Unlikely Heros

 

One June day in a quiet suburb on the west side of Chicago, Jim Partridge was enjoying a relaxing afternoon. Then, out of the blue, he heard a series of hair-raising screams. Jim and his wife Sue knew instantly that someone was in serious need. The screams were coming from a neighboring house on the other side of an open lot and a row of trees that separated their houses. They barely knew the people who lived there but they responded to help. Sue got there first and shouted back, “Hurry Jim! It’s the baby!” After Jim made his way up the stairs and onto the deck he found his neighbor, Tammy Kroll, kneeling over the lifeless body of her one-year-old daughter. Tammy had moments earlier found her daughter floating face down in the family backyard pool. The Partridge’s rushed into action. While Sue called 911, Jim began administering first aid. He cleared the little girl’s airway and began CPR. He observed she was not breathing at all, she had no pulse, her eyes were rolled back, and she was blue all over. As Jim worked the minutes felt like hours. Nearly ten minutes had passed when he heard the encouraging sound of sirens in the distance. Then he heard a more encouraging sound as he put his ear to the little girl’s chest – a heartbeat. Little Jennifer Kroll was rushed to a local hospital where she made a full recovery and was back home in just a few days. Jim Partridge certainly acted heroically that day, but what is most impressive is how unlikely a hero he was. Decades earlier, as an eighteen-year-old Marine in Vietnam, Jim stepped on a land mine which detonated. The explosion blew off both of his legs above the knees and left him nearly blind. That day, Jim fumbled his way through the thick empty lot on his wheelchair. When he got to the trees, he had to abandon his chair to crawl on his hands. As he made his way to the backyard, he had to pull himself up each step of the deck that surrounded the pool. One of the things that exemplifies Jim’s heroism was his willingness to yield to the temptation to excuse himself. It would have been easy and tempting for him to say, “Let somebody else do it. I’m legally blind, and I don’t have any legs!” How often do you and I excuse ourselves from recuing people who are drowning in a sea of sin? There are people all around us who are spiritually dead, but they can be brought back to life through the hope of the gospel (Ephesians 2:1-5; Colossians 2:11-14). Are you making excuses for not saving those around you? “…save with fear, pulling them out of the fire…” (Jude 23).

[James 4:7-8] “Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.” Some of us have tried to have a daily quiet time and have not been successful. Others of us have a tough time concentrating. And all of us are busy. So rather than spend time with God, listening for His voice, and meditating on His Word, we let others spend time with Him, then benefit from their experiences – let them tell us what God is saying. After all, isn’t that why we pay preachers? If that is your approach, if your spiritual experiences are just second-hand and not your own, I’d like to challenge you to this thought: Do you do that with any other part of your life? You don’t have others take your vacation trips and then tell you about them, do you? You don’t rely on someone else to romance your spouse, do you? Does anyone eat your meals on your behalf? There are certain things that no one else can do for you. One of them is spending time with God. You need spiritual nourishment, and nobody can fill up on His Word for you. You must consume that yourself. Don’t rely on second-hand spirituality – that is no spirituality at all. Jesus came to our rescue – He has saved us from hell (Romans 5:6-11).

People Can Change

 

In the 1100s, in an effort to protect travelers going from northern Spain over the Pyrenees Mountain Range to Santiago de Compostela in Galicia (Noted in the book “Dogs of God” by James Reston Jr., p50), a military force known as the hermandad’s (Spanish: “the brotherhood”) was organized. Soon, these vigilantes spread across Spain and offered themselves as protectors of roads and merchants. Eventually appointed as a national police force who could collect taxes and prevent insurrection in every municipality, they would go on to exterminate untold numbers of Muslims, Jews, and other “enemies of the state” during the Middle Ages. Reston mentions an unsettling “right” granted to the hermandad’s in the 15th Century, during the famous reign of Isabella and Ferdinand. He writes, “In a curious turnabout, executions took place first, and trials were held afterwards” (p51).

Given our country’s constitutional concept of “innocent until proven guilty,” this practice seems both backward and barbaric. How useful is a trial to present facts about a case after the defendant has been executed? What if the deceased was found innocent? What if there was no proof of guilt? Of course, the “facts” of every case incredibly supported the punitive action that preceded it. While we may find such a practice appalling, how often do we do the same with our tongues? Through rash anger, reckless gossip, and rabid prejudice, we can serve as judge, jury, and executioner of the reputation and actions of another. “But no one can tame the tongue; it is a restless evil and full of deadly poison. With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in the likeness of God; from the same mouth come both blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be this way” (James 3:8-10). How often do we jump to conclusions and assassinate another’s character, but later revelations prove our actions both premature and unjustifiable? Unfortunately, the damage having been done, nothing produced by way of reparation can fully undo the effects upon the victim. Be careful! Even when we think we have the facts about another, let us post a guard outside the door of our lips (cf. Psalm 141:3). What we need to see is the spiritual danger we face who “execute” before “trial.” “He who answers a matter before he hears it, it is folly and shame to him” (Proverbs 18:13). Better to deliberate and reserve judgment than to execute before the trial has been held!

[Romans 1:16] Jesus Christ introduced into the world the greatest power to change men the world has ever known. That power is the gospel: “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes…” It is sometimes said of those in sin, “They will never change.” While it is true that sin can have a death grip on anyone, it is also possible, if one’s heart be willing, to make a complete transforming change in their way of living – turn their life around.

An elderly man spent years of vanity in the nothingness of ungodly living and looking back with tear-filled eyes over the mountains of heartaches and acres of regrets cried, “I’m so tired of sin. Can someone help me?” A drunkard became disgusted with himself and said, “I want to change.” He did. You can too. Yes, people can change. Peter changed from a coward into an intrepid proclaimer of God’s word (Matthew 26:74; Acts 2:1-42). An up-and-coming young Pharisee named Saul first persecuted the church, but he changed and began “…preaching the faith which once he destroyed” (Galatians 1:23). What great hope the gospel brings! Do you need to make a change? The change begins in obedience to the gospel, the good news of salvation. (Acts 2:38; Galatians 3:27; Romans 6:1-14).

Building Back Better 2.0

 

Filters of all kinds perform a great service as unsung heroes in our lives. They help keep us healthy and prolong the life of nearly every machine we use. Air, oil, fuel, water, and many more filters keep equipment clean and operating as they were designed to do. Of course, filters have to be maintained and cleaned as they get dirty. The most important filter in life is God’s Word. Unfortunately, more and more folks are simply throwing their filter away instead of allowing God to maintain its cleanliness through His Word. The world is dying for the lack of truth, wisdom, integrity, and Godly love. The end is near.

[Psalm 19:14] Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, oh Lord, my strength, and my Redeemer. Building a better world begins with me. I must be willing to give my time, talents, money, and energies to make the world in which I live a better place. I truly believe that the only real way to make this world better is for me to be a faithful and dedicated child of God. A faithful and dedicated child of God will proclaim the good news of salvation. Jesus said, “Go into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature” (Mark 16:15). The word "gospel" means good news. We have good news to tell the world. The news of salvation and forgiveness. The news of God's wonderful love and offer of pardon. Are we working to build a better world by preaching Christ? We can build a better world by being positive about life. So many are filled with the critical spirit. They see very little good anywhere. There is so much that is good in our world that we should be thankful for. I don't want to waste my life looking only at the ugly and bad. God has given me so much that is good, and it would be sinful for me to fail to recognize that. In Philippians 4:8 Paul said that the things that are true, honest, just, pure, lovely, and of good report are the things I should dwell on. This does not mean that I will refuse to recognize false doctrine and condemn that which is evil. It does mean that my overall life will be one of a positive and happy nature. Only in tears and a broken heart will I point out the devil. I will do so "in meekness and fear" (1 Peter 3:15b). We can build a better world by prayer. The great force of prayer has in many ways been neglected by many of God's people. The Bible says, “The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much” (James 5:16b). I think of the great prayers of Moses who on several occasions saved the people of Israel by his steadfast prayers. I think of the prayers of David that delivered him time and time again from his enemies. I am reminded of the great prayers of Elijah and that God worked through Elijah to proclaim to the world His great power. God’s people can use prayer to make this world better. Finally, we can build a better world by keeping our heart in heaven! The Bible says, "Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth" (Colossians 3:2). This may sound rather strange, but it is the truth. Often, it is the case that people get so caught up in the here and now that they fail to really contribute to the welfare of mankind. By keeping our eyes on heaven, we will be a better people. We will be able to see what is really important and what is of minor consequence. Many are majoring in minors and minoring in majors. We can build a better world by keeping our hearts in heaven! We can build a better world if we will only become partners with God. As our beloved brother Paul said, "I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me" (Philippians 4:13). “Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable; if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things” (Philippians 4:8 ESV). Think God.

Are You Driven or Drawn?

 

“The Buffoon and the Countryman” a fable of Aesop: At a country fair there was a Buffoon who made all the people laugh by imitating the cries of various animals. He finished off by squeaking so like a pig that the spectators thought that he had a porker concealed about him. But a Countryman who stood by said: "Call that a pig's squeak! Nothing like it. You give me till tomorrow, and I will show you what it's like." The audience laughed, but next day, sure enough, the Countryman appeared on the stage, and putting his head down squealed so hideously that the spectators hissed and threw stones at him to make him stop. "You fools!" he cried, "see what you have been hissing," and held up a little pig whose ear he had been pinching to make him utter the squeals. Men often applaud an imitation and hiss the real thing.

Several years ago, long before children were required to be in car seats, a mother was having trouble with her young daughter staying seated and in her seat belt. The little girl, like most children of that time, wanted to stand up and see where she was going. The mother repeatedly told her daughter to “sit down and buckle up!” The daughter became rebellious and continued to stand up in the seat while her mom was driving. Finally, the mother pulled over and threatened the little girl with something she could not resist. But, as she reluctantly sat down, the little girl defiantly said, “I may be sitting down, but in my mind, I’m still standing!”

[Luke 22:39-42] I’m afraid many Christians are like the little girl. They feel forced to do God’s will, when in their hearts, if they had their way, they would do something else. They feel compelled; they feel obligated; they feel it’s their duty to obey God. In other words, they feel driven to do God’s will because of the guilt of their sin and the desire for forgiveness instead of being drawn to do God’s will as a response to His love and grace. They are obedient but not surrendered. Think of the difference between cowboys driving cattle and a shepherd leading his sheep (John 10). While there are times, we will need to obey God’s will even when our hearts are not in it, being drawn to follow God’s way is always better than being driven to follow God. Jesus said, “But I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself” (John 12:32). That’s exactly what happened in Acts 2. The preaching of the cross (2:22-24) so stirred the hearts of the crowd that they had to ask how they could be saved (2:36-37). Their hearts were pierced by the preaching of the cross, and they were drawn to surrender to Jesus as Lord and Christ. Yes, they wanted the forgiveness that came through baptism (Acts 2:38), but they wanted more than that. They were drawn by Jesus into changing their whole lives, as evidenced by being devoted to following God (Acts 2:42) and being devoted to each other (Acts 2:43-47). There is a world of difference between being driven by fear and guilt and being drawn by love and grace. Fear of consequences may force a little girl to sit down in her seat, and it may drive a person to seek forgiveness from God but responding to fear and guilt alone rarely changes the rebellion in a person’s heart. That may be a necessary place for some to start, but somewhere in our spiritual journey our hearts need to grow deeper than the external pressures of conformity into the transformational draw of a renewed mind (Romans 12:2). A spiritually mature Christian grows beyond duty to desire, beyond obligation to longing, beyond strict obedience to total surrender. It is difficult to remain faithful to God if our hearts are driven only by fear; it’s difficult to fall away if our hearts are drawn by Jesus’ love. …God is love… (1 John 4:8, 16); therefore, love God.