Skip to main content

Everyone needs a Nathan



            The Bible does not say much about the prophet Nathan, but I know one thing:  I want a friend like him!

            After King David’s affair with Bathsheba (if you are not familiar with this story, you can read about it in 2 Samuel 11), Nathan is given the job of confronting the king.  Now, this is a scary thing because, if he makes the king mad (and telling him that he is wrong is a good way to do that) it could cost him his life.  Not only does Nathan go, but he is able to present the truth in such a way that David not only admits his sin, but commits to changing his ways.

            Everyone needs a “Nathan”!  

            The truth is that it is easy for me to rationalize my behaviour and to make excuses for myself.  I can be absolutely wrong and completely unable to see it all at the same time.   Everyone needs someone who can speak truth into their life.  Sometimes we need an outside voice, because our inner voice will defend anything we choose to do, regardless of whether it is right or wrong. 

            That is one of the valuable things about Christian friendships and Christian fellowship (such as in the church).   A good friend who shares the same values and the same outlook can help you maintain those values and that outlook.  Proverbs 27:6 says, “Wounds from a friend can be trusted”.  In other words, a real and valuable friend is one who will step in and say the things that you need to hear when you need to hear them.  If I never hear an outside voice, or if I surround myself only with people who say what I want to hear, I am in big trouble.

            Everyone needs a “Nathan”!

            One last thought:  Please find your Nathan early.  Too often, people wait too long before discussing their problems.  By the time they do, the issue has been hidden for so long and has become so large that, when it finally does explode, it is virtually impossible to put the pieces back together.  The time to ask for help, the time to get a perspective on your life, is now.  Do not put it off, or it may be too late.

            We live in a very individualistic time that, for the most part, says. “Handle your own problems”, but everyone needs a sounding board.  Everyone needs a good friend who can “speak the truth in love” (Ephesians 4:15).

            Everyone needs a “Nathan”!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Consider This: Who Needs Worship?

  Why does God need our worship? The events of Matthew 14 provide at least one answer.   This chapter starts with the beheading of John the Baptist (verses 1-12). This is the first in a series of events that indicate things are about to become much more difficult for the believers. Next, the scene shifts to a crowd gathered on a hillside in Galilee. After listening to Jesus teach all day, the apostles realized that these people had nothing to eat. They brought the problem to Jesus. He took a child’s lunch and fed the entire group of five thousand men plus women and children. Afterwards, they picked up twelve baskets of leftovers (verses 13-21).   Then Jesus told them to get in a boat and cross the Sea of Galilee. As they went, a storm arose, and the apostles were scared. They struggled along until Jesus came to them walking on the water. Peter tried walking on the water too and sank. After Jesus rescued Peter, they got into the boat, and the storm immediately s...
Post a Comment
Read more

A Spiritual Makeover (1 Peter 1:13-16)

 Three responses to the new life God has given us.  https://youtu.be/FmqX5-3jOKc  
Post a Comment
Read more

Consider This: The Danger of Drifting

   Consider This: The Danger of Drifting Most people will not blow up their life in one big, messy moment. It can happen, and when it does, the damage is obvious and instantaneous. Like a car wreck at an intersection, people make a bad decision, and chaos ensues. Parts and pieces scatter all over. People get hurt. Situations like this are unexpected, loud, shocking and scary. Most of us will not wreck our lives in one big, terrible moment. The real danger is that we will lose what is valuable in small, almost imperceptible steps. It happens all the time. You can leave your marriage without ever leaving your house. You can leave your faith while still attending church. You can leave your life while you are still living it. Many people lose what they love, not by making one big, out-of-character decision, but by coasting, disengaging, neglecting and missing what matters. Almost every Biblical list of Christian characteristics mentions “Self-control”, yet I have not g...
Post a Comment
Read more