Today I was doing some work in my back yard. I had allowed a tree to grow on a fence post, and it was now starting to cause problems with the fence, so I took my chainsaw and removed the tree. What am I to do with the wood? I do not have much use for it, so I decided to burn it, which is a common, and enjoyable, solution of mine. I cut up the tree and started a fire. Then I started it again. Then I started it again. And then I started it again. The green wood combined with a scattered shower or two were not my friends. Fire must have three things to exist, called the fire triangle: heat, oxygen, and fuel. I have fuel in spades, including the giant bottle of fire starter I bought at the local bulk store. I am not exaggerating when I say that I went through an entire bottle before giving up. I could create giant flames which would simply give up once the fire starter was completely consumed. Oxygen is something which is always present in the atmosphere, and I had built the fire to have proper ventilation from practice. My problem was the green wood combined with the light showers was destroying all the heat I needed to continue the fire.
Matthew 5:21-24 says, “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’ But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire. So, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother and then come and offer your gift.”
In the same way, our faith is dependent upon three things, the same as the fire triangle. If any leg of the triangle is not created, it collapses. In this portion of the Sermon on the Mount, we can discover three legs to faith just like the fire triangle: Our relationship with God; God’s love us for us and others; and, our relationship with others.
The easiest one to identify is the oxygen side of the triangle, which is the one which we put in the least amount of effort. Just as oxygen is all around us and exists without any effort on our part, God’s love for us and others is absolute and ubiquitous. As Mathew 5:45 says, “For He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.”
The fuel side of the equation is difficult and requires us to interact and maintain relationships with the people around us. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus deals with how we react with one another starting with the easiest one, not to murder. Jesus goes further talking about simple anger, insults, and even the reverse relationship of what that brother thinks of us. Not only are we not to neglect our brother, but we are to forsake unrighteous anger (cp. Ephesians 4:26-27). Calling our brother a “fool” in such a way that does not build up (cp. Ephesians 4:29) is damaging to that relationship, and is the equivalent to starving the fire of any new fuel thereby letting it die. Additionally, our brother needs to treat us the same and we are to help as much as possible.
While our own fire can burn with the fuel we put on, it will never burn so bright as when we have others adding fuel to the fire. Romans 12:14-16 says, “Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be wise in your own sight.”
Finally, we have heat which is what we do in our relationship with God. With my fire, it did not matter how much artificial fuel (the firestarter) I threw on it. Until I could rely on something genuine (the wood) to continue the fire, it was never going to make it. It is easy to be “on fire” for God through worldly means which energize our carnal selves. Churches and community events advertising for God by providing food, events, plays, and opportunities for business are only adding that artificial heat. It burns bright and hot but burns off quickly, and does not provide protection against the rains that come in life. Eventually, that fire dies because of its lack of heat. We must study and know Him. We need to recognize and honor the other sides of that triangle, giving them the same respect we show in our relationship with God, so we can build the strength needed to withstand life’s storms.
I now have a pile of green wood outside in my back yard. I must wait before I can do anything with it, but when it comes to God, there is never a time where we cannot improve that triangle and create a stronger faith in us and in others.
Lance Byers