Germans have a straight forward way of saying things. “Wer Feuer frißt, scheißt Funken” is a German idiom which translated means – He who eats fire s**ts sparks. It’s a warning – he who lives by the sword, dies by the sword. Simply put, weaponry is never the answer.
Receiving Christ as Lord has consequences. Everything is different when we follow Jesus. Following Him means we adjust to Jesus, not the other way around. His is the way of peace while ours is the way of violence. The apostle Peter discovered first-hand that violence does not solve any problems. When soldiers came to arrest Jesus, Peter attacked them with a sword. The Lord’s reaction to his zealous attempts to save His life was dismissive (Matthew 26:52):
‘‘Put your sword back in its place,’ Jesus said to him, ‘for all who draw the sword will die by the sword.’”
Jesus points to the deadly potency of the sword. There is no justification for advancing any cause, even a good one, at gunpoint. On that note, words can be daggers too. Throwing verbal darts at one another can destroy a relationship. So before starting to defend ourselves we should ask the obvious question: what is there to lose when we don’t win the argument? We don’t have to be right all the time – but we know that we will regret it when we use our words as a weapon.
Ironically the way of peace and love has been ridiculed and at times brutally opposed, all to imply that the way of Jesus has no future – and yet the opposite is true: the Lord’s way is the future. The world to come is built on love entirely – love that completely overrides evil – a great reason to celebrate and be thankful.
When we live according to the principles of life and love the kingdom of heaven sprouts and spreads. Jesus builds us up when we follow Him. Rooted in the Lord we are inspired and on fire. You too can jump on that bandwagon and become inspired. There is only one catch – and yes you may have guessed it: You have to let go of that sword.
Thought Of The Day 