Take It Personally!

I do a lot of apologizing.

Those who apologize have little right to criticize the person they apologize to. And they have little ground to accuse the person they have wronged of insulting them.

There are exceptions to this.

Sometimes when I apologize to people, I hear them say, "Oh, it's okay. I didn't take it personally."

You didn't? Did you take my apology personally?

Really, it's the same thing as if they had said, "Oh, it's okay. I didn't take your actions seriously."

Does God to our actions personally? Does God take our actions seriously?

But it happened that as I was on my way, approaching Damascus about noontime, a very bright light suddenly flashed from heaven all around me, and I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me, `Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?'

And I answered, `Who are You, Lord?' And He said to me, `I am Jesus the Nazarene, whom you are persecuting.'
Acts 22:6-8

Perhaps in Saul's mind he saw a difference between opposing and harming this new sect of believers and opposing and harming God's work on earth.

But whatever Saul was or was not thinking, God took the opposition against His work personally. Very personally indeed.

Not only is it easy to pretend as though our actions have no personal importance to us, it is sometimes considered to be the highest virtue.

"Don't take it personally."

But God takes our words, our thoughts, and our actions very seriously.

Just to name a few examples, Christ said that whatever we do unto the poor we are doing unto Christ himself. The Bible says that those who lend to the poor lend to God. When Annanias and Saphira kept a portion of the money after they sold their house and left another portion at the feet of Peter, he rebuked them saying, "You have not lied to men but to God."

And Christ himself has said that there will be many who will cry out to him, "Lord, Lord" -some of whom have performed miracles in Christ's name and cast out demons- who Christ will tell, "I never knew you. Depart from me, you who practice lawlessness."

And just as God warns us that he takes our actions personally, he also promises to personally recognize us for the things we have done.

And whoever in the name of a disciple gives to one of these little ones even a cup of cold water to drink, truly I say to you, he shall not lose his reward.
Matthew 10:42

In God's economy, there is not a separation between the way we treat the least of people and the way we are treating God.

So we should remember to take our actions seriously, and personally, because God takes our wrongdoings and sins personally. And we should remember also that he takes personally the good things we do to our neighbor and to the least.