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Dr. Bill Brown .. Xiamen University Professor "Above all, my brothers, do not swear—not by heaven or by earth or by anything else. Let your "Yes" be yes, and your "No," no, or you will be condemned." James 5:12 Eric Liddell was the gold-medal Olympic athlete who refused to run on Sunday, and later became a missionary to China, dying in a Japanese concentration camp (his older brother Robert served as a doctor in Longyan City--Leng-Na--of West Fujian). From watching the movie "Chariots of Fire," you'd never guess that quiet Eric used profanity in his youth--though not for long! Eric was born in Tianjing, and Robert in Shanghai, but when Eric was 5 the family returned to Scotland, where for the first time in their lives the boys were free to explore on their own without a Chinese Amah to protect them. They quickly picked up some local profanity, which they tried out on their horrified mother. McCasland, author of "Eric Liddell: Pure Gold," wrote, 'Once he understood that swearing was unacceptable, five-year-old Eric offered a simple solution. 'Just tell me what all the bad words are, and I won't use any of them.' Mary resigned herself to dealing with the problem as it arose, one word at a time.' Can you imagine if Eric's mother had indeed given him a list of 40 or 50 swear words that he was neither to use, nor even to know? Just imagine Eric trying to not think of them, much less not use them! As I blunder through life I sometimes think that a nice list of rules would make things simpler, but then again, I don't think I'd care to go through life weighed down by thousands of laws and rituals, like the Pharisees, or Confucius' 3,305 Laws. Jesus certainly rebelled against the rules and rituals, not only taking the whip to the moneychangers but giving a verbal lashing to those religious leaders who enslave people with burdens that they don't help carry. Not Rules but Example Jesus came not to lay down more rules but to lay down his life as an example. He urged us to walk with him and learn from him, day by day, just as Eric learned from his mother. Jesus said, "Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." Matthew 11:29,30 The yoke is easy and the burden is light because He carries the bulk of the burden, allowing us to learn naturally and easily from our Heavenly Father just as Eric Liddell learned from his mother--one word at a time, one day at a time. Enjoy your day--and learn from it. |