Paul wrote to the Ephesians the following: "31 Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamor, and railing, be put away from you, with all malice: 32 and be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving each other, even as God also in Christ forgave you." (Ephesians 4:31-32, ASV 1901)
How hard is this? It can depend. If life is going smoothly, this can be easier. If life is getting a little rough, this can be so much harder. But, these are not conditional commands!
No matter what's going on at work, at school, at home, with your family, your friends, or your own personal comfort, we are called to put away or get rid of bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor (or fighting), evil speaking and malice (bad intentions).
Instead we are to be kind, tenderhearted, and forgiving, because God forgave us. We must remember that as David said, all sins are against God. God forgave us. He's not holding onto these items in vs. 31. Philippians 4:13 reminds us we can do all things through Christ.
Let us all strive to do what these verses say. May God bless you in your efforts. - Robert
P.S. This post in its original format first appeared on the blog Dear Christian www.dear-christian.com
