FEARLESS RIGHTEOUSNESS
Heartbroken to me, you who know righteousness, the people in whose heart is my law; fear not the reproach of men, and be not dismayed at their revilings. Isa. 51:7, R.S.V.
Why is the disapproval of others so terrifying to us? Often we will do almost anything to avoid having others regard us as in the wrong. Do you recognize in your own heart that intense desire to be correct, to be known as "in the right"?
Perhaps we doubt our own convictions, our own values, when they differ from the accepted values of others. Yet the fear of standing alone can make us fragile, vulnerable, easily manipulated. And in these times of confused values and intense conflict, that is not a healthy condition to be in.
How can our Father prepare a people who will be able to stand for the right in the final conflicts, against the forceful opinions of what will appear to be the entire world? How can He make us essentially unmoved by the pressures, even the outrage, of people who are themselves threatened by those "who know righteousness"?
God does not do this by barking orders at us with greater force than does the threatening world around us. His people do not trade fear for fear. Rather, we heed His invitation to listen while He instructs us in the ways of righteousness. By wise and patient teaching He writes His law in our hearts. More than that, His powerful and unchanging love works to heal that emptiness and insecurity that plagues us all. In this way He gives us the emotional strength to say, "World, it doesn't matter so much what you think of me. The God of this universe counts me as precious!"
God's dealings with us are complete. He begins by showing us the difference between righteousness and wickedness. Taking a second step, He helps us "internalize" the principles of righteousness; He writes them on our hearts so that they represent the very things we most want to do. Finally, He makes us so inwardly secure, so properly self-confident in Him, that we become fearless of the hassles and pressures of the unrighteous.
Paul said, "God did not give us a spirit of timidity but a spirit of power and love and self-control" (2 Tim. 1:7, R.S.V.). What greater strength is there than to know that one is fearlessly standing right in the center of God's will and His love!
Heartbroken to me, you who know righteousness, the people in whose heart is my law; fear not the reproach of men, and be not dismayed at their revilings. Isa. 51:7, R.S.V.
Why is the disapproval of others so terrifying to us? Often we will do almost anything to avoid having others regard us as in the wrong. Do you recognize in your own heart that intense desire to be correct, to be known as "in the right"?
Perhaps we doubt our own convictions, our own values, when they differ from the accepted values of others. Yet the fear of standing alone can make us fragile, vulnerable, easily manipulated. And in these times of confused values and intense conflict, that is not a healthy condition to be in.
How can our Father prepare a people who will be able to stand for the right in the final conflicts, against the forceful opinions of what will appear to be the entire world? How can He make us essentially unmoved by the pressures, even the outrage, of people who are themselves threatened by those "who know righteousness"?
God does not do this by barking orders at us with greater force than does the threatening world around us. His people do not trade fear for fear. Rather, we heed His invitation to listen while He instructs us in the ways of righteousness. By wise and patient teaching He writes His law in our hearts. More than that, His powerful and unchanging love works to heal that emptiness and insecurity that plagues us all. In this way He gives us the emotional strength to say, "World, it doesn't matter so much what you think of me. The God of this universe counts me as precious!"
God's dealings with us are complete. He begins by showing us the difference between righteousness and wickedness. Taking a second step, He helps us "internalize" the principles of righteousness; He writes them on our hearts so that they represent the very things we most want to do. Finally, He makes us so inwardly secure, so properly self-confident in Him, that we become fearless of the hassles and pressures of the unrighteous.
Paul said, "God did not give us a spirit of timidity but a spirit of power and love and self-control" (2 Tim. 1:7, R.S.V.). What greater strength is there than to know that one is fearlessly standing right in the center of God's will and His love!
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