Second Samuel 12:1-13 tells a story that should make any weep at man's injustice to fellow man and cause even Hollywood script writers to question the suspense factor in their detective stories.
A typical "big man" who had lots of stuff at his beck and call forcefully snatches the only source of livelihood left for a poor man and his family.
This is of course just a parable of the real event recorded a chapter earlier.
Trust King David (giant-slayer extraordinaire, teen champion, who successfully played 'bull-fight' with both a lion and a bear, and lived to tell the story, musician par excellence, prolific writer, thrice anointed king, Spirit-filled warrior, the man after God's own heart) he bellowed in royal wrath and roared with righteous indignation- "WHODUNNIT!?!?!?".
He didnt stop there, he went ahead to mentally arrest, arraign, convict and sentence the 'vile' offender, with neither bench nor jury. No appeal.
He continued his tirade of judgement until God's servant, prophet Nathan delivered the bombshell- "You are the man". Bewildered, Dave staggeringly sank back into his throne.
How?
When??
Where???
How often do we 'born-again christians' sit in our exalted seats as believers to deliver judgement on others?
How often does the brightness of our halo throw others up in such stark relief that we summarily dismiss them as beyond redemption?
How frequently does the thought of our humility get us so conceited we miss the true meaning of the word?
How like Brother David do we envisage the rot to always come from without our spotless beings?
How unlike Master Jesus are we, who despite having all the facts and the truth at His finger tips decided to let mercy rule with the most profound statement in history- "go and sin no more"
As Christ in His wisdom pointed out to us, we need to first dislodge the log in our eyes before contemplating the speck in our brother's eyes. (Matthew 7:1-5)
Now, don't get me wrong. I'm all for letting others know when they are wrong. I'm also all for showing the right way. The Bible doesn't just advocate it, It commands us to do so. (Titus 2:15).
However, this must be done in, with and out of love. Never should this be done from a holier-than-thou stand point. (Rom 14:1, 15:1)
Of all the multiple privileges we enjoy as christians, condemning others is not a part of the package.
If, like Brother David, you have already drawn conclusions about the next person, why not complete the imitation- swallow your pride, admit you are wrong and seek forgiveness, both from God and man. Once confronted with a "You-are-the-Man" moment of truth, let's not pass the buck. Rather, let's own up. We owe ourselves and the gospel we preach an attitude of active acceptance and sincere penitence.
When a member of The Family errs as is inevitable, let us also be slow to judge and quick to forgive. Let's strike the balance of rebuking with authority, yet correcting in love. Like our master, let us shepherd with both a rod and a staff.
If we kill instead of treating our wounded soldiers, how do we encourage others to join our Army? As Henry Ward Beecher put it, "the church is not a gallery for the exhibition of eminent christians, but a school for the education of imperfect ones".
Let's make our christianity indeed Christ-like. Then, can we boldly declare the love of Christ. Then, will we radiate that divine warmth capable of attracting people of all nations to the reality of Christ's unconditional love.
God bless you.
