Joe meets 1Peter 3:9

Ok, funny story; however, after I read 1 Peter 3:9 I realized how inane it really was.

Joe works in an office building. When he has to emerge from his office to use the bathroom down the hall, strange behaviors of people disturb him. This story has to do with a man who talks on his phone whilst on the toilet. While it is perturbing to listen to someone talk on the phone whilst on the toilet, most people would probably just leave and think, “That guy is so rude.” Joe, however, did not. When he was about to leave, he flushed every toilet and turned on all the sinks and dryers. That was retaliation #1. Joe also admitted that he has discussed, talking on phones in the bathroom, to the very people who talk on their phones in the bathroom. They don’t care if people don’t like it, so they proceed to talk on their phones whilst on the toilet. That was retaliation #2. This bathroom fiasco could go on forever. Other similar cases go on everyday in Joe's office building. From not flushing toilets to talking on cell phones whilst on the pot, fiascos abound in this small office building. For Joe, it is easy to get sucked into that retaliation game. No matter how silly it may be.

Later I read 1 Peter 3 and got stuck on verse 9. “Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing.” This same idea is related to us throughout the Bible: “Love one another,” “Be kind to your neighbor,” “Turn the other cheek,” etc… While Joe’s retaliations may seem silly, it really is repaying insult with insult.

We all have repaid insult with insult in some way, shape, or form. So often we retaliate without thinking about what God wants us to do. That’s one of the reasons WWJD became so big. People knew they should think about what God wanted them to do before acting. You can find “What Would Jesus Do” stamped on books, bags, jewelry, and even in some stores, on candy. But even that phrase has lost its meaning and is left as an identity logo.

So fellow Christians, what can we do to stop ourselves before we retaliate without thinking? 2 Peter 1:2-4 explains it in better words than I can. “Grace and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.” In short, God has given us the tool we need to know what to do. The Bible. If you know the Bible, you will think first. So, as James 1:22 puts it, “Do what it says.”