One of my favorite lessons is from the crucible. A silversmith places silver into the crucible and heats it up to bring out the impurities, and then scrapes away the impurities (dross), until he can see his face. Gold is placed into the furnace for purifying and increasing the value. So Yahweh God tests and gives our hearts tribulation to bring out the value in our hearts.
Now you can respond one of two ways. You can stiffen your neck to the rebukes and trials or you can humbly accept it. Today is the 29th, and Proverbs 29:1 says that “he who is often reproved yet stiffens his neck will suddenly be broken without remedy.
This reminds me of a scene in Ip Man. A younger guy (Lin) is known for being fool hearty and brazen, but not humble. When confronted by General Miura, he is soundly beaten along with two others. The General hands him defeat but also mercy. Instead of humbly receiving a lesson, Lin spits in the general’s face.
Warning: Graphic. Contains scenes of violence and death. General Miura vs 3 fighters.
Proverbs 29:1 says it aptly, “Whoever is often reproved yet stiffens his neck, will suddenly be broken beyond remedy.” The latitude of this verse more than extends to Lin here. Had Lin humbly accepted defeat as the others did, it would have gone better for him. He fought bravely no doubt, even admirably but needed to zoom out and see the bigger picture.
When you’re upset, take a deep breath. I recently was in a heated argument with someone whom I’ve known for a long time. At times, this person was a bully to me, and lorded authority over me when I was a kid. Maybe you can relate, maybe you have been through horrible abuse, maybe you’ve been through some difficult family dynamics, whatever the case is, please stay with me here.
Now I’m being intentionally vague, so bear with me please. I tried taking deep breaths in the middle of the conflict but found myself shaking and getting heated. So I stood my ground. At the stiletto rage point, I took a deep breath and said “let’s agree to disagree.” I walked away and went outside to recover. I was embarrassed that I let myself get so animated, and then it came to me.
It takes years to develop compassion, self-control and humility. Part of being humble is learning to embrace what suffering does for you. Embracing development and giving yourself time is essential for loving yourself and learning to be more disciplined every day that God gives you.
I returned to my opponent and bid that we speak again. I won the second conversation. I stayed calm, and held my convictions firm. At one point, this person made a huge blunder in saying something they shouldn’t have. Everything in me wanted to send barbs and jabs, but I took a deep breath and held back. “The meek will inherit the Earth” I kept telling myself.
Whoever is reproved often, yet stiffens his neck will suddenly be broken beyond remedy. Whether that brokenness comes from God or natural course of events is not the point. God himself is writing to us calling for meekness and flexibility. Picture yourself as a student training under the Grandmaster himself.
He is teaching you all he knows! God will bend us and not break us. He will crush us but not destroy us. Time and discipline, focus and suffering, and many other tools will bring us to greatness. This brings one of my favorite poems to mind:
When God wants to drill a man And thrill a man And skill a man, When God wants to mold a man To play the noblest part; When He yearns with all His heart To create so great and bold a man That all the world shall be amazed, Watch His methods, watch His ways! How He ruthlessly perfects Whom He royally elects! How He hammers him and hurts him, And with mighty blows converts him Into trial shapes of clay which Only God understands; While his tortured heart is crying And he lifts beseeching hands! How He bends but never breaks When his good He undertakes; How He uses whom He chooses And with every purpose fuses him; By every act induces him To try His splendour out– God knows what He’s about!
1.) The key to humility is to picture yourself as the hero of the story. God is hammering you and forging you into a sword. Be humble. To be humble means to honestly evaluate God and where God has placed you.
I know some are going to really balk at this and say that the root problem is the pride of life. But what the church often calls “humility” is actually narcissism, the victim version of narcissism. If you’re always saying “poor me” or “woe is me, I’m a worm” mentality, that’s neither true nor helpful. Instead the Bible says that we have infinite value, and we need to stand on God’s truth in the face of the lies we feel. When those in the church hear this they might say to be the hero is prideful.
What they’re referencing is a trilogy: “the lust of the eyes, lust of the flesh, and pride of life”(1 John 2:16). It’s what Lot did when he “lifted up his eyes… chose for himself… became an alderman in the gate” (Genesis 13:10). The same trio is described of Eve, “she saw that the fruit was pleasing to the eyes, nourishing for the soul, able to make one wise… able to make one like God” (Gen 3:4-6).
I want to recommend a book by S. Craig Glickman calledKnowing Christ: Life Changing Glimpses of our Lord. He is one of my favorite authors, and expands greatly on this concept!
Okay, back to point 1: You are the hero of your own story. Listen men, this is where the church has really dropped the ball. The church has created weak, impish men that have slumped shoulders, worm-like, whiny, and usually these guys end up being in the pastorate. The church has done a great job of emasculating men so that the ideal is to hate yourself, hate life, look down, and be fearful.
No, men ought to be monsters. Jordan B. Peterson has a great clip that expands on this, and I’ll share his video instead of regurgitating everything he’s said.
Learn how to fight, learn to be strong, learn high-earning skills, learn how to max your looks. I will talk about upskilling your looks in another post, but for now I can definitely say this, read the Bible. The Bible is filled with so many promises of God giving us a crown, and overcoming that I am utterly confused on how this wasn’t preached. I am not going to post all the promises but I’ll list a few:
7 Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. 8 Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. Galatians 7:7-8
He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes will not be hurt by the second death. Revelation 2:11 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will grant to eat of the tree of life which is in the Paradise of God. Rev 2:7
He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, to him I will give some of the hidden manna, and I will give him a white stone, and a new name written on the stone which no one knows but he who receives it. Rev 2:17
he said to him, “well done good and faithful servant! Because you have been faithful in a very little thing, you are to be in authority over ten cities!” Luke 19:17
42 So will it be with the resurrection of the dead. The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable; 43 it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; 44 it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body.
If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. 45 So it is written: “The first man Adam became a living being”; the last Adam, a life-giving spirit. 46 The spiritual did not come first, but the natural, and after that the spiritual. 47 The first man was of the dust of the earth; the second man is of heaven. 48 As was the earthly man, so are those who are of the earth; and as is the heavenly man, so also are those who are of heaven. 49 And just as we have borne the image of the earthly man, so shall we bear the image of the heavenly man.
50 I declare to you, brothers and sisters, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. 51 Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed— 52 in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. 53 For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality. 54 When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: “Death has been swallowed up in victory.”
55 “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?”
56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 1 Corinthians 15:458
Listen, we are to reign if we overcome, and judge the angels (1 Corinthians 6:3) and be absolutely glorious! So how can we be both humble and the hero of our own story that God himself is writing?
2.
By understanding what we are called to, being conformed to the Image of Christ, taking his path, and overcoming suffering. He learned obedience through suffering (Heb 5:8), and this is my second point:
2.) Suffering is the Way to Glory
Listen, if suffering is in your life–take it as a gift. Your life, no matter how low you might feel, is the perfect training ground, the perfect gift for you to grow!
God is not silent, he’s speaking throughout all the ages. In every age good men have gone and gave their all. They fought the battles with courage and valor, and died for what they believed in. God did not write pens and ink. Flesh and blood be the pen and blood be the ink.
You and I were made to be glorious. It is attributed to Aristotle who might have said,
“The city and your fellow man deserves to see you reach your highest potential in excellence!
It’s time to Rise!
The crucible is for the silver, the furnace is for gold, and a man is tested by his praise! Enter the fire until everyone respects you. Enter the fray until you are a known legend. Enter the work, until you are the most disciplined man there. Enter the hardship until you are renown.
Rise up and face whatever challenge is facing you today. Don’t harden your heart, nor stiffen your neck at reproof–for reproofs are the way of life! Listen to advice, embrace hardship, do something hard today! Replace one comfortable thing in your life with something that makes you uncomfortable.
I challenge you to embrace suffering. Start small, take a cold shower instead of a hot shower. Teach your body to embrace hardship. When you step in the cold shower, take a deep breath, and another, and another until your breathing is settled down. You’ll emerge a better person.
Good men did not die so we could live without valor. We should live our lives so that everyone knows, we earned what they sacrificed for. Hear the tumult of the their battle field! Listen to the cries of Gettysburg! Hear the marching feet storming castles!
They fought and died that the future might be brighter. Dare we live in a way that is lazy or inglorious? No, we must rise in their wake, in their glory, like a phoenix. The suffering you and I are given be the fire in which a phoenix born! Good men did not die so we could live without valor.
