Reactions

Isaac Newton was a famous physicist, mathematician, and theologian among other things.  What does that mean?  He was smarter than you and I put together.

He is known for coming up with Newton's Laws of Motion.   His third law of motion says the following: "To every action there is always an equal and opposite reaction".  In the physical world that means that if Johnny pushes (action) Susie, Susie will fall to the ground (reaction).  

But there is another reaction that Newton didn't really discuss --- and that's "emotional reaction".  This is when Susie stands up and yells nasty things at Johnny.

In his book Primal, Pastor Mark Batterson writes "It's much easier to act like a Christian than it is to react like one.  Anyone can put on an act.  But your reactions reveal what is really in your heart.  And if you love God with all your heart  you won't just act like it.  You'll react like it."

How do you react when you feel wronged or disrespected?  This is what Solomon wrote about reactions:

A fool is quick-tempered, but a wise person stays calm when insulted.
Proverbs 12:16 NLT

Do you "react" like a Christian, or only "act" like one?

Popular posts from this blog

Humility

Prov 12:1 says "he who hates correction is stupid." As I read this verse this morning I was reminded of the new series we are preaching on at the Rock: "Greatness - The Way Up is Down". Jesus said "...whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all." Mark 10:43-44 So if we want God to exalt us and be men and women of influence, we must humble ourselves (bring ourselves low) in our relationship to God and others. Prov 18:12 reads "Before his downfall a man's heart is proud, but humility comes before honor." What does a humble man look like? At a minimum a humble man: is Teachable (allows others to mold his life) is a Servant (serves others both physically and spiritually) is Submissive (submits to proper authority - both divine and human) Puts Others First (doesn't grab the biggest and best slice of pizza first) Seeks Advice (doesn't think or act like he's a "...
Read more

Pseudo vs. Real Transformation

The Life You’ve Always Wanted by John Ortberg (My Thoughts) Chapter 2 Pages 30-34 – “…if we are not marked by greater and greater amounts of love and joy, we will inevitably look for substitute ways of distinguishing ourselves from those who are not Christians.” This is called “pseudo transformation” – fake transformation that focuses on outside appearances rather than interior change. This is why: Jesus focused on the heart – the center of mankind. The greatest commands were to Love God and Love People. Paul said that if we can do great and miraculous deeds but don’t have love we are nothing (1 Cor. 13). John said that “Everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, for God is love.” (1 John 4:7-8) If we focus only on exterior deeds to determine spirituality, we will harm ourselves by buying into pseudo-transformation rather than what Jesus wanted – real transformation of the heart (loving God and loving people) which expresses itself by doin...
Read more

God's Looking for a Few Good Men

As I was reading through Job this morning I began to realize how deep this man's character was. His integrity and uprightness came from the core of his inner being - and he knew it. When his friends misdiagnosed his suffering as a result of his wickedness and secret sins he responded to their verbal accusations by saying: "I will never concede that you are right; I will defend my integrity until I die. I will maintain my innocence without wavering. My conscience is clear for as long as I live." Job 27:5-65 NLT As I kept reading I noticed the righteous character of Job (especially as seen in chapters 29 and 31). Job was a man: of compassion of justice who would not lust after women who was honest (without deceit or falsehood) who was faithful to his wife who treated his employees with dignity and fairness who helped the poor, the widow, and the fatherless who trusted God for his security and not his wealth who did not worship any other god who did not hold grudges nor...
Read more