Jesus never did anything wrong. We’re not talking morally, though that’s true, too. Jesus never did anything illegal. He never broke a law. From everything we know, it appears that He paid His taxes and encouraged others to do the same. He never did anything wrong, but He was hunted like a fugitive, like a wanted criminal.
If He had brought the trouble on Himself, we might be able to say, “Well, that’s what you get. You’ve made your bed; now lie in it.”
But Jesus hadn’t done anything wrong.
What do you do when you are harassed and harried and you don’t deserve it? Believe it or not, one of the best things you can do is learn how to complain. That’s right — you read that correctly,I am advocating that you learn how to complain.
Think you already know how to complain pretty well? Think that might just be your spiritual gift? The likely problem with the way you’ve been complaining is that you’re complaining to the wrong source. We take our complaints to people. But what are they supposed to do? Pat you on the head and say, “Wow, it’s hard to be you, isn’t it?” They can’t really do anything to help. Maybe they can offer some advice or a strong shoulder to lean on, or give you some money, for now. But that’s about it. Most often, they can’t really change the situation.
But God can.
He is the One with whom you need to register your complaints. Go directly to God. Discuss your discouragement openly and honestly with Him. That’s what King David did in Psalms 142, 57, 34 and many others. In fact, scholars have divided the psalms into different categories (psalms of thanksgiving, enthronement psalms, psalms of wisdom, and so on). The largest single category of psalms is the Psalms of Lament — which is really just a fancy way of saying Psalms of Complaint.
What’s interesting is that this type of literature is pretty unique to Judaism. No other ancient religion complained to its god(s). Other religions worshiped, praised and asked their god(s) to curse other people. They made requests and asked for blessings, health, prosperity. But only Jews could rail to their God.
And apparently, YHWH doesn’t mind so much. He actually allows people to do this. He can handle it. And for those of you who didn’t learn a few stories back and are still looking for examples — you’ve got one here. Jesus took His complaints straight to His father.
A lot of people just don’t have the courage to do it. They stuff their discouragement down and pretend to be fine because complaining is not pious. They force a smile and pretend everything is blue skies and rainbows and sunbeams from heaven. They pray polite things that have nothing to do with what’s really going on inside.
Not David. Not Jesus. We see in Jesus’ prayer that night in the garden a remarkable level of honesty. You may not be comfortable calling it complaint, but you have to admit that He was certainly questioning God’s plan and wondering if there wasn’t another way.
Both David and Jesus knew that the only place you can meet the heavenly Father is in reality. And sometimes reality is a messy and confusing place. Jesus got in front of His heavenly Father and let Him know what was going on in His heart. So should you.
Prayer
Loving Father, I find that I am tempted to grumble and complain when I encounter difficult circumstances. I may complain about bad luck or life being unfair or not getting any breaks, but ultimately, these are really indirect ways of challenging Your goodness in my life. I often wonder why You allow difficult things to occur to me and to others, and I really have no answers. But I know from the examples in the Bible that I would be far wiser to direct my complaints openly to You, and like Job and the psalmists David and Asaph, lodge my grievances and admit my confusion to You. In this broken and sinful world, there is so much undeserved suffering. But at least when I am open and honest with You, I know I am approaching the only One who can really do something in such times of need. Thank You for Your patience and kindness to those who bring their sorrows directly to You.
In Jesus’s name, Amen
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