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Long-suffering, March 6
Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of
mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering.
Colossians 3:12
.
The Captain of our salvation made Himself of no reputation, and took
upon Him the form of a servant, in order that humanity might be allied to
divinity. Man is to represent Christ. He is to be long-suffering toward his
fellow men, to be patient, forgiving, and full of Christlike love. He who is
truly converted will manifest respect for his brethren; he will do as Christ
has commanded. Jesus said, “A new commandment I give unto you, That ye
love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this
shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another”
(
John 13:34, 35
). Where the love of Christ abounds in the soul, there will be
an expression of that love that will be understood by the world....
Not all who name the name of Christ are one with Christ. Those who do
not have the Spirit and the grace of Christ are none of His, no matter what
may be their profession. By their fruits ye shall know them. The customs and
practices that are after the order of the world do not carry out the principles of
God’s law, and therefore do not breathe of His Spirit nor express His character.
Christlikeness will be revealed only by those who are assimilated to the divine
image. Only those who are being molded through the operation of the Holy
Spirit are doers of the Word of God, and express the mind and the will of
God.
There is counterfeit Christianity in the world as well as genuine Christian-
ity. The true spirit of a man is manifested by the way in which he deals with
his fellow man. We may ask the question, Does he represent the character
of Christ in spirit and action, or simply manifest the natural, selfish traits of
character that belong to the people of this world? Profession weighs nothing
with God. Before it is everlastingly too late for wrongs to be righted, let
each one ask himself, “What am I?” It depends upon ourselves as to whether
we shall form such characters as will constitute us members of God’s royal
family above.—
The Review and Herald, April 9, 1895
.
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