Gospel Reflections #936: Looking at others through our own set of values

1 Samuel 17:28 When Eliab, David's eldest brother, heard him speaking to the soldiers, he grew angry with him and said, "What have you come here to do? Who did you leave with those few sheep in the wilderness? I know your pride and your ambition. You have come down to see the fighting."

This is the scene where David faces fierce reproach from his eldest brother Eliab just before confronting the giant Goliath.

Seeing his youngest brother David, who had come to deliver provisions to the battlefield, grow indignant at the enemy’s taunts—“How dare you insult the army of the living God?”—Eliab explodes in anger. 

Eliab had previously witnessed the prophet Samuel anointing David as king instead of himself.

Whilst Eliab and his brothers stood paralysed with fear, witnessing their faith-filled brother's resolve, his feelings of inferiority and jealousy manifested as rage.

 Eliab dismissed David's work as tending "a few sheep", attempting to undermine the weight of his words by belittling his brother.

He also dismissed David's faith as mere "pride" and "a spirit of recklessness".

People often mistake the powerful motives behind faith that surpass their own understanding for mere ambition.

When we too strive to undertake a great mission, criticism and misunderstanding from those close to us often become the first obstacles.

Conversely, we may only see others through our own values and preconceptions; adding our emotions to this, we sometimes maintain our own feelings by condemning the other person.

Like David, I wish to continually stand in God's perspective, not that of those around me. 

Ultimate situations reveal the direction of our faith.

At such times, our choice – whether to humbly acknowledge this realisation or seek excuses to justify ourselves – further determines our course.

God does not tell us to avoid failure or error; He continually urges us to return to Him when we recognise our failures and mistakes.

AUTHOR'S BIO: This Gospel Reflections page is written by Masae San, who resides in Hiroshima, Japan. Masae is a dedicated student of the Bible with a deep passion for the Gospel of Jesus Christ. She shares her daily reflections on Gospel perspectives to reach out to others and spread the message of God's true love through a Christ-centered approach. We are sharing her insights here so that you, too, can experience the joy that comes from knowing and understanding the true Gospel and the love of God through Jesus Christ.