I want to open with an illustration. On May 21, 2004, Captain Rogelio Maynulet of the United States Army shot an unnamed Iraqi who was wounded in a chase.(1) What was his reasoning? He reported, “He was in a state that I didn’t think was dignified – I had to put him out of his misery.” He argued that the killing “was the right thing to do; it was the honorable thing to do.”(2) Much of our country, and the people of Iraq, was outraged by this atrocity.
We cringe when we hear of shooting the wounded, but how many times have we seen a brother in Christ who was suffering spiritually, and we said, “He was in a state that I didn’t think was dignified,” and then we shoot him down with our words of judgment and condemnation? We are appalled when we hear news of someone shooting the wounded, but the church does this all too often. We should be just as outraged when we see a brother or sister in Christ being shot down. Thus, I have entitled our message, “Shooting Our Wounded,” and I would like to begin by having us look at the account of a believer who had fallen and was deeply wounded, as we look at John 18:12-27.
Peter’s Denial of Christ (John 18:12-17, 25-27)
12 Then the detachment of troops and the captain and the officers of the Jews arrested Jesus and bound Him. 13 And they led Him away to Annas first, for he was the father-in-law of Caiaphas who was high priest that year. 14 Now it was Caiaphas who advised the Jews that it was expedient that one man should die for the people.
15 And Simon Peter followed Jesus, and so did another disciple. Now that disciple was known to the high priest, and went with Jesus into the courtyard of the high priest. 16 But Peter stood at the door outside. Then the other disciple, who was known to the high priest, went out and spoke to her who kept the door, and brought Peter in. 17 Then the servant girl who kept the door said to Peter, “You are not also one of this Man’s disciples, are you?” He said, “I am not” . . .
25 Now Simon Peter stood and warmed himself. Therefore they said to him, “You are not also one of His disciples, are you?” He denied it and said, “I am not!” 26 One of the servants of the high priest, a relative of him whose ear Peter cut off, said, “Did I not see you in the garden with Him?” 27 Peter then denied again; and immediately a rooster crowed.
I am sure you are familiar with this account. This is Peter’s denial of Christ. Back in John 13:37-38, we read, “Peter said to Him, ‘Lord, why can I not follow You now? I will lay down my life for Your sake.’ Jesus answered him, ‘Will you lay down your life for My sake? Most assuredly, I say to you, the rooster shall not crow till you have denied Me three times’.” And back in Matthew 26:33-35, we read, “Peter answered and said to Him, ‘Even if all are made to stumble because of You, I will never be made to stumble.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Assuredly, I say to you that this night, before the rooster crows, you will deny Me three times.’ Peter said to Him, ‘Even if I have to die with You, I will not deny You’.”
Peter told the Holy One of God, God’s one and only Son, that he would never deny Him. He made a promise; he gave his word that he would never deny Jesus; and we see that he denied Him three times before morning dawned. Not only did he break his promise, but he committed the sin of denying Christ – the very sin that keeps people from entering the kingdom of heaven. This sounds appalling!
So, if it were up to us, how would we have treated Peter after this incident? How do we usually treat other Christians when they fall into sin and deny their Savior? In many churches, people will excommunicate the offender. They will stop speaking to them, lay into them with harsh accusations, or perhaps begin talking about them behind their back. But is this how Jesus would have handled the situation? No!
In John 21:15-17, we see that Jesus reminded Peter of how he had denied Him three times, whenever He asked Peter on three separate occasions if he really loved Him. Even though Jesus reminded Peter of his denial, we see that after Peter confessed his love for Jesus, that He forgave him, restored him, and then gave him the responsibility of feeding and tending His sheep and lambs.
Jesus did not condemn people; He restored them. The apostle Paul stated in Galatians 6:1-2, “Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted. Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.” Paul said that we are to restore our fellow brothers and sisters who fall, but do we always do this? Unfortunately, we don’t! We often judge people instead!
Think about the account of Job for a moment. In the Scripture, we read that Job was a “blameless [man] and upright, and one who feared God and shunned evil” (1:1), and that he was also a man who was blessed with many earthly possessions and a large, healthy family (1:2). Job had it all! However, one day Satan came to God and told the Lord that the only reason why Job worshipped and served Him was because he was so blessed with earthly possessions. Satan said to the Lord that if He would just take away His hedge of protection from Job that he would curse God to His face (1:9-11). So, the Lord lifted His hedge of protection and allowed Satan the opportunity to test Job (1:12).
You have probably heard before that trouble comes in threes; well Job got it in fours! A report came to Job that his servants had been murdered; then another report came that his livestock had been killed; and then another one came that all his camels had been stolen. He then received the horrible news that his own children had been killed in a tornado (1:13-19). And if that weren’t enough, a little later on Job’s health was taken from him (2:4-7). Job’s friends figured that he must have committed some horrible sin, or have a hidden sin that he was being punished for; and they kept telling him that he was a sinner who needed to repent. His friends didn’t offer him any helpful advice; they just judged him like so many of us do to our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.
In Job 12:5, Job expressed his opinion of his friends’ judgments. In the New Living Translation he stated, “People who are at ease mock those in trouble. They give a push to people who are stumbling.” Job expressed a statement similar to one that we have today, which is this: “People like to kick you while you’re down.” Unfortunately, many Christians like to kick their fellow brothers and sisters while they are down. You’ve probably heard it called “shooting our wounded” or “crucifying our own.” It has been stated, “The Christian army is the only army that kills its wounded.”(3)
A person who goes by the name of “Brother Larry” observes, “While we go through life shooting our wounded, the rest of the world understands the importance of sticking together . . . People without ethics are quick to band together to eliminate a common enemy.”(4) This is sad, but true. Non-Christians will unite together to fight a common enemy, while Christians allow their common Enemy, the devil, to wreak havoc and cause division within the body of Christ. Christians seem to forget what Ephesians 6:12 says: “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood” – or against each other.
Why do we frequently judge other Christians so harshly, when Jesus said, “Judge not, and you shall not be judged. Condemn not, and you shall not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven” (Luke 6:37)? Jesus also said, “Why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye;’ and look, a plank is in your own eye?” (Matthew 7:3-4). Jesus went on to say something that we all need to hear: “Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye” (Matthew 7:5).
Why do we so quickly condemn others, when Paul stated, “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit” (Romans 8:1)? We tend to judge and condemn, because we forget our place. We forget that we are not the judge; but God is. We do have the responsibility to hold each other accountable to the Scripture; but judgment and condemnation are not ours to pass. As we just heard earlier, our responsibility is to bear one another’s burdens and to restore those who have fallen into sin (Galatians 6:1-2); not judge them.
Listen to Paul, in Romans 14:10-13: “Why do you judge your brother? Or why do you show contempt for your brother? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. For it is written: ‘As I live, says the LORD, every knee shall bow to Me, and every tongue shall confess to God.’ So then each of us shall give account of himself to God. Therefore let us not judge one another anymore, but rather resolve this, not to put a stumbling block or a cause to fall in our brother’s way.” To put this in contemporary language, verse 10 in the New Living Translation, reads like this: “Why do you condemn another Christian? Why do you look down on another Christian?” and verse 13 reads like this: “Don’t condemn each other anymore. Decide instead to live in such a way that you will not put an obstacle in another Christian’s path.”
Paul was saying here, “You are not the judge; God is. Stop judging each other.” He went on to say something that we really need to consider. He said that when we judge and condemn another Christian, we place a “stumbling block” or an “obstacle” in our brother’s way. If you have ever been shot down by another Christian, how did that make you feel? You probably felt like you were let down and betrayed, right? You probably asked yourself, “Where is the love that Christians are supposed to have for one another?” And when you don’t see that love in action, you then begin to wonder if this Christianity stuff is for real. If we try to be the judge, rather than allowing God, then we cause our brother or sister to become disappointed and stray in his or her faith.
Hallmark Hall of Fame has a movie called “Harvest of Fire.” It is a story of an FBI agent sent to a small Amish community to investigate the burning of several Amish barns. At first it was thought [that] an outsider was the arsonist. Most people thought solving this case was just a simple matter of finding which outsider was responsible . . . As it turned out, it was [a] farmer’s son who was burning the barns . . . The boy [eventually] turned himself in to the Elders and subsequently to the police . . . When the boy and his father were being led from the police station to the courthouse, they were approached by [some] of the victims. As a show of support for their repentant brothers, they asked them if they could accompany them. [And] as the camera pans back, it reveals the whole Amish community following behind to show their support . . . [The] church would be [so] much different if Christians could only show this type of compassion and forgiveness.(5)
Allow me to share another illustration with you: During the Revolutionary War, some American commanders realized it was better to only wound the British soldiers instead of trying to kill them. This strategy would take three British soldiers out of service because two healthy British soldiers would stop fighting and carry their fallen comrade to get medical attention. This special care is what you would expect from those who are concerned about the welfare of their comrades.
While diverting so much attention to the wounded soldiers may not be the most efficient military strategy, it does tell you a great deal about the character of these people . . . Do we tend to the needs of our fallen brothers and sisters? What does our treatment of our fallen brothers and sisters tell others about the Christian Army? . . . The Army Ranger’s creed is, “Never shall I fail my comrades . . . I will never leave a fallen comrade to fall into the hands of the enemy.” Wow! If the Christian Army would only treat their brothers and sisters in the same way!(6)
Why does it appear as though the Christian army is the only one that shoots its wounded? Why do we judge one another so harshly? Is it self-righteousness, that we think we ourselves are incapable of stumbling and falling? Is it pride, that we are ashamed to be associated with one who has messed up, for fear that we will be made to look bad? I’ll tell you what; we would do well to extend grace unto others. Grace is unmerited, or unearned, favor. It’s what led Jesus to die for us “while we were still sinners” (Romans 5:8), and while we were imperfect. Romans 6:23 says, “The wages of sin is death, but the gift [and that’s the word for grace – the grace] of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
God extended His amazing grace toward us through His Son, and He accepted us as His own, and granted us eternal life even though we were imperfect. So, why do we expect everyone else in the world to be perfect? It’s because we’ve forgotten the grace that was extended to us. We have forgotten the depths from which we have risen by the grace of God. Remember, Paul said in Ephesians 4:32, “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.” If Jesus forgives us of our sins, then we ought to forgive others. So, let’s stop shooting our wounded, and let’s begin loving them and helping restore them to the community of faith.
Time of Reflection
Maybe you are here this morning and you’ve fallen in your faith and relationship with the Lord. Or, perhaps you have never before received Jesus as Savior. If you will accept Jesus into your heart, confess Him as Savior and Lord, and receive His love and forgiveness, then the heavenly Father will pour out His grace and mercy on you; and you will be seen as precious in His sight. With Christ on your side, you will never have to worry about judgment and condemnation from God.
Now, if you have confessed Jesus as Savior and Lord, and you are receiving judgment from another person, or even from another Christian, then please remember how the Bible says, “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit” (Romans 8:1). People may condemn you; but if you know Jesus Christ, God never will. I want to leave us with a thought provoking poem about passing judgment, entitled “Don’t Judge Too Hard”:
Pray don’t find fault with a man who limps,
Or stumbles along the road;
Unless you have worn the shoes he wears,
Or struggled beneath his load.
There may be tacks in his shoes that hurt,
Though hidden away from view;
Or the burden he bears, placed on your back,
Might cause you to stumble, too.
Don’t sneer at the man who is down today,
Unless you have felt the blow;
That caused his fall, or felt the shame,
That only the fallen know.
You may be strong, but still the blows,
That were his, if dealt to you;
In the same way and at the same time,
Might cause you to stagger, too.
Don’t be too harsh with a man who sins,
Or pelt him with words or stones;
Unless you are sure, yea, doubly sure,
That you have not sins of your own.
For you know, perhaps, if the tempter’s voice,
Should whisper as soft to you;
As it did to him when he went astray,
’Twould cause you to falter, too.(7)
NOTES
(1) Taken from the Internet in June of 2005 at http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2005/03/30/ iraq/main684052.shtml.
(2) Ibid.
(3) Taken from the Internet in June of 2005 at http://www.biblehelp.org/wounded.htm.
(4) Bother Larry, taken from the Internet in June of 2005.
(5) Taken from the Internet in June of 2005 at http://www.biblehelp.org/wounded.htm.
(6) Ibid.
(7) Paul Lee Tan, Encyclopedia of 7,700 Illustrations (Garland, Texas: Bible Communications, Inc., 1996), taken from Logos 2.1 F on CD-ROM.
