"...for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." Romans 3:23
I was recently reminded of a fable by Aesop about a dog and his reflection. If you don’t remember or have never heard it, it goes something like this:
There was once a dog who had been given a large, juicy bone by the town butcher. As the dog carried the bone home in his mouth, he crossed a bridge. When the dog looked down from the bridge and into the water below, he noticed another dog. This dog was carrying a bone that was even larger and juicier than the one he had been given by the butcher. The dog felt envy rise up in him and he barked at the other dog in his jealousy. As the dog barked, his own large, juicy bone, of course, fell from his mouth and into the water, sinking and drifting away.
On the surface, this seems to be a tale of jealousy. Be happy with what you have and don’t be jealous of others. But I would challenge you to look a little deeper. Not only was the dog jealous, but he was so jealous that he couldn’t keep quiet. He felt inadequate. He had to let that other dog know how unfair it was that his bone was bigger. If the dog had kept his mouth shut (literally), even though he felt the jealousy, he would have been able to keep his bone. In staying quiet, he would have kept what he had.
Another curious point of the story is that the dog thought his reflection had a better piece of meat, a better bone. When, in reality, it was the exact same. Maybe this speaks to the fact that we often want what others have, simply because it is different from what we have. The dog couldn’t be content with his own gift. He wanted what was out of his reach. He wanted what he couldn’t have.
Changing gears a bit (stick with me, I promise I’ll bring us full-circle)... I recently was talking to a friend about sin. We were discussing the fact that the Bible does not actually quantify sin. Quantifying sin is something we do, as humans. People have decided which sins are “worse” than the others. The Ten Commandments tell us that lying is a sin and murder is a sin. It doesn’t say murder is worse. We do that. Humans do that. Sin is sin is sin.
The Bible also tells us that ALL have sinned and fallen short (Romans 3:23) Not some have sinned. Not most. Not none. ALL. All have sinned! To sin is to miss the mark, like an arrow that misses the target. There are times we get a bullseye. But, most often, we miss the mark. That is sin. There aren’t varying degrees. You either hit the target or you don’t.
So, if we are feeling jealousy. We are sinning. Pretty much, folks, if we are breathing, we are sinning.
AND THAT’S OKAY.
Now, please don’t get all huffy with me because I’m calling you a sinner. I’m one too! We all are. We all fall short, day after day. This side of Heaven we will be sinners and fall short. Why is it okay? Because we have a Savior who doesn’t expect perfection! He expects participation! Show up! Do good! Aim the arrow. You may not make the shot, heck, you probably won’t. But you tried. You participated. And again, that’s okay.
God cares more about your growth than your failures. If you aren’t trying you aren’t growing.
When you’re growing, it is the perfect time to reach out and ask for help and guidance. As you grow, you can train yourself to grow towards God. Ask him where he wants you to grow. Ask him why. He might not tell you, but then again, he just might! How cool is that? You might get a glimpse of God’s greater plan for you. Then you can explore what his will is for you through the growth that is before you.
It sounds complex, but it’s not. Just trust and obey and seek Jesus. He will show up as you grow up.
Then keep it simple... Talk to God and work it out.
Bringing it back to Aesop and his fable (as I said I would), the dog didn’t make a mistake in his feelings. It was fine that he wanted to have a bigger, juicer bone like the dog he saw reflected in the river. It was fine that he felt envy and jealousy. Feelings can’t be helped, but his actions are what caused the demise of his tasty treat. He had to put action behind his emotion and thus, lost his bone.
So, feel the feelings. Be jealous. Have envy. There are no wrong feelings, only wrong actions. But whatever you do, don’t be like that dog... and remember to always keep your mouth shut.
コメント