the example Christ set. He loved all the people around Him and served them, no matter how they treated Him. His heart was full of peace and love due to his service towards those around Him.
That’s so amazing to me because sometimes I have a hard time developing a desire to go above and beyond for the people who just say mean things to me, yet Christ served every day the people who mocked Him, spit upon Him, tried to trap Him in His words and eventually would crucify Him. He knew all this was coming, yet He served with love and kindness anyways. If Christ can develop such love for people who were doing that, I think I can help out people who only speak unkindly to and about me.
Another strong example of Christ’s life was forgiveness. He forgave EVERYONE He came in contact with, not just those who apologized for being unkind or who were never unkind in the first place. It’s really hard to forgive people who are mean sometimes. Especially when you’ve done nothing to deserve their unkindness, but Christ set the example that we should forgive them and love them anyways. With all that was done to Him and how He was treated in His life without having done anything to wrong anyone, He still found it in His heart to fully and completely forgive each and every person who said or did anything against Him. Even those who hung Him on the cross, He asked the Father to forgive them. Having set an example such as this, how can we ever say that it is impossible to forgive anyone?
So, today’s thought is that we should strive to follow the example of Christ to serve those around us, including the people who do not always treat us the best, and to forgive those who mistreat us, no matter the offense. It may be hard at first, but in the end we will have peace in our hearts and be more and more like Christ.
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