If You Can Avoid This, Please Do!

Luke 7:48 – Then Jesus said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”

Luke 7:49 – The other guests began to say among themselves, “Who is this who even forgives sins?”

Luke 7:50 – Jesus said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”

A woman came to anoint Jesus with very expensive perfume. She wiped the feet of Jesus with her tears and perfume. She wiped the feet of Jesus using her hair. 

The man hosting Jesus reasoned in his heart that if Jesus was a prophet then he should have known that this woman is a sinner. Jesus surprised the man by countering his thoughts with a story on how forgiveness causes the forgiven to love the forgiver.

After all that, Jesus turned to the woman and told her that her sins are forgiven, she can now go home in peace. The people present were shocked and started murmuring asking themselves how Jesus got authority to forgive sin. Jesus realizing that this may lead to a confrontation, diffused the issues by immediately changing the statement to – your faith has saved you go in peace. Jesus made this change of statement to avoid unnecessary arguments and trouble. If you can also avoid this, please do!

Jesus was a chief guest at a Pharisee’s home. If Jesus had allowed such an argument to ensue, it would have ruined the party. To avoid ruining an ongoing event, Jesus changed the statement. If you can also avoid creating interruptions and ruining on going events, please do!

Jesus knew that this discussion would become a sideshow. Yet sideshows can end up becoming the main show to the disappointment of hosts. Therefore Jesus avoided the sideshows and focused on the agenda at hand. If you can avoid these sideshows, please do!

Sideshows distract us from focusing on the main agenda.  Sideshows are the reason why many people don’t finish what they started very well. Sideshows are the reason why issues can’t be resolved, because the parties involved get caught in non-issues. Jesus immediately avoided the potential sideshows. If you too can avoid these sideshows in everything you do, please do!

Mark 2:5 – When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralyzed man, “Son, your sins are forgiven.”

Mark 2:6 – Now some teachers of the law were sitting there, thinking to themselves,

Mark 2:7 – “Why does this fellow talk like that? He’s blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?”

Mark 2:8 – Immediately Jesus knew in his spirit that this was what they were thinking in their hearts, and he said to them, “Why are you thinking these things?

Mark 2:9 – Which is easier: to say to this paralyzed man, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up, take your mat and walk’?

Mark 2:10 – But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So he said to the man,

Mark 2:11 – “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.”

Mark 2:12 – He got up, took his mat and walked out in full view of them all. This amazed everyone and they praised God, saying, “We have never seen anything like this!”

This was another incident where Jesus proved that He is God, by forgiving sins. Only God can forgive sins. Jesus forgave sins, therefore Jesus is God. God the Son!

The religious leaders of that time were uncomfortable with the fact that Jesus had proven that He is God the Son. They became uncomfortable in their thoughts. They were more likely going to interrupt the meeting Jesus was holding. They were about to delay the healing of the paralytic man. To avoid this unnecessary confrontation, Jesus changed the statement to suit their comfort and still heal the man. If you too can find ways to avoid unnecessary confrontation, please do!

If you can avoid unnecessary confrontation by apologizing, please do. If you can avoid constant bickering, please do. If you can avoid arguments that may never reach a conclusion, please do!

Is there something you can avoid and let others enjoy worship and serving God? Please do. Is there something you can avoid and you will have a good working environment? Please do. Is there something you can avoid and live happily in your marriage and family? Please do. Is there something you can avoid and you will enjoy meeting neighbors and family members? Please do!

Matthew 5:9 – Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.

Matthew 5:11 – “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me.

Matthew 5:12 – Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

God wants us to be peacemakers at all possible costs without compromising the truth and God’s will. If there is something you can do to have peace with others without compromising your relationship with God or accommodating sins or making things worse, please do. If you can bring peace by some action or inaction, please do!

If your opinion will make things worse, then keep it to yourself. If your social media update will rub people the wrong way, then don’t post it. If something will not contribute to peace avoid it. Whatever you can do towards peace, please do! Whatever you can avoid to gain peace, please do!

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