…but a man is tested by the praise accorded him. (Proverbs 27:21)
hmmm.
I was having a chat with a friend of mine this weekend and he shared with me how he used to think that serving the church or missions was THE most fulfilling and greatest work he could do. He wanted to go to the mission field. He wanted to go as far and to one of the most difficult places and win the whole country for Jesus. Over the course of time and circumstances, God asked him if he’d be faithful with loving his wife, loving his family, loving this congregation, loving his ailing in-laws. There was a not-so short list of seemingly simple (but not easy, I’m sure) things to do. God was asking for faithfulness in these areas.
My friend touched on something that drives me. I, too, want to change the world. I want to be used of God in a mighty way. I’ve gotta be careful, because I think I want to be a superhero … and for not all the right reasons. I’d like to do an interview with, say Marilyn Manson, and lead him to Christ. I’d probably (hopefully) have the wisdom to not print that interview if it happened. I’d want to do what’s best for this new believer and his newfound faith. But I don’t have to search far and wide in my heart to find a place that thinks it’d be neat to have someone whisper within my earshot, “Psst! That’s the guy that led Marilyn Manson to the Lord!”
And that, my friends, is jacked up. That is full of self-righteousness. This would be a good and valid place to use profanity to express how ugly and stupid this is. That’s really gross – to think that I have the potential to easily be prideful and let my ego call the shots.
I laugh when I think about it. Perhaps this is one reason why I have not gone on to do great exploits for God. I’m grateful that God uses me, but I don’t have to drift off into a lazy daydream for too long to imagine doing something awesome, like healing a blind man or walking into a hospital and healing everyone in the entire place or speaking to a crowd of thousands and having them accept and receive the forgiveness that Jesus offers us all.
I think of that verse: A man is tested by the praise given to him. What would I do if I was wildly successful? How would I handle someone like Matt Lauer smiling at me on camera and starting off our interview beaming with happiness as he congratulated me for this or that? It’s not too terribly hard to give God the glory and deflect praise to where it is properly due, but how about that little spot in your head that enjoys the attention? I guess that must be like a demon to constantly rebuke, avoid and ignore.
What would I do if it was Doug Van Pelt that spoke up on the Day of Pentecost instead of Peter? How many of you have ever read those powerful words of Peter and imagined saying them yourself? I think I have. I can’t say for sure, because I don’t remember going, “Hmmm, What would it be like if that was me?” But I think I have imagined myself in this guy’s shoes at that moment. It was an awesome little message. He stood up in a crowd at a spontaneous moment and explained what was going on with all the speaking in tongues and the “falling” of the Holy Spirit on all of these men at once. He even basically accused some of the people he was addressing… Okay, he actually accused the audience with a giant, pluralistic use of the word “YOU” when he said:
“This man was handed over to you by God’s set purpose and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross…”
He dug into the past and talked about their Patriarch, King David, prophesying that this day would come. He went on to declare the resurrection of Jesus. It was a POWERFUL speech. When the people heard this, they were “cut to the heart” and they asked Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?”
Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. THe promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off – for all whom the Lord our God will call.”
About three thousand were added to their number that day.
Wow! That is some kind of heroic action, if you ask me. How I wish I could do something like that. But is my wish truly pure? Is it purely for the glory of God? Or do I have some sort of sick, twisted ego that wants attention and glory? Do I want to be a leader to get my ego stroked? Or do I want to help people?
Man, I’m not so sure I can give the “right” answer here. I’m a big fat jerk. One thing that I probably don’t think about is the price that these leaders paid with their roles as leaders. Peter, tradition tells us, was crucified upside-down. We’re not just talking about death. We’re not just talking about murder (public execution). We’re talking about torture.
Where was Peter’s moment in the spotlight? Where was Matt Lauer and the Today Show crew and the throngs of believers praising his name? He died for his leadership of “the Way” movement that he helped lead and serve. So much for hero worship.
It’s a big deal (and a wonderful thing) when a person shines in defeat and failure and tragedy. I’m so inspired by a kid that’s probably a quarter century my junior, but he stood so tall as a man when he was interviewed after one of the biggest (probably THE biggest) disappointment of his life. When Colt McCoy answered these interview questions this way, it was a powerful way of stating how great God is. While most of us think of a “testimony” as some wonderful thing where the ending is great and all is wonderful, I think this is just as powerful (if not more so, since it’s kind of rare), when someone trusts in, clings to and relies upon Jesus even in the midst of confusion, doubt, defeat, disappointment. While it’s awesome to see someone get tested by adversity and failure and still give praise to God, it’s also a great test when someone experiences great success.
I’m inspired by the example of a person tested by either extreme. Either way cannot always be easy.
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