WOULD YOU?

By Michael K. Farrar, O.D.

A friend of mine from my past composed these words for a song. The title of the song was “Would You?” The words go like this:

“If you were one in a room of a thousand,

and Jesus asked you to stand, would you?

With everyone around you staring, would you?

If you were one in a room of a thousand,

and Jesus asked you to kneel, would you?

With everyone around you staring, would you?

It isn’t such a challenge, to do what others do,

but if He asked just you and you alone, would you?”

The song continues with a challenge to stand for Jesus, but also asks a rather significant question. What would you do if you were placed in a situation where you were called upon to take a stand for God alone? What if you had no help or support in this, would you rise to the call? What if others who were with you in the same situation were refusing to take a stand, would you? What if there was no clear direction from the Lord, but you felt convicted that a stand needed to be made, would you?

I remember in college I took a religion class taught by a rather liberal pastor from a city nearby. One day in class we were discussing the resurrection of Christ and the pastor made a most unnerving statement. He said, “I believe Christ was as surprised as anyone that he rose from the grave.” I was taken aback. I wasn’t sure what to say or do. After class I discussed this with some of my Christian friends who were also taking the course. We decided to give the pastor a visit.

We walked across campus and entered his office and explained our concern. We shared that there were scriptures in the New Testament that demonstrated that Jesus predicted His resurrection and was in no way surprised by the events that transpired. He seemed to be very apologetic and concerned that we were offended. He appeared to understand our position and admitted that he may have made an error in what he said.

In this situation my friends and I took a stand for truth and the veracity of scripture, but we had the support of one another. Would any of us have done such a confrontational thing on our own? I would hope we would have, but possibly not. We all have the characteristic of bravery and courage when we are in the company of others of similar conviction. This is a normal response. The question is, what happens when we are alone and called upon to stand for Jesus?

In 2 Samuel 23 we have a situation where a man discovers he has such a choice. He can stand his ground or run with the crowd. His name was Shammah. He was the son of Agee the Hararite. The Philistines, of Goliath fame, were banding together and preparing to do battle against the Israelites. They approached a field of what appears to be described as lentils or beans. The Israelites seeing the vast force approaching retreat quickly, except for one man named Shammah. For some reason Shammah decided that he would stand for his race, his tribe, his God. He positioned himself in the middle of this bean field and defended it. I am sure the bean field was not worth dying for, but Shammah must have felt that standing for God and His chosen people was a different matter. Shammah refused to be swayed by the response of others around him. He chose to risk his life to stand for what was right.

We don’t know the specifics of the battle, but we can guess at some of the possible things we might have observed if we were a fly on a nearby tree. We might have seen a small gathering of Israelites in the field caring for the tender shoots of the bean plants. Over in the distance another group of armed men are gathering preparing for attack. The caretakers of the bean field do not notice the ambush at first until the first shouts of battle are announced. The Philistines scurry down the hill anxious to kill the Israelites and pillage their field. There is a pregnant moment of decision as the Israelites are caught off guard. They hesitate. Then evaluating their numbers and ability to defend their land they sense that they are badly outnumbered so they decide to run, except for one solitary man, Shammah. Shammah remains in the middle of the bean field, standing tall, unwilling to give ground. Thoughts very likely ran through his mind of the choices he had. He knows running with the others would save his life, but something causes him to stay. We are not given any evidence that God asked him to stay, nor are we told that God’s Spirit comes upon him convicting him of what he must do. We simply see a man, making a choice that he feels God would condone.

The Philistines are confident now of victory for before them stands a single solitary man to defend the field of bean plants. Their confidence begins to vanish though as Shammah begins to swing his hoe. While meant to cultivate a field, it also proves to be a significant weapon against these marauders of mayhem. Philistine after Philistine was taken down as the dedicated man of God strikes each approaching attacker. Philistine blood mixes with fertile soil, as Shammah stands firm in his conviction. While God may or may not have led to the initial decision of Shammah to defend the field, God is given the credit for the victory. I wonder if there is a lesson for us to learn here?

As I shared above, Shammah may have made his decision to stand for what was right without direct guidance from God. Scripture does not tell us that God spoke to Shammah about what to do. We are given no hint that any specific scripture came to Shammah’s mind to influence him to make his stand. There is no advice from the religious leaders of the day for they are back at camp. There is no mention of influence of the Spirit of the Lord convicting Shammah of how to behave. Shammah makes his own decision based on his character as a godly man.

Possibly because of the manner in which he had led his life up to this moment he knew what the right thing to do was and he followed through with his brave decision. Righteousness and spiritual maturity have a way of leading us down the path we need to go when God gives us the freedom to make our own decision. Our Heavenly Father may often give us the freedom to choose the path we take as a test of our dedication. Once we make our decision God supplies the necessary faith, strength, courage and fortitude to carry it out. This may have been the case in Shammah’s situation. God withholds direct guidance so that Shammah can make up his own mind. Choosing correctly, God then intervenes and brings about a great victory. Shammah’s actions brought glory to God.

We bring glory to God when we obey His word and when we listen to His Spirit that lives within us as a Christian. We can also bring glory to God in circumstances when God allows us to make our own decision. Possibly we have numerous situations each day or week when God allows us to make our choice as to how we will stand for Him. When we choose correctly we receive blessings as God comes alongside to encourage and enable us to bring Him glory. How many missed opportunities do we pass by because we have not grown in spiritual maturity to recognize when these choices come our way.

Of course there are as many opportunities for making mistakes as for glorifying God. If we are immature in our spiritual life or deceived by our own desires and thoughts we can choose wrongly as well. We all know of situations when people with good intentions make bad decisions convinced that God would approve. Several years back a man murdered a doctor who was performing abortions and substantiated it with the belief that he was doing it to save lives. Yes, he may have saved lives, but he also took a life. I doubt God condoned such an action. While taking a stand for God can bring Him glory, it can also bring Him shame if done with our own wisdom and understanding. Spiritual maturity and wisdom recognizes the difference between situations that require steadfast commitment for proper actions and those choices that would bring dishonor to God and us.