BEING
GOD'S HERO AND NOT KNOWING IT
Somewhere
in his writings Alexander Campbell described God's heroes as being persons
not of high office, fame, or fortune, but rather those who are humble, those
who esteem others greater than themselves and are kind and gentle. God's
hero is one who lends a helping hand to the needy and a shoulder of comfort
to those who mourn. He is a friend to the friendless and a companion to the
lonely.
God's
heroes are identified in Mt. 25:34-40:
Then the king will say to those on His right, "Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you fed me, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you visited me." Then the righteous will answer Him, "Lord, when did we see you hungry and fed you, or thirsty and gave you drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or naked and clothed you? When did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?" The king will reply, "I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.
These
verses show that one is God's hero when he or she is righteous before God.
They also show that one may be God's hero without knowing it, for those who
had shown mercy to those in need did not realize they were doing it to
Christ. "Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and
give you drank?," they asked. They seemed surprised that the King would
even take notice of their deeds, much less equate them as acts of love
toward Himself. By being humble and loving servants they had unknowingly
become God's heroes.
For
many years my view of being a Christian was one of always doing my duty in
every area of my life. Being a Christian was a life of do's and don'ts, and
I always tried to do more do's than don'ts. I was a miserable failure, for
the don'ts always outnumbered the do's. I was trapped! I could never do
enough do's or refrain from enough don'ts. The harder I tried the morel
failed. Oh, what a wretched man I was!
Then
God in His mercy brought one into my life that made all the difference. She
showed me such truths as are revealed in Lk.17: 10: "So you also when
you have done all that was your duty to do, say, 'We are unworthy, for we
have done that which was our duty to do."' What an eye-opener that was
to me! Now I realized that even if I did all the do's and none of the don'ts
I would still be an unprofitable servant.
She
also helped me to see that my works-oriented, earn-your-salvation theology
that I thought I found in the book of James was not that way at all. I came
to see that James was saying what Jesus said in Mt. 7, "By their fruits
you will know them." One day this woman, my patient guide, said to me,
"An apple tree bears apples because it is an apple tree, not in order
to be an apple tree. A Christian bears the fruit of love because he is a
Christian, not in order to be a Christian." I began to see the light.
But it was not easy, even with her help. Sometimes she had to drag me along.
Finally she brought me to Romans and showed me the wondrous grace of God. Now I see that God saved me so that I can go on bearing fruit for Him, both in this world and in the world to come.
So, my darling wife Kady, who lovingly and patiently led me to peace and happiness in God's saving grace, I honor in this essay as one of God's heroes, even when she doesn't realize it. She is also the hero of my life. - 1119 George Washington Dr., Wichita, Ks. 67211