Give Others a Chance

Have you ever met someone that you do not like? Maybe there was someone at school who was really cliquey and was quite rude to you. Each time you heard that person’s name, you would have negative thoughts about them. You might go years without seeing them, but that old resentment still linged. Then another classmate tells you that they ran into that person and that now years later that same person who used to be rude is really nice. What would your attitude be at such news? Would you be overjoyed, or would you say, that you still don’t trust them because of what you have always thought about that person?
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Do we realize how ungodly it is when we let our dislike for someone shape our image of them? I have a friend who the first few times I met him, I thought he was really rude. Based on my first impression, I did not like him much, but as I got to know him, I realized that I was simply taking his sense of humor wrong and now I really enjoy talking with him and love him dearly. Imagine the friendship that I would have missed out on if I had never gotten beyond my first impressions of him.
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Imagine if you developed a dislike for someone and continued to harbor those feelings for the rest of you life and never gave that person the same chances that you would give to others.
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As Christians, we need to understand that such attitudes of continued bitterness toward others are sinful. In fact, they are very worldly and fall into the category of the works of the flesh listed in Galatians 5. “Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.” (Galatians 5:19-21)
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If you continue to harbor bitterness toward another person, words like hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresy, and envy, likely characterize your attitude. That is evidence that your attitudes are not coming from God, but from your sinful heart instead. Let us not forget that, “the heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?” (Jeremiah 17:9) We can so easily be deceived into thinking that our attitudes are correct as we see the sin in others lives, but let us also remember Romans 3:23, “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.” If others began to focus only on our faults it would be easy for them to never give us a chance either.
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God’s way is much better. It is characterized by the fruits of the Spirit. “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.” (Galatians 5:22-23) If there is someone that you do not like, replace the works of the flesh with love, joy and peace toward that person. Then be patient and gentle with them. Treat them with goodness, faithfulness, meekness, and self control.
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Let us not forget James 2:8, “If ye fulfil the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, ye do well.”