Respector of Men?

God is no respector of Men (persons) Romans 2:11….

What does that mean? Over the years I’ve heard several sermons on this famous scripture.

But basically it means that God is totally sovereign, giving grace freely to whom he will. He does not care of your eartly condition, your hereditary descent, your outward circumstances. He has no regard in terms of his grace for those things that distinguish you from anyone else. His grace is not attracted by anything good in you. Neither is his grace repelled by anything evil in you.

Now, know that this verse does not mean that God treats all men alike in providence and grace. His grace is his own and he dispenses it according to his own sovereign will and pleasure.

This text does not teach that as long as a person is sincere he will be saved, no matter what his religion is. All who do not know Christ are lost.

So, if He is our example and we all want to be more like Christ why don’t we follow this example at all times and in all circles of life?

Our love, generosity, care and fellowship must not be determined by a person’s position, wealth, race, social standing, age, or gender. We are not to court the rich or the poor. We must learn to treat all men alike.

During my visit to Guatemala we visited the town of Antigua. As we were walking around the town square I noticed an old indigenous woman sitting outside the restaurant begging for alms. Then I noticed a tourist stop and take several pictures while this poor women held her hand out to passers-by, I stopped and said to the tourist in a very light manner not to offend her ”you know she charges for a picture”? The tourist looked up at me and said “of course I will give her something” and she place some coins in her hand. Now, I don’t know why I intervened,(except that I always do somehow) but something welled up inside of me and I felt here was a poor woman that probably for the most part is overlooked on a daily basis by hundreds of people because of her status of being indigenous and poor…and here was a rich tourist, comparitively speaking, taking a picture of her status and totally ignoring her hand. Hmmm, my inside was erupting like a volcano....but I am happy to report that I was gentle and christianlike....(really)!

As we gather in our circle of co-workers, friends, social groups, church groups etc… lets care for one another with the respect as human beings we need to have for one another.

Can you learn from someone that is younger?
Can you, or do you, have a close relationship with someone of a different race?
Can you listen and be patient with an elderly relative or acquaintance?
Can you treat the poor with the same respect that you give a rich person?
Can you be patient with a person that does not think like you?

See, we all have our set boundaries… and we all judge a book by its cover…. But in reality, it is not a very nice thing to do. We limit ourselves and miss out what others different from us can bring to our awareness.

I have a friend that is a few years younger than I am (10 or 12 years) and she has a small child. What do we have in common? We love the Lord passionately, we respect each other, she is very wise and I’m amazed at how wise. I look back to where I was at her age and man she has me beat by a long shot. So I listen to her heart and do learn from her. The fact that she is younger should and does not faze me.

All I’m saying is… let’s live like Christ did while he was on earth. He loved everyone, he did not Judge the women at the well…..he helped her. He loved her and showed her a better way of living. Her life was transformed just by that 15 minute encounte with Jesus. He did not care that she had been promiscuous, or that she drank alcohol, or that she was dressed inappropriately, or that she was a little strange, or that she had a bad attitude, or that she was bitter, etc.
Let’s love like He loves……