This is an important question. You might think it is silly but there is a lot of wisdom in it. Trust me. I have failed. Failure is one of the best teachers. There are several categories of people . I will deal with the easiest( and the most pleasant) first. This group would be people who are lashing out from pain. These people will usually have a sweet core. They are like a dog who bites out of fear, not meanness. There is a big difference in these two dogs. This may summarize my whole article.
How do you know if the person is a fear biter or an aggression biter. You have to ask your heart to feel out the heart of that person. If it is a kind heart, then the person is lashing out from pain. You will always be right, if you ask your heart.
Now, we have the second group, the vicious people. I learned about this group by trying to do the above measures with them and having them kick me, again and again. One must feel out this person through interactions. This person cannot be scoped out as easily as the above. It takes more time to feel out an evil, dark heart than a kind one.
A truly evil heart will not respond to kindness. I deal with a few Anti Semites. They will not respond to anything but a fist in their faces. When someone demands that you put a fist in their face, you best do so. One person is going to go down. It is better if it is not you.
There is another category. That is the holier than thou. These types must be better than you( or anyone)) They will not relent because their pride will not allow it. They are very petty and very jealous of others perceived success. They do not think they can get true success on their own. Hence, they will back bite. They may front bite, too. The point is that they will not change without true Divine intervention, of which they are, usually, too proud to accept.
I will get comments which will say that a Born Again Christian should just be nice to everyone. One can try to do so, but one must know what one is dealing with, which is actually the true subject of this article. Indeed, one can be nice to everyone, but one must not be a fool.
Comments?
This was given to me by someone dear to me.
Nobody can act above their level of spiritual comprehension. That’s why people
can be termed “animals” in a sense. If you don’t expect too much from people
then you can’t be hurt by them.
You project your own assessments and aspirations on to people. You assume that
they are as cool and rational as they appear to be. And then, like a niave child who
stuck his hand in a tiger’s cage, you are shocked when their true animal nature bites
you!
Well said, Lon!
Oh, by the way the Apostle Paul described Christians as “Fools for Christ.”
Yep, that is the thing we should be sold out for!