The Problem With Ugly People
Ugly people make life difficult for the Christian. It's not just that they are jerks, self-centered, hurtful, or annoying. Sure that's bad enough in itself, but the problem with the ugly person is that their problems become our problems.What I mean is, the Christian has to respond to the ugly person. And the Christian has only one option - to respond in love. Sometimes when dealing with the ugly person, I think myself victorious for dealing with them by retreating, by isolating myself, & not responding in evil, slander, or anger.
But that's not an option, & it's certainly not one to be proud of. Matthew 5:44 spells it out clearly..."LOVE YOUR ENEMY." And sometimes the ugly person isn't your enemy. Sometimes they are someone you love who hurts you deeply & often. Sometimes it's the incessant, babbling, annoying co-worker. Sometimes it's a Christian brother or sister. Sometimes they are the ex-in-law who hurt your loved one & you feel like you want to make them your enemy. But regardless, the Christian has to love.
And therein lies the problem. It's easy to love the loveable people. Jesus said in Matthew 5:46-48, "For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have?...And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others?...You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect."
See, before the ugly person came along to ruin your day, you were just fine in the flesh - living, loving, laughing, because you could in your own strength. But then the ugly person came along & just wouldn't shut up. Or they yelled at you. Or maybe they filed for divorce from your sibling. Or maybe they just ignored you...but now you have to do what you cannot on your own. You have to love them in return. And you cannot. And we now have to stop relying on ourselves, stop what we're doing, & cry out to the Lord, & depend on His Spirit, power, mercy, & grace. And that should be easy, but we have flesh, so it isn't. And we usually just choose to skip that whole stage & focus on the sin of the ugly person. And the reality is, you too are an ugly person.
As pastor Joost Nixon wrote, "Love suffers long...Love suffers with immaturity, with brothers and sisters who grow oh-so-painfully-hurry-up-and-get-out-of-this-stage slowly. Love suffers wrong heads, wrong hearts, wrong actions. Love puts up with all of this, and more. Not once, not twice, but again, and again, and again. Serving, praying for growth, smiling, staying near and not aloof, recognizing that God shows a similar love towards us. Love does all this--and not for just a little while. Love suffers long."
