It is right for brothers to forgive brothers. But sometimes we find a brother forgiving someone who has offended him in a very loud, forceful, and deliberate way. He has forgiven generously, but we inwardly feel that something is not right; it seems that the forgiveness is too deliberate; it does not feel like the real thing. This is because he has not touched reality. We may meet another brother who was hurt by someone. He is sad and not rejoicing. Yet he believes that God can never be wrong and that he ought to forgive from his heart. He does not proclaim loudly with his mouth that he is forgiving. He does not show others that he is forgiving. He does not seem as unconcerned as the first one. Yet in the end, he forgives his brother. One senses that this brother is not performing; he is forgiving. He has touched the spiritual reality.
Humility should be something that leaves a good impression in the mind of others. But the humility of some Christians makes others feel that they are striving to be humble. They say with their mouth that they can do nothing, yet one has the feeling that this is “self-chosen lowliness” and “self-imposed...lowliness” (Col. 2:18, 23). It gives one the feeling that what is being expressed is not humility itself. If it is outright pride, one can still call it by its name. But it is hard to pinpoint what this kind of humility really is. One cannot say that it is pride, but neither can one say that it is humility. Outwardly, it looks like humility, but actually it is far from the reality of it. Another brother may not be striving as hard to be humble. But a little remark by him and a spontaneous expression from him exposes others’ pride immediately. Others feel ashamed of their pride; they feel that if anyone is qualified to be proud, this brother should be the one because he has something to be proud of. Yet this brother considers others better than himself, and he seeks their help in a very unpretentious way. This brother has touched the reality of humility.
Let us consider the example of love again. First Corinthians 13 gives us a clear picture of love. “And if I dole out all my possessions to feed others, and if I deliver up my body that I may boast...” (v. 3). Humanly speaking, it is hard to find this kind of love in the world. We can say that there is no greater love than this. Yet Paul continued by saying, “...but do not have love, I profit nothing” (v. 3). This means that it is possible to be without love even when one doles out all his possessions to feed others and delivers up his body that he may boast. In other words, unless he is touching the reality in the Spirit, he merely has outward behavior. It is possible for a brother to dole out all of his possessions to feed others and deliver up his body yet, at the same time, be without love. However, if a brother “gives to one of these little ones only a cup of cold water to drink...he shall by no means lose his reward” (Matt. 10:42). The basic question is not how much or how little one does, but whether or not he has touched reality. The only thing that is real is touching reality through the Spirit of the Lord.
We must see that in God’s eyes we cannot do more than what we are. Some people’s love is great, but it makes others doubt whether the love is real or false. Some Christians have such a great “love” that they seem to be void of any human feelings. It makes others put a question mark on their love. In reading 2 Corinthians, we realize that Paul was misunderstood, slandered, and afflicted with pain and hardship; however, he overcame these things. His victory was the victory of a man, not the victory of an angel. He genuinely overcame, and he was a genuine man. He was a genuine man, and his victory was a genuine victory. Through the Spirit of God, he touched something real. When we read his writings, we cannot help but bow our head and say that here is a man who is not too distant from us. We can almost touch such a man. We feel that he was not among the ranks of Michael or Gabriel; he was not a person living among the cherubim. We feel that he was one we can understand. This is because he had the spiritual reality, and when we touch such a man, we touch life.
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