Walk by Night

"Then he said to his disciples,

"Let us go back to Judea."

"But Rabbi," they said,

"A short while ago the Jews tried to stone you,

and yet you are going back there?"

Jesus answered,

"Are there not twelve hours of daylight?

A man who walks by day will not stumble,

for he sees by his world's light.

It is when he walks by night that he stumbles,

for he has no light."

John 11:7-10

"Faith is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase."

Martin Luther King, Jr., preacher and leader of the American Civil Rights Movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968, knew a little something about faith.  His nonviolent methods produced dramatic progress toward the goal of racial equality in America even though he was met with violent resistance every step of the way.  The above quote illustrates how Dr King's faith in the God who held the master plan for his life gave him the courage to continue in his mission even though common sense would tell him to stop.

Likewise, Joseph spent 13 years suffering at the hand of one oppressor or another from the time his brothers sold him into slavery until he was surprisingly placed in a position of second in command of the entire country of Egypt.   

The natural response to years of suppression would be hopelessness, anger and bitterness.  Joseph, however, was able to say to his brothers when they stood before him years later, "You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives." (Genesis 50:20)  Only faith in God could produce that kind of forgiveness.

Faith asks us to do that which seems impossible in the light of our own understanding.

Love

Most people think of affection between two people who are irresistibly drawn to each other as love.  But love is more complicated than that.  As my pastor says, "Love is a decision, not a feeling."

I can act on my feelings of irritation toward the cashier with the nasty attitude, or I can choose to kindly ask her about her day.  I am easily able to lash out in frustration at my family when they get under my skin, or I can instead decide to extend the love that Jesus demonstrated to me when He died for me, a rebel to His cause.  The temptation is strong to write a friend off who consistently treats me like dirt, or I can take the way out God has provided and instead treat them like my best friend.  

Jesus told a parable that gives us a clear picture of how God calls us to love.  A man had been brutally beaten and left to die along the side of a road.  Several people walked by, but none stopped to help.  Even the church people who should know better took a wide berth around the poor man, more worried about their own holiness than this man's welfare.  His lifeblood was seeping out onto the dry, sun-baked road as he faded in and out of consciousness.  Won't somebody help me? he thought.

Finally, a man despised by many in the region took pity upon the wounded man and took him to the nearest inn, nursing him back to health.  This outcast went out of his way to make sure his patient was going to survive, going so far as to leave money to help.  Surprisingly, this good Samaritan had shown love to those who had never treated him kindly.  

Love means reassuring an hysterical friend for the umpteenth time when I have a million other things that I'd rather be doing .  Love means taking a chance and offering a kind word to those who have never been kind to me.  Love sometimes means hugging a prickly porcupine. 

Only a faith in God would enable me to love those who may not love me back.

Forgive

I've heard it said that forgiveness is letting go of the desire to seek justice and instead placing that responsibility in God's hands.  If someone wrongs me, I want to make sure that person knows how much they hurt me.  In the process, I grow angry and bitter.  

When I let go of that longing for retribution and instead let God handle the situation, I am free from that heavy burden.  This is not natural.  Forgiveness doesn't make sense to my human way of thinking.  Letting go of hurts is difficult.

But God is the God of the impossible.  

The most striking example of forgiveness in all of human history took place 2000 years ago on a hill called Golgotha in Jerusalem.  It was there that Jesus chose to give His life as a ransom for many, buying my freedom from the punishment God requires for my own sins. 

In this way I receive forgiveness for all of my wrongdoings, all my prideful attitudes, all my rebellious ways.  God, in His great mercy, made a way through the shedding of blood by His perfect Son for me to experience forgiveness.  I don't deserve this forgiveness.  I can't earn this forgiveness.  I don't understand this forgiveness.

Since I am forgiven in such a permanent, perplexing and powerful way, how can I do any less than to show forgiveness for a harsh word, a cruel act, or a rude gesture?  I can't.  I must rise to the occasion, and forgive as I have been forgiven.  

Faith in Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior means I accept the gift of forgiveness, and freely pass it on to those around me.    

Extending Grace

I am pretty good at judging others.  I have to confess that it comes naturally for me to point out the wrongdoings of those round me.  This kind of attitude makes it difficult for me to look beyond my comfort zone and hang out with those who are steeped in sin.  

Jesus is a friend of sinners.  When He was here on earth He was often found hanging out with tax collectors and prostitutes, those who were despised by the Jewish society and shunned by church people.  But Jesus ate with them.  He listened to them.  He befriended them.

Jesus told a parable about a man with two sons.  The first son at first said he wouldn't work in the fields, then he later changed his mind and went.  The second son said he would go, but he did not.  Everyone listening agreed that the first son did as his father wanted.  Then He went on to say, "I tell you the truth, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you." (Matthew 21:31)  

You see, it's all about my heart.  If I am willing to look at my sinful state and realize my need for a Savior, then I can accept His free gift of salvation offered through the grace of God.  Once I do, I must extend that grace to others.  If I refuse, I am turning my back on the very ones who need it most.

Only faith would enable me not to judge others based on their lifestyle, actions or outward appearance, but instead offering them the same grace I was given.

It takes faith to take that first step into the darkness, unsure as to whether my foot will find solid ground.  In the words of Oswald Chambers, "Faith is not intelligent understanding, faith is deliberate commitment to a Person where I see no way."  

 When I trust God to work through me, going against my better judgment, I will be able to love the unlovable, forgive the unforgiving, and extend grace to those who are living an ungracious life.  How can I do any less in light of what Jesus did for me?

As I begin this day, it is my prayer that I will empty myself of me and allow your love, mercy and grace to overflow to all those around me.

How do I depend on my own sense of right and wrong instead of leaving it in God's hands?

When am I hard on people who are hard on me?