Matthew 5:13-16 calls us lights of the world and the salt of the earth, and to stand out as we should requires a certain amount of boldness. This is not an arrogant boldness, but rather it is a self-confidence regarding our hope and our faith. One example of such boldness involves Peter and John in Acts 3 and 4. The story begins simply enough with Peter and John healing a beggar of his paralysis, but soon people in the city take notice. Peter and John take this opportunity to preach Christ, and they get arrested for their testimony. The officials and religious leaders threaten the pair and tell them to avoid preaching Christ any more. At the end of chapter 4, they continue in prayer and in teaching, living boldly in the face of oppression.
Examples of Boldness
In Acts 3:11-16, we find Peter and John in the midst of a large crowd, in their own temple, accusing the congregated mass of crucifying Christ and convicting their hearts to repentance. This is a boldness of standing in our convictions in uncomfortable situations, but this is not license to tear others apart. We see the disciples standing firm, but they do so in love.
Instead of leaving this group with the accusations, Peter continues to talk about how to be restored to God. Again, this is not the friendliest of audiences to hear these words, but Peter persists. We also have opportunities to help others align their lives with God’s word, but we have to be willing to face uncomfortable situations and ears that may not always kindly receive what we have to say.
Finally, in the presence of those who could crucify them as easily as they did Jesus, Peter and John stand by their testimony and convict those officials for the role they played in Jesus’ murder. Peter’s defense of the truth give these leaders pause, and the disciples are simply left with an unheeded threat to speak of Jesus no longer.
Our Opportunities for Boldness
God has been forgotten in many ways in our culture. In some venues and on some topics, taking God’s side is not a respected opinion. When these situations arise, will we back down, or will we be like Peter and John, who respond by saying, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge, for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard,” in Acts 4:19-20?
If we are truly living Christ and standing for truth, we cannot be content with flying under the radar. We may upset others. We may face ridicule. We may face difficulties in the relationships we have, but we must decide who we are pleasing – God or man. We have to take a hard look at the opportunities we have to share and live God’s word, facing those situations with confidence in the faith and hope we have in our God.
The Bible contains several passages concerning being sober-minded – I Peter 5:8, I Peter 4:7, Titus 2:2 and 2:6, and I Timothy 3:2 among these. The point is that our thoughts are to be under God’s control as much as our actions. I Peter 1:13 tells us to prepare our minds for action, being sober-minded with our hope in Christ. We are to think and act like God thinks. Our minds have to be where His is.
Matthew 16:21 begins a story of Peter claiming he will stand between Jesus and death, but Jesus rebukes Him fairly strongly, telling Peter his mind is set on the things of this world rather than the things of God. In other words, Peter is thinking like man instead of like God. Jesus then speaks to His apostles about true self-denial, to align our minds and values with God’s.
Paul, in Romans 12:1-2, says we should not act like the world. Instead we should be living sacrifices, not conformed to the world, but transformed through renewing our minds. This is what being sober-minded is about – thinking like God thinks. That is our reality.
Challenges to Sober-Mindedness
What things can impair our judgment? What can take our minds off of our Lord? Part of it comes down to what we put in our minds with television, movies, our music, sites we visit. Along with filling our own minds, we are filling our family’s minds with the same content. We should always be cautious about this because God expects our minds to be under control, and we can become drunk on poor influences through the media we consume.
Also, in Galatians 5:19-21, Paul covers many activities we will fall into when out of control. Among these, Paul discusses physical drunkenness. I Corinthians 5:11 covers similar activities, warning us to even avoid people who live such lifestyles. Ephesians 5:18 instructs us to fill ourselves with the Spirit rather than drunkenness and these other poor qualities. Once we abandon sober-mindedness, it becomes easier and easier to lose all self control.
Maintaining a Sober Mind
This means we may have to avoid attending some parties we might want to go to. This means we may have to block some sites we’ve grown used to visiting. This means we may have to simply turn the television or radio off. In some cases, we may have to ask for help from our church family; Galatians 6:2 reminds us we are responsible for each other, bearing each others' struggles and burdens. We may even need to seek treatment in some cases, depending on the seriousness of our challenges.
I Peter 4 tells us Jesus faced all of the same challenges we do and that it is possible to think like He did, not subjecting to the tyranny of our own desires but subjecting ourselves to the will of God. That life will be one free of the burden of guilt and one with a clear mind. I Peter 3:13-16 reminds us to live with a clear conscious, with thoughts and minds prepared for God’s service at all times. We live sober lives because of what Jesus did for us and because we want to be closer to Him, and we want to be like Him.
I want to challenge you to do something today – or, rather, to stop doing something, as the case may be. I want you, me, us to stop throwing people away. Just stop. Don’t do it anymore. Take that proverbial garbage bin we carry around in our psyches, and toss it in the recycling bin. When we look around at those around us – at our friends, our colleagues, our coworker, our peers, our waiters and waitresses, our telemarketers – we need to stop seeing something that’s disposable and worthless and instead see something to be treasured and preserved.
I guess something needs to be cleared up first, though. What do I mean by “throwing people away?” It’s simple. Someone says, or does, or condones, or writes something we don’t like, and that’s it. Suddenly, that person is trash. They are anathema. It may be something they said in a planning meeting; it may be a comment they made in Bible class; it may be a political view they have; it may just be that they had the audacity to disagree and hurt our feelings. Whatever it is, we hold onto that event like a precious treasure, and we then cut that person out of our lives.
We effectively throw people away for the various petty reasons we have, and it has to stop. People see these behaviors among us, and they don’t see a people of peace. They don’t see a nation of priests. No, they see Pharisees. They see fools. They see a people of hate and resentment, and who would want anything to do with that? What do we do to ourselves? When we start throwing people away, we start throwing away the divine. We remove the Prince of Peace and Mercy from our lives and instead enthrone an idol of bitterness and hatred – an idol that is much harder to serve than our Lord of forgiveness.
Disposable Individuals of the New Testament There are a few people in the New Testament about whom I have to wonder: if they did these things to any of us, would we toss them aside?
John Mark. In Acts 13:13, we see John Mark abandon during the first of Paul’s missionary journeys. We aren’t really given a reason, but we can see Paul is still upset about it in Acts 15:37-39, even to the point of parting ways with Barnabas. That could have been the end of the story. We could look at that and feel justified in our eternal feuds, but that’s not the end. Some time later, in II Timothy 4:11, Paul calls this same deserter “useful to me for ministry.” We might have disposed of John Mark as “weak,” as “spineless,” or as “useless,” but Paul found the time to restore their relationship and gained an encourager in Christ.
Peter. We could look at a few events in Peter’s life where you or I might have given up on him, but my mind returns time and again to Jesus’ conversation with him after those terrible denials. We know the story of Mark 14:66-72, how Peter denies Christ time and again in the temple courtyard, even to the point of cursing and swearing. When Jesus restores Peter, in John 21:15-19, Jesus doesn’t demand an apology. He doesn’t wait for Peter to make the first move. He simply reaches out to one that we might have considered a backstabber and heals their relationship and Peter’s faith.
Onesimus. Onesimus, in the book of Philemon, is one we might not even realize we would dismiss, but consider this: Onesimus was an “illegal.” He was on the run from his master; he was not a true Roman citizen; he was a lawbreaker; he deserved imprisonment and perhaps worse. In verses 8-16, Paul reveals to Philemon that Onesimus is now a brother in Christ and encourages him to treat the slave accordingly. Here’s what he didn’t do: he didn’t send Onesimus packing. Paul didn’t write Onesimus off because of his secular citizenship. He was more concerned with the slave’s spiritual citizenship. Where we might have turned Onesimus over to the first Roman guard we saw, Paul, instead, turned him to the love of Christ.
Whether we’re talking about wanting to throw someone aside because of their history, or if we’re wiling to toss them aside because of some way we feel they affronted us, that’s not the conduct we see reflected in the lives of Christ and His apostles. My friend Derek once told me that we tend to judge ourselves by our intentions, but we judge others only by the consequences of their actions. Let’s think about showing others the same amount of mercy we show ourselves.
Setting Down the Weight The problem is, when we look at people, sometimes we have a great deal of access baggage we are carrying around that we blame on them. We call these grudges. And these grudges needlessly weigh us down. There’s an old Zen proverb that illustrates this burden:
One day two traveling monks reached a town and saw a young woman waiting to step out of her sedan chair. There were deep, muddy puddles and she couldn’t step across without getting mud on her silk robes. She impatiently scolded her attendants, who were burdened with heavy packages.
The younger monk walked by the young woman without speaking. But the older monk stopped and picked her up on his back, carrying her across the mud. Not only did she not thank the monk, she shoved him out of her way when he put her down and scurried by him haughtily.
As the two monks continued on their way, the younger monk was brooding. After a long time, he finally spoke out. “That woman was so rude but you picked her up and carried her! She didn’t even thank you.”
“I set the woman down hours ago,” the older monk responded. “Why are you still carrying her?”
That’s what it comes down to, then, doesn’t it? We throw people away because we can’t unburden ourselves of the weight of our own grudges. We choose to bear the weight of our anger rather than the weight of friendship.
We put our strength and our efforts into holding onto our grudges rather than humbly letting them go. In Matthew 18:22, Jesus tells Peter (and later demonstrates) the innumerable times we must be willing to forgive. Colossians 3:12-14 calls on us to put on love, compassion, kindness, patience, and forgiveness. Finally, Hebrews 12:1-2 admonishes us to lay down those weights that slow down our run of faith. Jesus and His followers were able to lay aside the weight of grudges to pursue and share the hope within them. Why are we still carrying them?
Again, Perspective Again, it comes down to what we see when we look at others. If we look at each other the way God looks at us, we won’t see each other as disposable commodities to be casually thrown away when suddenly inconvenient. Matthew 18:1-4 calls us to become as little children if we are to be of His kingdom. Romans 8:15-17 calls us adopted children of the Father, and I John 3:2 again says we are now God’s children, waiting to see Him in His glory.
If God sees us as His little children, we should see the same in each other. How easily do you stay angry at a small child? Against which children do you harbor long-lasting grudges? Are there any children you seek to cut out of your lives, that you give dirty looks to, that you assume the worst of the moment they enter the room? Of course you don’t because that would make you a pretty terrible person, don’t you agree? Wouldn’t you be a sad case if you couldn’t get over the fact that a five-year-old clumsily broke a vase in your home? What kind of person would you be to hold that over their head for the next several years, even if the break was the result of carelessness or malice? Yet, this is how we treat each other. Just like that younger monk, we can’t seem to lay aside the burden of our indignation, and we let those burdens weaken us. Gandhi said, “The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong.”
Galatians 5:13-15 warns us against biting and devouring one another. We have many euphemisms for this: we say we are “calling it like it is;” we may feel someone needs to be “put in their place” or “taught a lesson;” we may say that we are “saying what needs to be said;” but all we’re doing is consuming each other in fits of temper. We also consume one another when we bear grudges instead of bearing each other’s burdens. We devour relationships. We decide our personal feelings are more important than a person’s soul. This must not be. Once we see each other the way God sees us, we have no choice but to tear down our idols of bitterness, indignation, and self-justification. We have no reason to carry around the weight of grudges and resentment. Once we unburden ourselves of these, we will have the strength to carry one another’s loads and to bear each other up in love and mercy, and we will finally stop throwing people away.
Now after the Sabbath, toward the dawn of the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. And behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. And for fear of him the guards trembled and became like dead men. But the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified.”
While the resurrection is in the thoughts of many this day, stop to pay attention to the words that the angels said to the women: “Do not be afraid.” What would these women have had to fear? This is the resurrection, the core of the gospel message as Paul writes about in I Corinthians 15:1-8. In Acts 23:6, Paul again notes the resurrection being central to his teachings, and I Peter 1:3 reminds us that our hope is derived from Jesus’ resurrection. This is the event by which the death and burial are fulfilled. This is the source of our hope. Why, then, would those women be afraid?
From Fear to Joy In Matthew 26, we can see that they had much to fear. In verse 56, the apostles flee after Judas comes and betrays Jesus, bringing with him armed men to forcibly take the Messiah if necessary. When Jesus was to be buried, only two came forward. In Mark 16:8 and John 20:19, we see again the fear in which Jesus’ followers lived.
While the faithful lived in fear, though, Jesus’ appearance after the resurrection brought them joy. In John 20, when Jesus appears to Mary in verses 11-18, she runs to the disciples to tell the other disciples. In Luke 24:13, Jesus appears to two disciples walking to Emmaus, and He asks them to relate recent events to Him, events they are surprised He does not seem to know. In verses 25-31, Jesus studies with them and eats with them, opening their eyes to Him, and we see them, in verses 33-35, responding in joy and longing to spread the news. Jesus goes on to appear to His apostles in the same chapter, and they disbelieve for joy. Thomas joyfully repents of his doubt upon seeing the risen Lord.
Face to Face with Jesus Luke 5 records an experience Peter has with Jesus early in His ministry. Peter and others have been fishing all night, without success, and Jesus simply encourages him and his companions to try one more time. Doing so, they catch an unmanageable number of fish, and Peter, in verse 8, falls and worships Jesus, confessing His sins in fear. At this time, Peter wants to be far from Jesus because He is overcome with fear and guilt.
John 21, after the crucifixion and resurrection, something similar happens when Peter decides to again go fishing. Once more, Peter’s efforts are in vain, catching nothing all night. Come morning, a man instructs them to cast on the other side of the boat where they catch an unmanageable number of fish. Peter recognizes this man as the Lord – a man he had recently cursed and sinned against – but this time responds in joy. Instead of wishing Jesus away from him, Peter jumps into the water and swims toward Jesus to be with Him as soon as possible. Fear has melted into joy and confidence, and this confidence becomes central to Peter’s ministry throughout Acts, gives him strength against persecution, and becomes a key theme to his letters.
Conclusion This is the impact the resurrection should have in our lives. When confronted with our sin and our weaknesses, we can approach our God confidently and joyfully. Confidence overcomes guilt. Joy overcomes sorrow. Forgiveness defeats sin, and death is swallowed up in victory. Because He arose, we have hope, and that hope should drive us to draw closer to our risen Savior, allowing Him to raise us up in newness of life.
Matthew 14 records the events surrounding Peter walking on the water. Peter and the other apostles are on a boat without Jesus in verse 22. The waters become rough; the weather begins to storm; and Jesus appears upon the water. Peter calls out to Him, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” Unfortunately, when Peter see the wind kicking up the water, his faith falters and Jesus must save Him.
What possessed Peter to say to himself, “I want to get out of this boat and walk to Jesus,” in the middle of this storm? We speak of Peter’s rashness, of his impulsivity, of his good intentions. How many of us would have simply stayed in the boat? More important than these factors though may have been his desire to be like Jesus and to be with Jesus.
Remember Jesus washing the apostles’ feet in John 13. At first Peter resists, but, when Jesus says Peter could have no part with Him without this washing, Peter then requests his whole body to be washed. Also, in John 21, when Peter realizes Jesus’ identity, he again leaps into the sea to get to Jesus. Whatever the cost, Peter wants to be like Jesus, and he wants to be with Jesus.
Like Peter, we occasionally act and speak before thinking. More than these, we should be like Peter in our desire to be like and with the Lord. Philippians 2:5 calls on us to be like Christ in humility and obedience. I Peter 2:21 instructs us to follow in His steps. In John 14:3, Jesus promises we can be with Him one day, and Matthew 11:28 extends an invitation to come and be close to Christ, laying our burdens at his feet.
Matthew 16:24-26 tells us how we can have a part with Him, how we can be with Him and like Him. We must put self and self-interest to death, and fix our gaze firmly on Him. We have to get out of that boat if we are going to draw closer to Him. This involves getting outside our comfort zone and make sacrifices. Yes, when Peter took his eyes off the Lord, however, he began to sink beneath the waves. We need to keep Jesus firmly in our sights, but it begins with that first step.
Like Paul in Philippians 3:13-15, we should be continually pressing forward. Colossians 3:1 calls on us to set our minds on things above. We need to determine that, wherever we are spiritually, it’s time to get out of the boat and approach Jesus, striving always to be like Him and with Him.
Among the psalms of worship, lament, intercession, history, and others, are a collection of songs that proclaim God’s greatness as seen in nature. Three of these are Psalms 29, 148, and 19. Psalm 29 describes God as a thunderstorm, His voice and nature seen in the thunder, in the waves, in the winds, in the animals taking shelter – all of these proclaim glory to God. Likewise, all nature is called to praise Jehovah in Psalm 148, from creatures of the deep to the stars of the heavens. Finally, the heavens testify God’s name in Psalm 19.
Nature is called upon time and again to give praise to God. Jesus calls on this imagery during the last week of His ministry. As He rides into Jerusalem in Luke 19:36, multitudes welcome Him in praise. They sing from Psalm 118 as Jesus passes by, calling Him their king, bearing testimony of His name. In verse 39, the Pharisees call on Jesus to rebuke His overenthusiastic followers, understanding the undercurrents of their worship. Jesus responds by claiming that, should His followers fall silent, nature itself, even the stones on the ground, would cry out.
When the Stones Cried Out By the end of this week, Jesus is arrested, tried unfairly, and crucified. Who testifies on Jesus’ behalf now? In Matthew 26:56, the disciples abandon Him. Later in the same chapter, Peter goes so far as to deny association with the Christ. In verses 59-61, no religious leaders testify in Jesus’ name. In fact, they seek false testimony to condemn Him. In John 19, none in the multitudes – many of whom would have been praising Jesus earlier that week – cry out for Jesus’ release. Instead, they call for His death.
Pilate partially tries to speak on Jesus’ behalf. One of the thieves on the cross expresses belief, but who would listen to the testimony of a criminal? Then, in Matthew 27, after Jesus cries, “It is finished,” darkness descends for three hours – in the middle of the day. The veil of the temple tears top to bottom, and the earth shakes, rocks torn and broken. Up to this point, silence has been the only testimony for Jesus. Now, the rocks cry out in testimony of Jesus’ divinity.
The Testimony of Living Stones In the last supper of John 17, Jesus prays that the Father will glorify Him with His past glory. Hebrews 1:3 calls Jesus the radiance of God’s glory, and John 1 equates Jesus with God. These rocks testify God’s glory among man as in Psalms 29, 148, and 19. They proclaim the culmination of salvation’s wondrous plan. When all others are silent, nature proclaims God’s glory.
Two thousand years later, stones still cry out His glory. In I Peter 2:5, Peter calls those who follow Jesus living stones. Philippians 1:11 calls on us to be filled with righteousness as testimony to God’s glory. Every word and action of our lives should proclaim God’s glory. When all others are silent, we should bear testimony of our God and Savior. As living stones, we proclaim His greatness with one voice, living for Him and because of Him.
In Matthew 28:5-6, when an angel of the Lord appear before a fearful set of guards and the women gathered with Mary, he begins his revelation of Christ’s resurrection with these words: “Do not be afraid.”. The resurrection is a core of the New Testament. In I Corinthians 15, Paul devotes most of that long chapter to the subject of our bodily resurrection, drawing parallels with Christ’s own resurrection. Acts 23:6 and I Peter 1:3 both refer to the resurrection as a hop that we have. Why, then, does the angel admonish those gathered to not be afraid?
In Matthew 26:56, Jesus’ disciples flee after the mob comes to seize Jesus. They are scared for their lives. After the crucifixion, only two – Joseph and Nicodemus – come to claim Jesus’ body. In Mark 16, after Mary and the other women see the angel of God, they flee in fear, and John 20:26-28 finds the disciples gathered together behind locked doors, fearful of the Jews (see verse 19). Jesus’ followers live in fear at this time, but the resurrection brings a reason to end those fears.
Driving Away Fear with Joy
In John 20:11-18, Jesus appears to Mary Magdalene, and she joyfully tells the other disciples what she has seen. Luke 24:13-35 records Jesus’ encounter with two disciples who are distraught because of recent events. His revelation to them brings them a joy that they begin sharing with others in verses 36-43. In John 20:20-28, Jesus’ appearance to the disciples behind those locked doors brings them gladness, and they bring the news to Thomas. Apart from Jesus, those disciples had many reasons to fear, but His presence brought joy.
We can see this transformation from fear into joy in the life of Peter. In Luke 5, Peter recognizes Jesus’ divinity, and his initial response is one of fear. He falls at Jesus’ feet, asking Jesus to depart from him and his sinful nature. When Pater comes face-to-face with God’s power, he sees his own shortcomings and wants to hide himself from divinity. Jesus response begins with familiar words: “Do not be afraid.” John 21 stands as a contrast to these events when Jesus repeats this sign after His resurrection. This time, instead of cowering from Jesus, Peter jumps into the water and swims to shore, desperately trying to draw closer to his resurrected Lord. He is no longer afraid.
Living without Fear
In Acts 2, this same Peter proclaims Jesus’ resurrection before the Pentecost crowds. In Acts 3:14-15, Acts 4:10-20, and Acts 5:29-32, Peter continues to preach a risen savior before those who should otherwise bring him fear. His actions stand at contrast to the fearful man we see in Luke 5. He preaches in confidence because of the joy he has in Christ’s resurrection. This is the hope Paul writes in in I Corinthians 15. Joy overcomes fear; forgiveness overcomes sin; confidence overcomes guilt; and defeat is swallowed up in victory.
When we approach Jesus, how do we react? We can shirk from Him in guilt and fear, or we can draw closer to him. We can be reconciled to Him and obtain a new life, free from guilt sin. We can live joyfully in the hope of resurrection.
Lately, we’ve been revisiting the Old Testament in our Bible classes, and we understand that, while we are no longer bound to that law, studying the triumphs and failings of God’s people can benefit our own spiritual growth. As Paul writes in Romans 15:4:
For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.
I want to take some time in this lesson to look at a few individuals from the Old and New Testaments. What will we see in them? Will we see characters to judge and condemn, or will we see reflections of ourselves – the same faults, the same misplaced priorities, the same desires, the same misdirection, and the same stumbles we all share? If we can see ourselves in them, then we will be able to see our reflections in one another and handle the sins in our lives and others all the better.
Seeing Ourselves in Them
We know the figures of King Saul, King David, and the Apostle Peter pretty well. We’ve studied their lives time and again, and I don’t think this lesson is going to shed any new light on these individuals. I want us, however, to be self-reflective as we take a look at specific events from each of these lives.
King Saul (I Samuel 13:5-12). Scared of the impending doom he perceives and anxiously impatient for Samuel’s arrival, Saul takes it upon himself to make an offering to the Lord. The problem is that it is not his place to do so, and he acts outside the authority of God’s word.
King David (II Samuel 11:3-5). David sees a woman bathing and desires her. He goes to great lengths to have her and to greater lengths to cover his sin, resorting to lies and murder to prevent the knowledge of his indiscretion from spreading.
Peter the Apostle (Matthew 14:22-33). Peter walks on water to reach Jesus, but his faith falters. He begins to sink, and Jesus must pull him up, chastising him for a lack of faith.
What do we see with these individuals? Do we only see the rebukes and the consequences their actions inspire? Do we only focus on their failings? Do we sit back and judge, patting ourselves on our back that we are not as bad as them? Do we just see Saul as an impatient egomaniac; David as a womanizer; Bathsheba as immodest; Peter as faithless? It’s very easy to look at these people as mere character whom we can academically dissect and discuss while failing to see our own reflection in them. Can we not see that you and I are no different today? Should we not be learning about ourselves as we are learning about them?
When we examine Saul’s action in I Samuel 13, we can see our own fears and insecurities in him. How often do we want God to work on our own timeline? How often do we feel when need to do His work for Him? After all, Christians are fond of quoting Benjamin Franklin: “God helps those who help themselves.” With David, it’s easy to throw blame all over the place in those events, but do we not see our own struggles with lust and desire in him? Are we not as guilty of increasing our own sins to cover our own faults? Finally, in the case Peter, we all have our moments when our faith meets its limits and falters. At least in Peter’s case, he turns to the right source for salvation. At times, I am Saul. I am David. I am Peter, and so are we all.
Forgiving Others
If we can empathize with these distant historical figures, it should be all the easier to be compassionate and forgiving toward our fellow man. Jesus’ ministry is filled with moments of kindness, compassion, and forgiveness – especially toward individuals with whom we might have a hard time relating – activists, tax collectors, prostitutes. The Hebrew writer gives us some insight into this empathy in Hebrews 4:15-16:
For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
Jesus can empathize with our struggles and shortcomings, and we should be able to do the same with our fellow man. Just like we often say we should be quick to hear and slow to speak, we should be quick to care and slow to judge others’ sin. After all, if we look closely enough at their problems, we might just see a reflection of our own.
Forgiving Ourselves
If we can forgive David, Peter, and Saul their failings, we should be able to more easily forgive our own. If we are quick to criticize and condemn those we see in the Bible, what will we do when we see our own reflection in them? If we are too harsh on them, will we be too harsh on ourselves? II Corinthians 7:10 warns of falling too deeply into regret over our sins.
If we want to beat down individuals like David, Peter, and Saul for their faults; if we want to beat down others around us for their faults, how will we handle it when we fall into the same traps? Will we be like David and try to conceal our sins, regardless of the cost? Will we beat ourselves down for these failings? Instead, we should be helping each other up, turning to each other for that help, and ultimately allowing our Lord to lift us up when we begin to sink into the despair of sin.
Conclusion
The Bible story is one of redemption and reconciliation, and time and again we see that anyone, regardless of their pasts and their faults, can take advantage of God’s grace. Saul could have turned back to the Lord instead of sinking deeper and deeper into bitterness. David and Peter do ultimately grow. My mind keeps coming back to the imagery of Peter sinking beneath the waves; he knows who to appeal for salvation. There are many lost and wandering in the world, sinking in sin, and we can be that rescuing hand if we can look upon them with the love and compassion demonstrated in our Lord. Conversely, we will need that mercy at times. We will need a brother or sister pull us up, and we have to be able to forgive ourselves when that happens.
It all starts with what we see when we look into God’s word. If we can see ourselves reflected in the people within, with all their faith and all their faults, then we can better forgive others and ourselves for their faults. We all have David moments. We all have Saul moments. We all have Peter moments. The measure of our spirituality comes when see those moments in ourselves and others. We can look into that flawed reflection and see a soul that Christ loves and for which He was willing to sacrifice Himself. We can see the value of our own souls and those of others, and, in so doing, we can see the need for our Savior in our own lives and theirs. What will you do with others when you see them sinking in sin? What will you do when you need rescuing? It depends on what you see when you look into the mirrors in God’s word and those all around us.
When the Philistines capture the Ark of the Covenant in I Samuel 5-6, disaster and misfortune follows it as they move it from one location until another, until the nation concludes they must return the Ark to its proper owners. It takes seven months for them to reach this conclusion, and death, rats, tumors, and boils follow the Ark this whole time. Why does it take them so long to decide they are finished enduring these hardships? Is it pride; stubbornness; rebellion? There is no knowing, but chances are that pride had something to do with it.
When we look into our own lives, we can recognize things that are harmful to us spiritually. We can identify things we hold onto regardless of the negative influence they have on our lives. It can take a long time to get these harmful influences out of our lives. Sometimes, we are no better than these Philistines – holding fast to something that is harming us more and more despite the damage.
Self Destructive Stubbornness I Samuel 18 contains some of the first hints of Saul’s decline as king. He had made mistakes before this chapter, but this chapter shows a shift in Saul’s character, consumed with jealousy and bitterness. This animosity grows to the point of tearing apart his family and leaving his nation vulnerable. This hatred becomes a monster in his life, occupying his time and energy, and he allows it to grow in its destructive power rather than eliminating it from his life.
We know the story of Cain and Abel in Genesis 4 where Abel offers God a more excellent sacrifice. In verse 5, Cain festers in anger; he allows bitterness to rot within him. God questions Cain in verse 6 regarding his bitterness and warns against the dangers of allowing these feelings to grow. He tells Cain it is within his power to rule over his rage and rid it from his life. Instead, Cain stoops to murder to fulfill his anger.
Turning Instead to Grace The Philistines, Saul, and Cain contain three parallel events that illustrate individuals that hold onto something to their own destruction. In contrast, in II Corinthians 12:7-10, Paul speaks of an elusive thorn of the flesh. We do not know what this thorn is, whether it is a physical ailment, pangs of conscience, reminders of severed friendships; but we do know it wears on the apostle and gives him pain. He repeatedly pleads for its removal, but God responds that His power is completed in Paul’s struggle.
In times of anxiety or strain, we often draw closer to God and seek His power in our lives. Unlike Saul‘s and Cain’s circumstances, this is beyond Paul’s control, but, unlike those examples, Paul endures. Furthermore, God expresses the completion of His grace in the face of this trial. Time and again, we can see God’s grace alive in the life of Paul as well as in our own.
As a final example, we have Peter denying the Lord three times in Matthew 26:69-75. He weeps bitterly when he realizes what he has done, but Jesus has grace on Peter in John 21:15-19, and Peter does not allow this regret to eat him up. I Corinthians 15:3 records that Jesus appears to Peter even before this event. He is one of the first to Lord seeks out. What did that conversation look like? Why would Jesus seek Peter so quickly? Regardless, we know the man Peter grows into despite the pain his denial might have caused, and this is possible for Him because of Jesus’ grace.
There might be things in our lives we consider thorns. There may be things that hurt us spiritually and drag us away from God. Like Peter and Paul, though, we can press on to our goal, forgetting the things behind and reaching forward to the hope laid before us. We can be perfected in God’s love and grace if we are willing to put our pasts behind us and seek a future in Him.
