The Cure for Resentment

"23 Like the glaze covering an earthen vessel

are fervent lips with an evil heart.

24 Whoever hates disguises himself with his lips

and harbors deceit in his heart;

25 when he speaks graciously, believe him not,

for there are seven abominations in his heart;

26 though his hatred can be covered with deception,

his wickedness will be exposed in the assembly."     Proverbs 26:23-26

     My wife, Heather, bakes fantastic sourdough bread. A part of the process requires her to heat a Dutch oven to 500 degrees Fahrenheit. When she began using the enamel-coated Dutch oven shown in the photograph just a short while ago, the inside was as white and glossy as the outside. You can see the damage now that it has experienced a few cycles of intense heat. The once white enamel has been damaged, tarnished, and has lost its luster. Just the other day, she said, "I've gotta find a different pot to use for this, or this one's gonna be ruined...and this is my favorite pot."

     As I pondered the pot and her current dilemma, Proverbs 26:23-26 came to mind. The simile Solomon uses and its application to this situation is astounding. I love how the Bible speaks to us through everyday occurrences.

    Merriam-Webster's dictionary defines fervent as very hot, glowing, and exhibiting or marked by great intensity of feeling, zealous. Solomon is using "lips" to refer to one's speech. Therefore, this passage warns us of the perils of a whte and glossy outside (fervent speech) hiding a damaged, tarnished, lackluster inside (an evil, deceitful, abomination containing, hating, wicked heart).

     Humans have been cursed by sin since Genesis 3. We are born damaged on the inside, and the Bible tells us our hearts are wicked (Jeremiah 17:9). A life full of pressures and intense heat exacerbates that condition. Our hearts are as damaged as the glaze inside that pot; the longer we live, the more damaged they can become.

     We are prone to complain, grumble, and find fault in others. Solomon warns we can try to hide our dark hearts, but they will be exposed. Jesus later endorsed this teaching in Matthew 22:37, saying, "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are full of dead people’s bones and all uncleanness."

     And there's nothing we, by ourselves, can do about it. We can't fix it. There's no amount of "pulling ourselves up by our bootstraps" or "cleaning up our acts" that will clean us up. So, what are we supposed to do?   

     God answers that question throughout the entire Bible. In Deuteronomy 6:24-27, Moses, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, instructs us to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. Jesus endorses that same command in  Matthew 22:37-38, Mark 12:30, and Luke 10:27a. Then, Jesus raises the bar by telling us to love our neighbor as ourselves in  Matthew 22:39, Mark 12:31, and Luke 10:27b. Therefore, love is the answer to the question concluding the previous paragraph.

     Wait a minute...if we have the inherent tendency to grumble, resent, and hate because we are born with a heart darkened by the curse of sin and there's nothing we can do about it, how can we love as Jesus instructs us to love? That, my friends, is answered by the Gospel - the good news of Jesus Christ.

     Even before He created humanity, God, holy and perfect, knew we would succumb to sin. Since He is holy and perfect and because of His intense love for us, he planned and provided Jesus Christ as the solution. Jesus Christ is the way, the truth, and the life, and no one comes to the Father except through Him (John 14:6). In arguably the most famous verse in Scripture, Jesus says, "For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life" (John 3:16).

     Ok...let's assume you believe Jesus is the answer, and you take God at His Word. Praise the Lord! But how does that help overcome the propensity to grumble, complain, and resent? Jesus told His disciples to "follow me." If we follow Jesus and learn more and more and more about Him, He has promised to soften our hard hearts. Since Jesus is love, our dark hearts will transform towards that love. It's neither quick nor easy. But, as love grows, gratitude grows. As gratitude grows, grumbling, complaining, and resentment shrink.

     If you don't believe me, could you try it? It works.