| The Christian Life | July 1942 |
Vulnerable Points
THE WORD vulnerable means “capable of being wounded.” Our lesson will take up a number of ways in which the Christian may become vulnerable or weak. Knowing these possible weaknesses should help us to overcome them. Writing to the saints at Colosse, St. Paul makes the following statement, “Buried with Him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with Him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised Him from the dead.” (Col. 2:12) Water baptism is a beautiful and expressive symbol of how the candidate for membership in the body of Christ puts himself in the hands of the immerser, representing the Lord. In this symbol, his humanity is immersed into Christ’s sacrificial death. He does not just sit down in the water but lets the immerser lower him into the water. This represents that instead of just making a sacrifice, we put ourselves into the hands of God, fully to do His will. Our sacrificial death results from a complete submergence of our wills to the doing of God’s will.
This text also points out that our baptism includes the thought that as new creatures we are now figuratively risen to lead a new life, having spiritual aims and hopes and ambition’s, and walking in the footsteps of Jesus Christ. Our chief concern now is to live wholly consecrated to God.
In one of Aesop’s fables, the story is told of a donkey that stuck his nose into a blacksmith shop. When the blacksmith complained, the donkey said, “Don’t be stingy. You have the whole shop and I only want to put in my nose. It is so cold outside and my nose is so cold.” So the blacksmith said, “All right.” But a little later, he noticed that the donkey had put in his right foot also. When the blacksmith again protested, the donkey pleaded again how cold he was and how little room he was taking up. A little later, he put in his other forefoot and little by little he gradually worked his whole body into the shop and then turned on the blacksmith and forced him out of the shop. What a lesson for us! The old creature at first tries to use a little of our time. If the new mind consents, then the old creature gradually usurps for itself more and more of our time, resulting in the new creature becoming weaker and weaker and finally losing out altogether. Our aim should be to see that we have no vulnerable points, subject to attack from the three-fold enemy of the new creature—the world, the flesh and the adversary.
It is customary to refer to some “soft spot” in our character as an “Achilles’ heel.” It is based on the story in Homer’s Iliad. According to this ancient Greek legend, his mother dipped him into the river Styx but held him by the heel when she did so. This was to make him invulnerable in battle. When Achilles grew up he was the Greek ideal of youthful strength, beauty and valor. Paris found out that Achilles’ heel had not been covered with water when Achilles had been dipped into the river. This meant that his heel was vulnerable. So when Achilles was asleep, Paris shot an arrow into his heel and he died. The adversary is looking to see if we have a weak point where we can be reached in some unguarded moment. What may be an Achilles’ heel to one, may not be to another. In this lesson we will consider nine such vulnerable points.
DAY DREAMING
Day dreaming, idle reverie, may be a vulnerable point. We can spend our time building air castles or imagining what we could do if this were so or if that were so. In Ephesians 5:16 we read. “Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.” Day dreaming is not redeeming the time. In one class where they have a testimony meeting every week, and where the Manna text for the day of the testimony meeting is used as the testimony meeting text, a certain sister writes the text on a card and puts it on the window sill over the kitchen sink, where all during the week she can see it while doing her housework. In this way, she is able to keep the text in mind and, while she is working, her thoughts and prayers can be along that line. That is one good way to redeem the time and to be able to come to the meeting prepared to give a testimony rich in up-to-date experiences.
Another good text along this line is Psalms 90:12: “So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.” The apostle uses the illustration of the prize fighter and tells us that he fights not as one that beats the air. Surely the one that is day dreaming is wasting precious time and thought, which is comparable to a prize fighter just swinging his arms wildly in the air.
Sometimes if we can redeem a few minutes for a fervent prayer to our God for guidance and for help to overcome, we can gain a victory in love and patience when being severely tried. If we can only remember at such times to direct our thoughts in prayer, we will find our gracious God ready and willing to give us the needed strength and help to win out.
LACK OF WATCHFULNESS
Lack of watchfulness may be another vulnerable point. In Ephesians 6:18 the apostle writes: “Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the spirit and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints.” One of the things we need to watch is our tongue. We cannot “tame” it as James 3:8 tells us, but we must learn to “bridle it.” (James 1:26) O, how much harm the tongue can do in an unguarded moment!
In the common affairs of everyday life, such as driving an automobile, or attending machinery and equipment, or as artisans of any kind, we have to maintain alertness in order to avoid serious accidents. Similarly in our spiritual walk, we must avoid pitfalls by heeding danger signals, otherwise we, too, will suffer as a consequence. In this text the apostle is emphasizing the need for alertness to the answer to our prayers and that we should persevere therein; and at the same time, remember one another in a similar way. Not only does this produce a sympathetic interest in our brethren and thus draw us closer to one another in our common spiritual interests, but it is the means of grace and help to them as well; for God is not unmindful of the requests of His faithful children walking in the footsteps of His beloved Son, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Then, too, we should note well the opportunities for serving the household of faith and be alert to them as they present themselves to us. Just as one driving along a highway, in order to his security and safety must take heed to the light signals, even so must the child of God heed the admonitions and instructions of the divine Word in order to be kept by the power of God and reach his destination in safety. And are not we all travelers along the same road that leads to life and glory?
UNPREPAREDNESS
Another vulnerable point is a failure to be prepared against some special weakness. For instance, a brother may find that when he does the right thing with the right motive and then is misjudged, that there is a strong tendency for him to “fly off the handle,” get angry and thereby, for the time lose his self-control and say and do things that he may afterward regret. When he finds that he has slipped along this line, not once but several times, then he should review his experiences and study out how to meet that same experience if it should present itself again. Being prepared, and asking God for help and guidance, he will thus be able to act in a Christian-like manner; for he knows that “two wrongs never make a right.” This course is in harmony with II Corinthians 12:10, “For when I am weak, then am I strong.” When we realize a special weakness and watch out for it, then we can be “strong in the Lord, and the power of His might.” (Eph. 6:10) It ceases to be an “Achilles’ heel.”
REFINED SARCASM
Still another vulnerable point is the use of refined sarcasm. A bitter, cutting satirical expression, if used in a course, blunt manner would be easily detected by the new creature in Christ as something that he should not use. Refined sarcasm, however, when delicately worded in a witty remark may show how clever the speaker is. But just as the soft caress of a kitten’s paw can suddenly leave its scratches of pain should the kitten extend its claws, so this refined sarcasm no matter how smoothly and, apparently refined it is stated, bears its marks of unkindness. The difference in this simile being that not upon the one against whom the remark is directed is the mark of unrighteousness left but upon the maker of the remark, showing his deficiency of the love that is of God.
The apostle tells us in Colossians 4:6, “Let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt [not the pepper of refined sarcasm], that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man.” Under the figure of salt, Paul is here referring to the spirit of Christian love as a preservative and wholesome influence.
Not only in the church, but also in the home we find that “it’s the second word that starts the quarrel.” Even if the first word is hasty or unkind, the reply, if seasoned with salt, can avert a quarrel. But when it is rebuke for rebuke and reviling for reviling and sarcasm for sarcasm, then the adversary has found an “Achilles’ heel” where he can reach such hearts with the arrow of a bitter, unkind, uncharitable and unchristian spirit. O, how much better to follow the Scriptural advice found in Proverbs 15:1, “A soft answer turneth away wrath”!
NOT INSTANT IN PRAYER
A failure to call on the Lord for grace just when we need it is another vulnerable point. How often, figuratively speaking, we fall into the mud and get our garments all spotted, up and then turn to the Lord for His forgiveness when, if we had prayed to Him during the trial, we could have found the grace and strength to overcome. Let us take heed to the words found in Hebrews 4:16, “Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.”
By prayer we can keep Jesus close to help us when the trial becomes too severe. As He said to Paul, by faith we can hear Him say to us, “My grace is sufficient for thee: for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” (II Cor. 12:9) We also remember the words of the poet:
“There are so many hills to climb upward
I often am longing for rest,
But He who appoints me my pathway
Knows just what is needful and best.
I know in His Word He has promised
My strength shall be as my day
And the toils of the road will seem nothing,
When I get to the end of the way.”
LACK OF GRATITUDE
Another vulnerable point is a failure to express gratitude to God. In Ephesians 5:20 we read, “Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” The expression of our thankfulness means an appreciation not only of the gifts but also of Pod as the Giver. It draws us closer to Him. He becomes more real to us. Instead of being an abstract force, He becomes a warm, loving personality. How well the following lines of Hymn 294 express some of the things; for which we should be thankful:
“O child of God, O glory’s heir,
How rich a lot is thine!“A hand almighty to defend,
An ear for every call,
A hidden life, and in the end,
Glory to crown it all.”
The story is told of a boy who received a present. When asked why he did not say “Thank you,” he answered, “Oh, she knows that I am thankful.” He failed to see that we must not only be thankful but we must also express it. It is the same with God. We must not only be thankful to Him, but we should also express our thanks to Him. Why not raise our hearts and minds to Him in thankful prayer every time we receive a blessing? Why not, also, extend this habit to the brethren? Appreciation and gratitude expressed for services rendered and favors given will do much to improve our fellowship with them.
FAILING TO SEE OPPORTUNITIES
Still another vulnerable point is to close our eyes to the harvest work. Let us notice some of the arguments used by those who are closing their eyes to the harvest work. Some of these assume that the dark night is here when no man can work, that the four winds have been let loose and no more of the Lord’s people are being sealed. They have in mind the statement in Revelation 7:1-3, “And after these things I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree. And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God: and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea. Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads.”
It is right to connect the loosing of the four winds with the night wherein no man can work, but it is wrong to think that the time has come when “no man can work.” Here and there new ones are consecrating their all to the Lord and are begotten of the Holy Spirit. These bear unmistakable testimony to the fact that they are the Lord’s and have the same spirit bearing witness with their spirits that they are the children of God. (Rom. 8:14-17) It is evident, therefore, that the door is not shut and that if any one wants to work, he can do so.
There are some who have concluded that because there is no large organized movement of many thousands bearing testimony to the truth, the dark night must be upon us and therefore there is no more work to be done. Such reasoning is not borne out either by the facts or the Scriptures. There is no suggestion in this text that the sealing work is to be accomplished by a large organization. The very fact that this work is still proceeding is eloquent testimony to the fact that the “dark night” has not yet come. When it does come, there will be no mistaking it.
There are others who say, “I did my share in years gone by. Let others do it now.” This is not the right attitude. Paul said, “Woe is unto me, if I preach not the gospel!” (I Cor. 9:16) And surely of we lose the spirit of witnessing for the truth, we cannot reasonably expect to receive the “full reward” promised.—II John 8
Still others say, “O, you are trying to revive a work.” We answer that the Lord never buried the work and neither should we.
Another reason given for inactivity is, “At one time I believed in a Gospel of works; now I will not do any works.” To these we reply, If all the Lord’s people had come to such a “no work” conclusion, where would you stand today with regard to the truth of God’s plan of salvation? You would still be in the darkness of Mystic Babylon or the world.
If the adversary can lead us into an uncertain attitude regarding the harvest work and the harvest dispensational truths, he has found us vulnerable where we should be strong. If we believe the truth, let us also stand up for it and serve it faithfully to the very end like Jesus and His faithful apostles. Let there be no doubt or wavering.
If we have not the time, nor the money, nor the physical strength, nor the opportune circumstances to engage in the work actively ourselves, nevertheless, let us show the Lord that our hearts are in it by, at least, praying for those who can serve and lending our moral support to them by words of encouragement, whenever and wherever possible.
FAILURE TO TESTIFY
Yet another vulnerable point is letting Satan talk us out of giving our testimony. Figuratively speaking, Satan is at our elbow at the testimony meeting with his excuses: You want to get up and give a testimony but you haven’t the courage. The old mind is seeking excuses not to get up, and the devil is right there to offer some from his many and varied collection of them. One suggestion might be that there is no use for you to get up and testify because you cannot say anything which would help anybody. Don’t accept that excuse, because if the testimonies of other brethren help you, then just so surely will yours help others. Besides, you lose the blessing which comes from making an open confession of your faith and love for the Lord and His people. The giving of your testimony enables the brethren to get acquainted with you and thus helps them to have a greater love for you and a closer spiritual kinship to you.
If that excuse will not work, another may be suggested. He may tell you that you may have good thoughts but you express them so poorly that the last time you testified you broke down and cried, and besides, when you start to speak you will forget what you wish to say, and that will be very embarrassing, humiliating. But don’t accept that excuse, either, because the brethren are looking at your heart and at the sentiments you express. Sometimes a testimony mingled with tears, even in broken language, carries a blessing to the hearts of other brethren by its sincerity and earnestness.
Another excuse the devil may offer is that you should not testify in the first part of the meeting but that you should wait a while. Then when you reach the middle of the meeting, he suggests that you wait a little longer because there is still plenty of time. As a result of this procrastination, you reach the end of the meeting and lose your opportunity. The best way to meet this objection is to try to be among the first to testify.
Someone might say, “O, if I were a very eloquent speaker, who could use perfect English and would always say just the right thing, then I would be able to give a satisfactory testimony.” We remind such of the Lord’s words assuring us that he who is faithful in that which is least, will be faithful also in much. If we try to honor Him with our lips even if our tongues are stammering, the Lord will count it just as much as if we were really eloquent. How aptly the words of Jeremiah 20:9 fit the experience of one who wants to testify and who overcomes all these excuses—“But His Word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with forebearing, and I could not stay.”
FAILING TO ASSEMBLE
Our final vulnerable point is the habit of letting little things keep us from regularly attending mid-week Berean study meetings. In Hebrews 10:25 we read, “Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more as ye see the day approaching.” The story is told of a young man who proposed to a young lady end was so surprised and pleased when she said yes, that that evening he wrote her a letter before he went to bed. In this letter he said his love for her was so great that he was willing to make any sacrifices. He said he was willing to swim the widest rivers and climb the highest mountains for her. He ended up his letter with the postscript. “I will be over to see you Wednesday evening—if it doesn’t rain.”
How often we see a brother like this who, at a convention testimony meeting, will get up and tell how consecrated he is to the Lord, how much he appreciates the truth, and how he wants to lay down his life in the Lord’s service; but when it comes to a mid-week testimony meeting or a Berean study meeting, he will let a favorite radio program, or reading some magazine or newspaper, or a little rain serve as an excuse not to go to the meeting. This same brother would not let a rainstorm—big or little—interfere with his reporting for work each morning, but any little rainstorm becomes a big obstacle when it is time to go to the meeting.
The best text books for the Berean study meetings are the six volumes of Studies in the Scriptures. If the leader has each one who takes part endeavor to prove each point by the Scriptures and if all the members of the class not only study their lessons before they come to the meetings, but also cultivate the habit of being regular in their attendance, the blessings obtained from these meetings will consist not only in a clearer understanding of the Divine Plan of the Ages but a growth in Christian character, faith and zeal. On the other hand, carelessness in attending the meetings can become an “Achilles’ heel” through which the adversary can weaken our faith and love, and obscure our clearness in the truth.
In this lesson, we have mentioned nine possible vulnerable points. There are many others. Each one must watch and pray to see that he is wholly dipped into the water of full submission of his will to God’s will and that he has not left an “Achilles’ heel” by not making his devotion to God complete. Using a different figure of speech, the Apostle Paul in Hebrews 12 tells us to “lay aside every weight and the sin which doth so easily beset us.”
But what if one should find that through some carelessness the adversary has found an “Achilles’ heel,” some vulnerable point through which he has been overreached and caused to be overtaken in a fault? We answer that such an one should be distinctly informed that the new creation will not be composed of those who merely covenant self-denials and self-sacrifices in earthly things and to walk not after the flesh but after the spirit; but of those who, because of faithfulness in the willing endeavor to keep this covenant, will be counted overcomers by Him who readeth the heart.
We urge such an one to come to the throne of grace to obtain the Lord’s forgiveness. Then he should renew his consecration vow to the Lord. Then, watching and praying, and setting guards upon his words and actions, and bringing “every thought into captivity” to the will of God in Christ, it will surely not be long until he can assure himself and the Lord respecting the sincerity of his heart. He should walk so circumspectly that all may be able to discern, not only that he has been with Jesus but also that he has learned of Him and has sought and used His assistance in gaining victories over his weaknesses.
A story is told of Sir Isaac Newton who had made a special pen and ink drawing. He had spent much time and thought on this drawing. His office boy inadvertently spilled a bottle of ink over the drawing and ruined it. The boy was quite surprised when his employer did not fly up in a rage and berate him. Instead, he quietly said to the boy, “Don’t worry—I will make another drawing and will make it even better than the one you spoiled.” Likewise, if we find by carelessness and indifference we have spoiled the beautiful design of Christian living that we originally started, let us not be discouraged. Let us come to Him who is always ready to forgive when we come to Him like the “prodigal son” in a penitent condition of heart. Then let us say, “I will make another drawing and will make it even better than the one I spoiled.”