Bullying: Self-esteem and God

Bullying is a continuous cycle that starts when someone is so insecure that they feel the need to hurt someone. Often, the person who was bullied is left with low self esteem and he feels the need to put others down to make himself look better. People bully other people because they think that if they turn the attention to someone else, people won’t hurt or talk about them. They think that it will make them be more popular, but actually it just ruins their reputation. God talks about bullying in Luke 6:29 “If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other also. If someone takes your cloak, do not stop him from taking your tunic.” God never says to get even with them, call them a bad name, or hold a grudge. Jesus was constantly bullied. He was spit on, ridiculed, mocked, and whipped. He was even crucified, but still He never was mean to them. While He was on the cross, He said “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” Even while His enemies were treating him horribly, all Jesus could think of is that He wanted to see them in heaven. Our goal also is that we want to see all people in heaven. Our life is not to focus on trying to be the most popular person. Our purpose here on earth is to tell others of our Savior so that they too will be in heaven. We are reminded of this in Matthew 28: 19 “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” Our relationship to others should always be one of love so we don’t put obstacles in the way of witnessing and spreading His Word. When we see someone else being hurt with words or actions, it is our job to stick up for them. If we don’t defend them, we commit the sin of omission, and we are as guilty as the bully. We need to speak well of each other, showing love and kindness to all people including the bully to help lead him to repentance. When we feel the urge to hurt someone with our words or actions, we should remember God’s command to love one another. We need to follow
God’s command in Matthew 7:12 “So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you.” God has given us the perfect example of love by sending His Son to die for our sins. We need to show that same love to others through our words and actions. We need to think, if Jesus was in my exact position, what would He do? Obviously Jesus wouldn’t do anything that would hurt someone, but He’d always show love, compassion, and forgiveness. God made each of us special. Why then would we want to make fun of the way God made someone else? Our lives should always reflect
Christ’s love for us. 1Peter 3:8 -10 “Live in harmony with one another; be sympathetic, love as brothers, be compassionate and humble. Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing. For, ‘ Whoever would love life and see good days must keep his tongue from evil and his lips from deceitful speech.’”