Do your human weaknesses ever frustrate you? Mine do. My husband lovingly jokes with me about how many alarms and reminders I set on my phone. "You have alarms for everything, don't you?" he laughs. But somewhere after my second child and my thirtieth birthday, my brain reached maximum capacity.
Now, information that is not used on a daily basis (and I mean every day) is no longer retained. This includes people's names, birthdays, addresses, phone numbers, the kind of cars they drive, you name it. Not to mention my own schedule, the laundry in the dryer or the food in the oven. I've had to embrace the fact that my addled and exhausted mama's brain needs some help!
Recently I forgot something pretty important. It wasn't so much the fact that I forgot, but my response afterward that was embarrassing. Self-chastising thoughts kept reminding me of my stupidity. In a struggle of self-reliance, I desperately tried to solve the situation. And all my self-induced stress spilled out on those around me. Sound familiar? The plain and simple truth is we resent being reminded that we actually don't have it all together, no matter how much we strive to make it appear so.
The disciples had a similar moment with Jesus after they forgot to bring bread with them on one of their many journeys. They had been traveling from place to place as Jesus preached, following Him from town to town across the Judean countryside. We can guess that Jesus put them in charge of purchasing provisions so that He might focus on teaching and healing the crowds that flocked to Him. But on this particular occasion, the disciples dropped the ball.
In fact, they were so focused on their blunder that when Jesus tried to teach them an important truth, they completely misunderstood Him! "'Be careful,' Jesus said to them. 'Be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.' They discussed this among themselves and said, 'It is because we didn't bring any bread'" (Matthew 16:6–7). The disciples' temporal frustrations blinded them to Christ's spiritual truths. Perhaps we can relate?
Jesus is trying to teach us about God's provision, but all we can focus on is money. He is trying to speak to us about our relationship with Him, but we're stewing about that spat wth our spouse. He desires to be our fulfillment while we're desiring a glass of wine or a bowl of ice cream. Christ wants us to learn dependence and self-denial; we're too busy deciding how best to blaze a trail of independence and self-satisfaction. We're trying to figure it all out when all we really need to figure out is how to let Jesus be the Lord of our lives!
In speaking about what he calls "light and momentary troubles," the apostle Paul encourages the Corinthian Christians, saying, "So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal" (2 Corinthians 4:18). What is seen is distracting, and that's exactly what our enemy intends! He wants us so wrapped up in our light and momentary troubles that we completely lose sight of the eternal weight of glory that is ours in Jesus Christ! Thankfully, the Lord is not blind to our faulty perceptions—He is faithful to correct our vision.
"Aware of their discussion, Jesus asked, 'You of little faith, why are you talking among yourselves about having no bread? Do you still not understand? Don't you remember the five loaves for the five thousand, and how many basketfuls you gathered? Or the seven loaves for the four thousand, and how many basketfuls you gathered? How is it you don't understand that I was not talking to you about bread?'" (Matthew 16:8–11).
Jesus did not rebuke the disciples for forgetting bread, but rather for forgetting faith. Not so long before they had witnessed two miraculous feedings—the first for a group of five thousand, the second a group of four thousand. And yet here they were, worried about bread when they had with them the very Bread of Life! If anyone understood what Christ was saying, it should have been those closest to Him. Those who had witnessed His works, attended to His words and walked in His way.
Our Lord does not chide us for our human weaknesses. The Bible tells us God intentionally chooses the weak things of the world to shame the strong (1 Corinthians 1:27). It is not the frailty of our flesh but the frailty of our faith that concerns Him. Maybe, like me, you've found yourself in the same situation again and again, and yet every time you respond in exactly the same way. Discouraging, isn't it? But we are not alone—the disciples dined with the thousands, yet still dismayed over dinner! Lessons in faith, it would seem, bear repeating.
Jesus reiterated His instruction: "'But be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.' Then they understood that he was not telling them to guard against the yeast used in bread, but against the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees" (Matthew 16:11–12). Christ is perfectly patient and ceaselessly compassionate toward us as we walk in faith; "He remembers that we are dust" (Psalm 103:14). Gently He moves us from forgetful to faithful. And as He does so, He administers timely truths as a safeguard to our souls.
You see, when we forget to walk in faith we are more apt to be influenced by the ways of the world. When our minds are consumed with the temporal, we will naturally drift toward teachings that agree with our distorted worldview. And these teachings almost always land in one of two extremes: prideful religiosity or spirituality without substance.
The Pharisees were self-righteous tradition-worshippers who believed they had it all figured out. Essentially the message they taught was, 'You don't need God's help; you can be righteous on your own!' The Sadducees, on the other hand, were the free-thinkers. The skeptics. The rationalists. They did not believe in the resurrection of the dead and therefore were much more worldly-minded in their pursuits and interests. They proffered the veneer of spirituality without any of the depth. We too can fall prey to either manner of thinking, especially when we're leaning on our own understanding and chasing solutions rather than the Savior.
Maybe you're finding yourself frustrated by weaknesses. Frazzled by forgetfulness. Foiled by failures. Temporal troubles loom so large in your mind that any thoughts of spiritual realities are extinguished. It could be you've lived in stubborn self-reliance for so long you're not even sure how to submit your life to Christ...but God meets us where we are. His perfect love condescends to our human condition and transforms us in ways we never thought possible!
He reminds us of our faith and, more importantly, the One in which we've placed it. The One who multiplies, satisfies and rectifies! He teaches us truth and guards us from lies. He does not chastise our humanity, but encourages our faith. He bears with us patiently as we walk through the same lessons over and over and over again. And He does all of this because He delights in using foolish things to shame the wise of this world. He takes that which is nothing and makes it into something for His glory. Jesus takes the forgetful and makes them the faithful, to the praise of His glorious grace! "Therefore, as it is written: 'Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord'" (1 Corinthians 1:31).
Thank you, Lord, for taking me in all my weakness and working in me as I walk in faith! Teach me to trust You more, to act on what I believe and know to be true about You. And when I forget my faith, Lord, remind me gently. Safeguard my soul with Your truth; keep me from influences that would distract and derail me. Help me take Your lessons to heart that my faith might be strengthened and encouraged! Amen.
Reflection Questions
- In what areas have you found yourself frustrated by weaknesses?
- Have you ever been in an undesirable situation and realized afterward that God was working in your heart through it all? What was the lesson you learned?
- Where do you struggle most with letting Jesus be the Lord of your life? Do you notice any "repeated lessons" in this area?
- Can you remember an instance in which God used a timely truth to safeguard your soul from worldly influences? What was the truth?