Monday the 19th

John 18: ¹⁰Then Simon Peter, who had a sword, drew it and struck the high priest's servant, cutting off his right ear. (The servant's name was Malchus.)  ¹¹Jesus commanded Peter, "Put your sword away! Shall I not drink the cup the Father has given me?"

 

Philippians: 1 ²⁷Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in one spirit, contending as one man for the faith of the gospel ²⁸without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you. This is a sign to them that they will be destroyed, but that you will be saved—and that by God.

 

How many ears have you cut off in an effort to protect, or further the Word of God? I know it sounds a little harsh doesn’t it? well I know that the literal answer is none….for most of you……but when we read about Simon Peter striking the servant, we know that he did not do it out of rage, or out of hatred….no Simon Peter was protecting Christ. When I read this, it got me to thinking. You know…….we do a lot of sword drawing, and a lot of ear cutting today, all in the name of protecting Christ. Oh, I do not think for one second that the majority of us lash out to intentionally hurt, we just want to protect Christ. We want to protect those we love, we want to protect the world from evil, so we lash out. We condemn, we judge, and we damn people all in an effort to “save them” Sadly, just like the Simon Peter, and the servant in the scripture, all we really accomplish is hurting someone, and the one injured  is left looking at their ear on the ground, wondering why in the world anyone would listen to this sword wielding, ear slashing lunatic! Put your sword away! We all want to be soul winners, we all want to save our friends, our families, our co-workers, even our faith. But we must all understand that true soul changing, life extending, soul replenishing, saving grace, does not come from us, and it does not come from the tip of a sword (literal or figurative), all of this comes freely from Christ, the one who has already taken the pain of the cross, and the tip of the spear. SO if we are not to beat those around us into conformity, then how shall we be successful? We shall be a living example. We shall use the same tactics that won our hearts over. We shall live in a manner worthy of the Gospel of Christ. Do we each not have a cup to drink? Do we too not have a purpose to fulfill for the Lord? The sword will never be as compelling as love, our behavior will always out weigh our words. Let your life be your calling card. Let your life be a sign to those around you that you are saved. Let them see that you have no need to be frightened or threatened. These actions are the ones that will be successful, put the sword away, it is not needed anymore.

 

 

God Bless,

Brian