A True Example
5/26/14
A common question that a non-believer will ask a believer
is why God would ever allow His only Son to be executed for people that He did
not even know. It is a logical question
and sometimes very difficult to explain to those who have little or no
understanding about the Bible. There
some examples that can be used but the majority of them do not place the reason
why on a personal or human level. God
has changed this and has provided a very unusual and unique example for us to
think about. Bear with me this is coming
from a very weird angle but it is the truth and will help to understand things
a bit better about this explanation.
I am going to write this article in a little bit
different context than my previous ones.
The examples that I am going to be using will be vague at first but as
the article progresses the explanations will make sense. There is a human element to this article one
that I thought I would not ever use as an example from God, but here it goes
and hold on tight because this will be interesting to you. At the end of the article I will explain in
detail of whom I am referring to and hopefully the reader will take into
consideration everything that God is trying to say to us about the reasons that
God had to allow this tragic event to occur.
There was a man who was born in the 19th
century who came from a normal and common family. No special honors or titles had been placed
upon his name nor had any special privileges been tied to his career. This man
presented himself to his country as an everyday common kid who wished to serve
his country in the military. Because of
his education and status he applied for the officer corps and after a lengthy
process was accepted into the ranks of the officer school. He considered it to be a great honor and a
blessing that his application was accepted and that he would now be able to
fulfill his young boy’s dream.
As time passed by his enthusiasm began to show to his
commanders and his popularity within the ranks increased on a steady
basis. He was well liked by his peers
and almost every soldier that served with him respected his toughness and
leadership no matter what the situation held.
He was soon promoted and this ignited a fire from within his soul to
make sure that he would do nothing to hinder his rise to the top of his work
related ladder. His military and flying
ambitions had been on display for everyone to see and when his commanders took
notice of his talents, promotions and respect flooded his life with routine
ecstasy.
Love came calling to this fine officer right before a
huge change occurred within the world.
His relationship with this lady gave way to a beautiful daughter whom he
called his little mouse. On a sad note,
the relationship ended but the daughter remained close to the family even right
up till the day her father died. The
huge event that occurred was World War I and he was called away to battle and
fought bravely for his country. He
represented his country well and served his men with dignity and respect and in
turn his men shoed the same for him even though by the time the war was over he
had lost everything. Promotions came
regularly during the war and his rise in rank reflected his mentality on the war,
his humanity towards the innocent civilians that had been caught in an awful
mess, the enemy that he encountered on a daily basis and for his men that
bravely followed him into each battle.
He was highly decorated and recognized as a valuable member of the army
that he so proudly served.
After the war ended times began to change and some
disturbances began to rise within the country that concerned him. He did not like them but understood that the
direction that the country was taking would eventually lead to another
war. He did not know, however just how
much of a destructive war the second one would prove to be nor did he ever
expect his outcome of that war. In
between the two wars he had finally met the lady of his life and this time
married her. The union produced a son
and he added the title of proud father to the long list of achievements that he
had already been cited. His daughter was
still in the picture but because of certain circumstances she played on the
sidelines of the family, leaning in to see what was happening as often as she
could.
The dream that this man had for his family illuminated
and resonated each time he put on his uniform and he thought continuously that
one day the dreams that his leaders promised would actually come true for his
family. As time passed his rank
increased a couple of more steps and his leadership skills promoted themselves
right along with his rank. He became a
very well known person within the country and his achievements were well
publicized at every turn. Yet in the
back of his mind he knew that things would turn for the worse and that he would
be called upon once again to defend his country.
This thought of war eventually did occur and his beloved
country was once again plunged into the worst of humanity. He saw many horrors as the war progressed and
it seemed to him that even though his promotions continued to rise, would not
end soon enough. The love for his
country heavily outweighed the war yet he continued to fight on without rocking
the political boat. Because of his newly
established high rank he was allowed to leave his command on a regular basis to
visit his family which he thoroughly enjoyed.
He served as an excellent role model for his son and even though the
nasty war raged he did his best to make sure his son stayed out of the
political side of the war.
The war began to take a turn and some signs began to
emerge that things were not going to end very well for his country. Politics continually reared its ugly head and
the thickness of the stench of this side of the war began to produce an
uncontrolled smell within the entire military command. His popular name had been tossed around as a
future leader within the government and his strong background provided added
assurance that this status would be forthcoming after all hostilities
ended. On his reunions with his family
he loved to see the development of his son and the ideas that he had for his
life. This general loved to sit and
ponder about the future of his son and everything that he could achieve in his
future. However, these ideas and dreams
all came crashing down one day and his life now had to forcefully take a
drastic turn.
Meanwhile his family continued their simple lifestyle and
living without fear as much as possible.
War news arrived in the papers and on the radio daily and were always
filled with joyous news from the front, but even the son of this man understood
that war could not go on with the smell of roses in a continual pattern. In truth the war was taking its toll upon the
country and the enemy began to make huge strides against the army and the
pushing back of the homeland’s greatest fighting machine became obvious to the
entire world. Eventually the doubts and
worries crept into the minds and hearts of every citizen including the wife,
daughter and son of this famous and newly promoted general. What would become of the family if the war
was lost was a common unspoken question that every person had running through
their minds.
After the war had ended the son continued his education
and eventually became a prominent lawyer.
He was a gifted and talented man who had the same knack for bringing
people together in time of crisis that his father proved to the world many
times. Even though he had fond memories
of his family when he was young the emptiness that incurred after the death of
his father continued to haunt him. There
were many questions as to why his father had left so suddenly and why his
mother cried continually for months afterwards.
The son clung to the words of encouragement that his father spoke to him
on a regular basis and those exercises in mental toughness with compassion came
in handy so many times through his adult career.
The son continued on in life and tediously built himself
a reputable name to add to the tarnished family name that preceded him. He had thoughts of running for public office
and filed the necessary documents to include his name on the ballot. He knew that his resident city was facing
hard times and he believed that his ideas and leadership could turn the city
around and make it prosperous again. The
war had been over for quite some time now but the devastating effects still had
its grip around his part of the country.
Low and behold he won the election on the second ballot and he was soon
instilled as the mayor of that city.
His aspirations of becoming a leader were now fulfilled
and his popularity soared even greater than one could imagine. His words were considered good as gold and
the people fell in line with his ideas and dreams for the city. The backing was tremendous and the city began
to turn around and growth showed its bullish head once again. Even though the country was still
experiencing hard times within, his city became one of the stalwarts of a
capitalistic society and stood as a beacon for everyone in the region to
see. When the time came for his
re-election he received a higher percentage of votes than his first term which
signaled that the people were excited about his ideas and direction even though
the country was still in pieces.
With all of his success and triumphs one would think that
this son of a popular general had it easy and everything was cake on a
platter. But there were skeletons in his
closet and even though those skeletons were held against him in some ways his
success was accredited to his father and the son never forgot where his
abilities came from. The story has a
tragic twist in the middle of it that has not been shared with you as of now
but it is a part of the story that will make clear of the importance of the
decisions of the heart for a family.
Understand that I am not making excuses for what the father did or the
choice that he made. I also pray that I
or you ever have to be put into the position that the father was and have to
make such a drastic decision as he was commanded to complete.
I write you this article today because the son of this
great father just passed away earlier this month. His story is a remarkable one in that his
upbringing and early life was riddled in controversy. The son’s name is Manfred Rommel and this man
left the earth on 7 November 2013.
Manfred Rommel was the very popular Lord Mayor of Stuttgart, Germany
from 1974 till 1996. His tenure as mayor
was one of the longest in the history of Stuttgart and his presence within that
city utterly transformed the city into a thriving metropolis once again. He lived as a free man, did as much as
possible to make sure that Germany was reunified once again and that as many
wounds were healed as possible due to the horrors that a ruthless dictator
imposed upon a good portion of the world.
But there is a point to his life to which all of this might not have
occurred and it stemmed back during World War II.
Some of you might now recognize this man and who he was,
especially his last name. His father was
a highly decorated Nazi general and carried the name of Field Marshal Erwin
Rommel. FM Rommel was one of Hitler’s
top generals and military advisors during World War II. Rommel fought many campaigns for his leader
and for his country and was very popular within his ranks and within the
communities in which he served and lived.
Yet this popularity and outstanding leadership could not contain his
leader from assuming that he was involved in a coup against his reign. The idea of such eventually led Hitler to
demand an ultimatum and gave the choice to FM Rommel of private suicide or
public humiliation through a monkey trial that would have surly given his
family a attenuated reputation.
After careful consideration FM Rommel made the decision
to take his own life and to allow his family to live in relative peace for the
remainder of their days, even with a tarnished record. A short side note here in that this decision
was made due in part that FM Rommel and Hitler still believed that Germany
would prevail in the war against the world; however, one must really
contemplate if Rommel had already saw the writing on the wall concerning this
issue. Anyway, FM Rommel took his own
life and his family was allowed to live in relatively peaceful conditions and
survive the war. The question remains,
what if FM Rommel had not chosen to bite into that cyanide pill and chosen to
live and face trial? The finality of
this person’s choice proved to be a fantastic result for the German people and
serves as a prime example of life for humanity in general.
The biblical example that I am choosing to use is that of
Moses. While many of us have read the
story of Moses and understand some of his life experiences we might not have
realized just how “flawed” Moses was and if we place it into present day
terminology we might be shocked to comprehend just how extraordinary Moses was
and why God chose him to lead His people from captivity. Then we can do something that many people do
not allow themselves to complete and that is to understand that the stories
contained within the Bible are about humans and their lives and how they lived
them. And, through the decisions that
those people made, their lives played out a written diary and many people were
affected by their decisions. The most
important part of those stories is that they deal with humans and if you are
reading this article that means that you are a human as well. Which means that through your own personal
story and choices people can live their lives and make decisions that could eventually
change a nation’s heart.
From early on in Moses’ life he was not welcome. Being hastily wrapped in a blanket, put
inside a woven basket and placed in one of the world’s largest rivers only to
be found later by another person is not the prime example of a person who will
have a glorious or fulfilling life. If a
mother would do this action today she would be labeled as an outrageous person
and then publically humiliated by a public trial. Yet Moses was found by who God wanted to find
him for if someone else had snatched him from the river, the future of Israel
would have been totally different.
As we read in scripture we know that Moses had lived a
decent and powerful life. He played with
the royalty of Egypt and was clothed in many splendorous clothes. He was given titles and slept on the finest
sheets and beds that were available to the empire. But Moses also understood that he was not
from these people from whom he lived with and as the truth came out the
definition of his life took hold, which did not automatically produce a
peaceful contingency but aggravated a personal and spiritual war that would
reignite a war that continues through today.
If we think about the direct connection that Moses had
with Pharaoh and the links to the realm of the Egyptian Kingdom, the fate of
Israel might have been different. If we
ponder this setting we will understand that God knew exactly what needed to be
completed in order for someone to have enough clout to come and go into the
chambers of the leader of the world’s greatest empire of that day. There was a specific reason that God chose
Moses and the way that he spoke to Pharaoh, directed the mission from Egypt and
then followed God in the ways that He showed Moses. All of these issues, problems, glories,
defeats and victories were solely responsible by Moses’ command through the
divine instruction and allowance of God.
It is clear that Moses had a specific purpose in life even though he
doubted it many times, raising proof through his physical impediments as an
excuse to argue with God.
God did not choose Moses because he came from a royal
bloodline. God did not use Abraham
because he came from a well known family, nor did God choose David because he
was the mightiest warrior that was available.
God chose each one of these men because of the potential that each one
of them had through the deepness of the hearts and the willingness to obey and
to do what was right. The recent
historical example I gave God allowed to restore a city that had been
devastated by a wretched war through a man who understood what it meant to live
a free and godly life. None of these men
lived perfect lives and each one of them made grievous mistakes while they drew
breath, but each one of them also did their best to serve humanity and God to
the best of their ability and to serve as a true example of what forgiveness,
hope and restoration was meant to be.
What would you think if God decided to show up in the
bushes of your back yard and then began to speak prophetically about the next
steps that you were going to be dealing with in your life? Would you walk up a mountain and receive some
laws for the people that you were leading? Would you even be willing to believe that you
could lead that many people? All of this
for a man could not carry a tune nor complete a sentence without getting tongue
tied. Really, God? What about if God wanted you to spread the
good news to your neighbors, even if they went to another church? Think about this for a while and one would
automatically draw the conclusion that God was nuts. Hey, what Bible degree did Moses have anyway?
What about your life?
What do you believe that it has the capability of becoming for humanity
and God? If we conduct a thorough and
honest investigation of our entire life, we will surly come to the conclusion
that we have done many things wrong and do not deserve anything but punishment
for the ways we lived. Yet for some odd
and un-definable reason God sees fit to use us for His purpose in order to
reach other people. I understand how
difficult it must be to believe such a statement as I just made. I too doubt my existence and purpose at times
but for whatever reasons God still pushes me along my road of life and placing
notes of encouragement, love and restoration onto little pieces of paper that I
create. I in turn then finish the messages
that God has for others in an article form, which still blows my mind when I look
back and read them. All of these
articles coming from a person who absolutely hated to write for decades of his
life. I cannot explain this, but I know
it is real and I know it is for a greater purpose.
Time and time again God has used the obscurity of a
simple person to get His message across to a dying world. Bums, losers, slugs and goof balls define His
perfect plan for humanity. Yes, God
loves each and every one of us and He will use anyone willing to listen to His
call but it is still beyond belief that He would use a no body to come across
to the world. I guess that is why it is
almost impossible for a majority of the world to deny that God could create a
human son for a specific amount of time in order to provide the divine and
perfect permanent sacrifice in order to restore our relationship with Him.
Stop and look at your life and examine what it shall tell
the world and how our future history could learn from our lives. Read history, read the Bible and one will
understand why the majority of humans are of simplistic nature. Relate to others and understand what they are
feeling or going through. For you see,
when it all comes crashing down it will not matter what political affiliation
one is associated with nor will it of any importance that you are a Catholic or
Protestant. The only thing that will
matter is if you know God and what He has shown you about life and how to
handle the hard issues through His guidance and love. As long as we choose to live our own lives
and beg for humanity to control our thoughts and emotions, we shall never see
how to survive when times fall around us.
For all we will know how to do is to react with angry and empty words
about our immediate surroundings, which in turn will result in our physical
deaths which have followed right along with our spiritual deaths that went
before us.
I do not have much to give to the world but what I have
to offer is a person that can turn your life around in every aspect known to
you. Stop and see what God is doing
around you and how He is trying His best to grasp your attention. God shall never force you to accept His ways,
choosing God shall always be your choice.
Restoration is a tough process but it one that will cleanse you of all
the worldly garbage that has attached itself to you and set you free from that
burden. Choose God’s plan and you shall
not be disappointed in any way, shape or fashion, but it will be a great
experience to share with others down the road.
Each one of us serves as God’s true example of life and His love for all
mankind. Each one of our lives was
created for us to think about who God is and what He wants for our lives. And it is God’s plan for our lives that dwells
within us and it is very important that we recognize this truth.
DLB
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