Monday, June 14, 2010

Oh that God would make us dangerous!

We are so utterly ordinary, so commonplace, while we profess to know a Power the Twentieth Century does not reckon with. But we are "harmless," and therefore unharmed. We are spiritual pacifists, non-militants, conscientious objectors in this battle-to-the-death with principalities and powers in high places. Meekness must be had for contact with men, but brass, outspoken boldness is required to take part in the comradeship of the Cross. We are "sideliners"--coaching and criticizing the real wrestlers while content to sit by and leave the enemies of God unchallenged. The world cannot hate us, we are too much like its own. Oh that God would make us dangerous!

Jim Eliot

HT to CQOD

2 comments:

dle said...

And yet when Elliot had the chance to fire his gun at his attackers, he instead took the spear rather than let lost men take a bullet and wind up in eternal hellfire.

Elliot knew what it meant to be dangerous in the correct way, didn't he?

John said...

Eliot did.

On the other hand, there can be forgiveness even for murderers, as some of Eliot's killers eventually found.