The "Self-made Man"

You may say to yourself, "My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me." But  remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your forefathers, as it is today. Deuteronomy 8:17–18.

Ever notice we tend to blame God when things go wrong—“Why has God let this happen,” or “why is He doing this to me?” Yet we congratulate ourselves when things go well! A sign of our typically perverse human nature.

We are all aware of the “self-made man,” who has worked hard and provided abundantly for his family and others, claiming credit for his achievement. Does a man deserve praise because he has fulfilled his duty to provide for his family? It is certainly preferable to indolence, but, as our text reveals, his work is useless without God’s provision.

I recall in younger years, I questioned the appropriateness of giving thanks to God before meals when I had worked hard to put food on the table. It suddenly dawned on me that without God’s power to infuse life into the dead seeds, I would have no food, however hard I had worked to provide some.

Following that reasoning to its logical conclusion, I am often overwhelmed at God’s provision in every corner of my life; for family, food and even comfortable furniture—always thankful for that comfortable bed at the end of a tiring day!

God warned the Israelites of the same trap. In the desert, God’s provision was clear, He provided manna, clothes that never wore out, and feet that never swelled. The land they inherited grew bunches of grapes so large, they were carried on a pole between two men (Numbers 13:23). Then, in that situation, it would be easy to believe in their self-sufficiency.

Now, in our time of relative prosperity, it is easy to forget God’s role in supplying our needs. But thankfulness has a positive side effect: it is a source of security in adversity. Recognizing God as our source in plenty, He is still our source in want. Instead of blaming God in our lean times, we have peace, knowing He will still provide for us (Philippians 4:6–7).

Persistent Faith for the Hard Times

Watch yourselves closely so that you do not forget the things your eyes have seen or let them slip from your heart as long as you live. Teach them to your children and to their children after them. Deuteronomy 4:9.

In some ways, the Israelites had it easy! They saw and heard miraculous things not matched in our experience. Have you seen a pillar of fire or cloud following you each night and day, or water gushing out of impervious rock? Have we experienced a parting of the Jordan’s waters, or a siege and fall of Jericho in our lives?

Wow! With evidences of God like that in our history it would be easy to trust God wouldn’t it? Perhaps not. As a child, one of the inconsistencies I could not understand was the fickleness of the Israelites in the face of such great miracles. I was sure that if I had that sort of experience, I would have no difficulty trusting.

But as I grew older, I found that every adversity carried its own temptation not to believe; however much I had experienced God’s deliverance in the past. The resolution of past difficulties looked easy in retrospect and maybe it had nothing to do with God. Or perhaps this difficulty is my fault and so God will not answer. You can probably add your own excuses not to trust.

What we believe about past encounters with adversity will add or detract from our trust in God for the present. If God was present then, He will be with us now. Each occasion we trust God for the outcome builds faith for the next. Our difficulty arises from the ability to choose what to believe: whether everything happens by chance, or God is involved in our experience.

We may not have the spectacular experiences the Israelites had, but a lifetime of recognizing God acting on our behalf—in good times and bad—is an enduring legacy, not only for us, but also for our children and grandchildren. Their faith will gain that positive starting point as they embark on a lifetime of walking with God.

Did I Play a Part in the Recent Economic Slowdown?

The leech has two daughters. 'Give! Give!' they cry. Proverbs 30:15.

Like mother, like daughter! And the leech kids had the perfect teacher. It’s easy to fall into this mode, it’s instinctively our default position to look after number one. In fact, humans have always defined themselves by selfishness or benevolence, or an awkward combination of the two. Western culture has swung towards self-interest as Christian faith loses ground, and a culture of entitlement replaces it.

It was an honest work ethic, promoted by the Christian culture of the time, which created prosperity in the early part of the last century—despite two world wars. The current prosperity of the western world depends less on work that creates wealth, and more on credit driven by entitlement—a far shakier foundation. This can have dire consequences for our society

While selfish acquisitiveness on the part of unscrupulous bankers is blamed for the recent downturn in world economies, the population is not innocent. Currently, for instance, French unions are creating turmoil trying to prevent the government raising the retirement age from 60 to 62. Other countries offer retirement at 65!

Leeches will suck the lifeblood from their victims. How many of us are crying “give, give”?

Why Belong to a Church?

Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favour of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. Acts 2:46-47.

So many reasons not to belong to a church. Since I have found out so much about Christianity by reading the Bible, I can’t find a church that agrees with me. Churches are self-absorbed. I can be just as good a Christian without going to church. I am closer to God communing with nature than in church. And, of course, the old favourite: the church is full of hypocrites!

Apart from the fact that the church is a good place for hypocrites to be, none of the above reasons reflects a necessary facet of Christianity—to be with others. The above excuses, and most others, reflect an individualistic approach to living the faith, as though being a hermit, avoiding contamination from others’ faults and errors, raises the level of one’s spiritual life.

Of course, spiritual exercises taken alone are an essential part of the Christian life. Personal communion with God—whether in the country or the closet—corrects our distorted thinking and provides clearer insight into the nature of God. In our private times with God and His Word, we gain a greater sense of our sinfulness and God’s love toward us despite our sin.

This leads to the most difficult part of the Christian faith: reflecting God’s love and forgiveness to others. The closer we are to others, the more difficult it is to live with them! Every married person finds that out in short order. Similarly, living with imperfect human beings—even hypocrites—in a church environment can be just as difficult.

Today’s verse suggests that the early Church drew people by love for each another that ran counter to human nature and experience. That can’t be shown hermit style. My father used to say that God doesn’t wait for us to be perfect before He uses us or nothing would get done! And if we were all perfect, love wouldn’t be necessary.

It’s in our church family, with all its human challenges that we can best demonstrate the sacrificial love of Christ.

That Difficult Task of Forgiveness

Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. Ephesians 4:32.

Why is forgiving so difficult? Few of the stories of injustice end in forgiveness; usually it’s a cry for revenge, or at least justice to provide “closure” to the incident. My mind goes back to a number of Amish children killed in a schoolhouse some years ago; some of you will remember it. In this remarkable episode the community came together and issued a statement that they would forgive the perpetrator.

Did this mean that the killer got away free? Unlikely, as he had to answer to the law, not the parents. The Amish understood that God is the avenger, in most cases by the authorities He has instituted, Romans 13:1–7. What was important for the community was that smouldering anger and resentment did not interfere with their service to God and one another.

That doesn’t mean that it was all over for them after a few words. Injustice and grief like that creates difficult tensions in our spirit and takes time to process. I’m sure that many of you have had to deal with some form of violence or violation that took time to forgive, but you experienced that relief and peace that floods the soul when the anger is finally shed.

It’s when we realize our greater sin against God is forgiven, we may sense a bond with, even compassion for, the perpetrators. They may not accept our forgiveness, even deny their fault against us, but forgiveness in our hearts provides peace to ourselves, as much as to them.

Can you identify with that?