You Are the Man
No. 1370: The Great Saints Were Also Great Sinners
Between January 8 and March 23, 1532
“Let David be a prominent example of divine mercy. He tore apart a lion, he choked a devil when he slew Goliath, and he enjoyed God’s favor, but afterward he tripped over a couple of pigtails.67 Shame on you! He was also a murderer and became haughty. I think he canceled out his achievements. He almost was the greatest of all.
“John the Baptist was the holiest, for he had Christ’s testimony. Next was Moses, then David, Elijah, etc. I think Moses, Aaron, and his sister also canceled out the good they did. When God said, ‘You shall not enter … because you broke faith with me at the waters of Meribathkadesh’ [Deut. 32:51, 52], he would have died quickly if he hadn’t taken hold of the forgiveness of sins.”
In short, this is an excellent picture of hypocritical and reigned repentance. In this way even the wicked are sometimes pricked in conscience, as they used to say formerly in the schools, not that they are truly pricked or are seriously repentant, but they pretend repentance and grief for their sin. I also held this opinion at one time. Therefore David’s word to Nathan (2 Sam. 12:13), “I have sinned,” must be understood altogether differently than the word of Saul, who likewise said to Samuel (1 Sam. 15:24): “I have sinned.” It is indeed the same word, the same voice and face of compunction or repentance, but the hearts are very different.
For the repentance of the wicked is such that they grieve more about the prohibition of their evil desires and sins than about the mortification of their corrupt desires and sins. These are acts of repentance according to the Law, which we usually call the repentance of the gallows. For if he were free of the fear of the cross and punishment, the thief would much prefer to steal than to abstain from another’s property. Therefore he grieves that he is restrained by the fear of punishment. In this way Laban is also described not as truly repentant nor as coming to his senses, but he grieves that by the power of God a curb has been placed on his lusts and furious passions. It is a superficial repentance, just as Saul says (1 Sam. 15:30): “I have sinned; yet honor me now before the elders.” He is concerned about a bad reputation and disgrace among the elders, not about the fact that he has offended God.
But a truly repentant heart is so affected that it dreads nothing else but the wrath and indignation of God, taking no account of disgrace among men, provided it knows that God is propitious, even as David expresses this feeling and sense of sin in Ps. 51.
In short, this is an excellent picture of hypocritical and reigned repentance. In this way even the wicked are sometimes pricked in conscience, as they used to say formerly in the schools,23 not that they are truly pricked or are seriously repentant, but they pretend repentance and grief for their sin. I also held this opinion at one time. Therefore David’s word to Nathan (2 Sam. 12:13), “I have sinned,” must be understood altogether differently than the word of Saul, who likewise said to Samuel (1 Sam. 15:24): “I have sinned.” It is indeed the same word, the same voice and face of compunction or repentance, but the hearts are very different.
For the repentance of the wicked is such that they grieve more about the prohibition of their evil desires and sins than about the mortification of their corrupt desires and sins. These are acts of repentance according to the Law, which we usually call the repentance of the gallows. For if he were free of the fear of the cross and punishment, the thief would much prefer to steal than to abstain from another’s property. Therefore he grieves that he is restrained by the fear of punishment. In this way Laban is also described not as truly repentant nor as coming to his senses, but he grieves that by the power of God a curb has been placed on his lusts and furious passions. It is a superficial repentance, just as Saul says (1 Sam. 15:30): “I have sinned; yet honor me now before the elders.” He is concerned about a bad reputation and disgrace among the elders, not about the fact that he has offended God.
But a truly repentant heart is so affected that it dreads nothing else but the wrath and indignation of God, taking no account of disgrace among men, provided it knows that God is propitious, even as David expresses this feeling and sense of sin in Ps. 51.
And St. Paul in Eph. 5[:5], condemning those who live securely in their perverse ways without sting of conscience, says,
410 From Her Fingertips To Lips
In France, there once lived a poor, blind girl who obtained the Gospel of Mark in raised letters and learned to read it by the tips of her fingers. By constant reading, these became callous, and her sense of touch diminished until she could not distinguish the characters. One day, she cut the skin from the ends of her fingers to increase their sensibility, only to destroy it.
She felt that she must now give up her beloved Book, and weeping, pressed it to her lips, saying “Farewell, farewell, sweet word of my Heavenly Father!” To her surprise, her lips, more delicate than her fingers, discerned the form of the letters. All night she perused with her lips the Word of God and overflowed with joy at this new acquisition.
—Selected
McVeigh
Last Monday, Timothy McVeigh was executed. He died with his defiant eyes wide open, staring at a video camera that televised his death to the family members of his victims. His demeanor, like his life, was chilling.
In his final statement, he cited a line from “Invictius,” a poem written by William Henley, a 19th century British poet. “I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul.” McVeigh’s poetic selection illustrates the septic evil that emitted from the pores of his soul. McVeigh was his own master, his own captain. He was unable to submit to authority.
In protest against the government, he killed innocent children and with a calloused heart, called them “collateral damage.” Please, will someone explain to me what children sleeping in a day care in a building in Oklahoma City ever did to him? His actions are beyond my ability to grasp. They were inexcusable.
Too bad he had to be the master of his own fate and the captain of his own soul. From what I can tell, he wasn’t qualified to captain his soul. Certainly, he sank that vessel years ago.
Instead, what would have happened if he had a humble spirit instead of a defiant one? What would have happened if he would have submitted to Jesus, and asked Him to captain his soul? What if he would have asked Jesus to be his master?
The same thing would have happened to him that can happen to anyone. God would have become his Father, and he would be alive today. And so would his victims.
Psalm 25, “To thee O Lord, I lift up my soul … Make me know Your ways, O Lord. teach me Your paths, Lead me in your truth and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation. For you I wait all the day.”
2077 Classed With Murder And Stealing
In a small village in which there was only one church that almost every member of the community attended, one woman made life difficult, often, by her constant prying into the affairs of her neighbors. One day when the rector of the church was trying to show the woman the harm she was doing, she said: “Oh well, just prying into my neighbors’ affairs isn’t as bad as what Mrs. So and So does. She gets drunk.” “Madam,” replied the rector, “Your sin is classed with murder, and with stealing, in God’s Word.”
—Mrs. J. Shields
David knew that the proper penalty for the theft of a sheep was fourfold repayment (Ex. 22:1), but he also expressed his indignation—so heartless a thief deserved to die. In this way he condemned himself.
David’s honest repentance is very different from Saul’s attempts to deceive Samuel (1 Sa. 13 and 15).
And St. Paul in Eph. 5[:5], condemning those who live securely in their perverse ways without sting of conscience, says,
2077 Classed With Murder And Stealing
In a small village in which there was only one church that almost every member of the community attended, one woman made life difficult, often, by her constant prying into the affairs of her neighbors. One day when the rector of the church was trying to show the woman the harm she was doing, she said: “Oh well, just prying into my neighbors’ affairs isn’t as bad as what Mrs. So and So does. She gets drunk.” “Madam,” replied the rector, “Your sin is classed with murder, and with stealing, in God’s Word.”
—Mrs. J. Shields
David’s honest repentance is very different from Saul’s attempts to deceive Samuel (1 Sa. 13 and 15).
There is no excuse, no cloaking, no palliation of the sin. There is no searching for a loophole, … no pretext put forward, no human weakness pleaded. He acknowledges his guilt openly, candidly, and without prevarication” (Berleb. Bible)
410 From Her Fingertips To Lips
In France, there once lived a poor, blind girl who obtained the Gospel of Mark in raised letters and learned to read it by the tips of her fingers. By constant reading, these became callous, and her sense of touch diminished until she could not distinguish the characters. One day, she cut the skin from the ends of her fingers to increase their sensibility, only to destroy it.
She felt that she must now give up her beloved Book, and weeping, pressed it to her lips, saying “Farewell, farewell, sweet word of my Heavenly Father!” To her surprise, her lips, more delicate than her fingers, discerned the form of the letters. All night she perused with her lips the Word of God and overflowed with joy at this new acquisition.
—Selected