Bewildered?

Bewilderment – that’s the word that comes to mind for this season of Lent, that begins today with Ash Wednesday. The world is certainly bewildered by all that is happening today.

Yet, as we look at the Bible, we see also the actions of our God tend to bewilder people. He got Moses to tell Pharaoh to “let my (enslaved) people go.” Pharaoh, lord of a world power, balked at first but he got to know who the boss is after 10 judgments. God brought his people to the edge of the sea bewildering his people as to why they were stuck here, with the Egyptian army pursuing them. Then the sea parted and the Israelites crossed over safely while Pharaoh and his army drowned.

Jesus too bewildered the people he met. He bewildered Nicodemus with a seemingly cryptic statement, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again” (John 3:3). Today, on this side of the cross, many, even children, can understand what this verse mean. Jesus bewildered Nicodemus’ colleagues in the religious elite by sitting down and eating with sinners. He bewildered ‘sinners’ like robbers, tax-collectors, women of ill-repute, etc., that God welcomes them readily into his kingdom as his children: the Good News of a Good God. Today, we take all these divine actions as ho-hum and mundane. After all, we have heard them over and over in hundreds of sermons and so ‘it gets old’. But they bewildered the people of that time who witnessed them.

I believe some bewilderment is good for our spiritual life. When I was a computer programmer, I was trained to always re-look my program if the results did not come out the way I expected. Sometimes, it was plodding work looking at the lines of code for syntax errors. Sometimes it was a clear mind needed to check for logic errors. Many times, it also involved refreshed thinking that was not bogged down by the old, standard ways.

That’s could be the solution for our bewilderment this season: a refreshed thinking that expands us where we have been self-limiting once. However, that involves giving our glorious Lord real time to share his heart and thoughts with us. Our problem is that we tend to give leftovers to our Lord. We pray for 5 minutes or we read a 5-minute devotional and we are happy with our spiritual lives. We attend the programs of the church like assembling in worship on Sunday, Christian Education classes but we do not set aside daily time intentionally to read the Bible and walk with Jesus in worship and fellowship or talk to others about the Lord we have. We are happy with that.

I believe, the Lenten period is a time of fasting and prayer for penitence and self-examination. It should also be a time of ‘giving-up’. Ash Wednesday should be a sign to us to re-consider what we should give up, e.g., TV, late-night supper, over-exercise, etc., in order to draw closer to our Lord, this Lenten period. In truth, a disciple should be doing these spiritual disciplines like prayer, Bible study, confession, self-reflection, etc daily. The 40 days of Lent is simply a reminder of our need to draw close to our Lord daily. If we have not done so, Lent is a good place to start.  Let us pray daily and ask God for the grace and perseverance to make the necessary changes that this might happen. After all, our actions determine our habits; our habits determine our lifestyle; our lifestyle determines our relationship with Christ.

It is the small choices we make daily that determine where our relationship with Christ stands. Then when these spiritual disciplines are part of our lifestyle, we will not get bewildered by things beyond our comprehension. We will rest in the truth that though we may not have the answer now, our sovereign Lord has the answer still, he is still in control and is calling us to a situation to just trust in him.

God spoke to me... Did he? Really?

Can God tell a preacher some revelation that contradicts God's written Word? I read with some amount of reservation this article by a well-known pastor. And after reading, not feverishly, I feel the need to offer some comments, all easily verified by reading the Bible on your own. But let me first post the article, verbatim, straight from the horse’s mouth, for you:    

“One day when I was studying God’s Word, the Lord told me, 'Son, study the children of Israel from the time they came out of Egypt until they reached Mount Sinai. Not a single one of them died though they murmured. And that is a picture of pure grace.'” When I heard that, I turned to the Bible feverishly to check—as if to prove to God that someone did die! Until then, I had never heard anyone preaching about this! And indeed, I could not find any record of anyone who died before the law was given at Mount Sinai. You see, God delivered the children of Israel out of Egypt and provided for them, not based on their goodness, but based entirely on His goodness. Similarly, because we are under the new covenant of grace, God’s blessings and provision for us are based not on our performance, but entirely on HIS goodness.”

I believe the writer must be referring to the biblical timeline from Exodus 14 (deliverance from the Egyptian Army) to Exodus 19 (at Mount Sinai). While it is true that these chapters do not record the death of anyone, that does not mean that there was no Israelite dying or getting killed before they reached Mount Sinai. Consider Exodus 17:8-16, the Israelites’ battle with the Amalekites. “The Amalekites came and attacked the Israelites at Rephidim” Exodus 17:8.

The people of Israel had just come out of Egypt on their way to the Promised Land. They were at Rephidim, likely a rest stop before proceeding on their way. This location being the Desert of Sin was probably hilly and rocky, ideal geographic conditions for a hostile attack. And so the Israelites were attacked without warning. Their aggressors were the Amalekites who claimed the area for their own. So they felt they had the right to attack and plunder the Israelites.

Before this, I am sure the Amalekites were already carrying a grudge against the Israelites. Amalek, the founder of the Amalekite tribe was actually the grandson of Esau, firstborn son of Isaac (Gen 36:12). The Amalekites would have known of their past history between Jacob and Esau. In Gen 27, Jacob tricked Isaac, their father, into giving him the blessing that was supposed to be given to Esau. The Amalekites would have claimed that Jacob had cheated Esau, their patriarch of their inheritance. So it was personal for the Amalekites. They not only wanted Israel out of their territory, they wanted to prevent the Israelites from reaching their inheritance in the Promised land. If possible, they would want to destroy Israel. To them it was a blood feud and they didn’t fear that God had chosen the Israelites.

Let’s look at the condition of the Israelites. They were still weak as a nation and had no military experience. The only military engagement they had with the Egyptians was at the Red Sea and even then it was the hand of God that delivered them. They had no army and no actual general at this point. That’s why the Amalekites were able to kill the weak and weary who were at the back and straggling into the Rephidim camp.

So with such a bitter history between them and the Israelites, the Amalekites would be in a take-no-prisoner mindset. Considering the fact that Exodus 17:11 says, “… whenever he (Moses) lowered his hands, the Amalekites were winning”. Wouldn’t that mean that Israelites were getting killed in the battle? This point is bolstered by Deut 27:17, “Remember what the Amalekites did to you along the way when you came out of Egypt. When you were weary and worn out, they met you on your journey and CUT OFF all who were lagging behind.” ‘Cut off’ is regularly used in the Old Testament as a synonym for killed. I think it is a fair conclusion that there were Israelites who died on the road before they reached Mount Sinai.

The truth is that we are all fallen people. Sin is prevalent in all of us, including preachers. Therefore, it is imperative that all of us must use our minds when we examine God's Word. God gave us a mind so why shouldn't we use it? However, it is not just using a mind that is purely critical and cynical about what others say about the Bible. When we do that, we may end up being like the Pharisees who thought they were the gatekeepers to Heaven. How do we avoid that? We bring the mind under the lordship of Christ by emulating his attitude and actions, “do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit but in humility consider others better than yourselves” (Phil 2:3). Pastors should not milk their followers’ ignorance by elevating themselves as God’s special mouthpiece.

So did God really speak to this pastor with a special revelation in this posted reflection? I noted that the post had more than 1K shares. Did God speak or was it vain imagination? I will let God decide that. However, I believe God is consistent and he will not contradict his own written word. I don’t need extra-biblical revelation when his Word clearly counsels in the way I should go. The medieval Popes spoke ex-cathedra which implied infallibility in the declarations they made. Those days are gone. Pastors today too must avoid ‘ex-cathedra’ declarations with phrases such as “the Lord told me”, “the Lord spoke to me” implying extra-biblical infallibility. God has already given us his written word. If we can follow it faithfully and obediently with our lives, we will not need anyone doling out extra-biblical revelation.

I really love preachers to handle God’s Word responsibly, with fear and trembling. Sometimes when I hear some church preachers, I am saddened and ashamed that they handle our glorious Lord’s Word so flippantly. I am not a gifted communicator. But somehow, even though many preachers are gifted communicators, they handle God’s Word loosely. It seems like they take advantage of their hearers' ignorance. Christians today must be like the Berean church in Acts 17:11 "Now the Berean Jews were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true." Even though Paul was an apostle, after hearing his message, the Bereans went back to feverishly examine the scriptures to see if Paul had handled the scriptures responsibly. That’s how every Christian should be.

On Spiritual Blindness

There are many things that I cannot do if I were visually blind. I can read a book in Braille but I cannot appreciate the beautiful illustrations in the book. When I go to Gardens by the Bay, I cannot appreciate the brilliant colors of God’s creation in nature. If my friends are going to enjoy the latest X-men movie, I cannot join them. in. There are many tech advances that have enabled blind people to live fulfilling lives. Yet despite all that tech advances, there are still many things a blind person cannot achieve or appreciate. However, an affliction much worse than physical blindness is spiritual blindness. It causes the one affected to shut off the voice of God and his people and that can lead to tragic consequences.

One sad example of spiritual blindness from the Bible is Saul. In 1 Sam 13, spiritual blindness made him forget his position. He rashly performed the sacrifice that was Samuel’s job. When confronted by Samuel, he rationalized it with the excuse that Samuel was late and because of that, the Israelite army was panicking and scattering. In 1 Samuel 15, he disobeyed God’s command to destroy the Amalekites completely. To look good, he allowed his soldiers to spare the best Amalekite animals as plunder. Even the Amalekite king was spared. Probably Saul wanted to look good by having the humiliated Amalekite king grovel before his throne in chains as that was the practice of conquering kings. When Samuel confronted him in his disobedience, Saul deceitfully claimed the best animals were meant for sacrifice to the Lord. When David returned from victory over the Philistines, the women celebrated with dancing and singing, “Saul has slain his thousands and David his tens of thousands.” That made Saul very angry. 1 Samuel 18:8-9 records, ‘this refrain galled him. “They have credited David with tens of thousands”, he thought, “but me only with thousands. What more can he get but the kingdom?” And from that time on, Saul kept a jealous eye on David”’. He refused to accept the truth that David was God’s anointed king to replace him.

That’s Saul – spiritually blind to God’s Word. His blindness led to rebellion against God’s Word and hatred for God’s anointed. He increasingly hardened his conscience until evil became second-nature. In I Samuel 22:6-10, we can see his spiritual blindness resulting in paranoia. News of David’s movements had reached Saul who is holding court in his hometown at Gibeah. What is interesting is the scene, “Saul was seated, spear in hand… with all his officials standing at his side” (v6). This is a picture of a paranoid man. Why would he need a weapon when he is among loyal friends who would give their lives for him? The paranoia creates insecurity in Saul. He reminds his fellow Benjamites that David cannot give them wealth and power (v7). By implication, he is claiming that their wealth and power was because of his largesse towards them. That’s how power-hungry men of the world work. To ensure people are dependent on them, they dole out financial reward or the threat of financial loss. They do this to ensure leverage over their peers and followers. Saul’s paranoia makes him accuse everyone of conspiring against him. Even his own son Jonathan was not exempt from Saul’s baseless accusations. Saul could not see that he himself was unjust and despite the fact that he was unjust, Jonathan remained loyal and faithful to him. Later in Chapter 31, Jonathan would follow his father into death, fighting the Philistines. Saul claims here (v8) that David and Jonathan had conspired by making a covenant with one another to seize the kingdom at his expense. This covenant is most probably the one made in I Samuel 20. In his blindness, Saul could not grasp the fact that Jonathan was obeying God’s Word and yet remaining loyal to Saul at the same time. Jonathan knew that David was God’s anointed for the throne. Despite being crown prince, Jonathan submitted to God’s Will instead of fighting David. Yet, Jonathan also preserved the prosperity of the house of Saul. David covenanted that Saul’s descendants, through Jonathan’s line, would always have a place at the King’s table. What Jonathan did was wise.

So far, Saul was 100% spot on in his negative interpretation of everyone. And he continues this blindly claiming this covenant is why David is waiting to ambush him. The biblical facts indicate the opposite. David was in hiding and scrupulously avoided any confrontation with Saul. It was Saul who was using his resources to stalk David instead of uniting to fight their common enemy, the Philistines. He then ends his paranoid tirade with “none of you is concerned about me or tells me that my son has incited my servant to lie in wait for me” (v8). Looks like the king is sinking into self-pity. If that scene was played out today, his listeners could well be thinking, “concern for you? Hello Saul, can you look at yourself in the mirror? Wake up Saul. Smell the coffee, lah!” They would be justified in thinking that. After all, his life was a picture of self-sufficiency, malicious distrust, uncontrolled anger and even attempted murder of his own son Jonathan and son-in-law David. Would anyone find such a character endearing? I doubt so. Yet, instead of self-reflection, Saul sulks in his corner and plays the blame game, “none of you is sorry for me”.

I believe spiritual blindness deceives a person into thinking he is the victim when in reality, he is the perpetrator. Such people never think they are to blame for their inter-personal relationship challenges. A friend once told me, “Luke, if 2 people out of 10 don’t like you, you can say that’s not your fault. But if 6 or 7 people out of 10 don’t like you, it’s good to examine yourself. Maybe you need to change.” That’s a wise maxim for Christian life too. When things go wrong, do we play the blame game and point the finger at another? Or do we examine ourselves to see whether we have communicated with our colleagues and subordinates accurately. When we fall flat on our face, do we retreat into a corner and sulk, ‘nobody understands me’ and point the finger at another person?  Or do we accept accountability for our mistakes and apologize? This truth applies to all Christians. If colleagues or classmates do not want to work or associate with us, we should humbly reflect to see if we are the problem. Do we build our fellow workers up or do we use them for our own glory? I have always believed that when we love people unconditionally and desire to see them achieve their best for God, they will do their best in the work assigned to them.

The crux of it all is that walking with God daily is the one important thing for all Christians. We can only love others with the love that we have experienced with Jesus as we walk daily with him in a transformational relationship. It transforms us to love others the way God loves them. When we do that, people are also transformed to give their best to God. Saul couldn’t grasp this concept of loving others. His was a transactional relationship. That’s why he resorted to doling out rewards or the threat of removing rewards. If he had loved God, he would have humbly acknowledged the grace of God in choosing him as first king of Israel. He would have celebrated David’s victories and be happy as Jonathan was, in being second and David first. Had he done so, the nation of Israel would have prospered and God glorified. But he didn’t.

Spiritual blindness can result in great tragedy. It led Saul to make a prejudiced judgment against an innocent and blameless priest of God, Ahimelech. It resulted in the profane deaths of God’s servants in Nob. In our modern times too, spiritual blindness has resulted in the fall from grace of many of God’s servants through lust and power. Yet, oftentimes we excuse ourselves with the rationale that no one is perfect. Or we comfort ourselves with the truism that the Gospel is still marching forward. I would like to think of it another way. If the Gospel can advance so far in spite of our disobedience, let us think then how much farther, beyond even our imagination can imagine, the Gospel can advance because of our obedience.