Wherefore receive ye one another, as Christ also received us to the glory of God. Romans 15:7

What do you concentrate on when you have been offended by someone? So often people who have done something offensive or hurtful to others aren't even aware of how they are being perceived by others. We all want others to believe the best about us. With that being said, we need to reverse that and believe the best about others. I remember a rule that a teacher wrote on the blackboard at the beginning of a school year when I was in high school. “ Believe only half of what you see and none of what you hear.” I've have never forgotten that after these so many years and have applied it to situations that have presented themselves for me to judge.

In Romans 15:7, the apostle Paul gave us a helpful word to assist us in our endeavor to walk in harmony and peace with other people. “….receive ye one another as Christ…”  The meaning in the Greek is to receive with a welcoming attitude. The question is , how did Jesus receive us? The answer to that question is that He received you just as you were at the time you came to Him. He has told us that He has chosen us;

John 15:16 tells us, “ Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you. ”

He told His Disciples that He chose them with their defects, problems, fears, addictions and He received them with His arms wide open. JUST LIKE HE RECIEVES US! 

We are to obey this command from Him and for us to do that we'll have to do a lot of forgiving and overlooking in this life's journey. Could it be possible for us to quit concentrating on the faults and flaws of others and to start concentrating on how to be more forgiving and merciful. Sometimes it is really not easy to overlook the flaws of others. Yet Jesus said , Matthew 7:3-5 “ And why worry about a speck in your friend's eye when you have a log in your own? 4 How can you think of saying, ‘Let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,' when you can't see past the log in your own eye? 5 Hypocrite! First get rid of the log from your own eye; then perhaps you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend's eye.” 

This is a great way to deal with emotional disappointments and nerve problems.

So, lets determine today to give people the same forgiveness and mercy that Jesus extended to us!

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