Goats in the Fire

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In my message on Sunday – a message that involved much talk of Levitical goats – I ran that classic video montage of screaming goats spliced and pasted into pop songs of the 2010s. If you haven’t seen it, you can either go back to Tuesday’s full message email to see it, or you can just search for it on YouTube. It’s always been one of my favorite viral videos.

What I wasn’t prepared for was all the harassment I would take for showing it. First, I had a bunch of punk high school kids come up to me on Monday and be like, “We were so disappointed in you – that was such a Millennial thing to show.” I’m sorry what? Are you serious? Calling something “Millennial” is now an insult? I thought kids were just into insulting the “Boomers” for being out of date. Now, apparently, Gen-Z thinks that being a Millennial is so lame. I guess it’s good to know that my generation, Gen-X, has been totally glossed over once again. Oh well.

Second, at the elders’ meeting Monday night, one of the men in completely stoic tones displayed these images from that video I showed, and proceeded to reprimand me for not knowing the difference between sheep and goats.

The best part of it was that he finished his presentation by quoting Jesus separating the sheep and goats in Matthew 25 and then adding, “It is concerning to me that the man we have hired to preach the gospel of Jesus to us is unable to distinguish between those two.” Well played.

You might think that all the harassment would cause me PTSD at the thought of ever using a goat video again. If so, you thought wrong. Check this one out:

I showed that clip to my wife Jenny and she just sat amazed (as did I) at the stupidity of those animals trying – actually trying – to kill themselves in flames. She kept asking what any sane person would ask:

• “Why would they do that?!”

• “Even if you excuse their ignorance the first time, after they’ve been in once and learned their lesson, why would they go back?!”

• “It’s not like they are unaware of what it’s doing to them – they even yell and scream as they feel the consequences. Why would they want to go back?!”

I’m hopeful that this spiritual application is easier for us to grasp than the one I attempted Sunday. God’s word instructs us:

“As a dog returns to its vomit, so fools repeat their folly.” Proverbs 26:11

We know that our dishonesty leads us into painful situations. We know that our lust and addiction to pornography cripples our marriages and wounds our capacity for real relationship. We know that our anger costs us friends, jobs, and worse. We know these things because despite having been told and warned about it, we’ve jumped into those flames with two feet before.

But even after experiencing the pain they brought us, how often do we find ourselves right back there at the doorstep of the oven? How often do we tiptoe closer and closer to the temptation, knowing in the back of our mind that we will soon give in, even as we tell ourselves we’re keeping it under control?

Rather than flee temptation, rather than running in the opposite direction of the burning coals, we are as mesmerized as the goats in the video were. The only key difference between us and the video is that as the Holy Spirit works diligently to pull us back, he isn’t laughing. He isn’t laughing because unlike the humans in the video who realize that should one end up perishing, the life of a goat isn’t ultimately worth that much, the Holy Spirit knows how valuable we are. He knows the price of our soul. He knows that to the Father, we were worth the life of His own Son.

He's speaking – maybe even shouting at us right now as we’re dancing around the furnace yet again. So let me encourage you to take inventory of your heart, and your life right now. What sin in your life is one where Satan knows you are vulnerable? Are you taking precautions? Are you not just staying away from the fire, but actually running in the opposite direction of the temptation?

If not, pray for the strength to do so starting right now. God bless you, and I’ll see you again on Monday!