8/12/2023 0 Comments Define tender![]() ![]() How can we not forgive others as well ( Matthew 6:14)?įorgiveness keeps us tender, but so does knowing we are loved. Jesus asked Simon, the Pharisee, “Who loved the man the most?” ( Luke 7:42-43) Simon answered, “the one who was forgiven the most.” Our sins against a holy God are like drops of water and they would fill the ocean. The creditor forgave both men their debts. The first man owed a great debt and the second man owed a small debt. Jesus tells the parable in Luke 7:36-50 about two men who owed a creditor money. ![]() One of the things that really helped me move past those hurts caused by others was the idea that God forgave my sin. Staying tender means we choose to love those around us, knowing that our God is our protector and is on our side. Forgiveness means we move on and let God heal our hearts. Forgiveness doesn’t mean we have to forget, sweep under the rug, or let that person back in our lives. We stay tender by not allowing past hurts to keep us from forming relationships with other Christians. It would be easy to be hurt and not allow anyone else to come inside my heart. Over the years I’ve had other people say hurtful things about me, lie about me, distrust me, and dislike me. We stopped speaking and our relationship fractured beyond repair. There was a time when my best childhood friend disappointed me in a huge way. If we sense a hardness in our souls, it might be because we’ve been hurt by others. Ephesians 4:32 says we are to forgive one another. ![]() How do we do this? Paul helps us in the following verses in Ephesians. Especially when it comes to our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, we must remain tender-hearted. Although we can look at our world and easily be jaded, that isn’t what God has for us. Paul encourages us, as Christians, to not only be “tender-hearted” but to be tender to fellow Christians. If we are consuming all of this bad news, we might have the tendency to set up a barrier to keep our hearts safe, because being tender hurts. We can be bombarded with heartbreaking news 24/7 if we want. The dictionary definition for “tender” means to be “delicate or soft.” In our age of the internet and social media, we have the ability to become overwhelmed with the amount of sorrow in our lives. ![]() He speaks about how we should renew our minds, curb our anger, and seek to love one another. Paul moves from the collective church to the people who make up the church. The next section, Ephesians 4:17-32, zooms in to individual believers and how we can build up each other in love. Paul ends that section in Ephesians with verse 16, “From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.” We are to work together to build up each other in love. We may look different, act different, and see the world differently, but we all come together for God’s will. Our goals, habits, and passions should all align with Christ and God’s will. He spends the first few verses focusing on how the church should be unified. and Peter echoes this thought in 1 Peter 3:8, “Finally, all of you, be like-minded, be sympathetic, love one another, be compassionate and humble.” He uses the word “compassionate,” but it is the same word Paul uses in Ephesians for “tender-hearted.” What Does Tender Mean?Įphesians chapter four contains Paul’s teaching on how Christians are supposed to act. Paul says we should, “Be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you” ( Ephesians 4:32, KJV). This isn’t how Christians are to respond to sad news. The other day I was scrolling through social media and realized I had just read three very devastating news articles in a row. Christians can sometimes have the tendency to be “hard” hearted. ![]()
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