“I have seen these people,” the Lord said to Moses, “and they are a stiff-necked people. [Exodus 32:9 (NIV)]
Do not be stiff-necked, as your ancestors were; submit to the Lord. Come to his sanctuary, which he has consecrated forever. Serve the Lord your God, so that his fierce anger will turn away from you. [2 Chronicles 30:8 (NIV)]
Although the Israelites often have been called the “Chosen People,” God chose a far less complimentary term early in the exodus when He called them “a stiff-necked people.” Having nothing to do with the stiff neck that comes with a long drive, sleeping in an awkward position, or hunching long hours over the computer, “stiff-necked” figuratively means stubborn, inflexibly obstinate, and even contumacious (which means flagrantly disobedient, rebellious or persistently refusing to obey a court order).
A commonly used term describing an obstinate ox, the Israelites didn’t need an explanation to know what God meant by “stiff-necked.” Ancient plows usually were drawn by a team of two oxen. While the plowman held the reins in one hand, in the other he carried an ox-goad: a pole with an iron spike on the end. The ploughman used it to prick the oxen on their back legs to increase their speed and on their necks to make them turn. A “stiff-necked” ox would keep his neck straight and refuse to turn even when poked by the goad. “Stiff-necked” perfectly described the intractable spirit of the Israelites, a people who seemed unwilling to respond to the commands of God. As the prophets later declared, it was because they were a stiff-necked people that God promised His judgment on Jerusalem.
While there are several “stiff-necked” references in the Old Testament, there is only one in the New. It occurs in Acts when Stephen spoke to the Sanhedrin. By summarizing God’s dealings with the Jews, he showed God’s faithfulness to Israel and then, calling them a “stiff-necked people,” he boldly accused them of resisting God just as their forefathers did. Instead of taking Stephen’s message to heart, the Sanhedrin grew furious. Rather than respond to God’s prod, they covered their ears, dragged Stephen into the street and stoned him. Indeed, like their forefathers, they were a stiff-necked people and not about to consider a new and better way—Jesus’ way.
Stiff-necked: stubborn, unmanageable, demanding, obstinate, headstrong, willful, pig-headed, uncooperative, uncompromising, troublesome, unaccommodating, and difficult. Do any of those words describe someone we know? At one time or another (probably more often than not), some of those adjectives could be used to describe any one of us. Are we ever so certain we’re right that we won’t even consider the possibility of error on our part? Unwilling to examine our opinions, motives, or behavior, do we ever refuse to listen to different points of view? Are we ever short on repentance and long on excuses, defensive when corrected, or unwilling to accept responsibility for our failures? Guilty, as charged! I may not be as stiff-necked as the Israelites; nevertheless, God frequently needs to use a sharp prod to get me moving in the right direction. Moreover, in spite of His prodding, I often seem bound and determined to go my way instead of His.
Father, forgive us when we are stubborn and obstinately insist on going our own way, when we’re inflexible and unwilling to adjust to circumstances, and when we defiantly refuse to listen to your truth. Keep prodding us to do your will; don’t let us be a stiff-necked people.
Today’s email contained a meme of that lovable loser Charlie Brown with the caption: “The smile on my face doesn’t mean my life is perfect. It means I appreciate what I have and what I have been blessed with. I choose to be happy.” The meme reminded me of words spoken by Jane Marczweski when she appeared on America’s Got Talent last week: “You can’t wait until life isn’t hard anymore before you decide to be happy.” Known as Nightbirde, the 30-year-old vocalist sang an original song called “It’s Okay” and received the “golden buzzer” from judge Simon Cowell. She said she wrote the song as a reminder that, “You can be happy and also be going through something really hard at the same time—you don’t have to pick one or the other.”
“The luckiest traitor ever,” are the words historian Mary Beard used to describe Flavius Josephus, a first-century Jewish general who ended up allying himself with the Romans—the very people who destroyed his homeland and demolished the Temple during the Great Revolt (66-70 AD). Born in 37 AD, Josephus grew up in Jerusalem and studied with the Pharisees, Sadducees, and Essenes before serving as a general during the Jewish rebellion against Rome. According to Josephus, when fleeing the Roman army, he led his troop of 40 men into a cave. Rather than surrender, they agreed to commit suicide and drew lots to determine the order in which they would die. Either Josephus was incredibly lucky or he’d fixed the lottery but, when only he and another man remained, he convinced him to join in surrender to the Romans. In support of his story, excavations at Jotapata in the 1990s revealed the remains of 30 to 40 men assumed to have been Josephus’ men.
Since 1890, a common teaching method in a surgical residency is to “see one, do one, teach one.” The med student learns the basics by watching an experienced physician do a procedure and then puts his knowledge into practice by doing the procedure himself. He hasn’t mastered the procedure, however, until he’s taught someone else to do it; it is only when we can teach something that we truly understand it.
There is a funny scene in the movie When Harry Met Sally when, in the middle of a delicatessen, Sally proves to Harry that women can successfully fake being in the throes of passion. After a rather loud and vivid demonstration, Sally calmly returns to her meal. After watching Sally’s display of ecstasy, an older woman tells her waiter, “I’ll have what she’s having!” While it may be possible to fool people about a number of things, we can’t fool God. He looks beyond appearances right into our hearts.
Devotions of the Heart 