SLAP-HAPPY?
It is a natural tendency of our flesh to react. For example, touch something
hot and your hand reacts automatically by pulling back; stub your toe on a
piece of furniture and your whole body flinches in reaction to the sudden
pain. And if you are untrained in self-discipline, a few sharp words may
coincide with your reaction. In fact, outbursts of sudden emotions are
reactions in and of themselves. This is why Christians must allow the Holy
Spirit to bear the fruit of His presence in their lives - without it, we are
just a mass of flesh. Galatians teaches, "But the fruit of the Spirit is
love, joy, peace, longsufering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness
AND SELF-CONTROL" (5:22-23). The simplest definition for this kind of
self-control is this: allowing the real you on the inside to call the shots;
or we could rename it "spirit-controlled."
But like I said, it is a natural tendency of our flesh to react. It began
at birth and still plagues us to this day. Paul had a misfortunate reaction in front of the Jewish High Council one time, but it was his correction to the reaction that we can learn from. He had been arrested and transferred to many courts by this time. The commander of the Sanhedrin wanted to know why Paul was accused by the Jews, so he ordered the leading priests into session and brought Paul before them. Then Paul, looking earnestly at the council, said, "Men and brethren, I have lived in all good conscience before God until this day." And the high priest Ananias commanded those who stood by him to strike him on the mouth. Then Paul said to him, "God will strike you, you whitewashed wall! For you sit to judge me according to the law, and do you command me to be struck contrary to the law?" (Acts 23:1-3)
Uh-oh! A natural reaction?!! I'm afraid I might have done the same thing,
except I might have slapped back! My husband is a real teaser and on more
than one occasion he has purposely surprised me to get a reaction. However,
if he was in reach, the reaction he got was a slug in the arm. Without even
thinking, when I am startled unexpectedly, my arm/hand/fist just swing out
there! The man who slapped Paul is fortunate that Paul did not slap back.
He had been released from his bonds, so his arms and hands were free.
However, Paul's words were just as potent. God will slap you, you corrupt
hypocrite" (New Living Translation)! We can almost hear the tone in his
voice! Paul was not a happy man. But watch what happened next:
Those standing near Paul said to him, Do you dare to insult Gods high
priest? Im sorry, brothers. I didnt realize he was the high priest,
Paul replied, for the Scriptures say, 'You must not speak evil of any of
your rulers.' (Acts 23:4-5, New Living Translation)
As much as I could hear Paul's tone of voice when he reacted to being
slapped in the face, I can almost hear the hushed whispers of the men
standing near him. With fear in their eyes as if lightening was about to
strike, they said, "Do you dare insult God's high priest?" Immediately,
Paul corrected himself. Why? It was not because Paul feared man. No, Paul
feared God's Word. We can learn from this example. God's Word instructs us to honor those in authority, regardless of what they have said or done. In today's culture, this is hard to find. Too often, people think they have a right to speak
their mind. Honor is a rare commodity. Most people want to "be honored"
but few sincerely "honor" others, especially authority. You don't have to
look very far to find rebellion to authority; unfortunately, it's everywhere
But as Christians, we are called to a higher standard -- and that standard
is God's Holy Word. Regardless of how we feel about a person or situation,
our behavior must be dictated by the Word of God. And like Paul, if we
discover we have acted inappropriately, then immediate, humble correction
must follow.
Reverence is simply a deep respect or devotion to someone. Psalm 2:11 says, "Serve the Lord with fear and rejoice with trembling." The fear this scripture is speaking of is reverence and respect, not an unpleasant feeling of danger. To fear the Lord is to admire and worship Him through words and acts of respect and honor. Jesus once made this statement: "He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me" (John 14:21). In essence, Jesus was asking the question, "Can you love God and not obey?" The answer is an obvious no - not intentionally. It's one thing to do things ignorantly (not knowing), but it's another thing to justify the reactions of our flesh simply because we feel disrespected. To fear the Lord, and His Word, is not weakness. On the contrary, it takes more strength to restrain a reaction then it does to
react. In the same way, it takes more strength and discipline to humbly
correct yourself (especially publicly) then it does to say nothing when you
realized you have erred.
"Oh, fear the Lord, you His saints! There is no want to those who fear Him"
(Psalm 34:9). The good news is God will take care of you when you show Him
and His Word honor. Whereas, in another place we are warned, "It is a
fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God" (Hebrews 10:31).
Paul understood this and it is the reason he self-corrected. He didn't fear
man, he feared (honored, admired, reverenced, and was devoted to) God. May
we follow his example, regardless of how others directly or indirectly treat
us. May His Word hold a place of honor in our lives above all else.
