While their lives have been studied for centuries, the profundity of their examples of lives of faith is the very fact that they were just regular people - just like us. They came from all sorts of backgrounds, all levels of society and education. Their similarities to ourselves is what is so heartening to us. They had all types of personalities, character flaws, idiosyncrasies. Almost all of their lives are studies in the human foibles of humanity, which we can certainly identify with.
Peter, of course, is one person with whom we all identify. He was so much like us! It gives us hope. If Peter could ultimately be accepted in heaven, it seems more accessible to me. He was rash, impetuous, cut off a soldier's ear, denied Christ three times, and yet he was one of the fathers of the faith.
King David committed adultery and had Bathsheba's husband deliberately killed, and yet God said that David was a man after his own heart.
Moses was a man full of complexities. Raised in Pharaoh's household with every luxury man could imagine, yet he defended the mistreatment of the Jews, killed a man, and fled into the wilderness, giving up everything. He lived as a simple family man for many years until God called him to bring the Israelites out of Egypt. Moses was not overjoyed about this, and tried God's patience by finding excuses. When he finally obeyed God, he found himself in the desert for 40 years with a stubborn and willful people. He wasn't happy about it, and who could blame him?
The Bible is littered with 'regular' people, beginning with Adam and Eve, who didn't waste any time disobeying God. The prophets were sometimes cranky and depressed over the sins of the people. Joseph seemed to have been an arrogant child; a person can understand his brothers' irritations with him and his lofty dreams. The disciples, at one point, showed themselves to be overly ambitious, wanting to know who would be most important in the kingdom?
Well, you get the point. The tie that binds all of these people together was their strong faith. They believed, they trusted the Lord, and they were obedient. The Bible calls us 'saints,' too. It's all pretty overwhelming at times. Most of us don't feel the title rightly belongs to us, and yet God's Word says it does. Why? Because it pleases God. That's enough of a reason.
Still ... I'm going to continue to work out my salvation in fear and trembling, as we are instructed to do!
Royal Heir
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