God's Scoundrels

 

God’s Scoundrels

               Margi Preus is an author of historical fiction chapter books for youth.  My family has read several of her books through the years.  One of our favorites is, Shadow on the Mountain.  It is a story of teens in the resistance movement in Norway during World War II and follows the events of one young man throughout Nazi occupation of that country.  His true story is recounted at the end of the book with pictures.  A few years ago, she wrote another book entitled, Village of Scoundrels about French teens in World War II who served as conductors, escorting Jews from Nazi persecution in France, through the mountains, to freedom in Switzerland. 

               As the story unfolded, we cheered for these young people and worried for their safety as they sought to outwit the ever-lurking officer and soldiers on their trail.  The constable chasing them called them scoundrels.  In the process, we also learned that it takes knowledge to guide others.  The more you know, the better equipped you are to lead and guide.  It also requires willingness.  The teens in that book had to face down their fears and go into the mountain passes anyway, despite their fears.  Those young people exhibited physical and mental stamina to do what they did.   There were times when it would have been far easier to bow out and run away from the need before them, but they saw a cause greater than themselves.  Because of their mental and physical stamina, they exhibited boldness in the face of danger.  They also had to have some confidence that they were able to do what needed to be done. 

               Humility was the last characteristic we learned was a requirement to lead.  In life, nobody likes the “know it all”.  The problem with that person is not what they know.  It is not even what they don’t know, but they think they know.  The core problem with the “know it all” is pride.  Pride bars the door of learning.  When pride enters, learning is arrested.  That is the message of Proverbs 16:18.

Pride goeth before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.

               Pride keeps us, as men, from learning.  Learning is what will keep us from the pitfall that has the potential to destroy us, or that could bring us down to ruin.  No man is exempt from this promise.  We are all, young and old, capable at any moment of being ensnared by pride.

Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.

                                                                                                                        I Corinthians 10:12

               The danger of pride is that it blinds us to the fact that we are prideful.  Sometimes it takes the fall, or the pit, to open our eyes to our own arrogance.  The fall, and the hard stop at the bottom, hopefully jar us back to reality.  Maybe then, we’ll realize we might not have fallen had we not placed ourselves on a pedestal.    

               If we have any desire to be guided or guide others, we must begin in humility.  In Proverbs 8, wisdom is personified.  She (wisdom) is calling out to men everywhere our paths take us          (Proverbs 8:1 – 4).  She wants the simple and fools to understand her (wisdom).  She speaks of excellent things, right things, truth, and righteousness.  She is compared to silver, gold, and rubies and found to be better.  In fact, in verse 18, it says durable or valuable riches are with her (wisdom).  In today’s inflationary financial market, shouldn’t we desire something of real value instead of building our, “empires of dirt” as the great “theologian” Johnny Cash once sang. 

               In the middle of Proverbs 8, verse 13 tells us that if we fear the Lord, we will hate evil.  The verse then goes on to mention what is considered evil.  The top two items on the list are pride and arrogance.  If I were making the list of what is evil, pride and arrogance might make the list, but probably wouldn’t top my list.  However, they hold the top spots on God’s list, and we must ask why.

God understands that pride and arrogance keep us from Him and the wisdom of His Word.  Understand, you and I will never guide anyone well, unless we are first guided by God through His Holy Spirit through His Word.  For God to be our guide, we must first allow Him to root out any pride and arrogance in our lives.

Will you humbly submit and allow God to guide you and equip you to lead others?  Will you allow God to mold you into the “scoundrel” God has called you to be?