Attitude May Be Everything

Luke 9:43-56 And they were all amazed at the mighty power of God. But while they wondered every one at all things which Jesus did, he said unto his disciples, Let these sayings sink down into your ears: for the Son of man shall be delivered into the hands of men. But they understood not this saying, and it was hid from them, that they perceived it not: and they feared to ask him of that saying. Then there arose a reasoning among them, which of them should be greatest. And Jesus, perceiving the thought of their heart, took a child, and set him by him, And said unto them, Whosoever shall receive this child in my name receiveth me: and whosoever shall receive me receiveth him that sent me: for he that is least among you all, the same shall be great. And John answered and said, Master, we saw one casting out devils in thy name; and we forbad him, because he followeth not with us. And Jesus said unto him, Forbid him not: for he that is not against us is for us. And it came to pass, when the time was come that he should be received up, he stedfastly set his face to go to Jerusalem, And sent messengers before his face: and they went, and entered into a village of the Samaritans, to make ready for him. And they did not receive him, because his face was as though he would go to Jerusalem. And when his disciples James and John saw this, they said, Lord, wilt thou that we command fire to come down from heaven, and consume them, even as Elias did? But he turned, and rebuked them, and said, Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of. For the Son of man is not come to destroy men’s lives, but to save them. And they went to another village.

Attitude is an expression of what we think and feel about a person, thing or situation. It's a reaction of the way we choose to fit what we know together in our minds. Our perception of truth, people and situations project our attitude. Attitude is also affected by our predispositions which are decisions or presumptions we've already made about persons, things or situations. We need to realize that attitude is important in being a proper influence. If we hope to truly introduce people to Jesus Christ, having the right attitude is all important.

We stand on the brink of the return of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. True Christians have the difficult task of standing for the truth, against all that's false in religion, politics and society. I would like to remind you of our purpose as given to Paul by Jesus in Acts 26:17-18 ...I send thee, To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me. To open the eyes of others we're going to have to stand out in a good way. Our attitude is going to have a great deal to do with it.

Consider that love itself is not the answer to our problems. Some have become convinced it is. Love will help us reach out and may in certain situations cause people to really listen to what we say, but love won't change their eternal, spiritual, moral and intellectual condition. Only truth can do that. In Ephesians chapter four, Paul, after having spoken of the importance of being well established in the teachings and doctrine of Christ said we should speak the truth in love. Paul also said in Titus 3:10 that a man who clings to false doctrine after two warnings should be rejected. Love is important, but truth is more important.

How we share truth is very important. Attitude may be everything. Often the difference between a Christian and someone in total rebellion against God is only what they believe, their attitudes may be much the same. People who believe the Bible should have a Godly attitude. 1 Peter 2:15-16 For so is the will of God, that with well doing ye may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men: As free, and not using your liberty for a cloke of maliciousness, but as the servants of God. Our attitude and actions should serve to disarm those that hate us. We must learn to share the truth with others in a way that would rob them of a logical path to classify us as a threat. We may not be able to accomplish such a task for all Christianity, but we can distinguish ourselves as a true servant and messenger of the Most High God.

Consider our text, we see at least four wrong attitudes Jesus was trying to correct in His disciples. 1. The disciples did not posses an attitude that would allow them to consider Jesus being taken prisoner and crucified, but that's why He came. Such is often the case even for modern day Christians who claim faith in God, but they simply don't have the disposition to accept what must happen to accomplish God's will. Only a close communion with God can prepare us for such things. 2. They argued with one another about who would be the greatest. This corrupt attitude was something Jesus tried to set right many times, but most notably after the last supper. John 13:4-17 He riseth from supper, and laid aside his garments; and took a towel, and girded himself. After that he poureth water into a bason, and began to wash the disciples' feet, and to wipe them with the towel wherewith he was girded. Then cometh he to Simon Peter: and Peter saith unto him, Lord, dost thou wash my feet? Jesus answered and said unto him, What I do thou knowest not now; but thou shalt know hereafter. Peter saith unto him, Thou shalt never wash my feet. Jesus answered him, If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me. Simon Peter saith unto him, Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head. Jesus saith to him, He that is washed needeth not save to wash his feet, but is clean every whit: and ye are clean, but not all. For he knew who should betray him; therefore said he, Ye are not all clean. So after he had washed their feet, and had taken his garments, and was set down again, he said unto them, Know ye what I have done to you? Ye call me Master and Lord: and ye say well; for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; ye also ought to wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you. Verily, verily, I say unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord; neither he that is sent greater than he that sent him. If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them. The greater servant is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. 3. They had the attitude that if you're not part of our group then you're in the wrong. While Jesus was discussing with Peter what Peter should do we find this in John 21:20-22 ...Peter, turning about, seeth the disciple whom Jesus loved following; which also leaned on his breast at supper, and said, Lord, which is he that betrayeth thee? Peter seeing him saith to Jesus, Lord, and what shall this man do? Jesus saith unto him, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? follow thou me. We should not worry ourselves about or judge other servants of Christ. We should focus on doing God's will ourselves and let God deal with His servants. That's the general rule. We forfeit much peace by meddling in things which are not our concern. 4. Wishing punishment on the disobedient. The time had come for Jesus to go to the cross, pay for our sin by shedding His blood, lay down His life, rise from the dead and ascend into heaven. He set out with His disciples toward Jerusalem. His journey would take Him through Samaria. He sent disciples ahead to prepare the way before them, places to stop, eat, sleep, rest, etc. In at least one village of Samaria the people did not want Jesus to come because His destination was Jerusalem, the Samaritans and Jews hated each other. The attitude of James and John was to ask permission of Jesus to call fire down from heaven and destroy them. We know this was wrong because Jesus rebuked them. The attitude and reaction we see in all four examples was of the flesh, not of the Spirit of God. How often do we make these same mistakes? Probably more than we realize. Gal 5:19-21 Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; ...hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife...and such like... When you act under the influence of the flesh in the application of spiritual truth, you have religious fanaticism at best and satanic leadership at worst. Such things are easily and rightly condemned. We don't need to find ourselves caught up in them. Gal 5:24 ...they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. Walking and living after the Spirit of God is the characteristic of God's people.

Continued in first comment below.

 

Consider the rebuke of Jesus in example four: “Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of”. The words “know not” mean cannot tell, perceive, see or behold. The word “spirit” is the same word used to describe either the Spirit of God or the spirit of man and also speaks of the deposition, thoughts and feelings which influence, fill and govern a person. Jesus is saying to His disciples they don't perceive the correct behavior they should have because the thoughts and feelings which fill and govern them are wrong. They posses the wrong disposition and are led by the wrong spirit. If our knowledge and perception is not result of enlightenment by the Holy Spirit we will not act properly.

An example of the disposition of God: Matt 5:44-48 ...I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same? And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so? Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect. Our greatest failure in seeking to influence people in often that our thoughts and ways are not compatible with God's. We can claim obedience, but have entirely the wrong attitude and actions, just like James and John. James was martyred early according to Acts 12:2, but John learned something in his long life. He went from requesting to sit at the right hand of Jesus in the kingdom to identifying himself simply as the disciple whom Jesus loved. I would say that's quite a change in attitude.

Paul gave Timothy some important advice about attitude in 2 Tim 2:24-26 ...the servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient, in meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth; and that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will. That's the general rule which should govern our attitude toward those in rebellion against God.

Fear can also play a big role in our attitude. If we are afraid of change, afraid of failure, afraid of admitting we have been wrong, or even afraid of the people we're trying to reach our attitude can be wrong. Peter wrote in 1 Pet 3:15-16 But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear: having a good conscience; that, whereas they speak evil of you, as of evildoers, they may be ashamed that falsely accuse your good conversation in Christ. We are to, with good behavior and good works, put to silence the ignorance of foolish men who would classify a Bible believer like our self a threat to society. We won't be able to do that with the wrong attitude. Both liberal and conservative leaders in our country seem busy trying to classify the threats that will destroy us. If we're not careful we will allow both sides to fit Bible believers into that category. Some say they're to old to change. Consider that you're never to old to be an influence and never to old to be classified a threat and killed.

Sometimes a wrong attitude is because of a failure to correctly identify the enemy. 1 Pet 5:8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour. Adversary means opponent or enemy. Devil means false accuser or slanderer. Devour means to swallow or drown. The devil is our enemy and his lies are meant to swallow us up and drown us. He's smarter than we are, he's more powerful than we are and he's a master of deception, but those things shouldn't scare us. We should understand that God has provided for us a way to win every battle against the devil. Eph 6:12-13 ...we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Our battle is not against men, it's against the one who fills the world with darkness and obscurity. Our fight is not against people, but against the author of spiritual wickedness and the lies he spews out. Therefore, God has provided us armor to wear so we can withstand the wicked one.

The general rules that should govern our attitude as a child of God are quite clear. Speak the truth in love, in meekness instruct those that oppose themselves, if possible disarm the enemies of God with your behavior. Our attitude is going to make a big difference in whether we can present members of our society an alternative to the religion and political ideology that's destroying our country.