A boy had been disobedient. His mother sent him to the corner and said, “You sit there,” to which he responded with folded arms slumped in his chair, “I might be sitting on the outside, but I’m standing on the inside.”
That’s the way we are sometimes. Our hearts are full of willful stubbornness to the will of God. We are full of hate and resentment toward others at times. Someone asked me once, “How do you measure a Christian?” I thought about that. I stumbled across Matthew 5:43-44: “Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy. But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you.”
I thought, “What better way to measure one’s devotion to Christ than the way he treats those who hate him?”
A Baptist pastor named Peter Miller was from a small town in Pennsylvania who lived during the American Revolution. And there was another man who lived there named Michael Wittmann, an evil-minded sort who did all that he could to oppose and humiliate the pastor. He made his life miserable.
One day Michael Wittman was arrested for treason and sentenced to die. At first, Peter Miller thought, “Well, thank goodness the Lord took care of that guy. I didn’t know how much more I could take!” But then he remembered the part of the Bible from Matthew 5, which said, “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” And he was like, “Oops! I guess I blew that one, Lord.” And he decided to travel 70 miles on foot to Philadelphia to plead for the life of the traitor.
He approached General George Washington with the request. And Washington said, “No, Peter. I cannot grant you the life of your friend.”
The old preacher said, “My friend? This guy’s not my friend. He’s the bitterest enemy I have!”
Washington said, “What? You’ve walked 70 miles to save the life of an enemy? That puts things in a different light. I’ll grant your pardon.” And he did.
Peter Miller took Michael Wittman back home, no longer an enemy but a friend. By his act of love, Rev. Peter Miller showed us the difference between merely hearing the Word of God and doing the Word of God.
The true measure of a Christian is not how much he does but how much he loves.
Watch sermons and read sermon texts and other articles at www.tomahawkmbc.com. Listen to Pastor Jack Ward’s sermons on WSIP FM 98.9 every Sunday at 10:30 a.m. Watch his sermons on his Facebook page.