Getting to the Root of It

     While trimming shrubs the other day, I noticed a number of vines had grown up among the shrubs.  These pesky plants can also climb the side of a house.  I always attempt to pull the vine up so that I get the root of the plant.  Doing this, prevents it from regrowing.  Unfortunately, it is hard to get the root to come out of the ground.  It takes effort, but it can be done.  The same is true in our own hearts when it comes to bitterness.  It is a root that goes deep inside, and one that needs to be removed as soon as possible.

A root from a vine

     Most of us have encountered people who are afflicted with bitterness towards another person.  This could come from jealousy, envy, unforgiveness or pride.  No matter what begins the episode the effects of bitterness on the whole person can be devastating.  A bitter person is often angry, demanding and spiteful.  Their reasoning and judgment become poisoned as well.  A biblical example of a bitter person is King Saul of Israel.
     In I Samuel 18:1-30 and I Samuel 19:1-18, the Scripture writer describes the slow deterioration of a relationship that started out well in the beginning.  David had come upon the scene as a shepherd boy who was visiting his brothers to bring them food at the scene of a battle with the Philistines.  Everyone in the army fears the giant Goliath but David takes him on with a sling and a stone defeating this threat to Israel.  Saul is impressed and welcomes David into to his court as a musician.  Eventually David also becomes a military leader and this is where the trouble starts.  For we see that David is more successful than Saul, and the people praise him highly. Thus begins the jealousy in Saul's heart that leads him to try to kill David even though he is a part of the family having married Michal (Saul's daughter).  Even Jonathan, David's best friend and Saul's son, tries to intervene to no avail.  For seven long years, David had to run and hide in order to avoid being killed by Saul.  But who was Saul really mad at?  David?
      Behind the bitterness that Saul felt in his heart is a deep rooted anger at God.  Saul had been anointed a king, but he failed to obey God several times.  Samuel, the prophet, told him that the kingdom would be taken from him and his family as a result of his failure to follow God's laws (I Samuel 15:26-28).  Saul tried to justify his actions to Samuel but this did not change the fact that someone else would rule and reign.  When David came on the scene and God's favor was upon him, Saul reacted with jealousy at his success as well as bitterness that God had abandoned him.  His solution was to eliminate David.  In the end, Saul's disobedience led to his death and the death of his son Jonathan.
     Bitterness distorts
the human soul, and the person that suffers the most is the one who is infected with this sin.  If we are a Christian this is something we must pull out by the root so it does not continue to grow.  In his letter to the Ephesians, Paul writes: "Get rid of all bitterness, rage, and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you" (Ephesians 4:31-32).  So the first thing we must do when bitterness begins to grow is to forgive the other person who offended us.  Then, we need to begin praying for that person.  This changes our heart quicker than any other thing.  Finally, we need to try to get to know that person.  Our anger and bitterness is often a reflection of how we feel about God rather than another person.  Maybe we didn't get the recognition we thought we deserved and the other person got it instead.  Yet we focus our disappointment on them instead of immediately taking it to the Lord in prayer.  We must not allow bitterness to gain a foothold in our heart.
     Recently, a war hero died, and over the course of years, I had seen him go from being an effective public servant with a likable demeanor to someone who had become very bitter towards the President.  It seemed that he tried to throw a monkey wrench into whatever was proposed by the President.  He even disinvited several people from coming to his funeral.  In my eyes, he had become a bitter man.  Why, I do not know nor do I understand, but it caused me to stop and think how much this sin can damage our character as well as our legacy.  Just as in gardening, we have to grab bitterness by the root and eliminate it lest it consume us and destroy our witness for Jesus Christ.  God grant us the strength to pull it out by the roots!  Selah!