We are in the midst of a discussion of Psalm 27:3 - "Though an army encamp against me..." Two blog posts ago, we observed that being "sinned against" is a certainty for all of us. We can see this even in the lives of little children. What toddler has not been surprised and bewildered when some other child takes away a precious toy, or, worse yet, when he is slapped or shoved? Our reactions to these events can cause sinful behaviors on our part as well, as we attempt to maintain some level of self-preservation. The question at the end of Friday's post was this: Who is this person that Paul David Tripp refers to as the one who is "calling us to endure these experiences?" For most of you, I'm guessing you know where he is going with this:"You and I are not in control of our lives; we are not the writers of our own stories. Our individual stories have been embedded in the story of another. We are not the chief actor in the drama that is our own lives. The decisions of someone else are driving the plot of each of our stories. No, I'm not talking about the person who has mistreated you; I'm talking about your Lord. You're facing what you are facing not simply because of the sin of that other person, but because of the wise choice of a loving Redeemer. The fact is that God has us exactly where he wants us... He places us in interpersonal difficulty because he intends that difficulty to be a workroom of redemption."
This is amazing on so many levels. The concept that we are not in control is insulting to many; the assertion that we are not the chief actor in the drama that is our own life can be seen as demeaning to others. But is it really? Isn't it freeing to know that we are not charting our own way in the world, that instead we are partakers in the cosmic drama that God is orchestrating? Isn't it refreshing to think that even nasty remarks by a gossipy neighbor are intended by God for our good, if seen through the prism of His perspective? I would much prefer to have a loving Redeemer make good out of bad, redeeming rather than wasting all the difficult situations we find ourselves in.
What should our role be in response to being sinned against? Yes, that is the homework for you to meditate upon until tomorrow...
I'm gonna go out on a limb and take a stab at your question. Our role would be "The Forgiver" of the one who has wronged us. Our role should be to seek the wise council from our Lord through His word to see where He is working in our particular situation and what change is required in our character as we face this difficult person. Our role is to, not react out of hostility toward the one who has wronged us, but to take time to wisely consider why God has allowed us to be wronged because we know God has a plan & a purpose for every event in our lives. "All of my days ordained for me were written in Your book before one of them came to be." Psalm 139:16 And "I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the One who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from it's bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God." Romans 8:18,20,21 DS
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