Poignant situations

(GB Message)

Introspection

When I look back, I realize that I have lived a life so rich, so varied, and so pleasant, of course with occasional unpleasantness. I am filled with gratitude for the abundant mercy of God and praise Him. I am now quite busy giving the final touches to my various teachings, which I must do prior to meeting the Lord, who will also, I am sure, be equally eager to meet me because this has been a life given by Him to me.

Strangely, I understand that I am old only when I look at my face in the mirror.

For in spirit, I feel as young as I was when I was saved, over thirty five years ago. At that time I was neither old nor young. My daughter was only six. Since I see my grand daughters looking like she used to look in her youth, I feel as if I am as young as I was, once more! Another reason why I do not feel old is because I am busy with attending to last-minute adjustments in enlightening the people whom God has entrusted to me. I am grateful that He has mercifully granted me a micro ministry, which means I have a better chance of training the people more efficiently for the Lord.

The only disappointment is that I have learned so many precious truths about Him so late in my life. Sometimes I think that had I but experienced this a trifle earlier I might have brought some more of my beloved ones to the Lord. Though disappointed, I am not dissatisfied because I am obliged to take into account only the life I have lived after my salvation, which I received only by Him and by His grace. I cannot question God as to why I didn’t find Him earlier. I can only be grateful because I “who was dead through the trespasses and sins”, (Eph 2: 1b), “He made alive”, (Eph 2: 1a). Since then I have learnt to “live to the Lord” (Rom 4: 8a) and “whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s” (Rom 14:8b). Hence there is no question of my being dissatisfied. All the same, I would like to share some poignant and sad memories and thoughts.

I wonder if they knew the Lord

I remember some kith and kin who I loved very dearly who, as far as I know, were not born again. After my spiritual rebirth, I shared the gospel with many in the family, but these ones died before I was myself enlightened. I console myself with the thought that it is, in any case, under God’s purview, and perhaps somehow (although I have no means of knowing in what way), He did save them without my knowledge. At times I feel very sad about the possibility that they may have died without knowing the Lord, and yet I hope that they too will be part of the heavenly band.

I remind all those who are listening to me (or reading this article) that this life will surely pass away like a vapour, like the Psalmist said,
“we spend our years as a tale that is told,
The days of our years are threescore years and ten;
And if by any reason of strength they be fourscore years,
Yet is their strength labour and sorrow;
For it is soon cut off, and we fly away”, Ps 90: 9, 10

This life will be over only to be replaced by another life that can be more glorious than anyone has ever envisaged, and so it behooves all of us who are still alive, by the grace of God, to do our best to convey the gospel, not so much by preaching but by one’s own personal life and example, to as many people as possible, beginning with those with whom we are very attached.

Let us realize how secure, care free, and confident we are (provided of course, we are saved with the assurance of the Holy Spirit) through the assurance we derive from the verses that tell us who Jesus Christ is—the very source of our life: Lord Jesus said, “I am the first and the last, and the living One. . . behold I am alive forever more and I have the keys of death and of Hades….”, (Rev 1: 18); also ‘I am the Way, the Truth and the Life’ (Jn 14:6). It is He who is going to renew us to live eternally with Him. We are not like the fabled mute swan that sings one last heartbreaking song and dies. If we must mention singing, it will be a song of jubilation and victory that we will sing in eternity.

A letter is ignored and a brother pursued
Soon after my spiritual regeneration I wrote to about 25 to 30 people sharing with them my joy of spiritual regeneration and also inviting them all to have this great experience. Except for three or four, no one seemed to take any notice of it. I heard through others that some laughed and heckled at my letter, because they perceived it as being queer. One person wrote a letter to me that was worded something like this: “You are one of the few people who I personally know who have come up well in life. Your strange letter was alarming to me. Don’t do anything rashly. May God help you to think soberly.” At that time I was in charge of one of the largest Management libraries in South Asia. I assumed that my letter would be granted some credence. But I was sorely disappointed because the voice of the Lord sounded to them through me was ignored. I had unknowingly been to some ‘a fragrance of Christ to God among… those who are perishing’, (2 Cor 2: 15). This is an extremely poignant situation indeed. No one of those who disregarded my letter is alive today.

If some senior person at that time had backed me and stood by me to vouch for my sanity, that I was not neurotic, a few people at least might have listened. But the senior people in the family, although they did belittle me or oppose my efforts, opted to be mere bystanders. By God’s grace, I pursued one of these bystanders—a very beloved brother—and baptised him about 15 years later. Three months after this baptism he passed away during a surgery. He was saved. But many missed the chance partly because of his indifferent attitude during earlier times, when I strove to preach the gospel to my kith and kin including his own children. It is more a question of our earnest endeavour than of expecting any positive outcome, because a person is saved only by Lord Jesus and the ministry of the Holy Spirit.

Some left the church and did not do well

The life that we are living now is the regenerated life prior to the time of our glorification by Lord Jesus. We will be glorified after we complete the tenure of this life on earth. Hence this life is a very crucial period of time for a believer. It is at this crucial stage that the devil tries to destroy us. Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. (1Pet 5:8) Some of our members felt compelled to leave the church after tasting of God’s goodness here. This move was a dangerous one to make and some of them clearly did not settle down in solid Bible-based churches. This time on earth is a significant period of time both for introspection and for going to higher steps in the spiritual life. This may or may not be the last leg of our spiritual pilgrimage. In any case this period of time is very crucial and very special for the spiritually regenerated people.

Some fall for the flattery of men

There are many in this world aspiring for the honour of men rather than of God contrary to the specific command of God that warns us to desist from such a tendency, “For they loved the approval of man rather than the approval of God” (Jn 12: 43). In this connection, the warning of Lord Jesus in His Sermon on the Mount, is also important: “Beware of practicing your righteousness before men to be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward from your Father who is in heaven” (Mt 6: 1). It is not a question of preference, but one of losing the entire reward, for the same reason that idolatry is blasphemous, because it is a question of honouring a creature rather than the Creator. We seek to be appreciated by the Creator, the Lord, and Master, who is every minister’s Employer, and not by human beings.

Even exceptionally talented men succumb to this temptation of valuing empty flattery, human appreciation, and being in the limelight, thereby inviting the wrath of God. How could they have forgotten that they are accountable to God for this precious life and the gifts He has given. “So then each one of us shall give account of himself to God” (Rom 14:12).

Spiritual peril for those who are careless

On account of the under-noted five weaknesses, believers tend to overlook important and crucial New Testament teachings and hence expose themselves to spiritual danger.

1. The old self functioning instead of the inner man: I agree with Dr. John Mac Arthur, that the Inner man starts functioning when he became a new creation in Jesus Christ. However, there is the danger of the Old man (the carnal man) playing up, if he is not properly crucified—knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. (Rom 6: 6)
2. Communication problems: A careless attitude while a sermon is being preached, not paying adequate attention, hating correction, being distracted while an important point is being explained and the like all lead to serious gaps in communication. It is even worse when the affected person is not even aware of the communication failure, as the literary genius, Bernard Shaw, said, “The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place”. When teaching is not assimilated because of such tendencies, the result can be catastrophic.
3. The tendency to forget spiritual truth.
   • Yes, I think it is right, as long as I am in this tent, to stir you up by reminding you (2 Pet 1:13)
   • Beloved, I now write to you this second epistle (in both of which I stir up your pure minds by way of reminder)(2 Pet 3:1)
   • Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things? (2 Thess 2: 5)
4. Succumbing to Satanic deceptions.
5. Failure to remember that salvation is not like getting into the train bound for New Delhi and relaxing in the confidence that we will reach the destination irrespective of whatever one may be doing in the train compartment.

A slogan like ‘once saved for ever saved’ may have its use in theological discussions, but in practice often tends to make people slack, even those who need to work at making their calling and election sure. Even though I am not worried about losing my salvation, I am very careful in taking necessary precautions on the five useful hints and warnings given above.

Old family relationships change

Satan can topple us from our spiritual stand by making important doctrinal truths appear as trivial even thought they are part of the commands of Lord Jesus. One important New Testament teaching is about the formation of a spiritual family that takes the place of the earthly family in our hearts. After our spiritual regeneration our habits, priorities, and relationship should change.

Lord Jesus set us an example. “While He was still speaking to the people, behold, His mother and His brothers stood outside, asking to speak to Him. But He replied to the man, who told Him, ‘who is my mother, and who are my brothers? And stretching out His hand toward His disciples, He said’, Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the will of My Father in heaven is my brother, sister and mother’” (Mt 12: 47 – 50). We have a new family in the church of God. Hence the old order should be charged accordingly.

My kith and kin by blood relationships sometimes feel that I am lost to them and sometimes, I feel that they are lost to me. I do not hate any of them. On the contrary, I love them very much. But they hesitate to come to my house, not because of any mutual dislike but because of my intense love for the Bible and my disinterestedness in worldly chatter. In their eyes, I appear as an unloving person and someone who is not fun to be around. I consider the members of EBA to be ‘family’ and closer to me than several who are blood related.

Questions

Introspection

1. In this meditation, as a whole, do I feel sadness or regret?
2. In the third para, have I expressed a dissatisfaction, a disappointment, or a matter for rejoicing?
3. What is my concern about my ministry at this stage of my life?

I wonder if they knew the Lord

1. What is the poignant/sad situation mentioned here?
2. Is it a regret or a disappointment – state with reason.
3. State my earnest hope in this matter
4. The psalm quoted here describes man’s life as a tale that is told and as a man living for 70 years. Is there any contradiction between these two descriptions? Give a reason for your answer.
5. Why do I feel that death need not be unpleasant?

A letter is ignored and a brother pursued

1. For argument sake, try to defend the people who ignored my letter.
2. Attempt to break your defense in the previous answer
3. What is the lesson that the readers of this account learn from this experience?
4. What is the consolation I derived from an otherwise disappointing experience?

Some left the church and did not do well

1. Explain the poignant situation mentioned here
2. How are you going to make use of this teaching in your own life?

Some fall for the flattery of men

1. Can you one or two examples for this situation?

Spiritual peril for those who are careless

1. Furnish some possible cases of danger if one is not careful about Outer man-Inner man conflicts.
2. State what you understand by crucifying the old self (Rom 6: 6)
3. State the spiritual application of Bernard Shaw’s statement
4. How important is communication in the context of EBA.
5. Is forgetfulness a spiritual or a psychological problem? State with proper defence?
6. State on example of succumbing to Satanic deception.
7. State the danger of imagining that our spiritual life is like a long train journey.

Old family relationships change

1. Does EBA comes across any problem with regard to the spiritual family Vs earthly family?
2. How do you personally view this matter in your own life?
3. What has been my example in this regard?