Articles
Acknowledging Others
From the very beginning of the Bible, God acknowledges others. For example, God speaks to Adam and Eve, communicating to them that which is best for their lives. In the world of the Ancient Near East, this separates the true God of Israel from the false gods of other nations. The God of Israel is a God who honors others and seeks the best interest of creation. This is not necessarily the case for all the other so-called gods.
Perhaps the best statement of God’s character is found in the book of Exodus. We read in Exodus 34:6-7,
The LORD, the LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children and the children’s children to the third and the fourth generation.
The thing that separates the God of Israel is the first part of this statement. God is merciful, gracious, patient, good, truthful, and forgiving. Throughout the rest of the Old Testament, this statement is repeated multiple times as Israel reflects on the character of God.
In the Gospels, Jesus comes to show us the Father. Jesus’ life is one which literally fleshes out the teachings of the Old Testament. Jesus embodies mercy, grace, patience, goodness, truth, and forgiveness. As part of this, we see Jesus acknowledging those who were often overlooked. Especially in the Gospel of Luke, which sets the stage for the book of Acts, Jesus is one who pays attention to the ones who were often on the margins of the world. He treats people mercifully and graciously.
Ultimately, the cross is the greatest expression of those things that God told Moses long ago. At the cross, we see a God who is “merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin.” This should never be something that we overlook or take for granted. Furthermore, it should transform us into people who, more and more, take on the characteristics of God.
Is this seen in our lives? Do we treat others like Jesus would? Do we, through the way we acknowledge others, show them the Father? Every day, let’s try to truly be ambassadors of light in a world which seems to grow increasingly dark.
