The Voice of Reason
by David Gibson
Naaman
A story with a happy ending
Naaman, a Syrian army officer, had leprosy (II Kings 5). When he arrived at the home of Elisha the prophet, hoping for a cure, he was told to dip seven times in the Jordan River. This was hardly what he expected, and it offended him so deeply that he was ready to return home without the cure he came for!
His pride and anger were checked, however, by the voice of reason when one of his men wisely suggested that if Elisha had required of him some great thing, Naaman would have been willing to do it. So why not simply do what the prophet said?
So he did. And he was completely cured. But he came so close, so very close, to forfeiting this blessing because of his pride. He almost died a leper. Naaman owed his healing to God, but the man who persuaded him to dip also played an important role in his master’s cure.
How will our story turn out?
We, too, are faced with choices of lasting consequence. Sometimes, we are so very close to doing the right thing, but for whatever reason, we just don’t.
On the other hand, have you ever come to the very brink of sin, but then higher thoughts pulled you back, and you successfully resisted Satan? Good for you! The “almost” moments of life are scary and full of potential ruin or victory. We’re the ones who decide whether we end up on the right side or the wrong side. Let’s take a cue from Naaman. He almost missed out! But because he humbled himself, he received the very thing he had so wanted all along! He was blessed because he was willing to listen to the voice of reason.
For Naaman, that voice came from a subordinate. For us, it may come from the Scriptures, from a preacher, an elder, a fellow Christian, a spouse, a friend, or from anyone who urges us to do the right thing.
The voice of reason. Thank God, Naaman listened. And we?
Abigail
David was angry enough to kill the man who had insulted him, plus all the men in his household. The man’s name was Nabal, who was “harsh and badly behaved” and “such a worthless man that one cannot speak to him” (I Samuel 25:3, 17).
His wife, Abigail, was the epitome of grace and good sense. “Opposites attract,” they say, but marriage thrives on at least some commonalities. Perhaps this was an arranged marriage.
Vengeance Planned
What so incensed David was Nabal’s rude rebuff to David’s messengers, who had politely requested provisions. David’s men had been a great help to Nabal’s shepherds, as they themselves acknowledged. “Surely” David said, “in vain have I guarded all that this fellow has in the wilderness, so that nothing was missed of all that belonged to him, and he has returned me evil for good” (I Samuel 25:21).
Vengeance Averted
Learning that David was on his way with 400 armed men, Abigail went out to meet him, bringing the supplies Nabal had refused to give. She then made one of the best speeches recorded in Scripture, freely acknowledging Nabal’s worthlessness but pleading with David not to take revenge because he would later suffer a troubled conscience.
David responded, “Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, who sent you this day to meet me! Blessed be your discretion, and blessed be you, who have kept me this day from bloodguilt . . .” (II Samuel 25:32-33).
Later, when God had slain Nabal, David said, “Blessed be the LORD who has avenged the insult I received at the hand of Nabal, and has kept back his servant from wrongdoing. The Lord has returned the evil of Nabal on his own head” (I Samuel 25:39).
“Repay no one evil for evil. . . . but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, ‘Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord’” (Romans 12:17, 19).
David knew that anger can get the best of us, regardless of our knowledge. A wise and godly woman's voice of reason reached David’s heart, preventing him from doing what only God had the right to do.
Thank God for people like her! How we need them.
Jeremiah
“This man deserves the sentence of death,” they cried.
It was Jeremiah they wanted to kill. He had declared disaster against the people of Judah because of their sins. “The LORD,” he said, “sent me to prophesy against this house [the temple] and this city [Jerusalem] all the words you have heard. Now therefore mend your ways and your deeds, and obey the voice of the LORD your God, and the LORD will relent of the disaster that he has pronounced against you” (Jeremiah 26:12-13).
But then others rose to his defense: “This man does not deserve the sentence of death, for he has spoken to us in the name of the LORD our God.” At this point, some elders brought up an incident from about a century before, when the prophet Micah prophesied something very similar to Jeremiah’s message: “Zion shall be plowed as a field; Jerusalem shall become a heap of ruins.”
Then they said, “Did Hezekiah king of Judah and all Judah put him to death? Did he not fear the LORD and entreat the favor of the LORD, and did not the LORD relent of the disaster that he had pronounced against them? But we are about to bring great disaster upon ourselves.” The passage they referred to was Micah 3:12 -- the scripture that saved Jeremiah’s life!
His life was spared because:
- Some who were there that day knew the Scriptures well enough to quote the right passage for this occasion.
- They not only knew the Scriptures, but they also had the courage to stand up for the truth against the naysayers.
And so the voice of reason prevailed over the voice of rebellious rage. Isn’t that exactly what we so badly need today?
Peter
They were so angry with Peter. He had gone to the home of uncircumcised Gentiles, and even worse, he had eaten with them! How could he do such a thing?
The chasm separating Jews from Gentiles had been so deep and so wide, and for so many centuries it would seem that nothing could ever bridge the gap. But never underestimate the power of God! The time had come for all willing Jews and Gentiles to enjoy unity with one another in Christ, “who has made us both one . . . that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace” (Ephesians 2:14-15).
Healing the Breach, Stage One
First, God had to convince Peter the Jew to go to the home of Cornelius the Gentile so he and his household could hear the gospel and be saved. Despite Peter’s misgivings, to his credit, he went.
The result was amazing and thrilling—many responded, thus entering God’s kingdom on equality with Jewish believers.
Perhaps even more remarkable is Peter's transformation. God had shown him that he “should not call any person common or unclean” and “that God shows no partiality, but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him” (Acts 10:28, 34-35).
Healing the Breach, Stage Two
When Peter returned to Jerusalem, the Jewish Christians who had heard what he did expressed their shock and dismay.
With the voice of reason, Peter then explained why he had no choice but to obey. This involved:
- a vision to Peter,
- a vision to Cornelius,
- a message from the Holy Spirit to Peter, and
- the falling of the Spirit on the Gentiles enabled them to speak in tongues, reminiscent of Pentecost (Acts 2).
Peter concluded, “If then God gave the same gift to them as he gave to us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could stand in God's way?”
“When they heard these things they fell silent. And they glorified God, saying, ‘Then to the Gentiles also God has granted repentance that leads to life’” (Acts 11:17-18).
From anger to acceptance. From antagonism to approval. Isn’t it amazing how the warmth of God’s grace can melt away long-standing prejudices and create praise in its place?
Gentile Christians
God had already revealed His will that Gentile converts should be accepted without circumcision (Acts 10:1-48; 11:1-18), but not everyone was on board with it, especially the Judaizers. These were Jewish Christians who insisted that Gentiles must be circumcised to be saved—and must keep the law of Moses, too! They had traveled all the way from Jerusalem to Antioch, where a strong Gentile church was thriving. They began preaching this heresy (Acts 15:1, 5), which had a chilling effect on the new believers (Acts 15:19, 24).
After Paul and Barnabas strongly opposed the Judaizers, the decision was made to discuss this matter with the apostles and elders in Jerusalem.
How the matter was settled
During the meeting that ensued, three lines of reasoning were presented:
- Referring to the conversion of Cornelius and his fellow Gentiles (Acts 10), Peter said, “God, who knows the heart, testified to them giving them the Holy Spirit, just as he also did to us; and he made no distinction between us and them, cleansing their hearts by faith . . . . we are saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, in the same way as they also are” (Acts 15:7-11 NASB; see Acts 10:44-48).
- Next, Paul and Barnabas recounted the miracles God did through them on their first missionary journey (see Acts 14:3). The implication is that the miracles were proof of God’s full support of their ministry to Gentiles.
- Finally, James cited Amos, who prophesied the conversion of Gentiles. James then suggested they send the Gentiles a letter assuring them they would not need to be circumcised. When the letter was delivered, “they rejoiced because of its encouragement” (Acts 15:31).
Therefore, these three lines of evidence—the Holy Spirit given to Gentiles (Acts 10), the miracles done among Gentiles (Acts 13-14), and the prophecy of Amos—dovetail perfectly to counter the Judaizers’ error.
This is the first recorded false teaching in the New Testament church. Many more would follow, but whenever truth collides with error, the voice of reason, based on Scripture, must have the last word.
It did then. May it do so today!
