Christ’s Responses to Those
Who Opposed and Mistreated Him
He was patient "What
glory is it if, when you are buffeted for your faults, you shall take it
patiently? but if, when you do well, and suffer for it, you take it patiently,
this is acceptable with God. For even hereunto were you called, because Christ
also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His
steps…. Who, when He was reviled, reviled not again; when He suffered, He
threatened not; but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously" (1
Pet. 2:20-23).
An acquaintance whom I first met
in my prison ministry called me one day and told me he had come home drunk
recently and finding that his key didn’t work, kicked the door in. Only then
did he realize he had gone to the wrong apartment. He couldn’t understand why
everyone was giving him such a hard time, including threatening to send him to
jail, for a little "mistake" like that.
Another acquaintance, at a prison
Bible study, was trying to tell me why he had become a drug dealer. He once had
a good job but his boss kept criticizing him for "no good reason" and
the fellow finally told his boss off in no uncertain terms. That was the end of
his job. I asked him why he felt he had to "mouth off" at his boss,
why he didn’t just do the best he could and quietly take the criticism.
"Because I am a man," was his response.
Jesus was a man, too, and in His
life on this earth He defines for us what real manhood is. A real man is
one who does not allow the offenses and hurts of others to cause him to swerve
from the path of perfect obedience to God.
Using the passage in 1 Peter as
our inspiration, let us consider the several steps to maturity with regard to
the matter of handling reproof and suffering:
Step 1. I sin, and when
reproved I fly into a rage; the result is more sin. The prophet Hanani reproved
King Asa for turning to the king of Syria for help instead of relying on
Jehovah. Asa responded with great rage and put Hanani in prison (2 Chron. 16:7-10).
Step 2. I sin, and when
reproved, confess and repent and take the reproof patiently; the result,
according to 1 Pet. 2:20, is that there is no particular glory in making right
our wrongdoings. The Prophet Nathan reproved King David for his sins of
adultery and murder. David responded with the humble confession, "I have
sinned against the Lord" (2 Sam. 12:7-13; Psa. 51).
Step 3. I do well, and
when I suffer for it I become angry at those who hurt me, or bitter toward God;
the result is that the well-doing degenerates into sin (Num. 20).
Step 4. I do well, and
when I suffer for it I take it patiently; the result is being "acceptable
with God" (1 Pet. 2:20)and reaping eternal blessing (Matt. 5:10-12). The
Apostle Paul wrote, "Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my
infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take
pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in
distresses for Christ’s sake:for when I am weak, then am I strong" (2
Cor. 12:9,10).
Step 5. I do well, and
when I suffer for it I do something good to those who are against me; the
result is being "the children of [our] Father who is in heaven"
(Matt. 5:44,45). The Syrian army tried to capture the Prophet Elisha. But
Jehovah smote the enemy with blindness and Elisha led them to the king of Israel. But instead of destroying the enemy, Elisha "prepared great provision for
them, and when they had eaten and drunk, he sent them away" (2 Ki.
6:8-23). And of course an even better example of loving our enemies and doing
good to those who hate us is provided by the Lord Jesus Christ Himself when He
died to provide salvation even for those who cruelly and unjustly crucified
Him.
Let us each carefully and
honestly before the Lord examine ourselves as to how far we have progressed up
the ladder to Christ-likeness in this regard.
In the passage in 1 Peter 2 we
read that "when He was reviled, reviled not again." Christ’s example
in this is essential for those who engage in the work of restoring a
backsliding soul to the Lord. "Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault,
you who are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness" (Gal.
6:1). What this means is that the servant of the Lord may not find a ready audience
for his reproof. Rather, the one who is overtaken in a fault may retaliate with
charges and insults against the servant. For this reason, the servant must be
girded with Christ-like meekness so that if he is reviled, he reviles not
again.
"When He suffered, He
threatened not, but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously"(l
Pet. 2:23). I remember, at least a couple of times, in the heat of battle with
another believer who had made some unjust charges against me, saying, "You
just wait till the judgment seat of Christ; then you will find out who is
right!" Perhaps this is so, but it is likely that I will learn that
neither was I right in my response.
He was calm and gentle and held
His peace. When the traitor Judas led the band to Jesus to take Him, what a
calm and peaceful— yet at the same time probing— response Jesus gave to him:
"Friend, why have you come?" (Matt. 2650; see also John 18:3-6). And
when Jesus stood on trial before first the high priest and then Pilate, He
"held His peace … He answered nothing… He answered him to never a
word, insomuch that the governor marveled greatly" (Matt. 26:63;
27:12-14). In this He fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah, "He was oppressed,
and He was afflicted, yet He opened not His mouth; He is brought as a lamb to
the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so He opens not His
mouth" (53:7).
Following Christ’s example, we
have the privilege of remaining silent or saying, "I don’t care to talk
about it," when one is trying to "get our goat" by making false
charges against us or trying to provoke us into an argument.
He forgave His enemies. They
falsely accused Him, they charged Him with blasphemy, they spat in His face,
they punched and slapped Him, they plucked out the hair of His beard, they
scourged Him, they pounded a crown of thorns into His head, they bowed before
Him in mock worship, they stripped Him, they pounded nails into His hands and
feet, they subjected Him to a most shameful as well as painful kind of death,
they taunted and reviled Him as He suffered on the cross. And how did He
respond to all this? "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they
do" (Luke 23:34). What a heart-stirring, soul-searching response!
Can we be expected to respond in
such away toward our enemies? Yes, we are commanded, "Love your enemies,
bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you/ and pray for those
who despitefully use you and persecute you" (Matt. 5:44).
Also, we have the example of
Stephen in this regard. In response to Stephen’s speech, the Jews "gnashed
on him with their teeth … cried out with a loud voice … and ran upon him
with one accord … and stoned him." And Stephen cried out, just before he
died, "Lord, lay not this sin to their charge" (Acts 7:54-60).
He withdrew or hid Himself from
His enemies. When the Pharisees "held a council against Him, how they
might destroy Him.. .He withdrew Himself from there" (Matt. 12:14,15).
When "they took up stones to cast at Him … Jesus hid Himself" (John
8:59). When "they sought again to take Him… He escaped out of their
hand, and went away again beyond Jordan" (John 10:39,40).
The macho man may foolishly stand
up and try to defend himself against a much stronger opponent. But Jesus, who
had all of the power of omnipotent God available to Him, and could easily have
overcome His enemies had it been God’s will, did not do so because it did not
fit in with God’s purposes for the time. "The Son of Man is not come to
destroy men’s lives, but to save them" (Luke 9:56).
May we be wise like our Lord in
such situations. "A prudent man foresees the evil and hides himself; but
the simple pass on and are punished" (Prov. 22:3; 27:12).
He reasoned with His opponents.
When the Pharisees came to Him with questions, even if with the intention to
"accuse Him" (Matt. 12:10), Jesus usually took time to reason with
them from the Scriptures, often pointing out inconsistencies in their thinking
(Matt. 12:1-8,10-12; 15:1-6; 19:16,17; 22:23-33,41-46). "Love … hopes
all things" (1 Cor. 13:7); perhaps behind an antagonistic exterior there
is hiding an anxious and searching mind. A gentle, reasoned response will
attract the soul that is really seeking the truth. "The servant of the
Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient, in
meekness instructing those who oppose them" (2 Tim. 2:24).
In the next issue, Lord willing,
we shall consider Christ’s responses to man’s sinful behavior in general.