This command I entrust to you, Timothy, my son, in accordance with the prophecies previously made concerning you, that by them you fight the good fight, keeping faith and a good conscience, which some have rejected and suffered shipwreck in regard to their faith. Among these are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan, so that they will be taught not to blaspheme. – 1Timothy 1:18-20
While reading through Jonah, this verse came to my mind. Paul is turning some folks over to Satan. Doesn’t seem very Christian, does it? However if you tie it in with what went on with Jonah, it starts to make a bit more sense…
Jonah was running from God. He knew exactly what he was supposed to be doing, but he chose to go the opposite direction. Why did Jonah refuse to obey God’s clear instruction to him? We can only speculate the reason in Jonah’s mind. Was it hard heartedness toward Nineveh that made him act this way?
At any rate, Jonah’s disobedience to God resulted in the lives of his companions aboard the ship to be endangered. According to the text, the men aboard the ship did not want to throw Jonah overboard and did everything they could think of to try to save him. They did not want his blood on their hands, so they held out as long as they could, but finally threw him over. They did not know it, but Jonah had to end up in the belly of the great fish.
Life is messy. Especially if you get involved in other people’s lives. Even if your heart is bent toward obedience to the Lord, folks who are running from God can wreak havoc in your life. The story of Jonah made me start to ponder the Christian responsibility toward our brothers and sisters who for whatever reason are running from God. We have all dealt with them. They seem oblivious to the toll their behavior takes on those who love them and are trying to help them.
As a Christian, how long should we be expected put up with these people? Just how much havoc can they wreak in the lives of those around them before they can be thrown overboard in good conscience?
After much prayer, meditation and studying of scripture, I have come to the conclusion that one of the first things we Christians tend to forget is that WE cannot save them. We can’t. Holding on and holding out forever, doing everything correctly, giving them chance after chance after chance to do what is right and showing them the love of Christ. These are good things, but WE still cannot save them. Salvation belongs to God and God alone. His purposes will not be thwarted.
The other major theme that came to my mind is that it is not acceptable to toss them over because of the drama, frustration, and inconvenience they bring to our lives. True danger is a different story, but I am talking about being put out by someone and their behavior.
It seems that the only acceptable time to toss them over is when it is apparent that we, in our love of our brothers and sisters, are becoming a hindrance to them getting into the belly of the beast. Unfortunately, some folks cannot find repentance until they have lost all those safety nets. God knows where they need to go, sometimes we need to get out of the way.
The most important is that we never stop praying for them. Perhaps we should change what we pray for them. Instead of asking God to restore a marriage, maybe we start praying that God would grant this person mercy and allow repentance. In today’s verse, I do not think that Paul has stopped caring or praying for these folks. I believe that his prayers for them had changed.