In this society today, you don’t get a lot of that harsh rejection like you used to, because everybody has been brainwashed to be tolerant:  let everybody have their expression.  Their final response to you will be something like this, “Well that’s so good for you.”  Do you run into that a lot?  “I’m so glad that that is working for you.”  No, it is not my truth.  It’s the truth; amen?  If we can remain patient, if we can remain kind, but be absolute on what the truth of God is, it will take us a long way.

“In everything showing yourself a pattern of good works, in doctrine showing incorruptibleness, gravity, sincerity, be a man of sound speech.”  Here are these admonitions that are given to us as to the character, the fruit of the Spirit that should be manifesting itself in our lives.  Titus 2:14-15 goes on and says, “Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.  These things speak, and exhort, and rebuke with all authority.  Let no man despise thee.”  Again, we see this admonition that after we’ve come into the knowledge of redemption of what it means to be reconciled back unto God, He makes us a peculiar people zealous unto good works, the kindnesses that affect people.

We were talking about thankfulness.  I’ve noticed that, even in the natural, I’ve had people respond to me when in dealing with them you say, “Thank you.”  Somebody will come and people take the attitude of, “I’m in this place of service (whether it’s a restaurant or some kind of a store) and they are there to wait on me.”  It’s become a habit in my life, but it is something in dealing with people, the trips that we’ve taken to the Third World and different things, I treat the maids, the drivers, whoever they might be, the same way I treat whoever the most eminent person is in the place—I treat everybody alike.  If they bring something to us, it’s always, “Thank you.”

Years ago when we’ve been over in different places, especially places where you’re out of the city—it’s amazing the response that people have.  My mind goes back to one incident when we were in Tanzania.  Something had delayed us for a moment, so I slipped off and went to get cold drinks and said, “Be sure to get one for the driver.”  When they came back and were handing out the cold drinks, I gave one to the driver.  You would have thought I gave him a bar of gold, but I think it was more of the fact that somebody recognized him.

Jesus recognizes us all (amen?) and puts the same value on us all.  It doesn’t matter what degrees you have, what your pedigree is, how much money you have, He treats us all the same.  That is how we, as those who are out replicating Him, need to behave ourselves and especially to those of the household of faith, the Scripture says, the goodness of God, the kindness of God.  I mean we’re admonished even to love our enemies (aren’t we?) and to do good to them, how much more, the Scripture says.