OUR DAILY BREAD : AGREEING TO DISAGREE

[cimi]

MONDAY OCTOBER 29, 2018

THE BIBLE in A YEAR
JEREMIAH 20-21 and 2 TIMOTHY 4
(I inadvertently typed Tuesdays OUR DAILY BREAD so if you are reading BIBLE IN A YEAR
todays reading should be Jeremiah 18-19; and 2 Timothy 3. I will post Mondays tomorrow.


AGREEING TO DISAGREE

READ:
Romans 14:1-13
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Let us therefore
make every effort
to do what leads to
peace. Romans 14:19
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I remember hearing my dad talk about how difficult it was to walk away from unending arguments over differing interpretations of the Bible. By contrast he recalled how good it was when both sides agreed to disagree.

But is it really possible to set aside irreconcilable differences when so much seems to be at stake? That's one of the questions the apostle Paul answers in his New Testament letter to the Romans. Writing to readers caught in social, political, and religious conflict, he suggests ways of finding commone ground even under the most polarized conditions (145-6).

According to Paul, the way to agree to disagree is to recall that each of us will answer to the Lord not only for our opinions but also for how we treat one another in our differences (v.10).

Conditions of conflict can actually become occasions to remember that ther are some things more important than our own ideas__even more than our interpretations of the Bible. All of us will answer for whether we have loved one another, and even our enemies, as Christ loved us.

Now that I think of it, I remember that my dad used to talk about how good it is not just to agree to disagree but to do so with mutual love and respect. __MART DEHANN

**Father, please enable us to be patient and kind with those who don't
agree with us about anything or everything.
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We can agree to disagree__in love.


>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>INSIGHT<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
When we read about the anger of the Lord (Numbers 11:1, 10), it’s important to remember that His anger is not like our own. We’re inclined to lash out in fear, irritability, or a desire to get even. God’s anger is a consuming fire of love that burns in the conscience and results in consequences for those who turn their back on Him. What could give us more reason for gratitude than to know that “the Lord is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love”? (Psalm 145:8).

Mart DeHaan