I hope everyone had a blessed and safe 4th of July.
Y’all ever give somebody a second chance? I mentioned this a few years back. The only time I ever hit anyone intentionally in my life, a classmate at school was, for some reason, trying to start up a fight with me in the school yard. He hit me. I was willing right then and there to turn the other cheek and give him a second chance.
At the time, I was probably 15, I remember thinking how I only had four cheeks, and I figured once I turned all the other cheeks all bets were off! It was my teen interpretation of Matthew 5:39, “But I say to you, do not resist an evil person; but whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also.”
I said, “Man, don’t do that, we’re on school property. He hit me again. I said, “I’m telling you, DON’T go there!”
And then he hit me again and he said, “Come on fight.” And then he hit me a 4th time! That’s it—4 cheeks! I hit him one time. I’m not sure he ever knew what hit him. He went back about ten feet before hitting the ground and he was out for about ten minutes. The teachers and the principal had arrived, and they were trying to wake him up. I’ll admit, I was a little concerned.
But he finally came back to reality and yep, we both went to the office. My friend didn’t know what had happened. There he was one minute trying to encourage me to hit him, and a second later he was being attended by faculty. I tried to explain to the nice man who had the paddle with the nice little holes drilled in it how I had really tried to avoid the fight. I explained to him how I had taken it in one cheek and turned three other cheeks, but he wasn’t having it. I had, after all, caused quite a stir when my friend was laying there unconscious with teachers slapping him and giving him smelling salts and such. But I think I would have been in trouble for fighting even if I never responded. Anyway, nobody ever tried fight again. Suited me just fine. I never did understand why two guys would want to stand there and just beat each other’s faces in.
Okay, what does that have to do with second chances? Well, I gave him a second, and even third, and fourth chance to go do something else. It’s nice to get more than one chance at things...
Something like bulldogging comes to mind here. When you come off your horse and miss that calf, he don’t stand there and wait on you to run up and throw him down. He’s headed for the house. The event is just kind of over.
I’ve had people tell me there are no second chances in life. Hooey! Give your life to Jesus.
That is the one and only true second chance. All of us, from Adam and Eve on down, need a second chance because we mess up. We’ve got sin in our life and all the good we try to be and do will fall short of the glory of God!
Peter messed up three times when Jesus was preparing to go to the cross. Jesus had told him, “You will deny Me three times before the rooster crows!” And he did. Three times, he was asked if he was one of those guys who hung out with Jesus and he denied knowing him all three times.
But after Jesus had come out of that grave, Jesus asked Peter three times, “Do you love me?”
And Peter told Him, “Boss, you know I do, I love you!” And Jesus basically told him three times, “Tend to my church!” Jesus gave him a 2nd chance!
Choose Jesus, choose life! And find a Bible believin’ church where you “fit in” and know, grow, and follow Christ! Tell others! See y’all at church and keep PRAYIN’ for HIS HARVEST! And y’all KEEP PRAYIN’ for RAIN! Amen