Christian Failure

Eric Knickerbocker
July 02, 2000

Christian Failure

Many times to the outside observer dedicated Christians appear to be leading a far more godly and holy life than what they personally believe that they are. The majority of a Christian’s battles are waged, not in the external where others can see, but within the heart and the mind. Much of this internal struggle is because we now have a measuring stick with which to evaluate ourselves, namely God’s nature (as opposed to just our own sense of goodness or badness). The leading of God’s Holy Spirit enables us to see truth to a much finer degree, a degree that non-Christians don’t even know exists. Only when Christians have the very spirit of God living in their being do they become fully aware of just what the sinful effects of the fall has done to them.

In C.S. Lewis’ brilliant book Mere Christianity he states it well: “. . . Remember that, as I said, the right direction leads not only to peace but to knowledge. When a man is getting better he understands more and more clearly the evil that is still left in him. When a man is getting worse, he understands his own badness less and less. A moderately bad man knows he is not very good: a thoroughly bad man thinks he is all right. This is common sense, really. You understand sleep when you are awake, not while you are sleeping. You can see mistakes in arithmetic when your mind is working properly: while you are making them you cannot see them. You can understand the nature of drunkenness when you are sober, not when you are drunk. Good people know about both good and evil: bad people do not know about either.”

To quote Sheldon Vanauken in his autobiography A Severe Mercy concerning the unusual, exceptionally close relationship between he and his (late) wife “Davy”: “Our very closeness was a danger in that we were instantly aware of the slightest disharmony: a grain of dust that would not affect an alarm clock may throw off a fine watch. A hint of anger or coldness in a voice would shock the other. Outrage would be politely expressed. Love had been betrayed. Unbelievable disaster had come upon us. Hope was gone, eyes would be averted, and an awful silence would ensue. . . .” (Of course they always reigned triumphant once more, peace quickly being restored again.)

So when you think you are failing miserably, take heart: you probably are actually getting better. The following is a chart I extracted from a pamphlet from Radio Bible Class (RBC)¹ entitled Knowing God Through 1 Peter. The author didn’t have the exact same point in mind that I am making (in fact I reversed the order of the columns), but when I first read it, it struck me in exactly the same context as I’m presenting it.

Seeing Ourselves

In God’s call to distinction, we see our own inclination to follow the crowd.
In God’s appeal for love, we see our own tendency to care only for ourselves.
In God’s encouragement to have an eternal perspective, we see our inclination to be blinded by the fog of present circumstances.
In God’s call to humility, we see our own tendency to proudly rely on ourselves rather than on Him.

Seeing God

In God’s call for a life of distinction, we see that He wants us to follow His example in Christ.
In God’s requirement of a self-sacrificing love, we see a reflection of His own loving character.
In God’s encouragement to hunger for His Word, we see the importance He puts on truth, which has its source in Him.
In God’s principle of submission, we see His willingness to assure the ultimate well being of those who entrust themselves to Him.

Footnote:

¹ In addition to this pamphlet, RBC offers 145 free booklets as resources on a wide range of contemporary Christian topics including divorce, infidelity, dealing with pornography, end times, heaven, witnessing, New Age, etc. To request a free brochure listing all these booklets, call toll-free 1-800-598-7221. In addition, all 145 booklets can be accessed via the Internet, along with a host of other resources at http://www.rbc.org. Everything is offered free of charge, and they never solicit money. I have been very impressed with their integrity; I highly recommend them.
You may also wish to check out http://www.gospelcom.net, the webring of which RBC is a member. It features nearly two-hundred Christian websites linked together to spread the gospel message to a lost and hurting world complete with its own dedicated search engine so you can simultaneously search the entire webring for a specific topic.

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