Last Man Standing is the name of an older and fairly violent action movie starring Bruce Willis as an amoral gunfighter in the days of Prohibition. More recently, it was the name of an American television sitcom starring Tim Allen. But the expression “last man standing” or “last person standing” usually refers to the sole survivor of a battle or other destructive event when everybody else has fallen.
The Bible has many stories of such last men standing – individuals who survived dire events and alone accomplished great things in God’s service. Noah, of course, is the first person who comes to mind as the “last man standing” in the story of the great flood (Genesis 6), but as we continue through the Old Testament we read of Joshua and Caleb as being the last men left of the spies who entered the promised land – and even of that whole generation (Numbers 26:65). And we read of the believer Rahab with her house and family – all that literally remained standing after the fall of Jericho (Joshua 6:17).
Later, we read the prophet Elijah was the only man left standing for the true God against the prophets of Baal who had taken control of ancient Israel’s religion. With God’s help Elijah scored a great victory in the climactic showdown with those false prophets (1 Kings 18), but then Elijah was forced to flee to save himself by hiding in a remote cave.
At this point, Elijah was very conscious of being the last man standing. The prophet complained to God: “The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too” (I Kings 19:10). God’s answer to Elijah probably surprised the prophet: “Yet I reserve seven thousand in Israel – all whose knees have not bowed down to Baal” (1 Kings 19:18).
Elijah was obviously depressed as he looked at his circumstance, but God spoke to the prophet to assure him that although he might feel like, and appear to be, the last man standing he really was not. There were many not worshiping Baal, and some would continue Elijah’s work (1 Kings 19:16). The same was true of Noah – whose son Shem became the ancestor of Abraham (Genesis 11:10–31), and of Joshua and Caleb who were followed by other strong warriors (Judges 2:16; etc.), and of every Old Testament servant of God who seemed to be the last person standing when circumstances were difficult or dire.
The same was true in the New Testament. At the crucifixion of Jesus, the young apostle John was the only disciple standing at the cross when all the other disciples had fled or were standing far away, at a safe distance (Mark 14:50; John 19:26). John must certainly have felt like the last man standing, but he was not really alone, and soon the other disciples returned and eventually found the courage to do the work they had been given to do.
The truth is, every follower of God feels like the last person standing at times. Perhaps we are the only person in our family, our class, or our workplace, who has come to the truth. Many who are converted to Christianity in cultures where other religions are predominant and antagonistic to the Christian faith feel like the last person or the only person they personally know who is a follower of Christ.
But in all these cases, we are not really the last or the only Christians remaining, of course – and God urges two things of us. First, as with Elijah, God encourages his followers to be aware of his people around the world and to interact with them as much as we can (Hebrews 10:24-25). Beyond this, when we feel like the last ones standing, God simply encourages us to continue to stand. The apostle Paul had much to say about this. “Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ” he wrote to the Christians at Philippi, “Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm”(Philippians 1:27). To those in Corinth he wrote “Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith” (1 Corinthians 16:13), and to those in Ephesus: “put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand” (Ephesians 6:13).
Being the last person standing is not just a trait of biblical heroes – it is a goal that, with God’s help, we can all achieve. Jesus himself encouraged us in this when he said “the one who stands firm to the end will be saved” (Matthew 24:13). We do not have to be the last person standing – we just need to keep standing.
* For more on the topic of encouragement, download our free e-book Some Days We Soar here.
As Christians, we know the Bible says we must have endurance (Hebrews 10:36; etc.), and that it is the one who endures to the end who will be saved (Matthew 10:22; 24:13; etc.). Many of us tend to think of endurance as something that is primarily in the future – we may wonder if we will still be enduring next week, next month, next year, or at the end of our lives. But the New Testament shows endurance is not really about the future, it is about now.
The apostle James wrote, “when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing” (James 1:2–4*). Notice that James says the testing of our faith is what is happening now – our faith isn’t tested next month or next year – it is tested by what we are going through now. The trials we undergo now produce endurance that gets us through the now – making enduring till the end possible.
We see the same truth regarding the present nature of our endurance in what the apostle Peter wrote: “So be truly glad. There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you must endure many trials for a little while” (1 Peter 1:6).
That was the attitude that helped Jesus endure the agonies of his crucifixion: “Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne” (Hebrews 12:2).
Jesus “endured” the cross, but we can learn from his example that to endure is more than just somehow continuing – it is continuing unbroken, just as we were before the suffering began. If the Son of God had not endured those awful hours unchanged, but had given up and stopped trusting and being obedient to God, or if he had been negatively changed by the suffering to an attitude of bitterness or anger against his tormentors, he would not have succeeded and would not have accomplished salvation for all of us. Once again, we see the focus on enduring is in the present – not being changed as we suffer, but enduring by keeping the future in mind.
Endurance is one day at a time, and when necessary one hour at a time, but it is always now, and it is always achieved through holding onto a future hope. The apostle Paul put all this in perspective when he wrote: “We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. And this hope will not lead to disappointment” (Romans 5:3–7).
Of course, simply enduring suffering does not produce spiritual endurance, only suffering that is endured with faith in God’s wisdom and ultimate healing or help – the hope that Paul says “does not lead to disappointment.”
So, when we face trials and difficulties, it helps to realize that endurance is not something that stretches on indefinitely. We only have to endure now, in this moment of time. We need not be concerned about whether we will make it though the next week, month, or year. The only day God encourages us to endure is today, because he will help us to the future if we endure with his help in the now.
*Scripture quotations in this article are taken from the New Living Translation.
The Book of John tells two stories, back to back, of encounters between Jesus and individuals who came to him alone. Rather than being part of the crowds that thronged Jesus daily, these individuals talked with him privately. One sought him out in the dark of night and the other was approached by him under the blazing sun at noon. The two individuals were the priest Nicodemus and the Samaritan woman Jesus met at the well. The two stories, told in conjunction by John, clearly contrast in a number of ways, but also share something in common.
Nicodemus, a prominent Pharisee and ultra-righteous member of the Jewish Sanhedrin, came to Jesus, John tells us, “by night” (John 3:1-21) in order to question him about his teachings. Nicodemus was part of the religious establishment of the time, and he clearly went to Jesus under the cover of darkness so as not to be seen and recognized. John’s record of the conversation between Jesus and the Pharisee shows us that Nicodemus was beginning to believe the truth, but he held back because of the opinions of his friends and colleagues.
The Samaritan woman Jesus met at the well outside the city of Sychar in Samaria came to draw water around noon (John 4:4-42), which was the hottest time of day when the fewest people would be at the well. It is unlikely that anyone would purposely plan a trip to the well at that time unless they wanted to avoid people. But, as someone doubtless shunned or shamed by her neighbors because of her sexual relations with a number of men, the Samaritan woman had good reason to go to the well at a time when she would not meet others. She doubtless went then because of her discomfort with her neighbors’ opinion of her.
The two individuals were worlds apart. Nicodemus was a respected member of the privileged religious elite in the Judean capital of Jerusalem; the Samaritan woman was a shamed individual from a despised culture in a rustic backwater of the country. Spiritually, Nicodemus may have needed help to see his sin and the Samaritan woman may have needed help to see her worth, but both individuals shared something in common – they both evidently feared the opinions of others and sought to avoid those who might look down on them.
It is unlikely that John juxtaposed his accounts of these individuals in the way he did without intending his readers to see the connection of fear implied in both stories. Whatever our background, whatever our own perception of our standing before God, we may adjust our behavior in order to cope with our inherent human fear of the opinions of others. But after meeting with the one they came to see was probably the Messiah, both individuals found the courage to act without shame and without cover.
Nicodemus later spoke with courage to remind his colleagues in the Sanhedrin that a person should be heard before being judged (John 7:50–51), and then, after the crucifixion, he helped to prepare the body of the reviled and executed Jesus for burial (John 19:39–42). In the same way, after meeting Jesus, the Samaritan woman – if she had been avoiding her neighbors – now found the courage to tell them all about the one she had met who was the Christ.
We may not be like Nicodemus or like the Samaritan woman. Perhaps our lives are being lived out somewhere between those of the two individuals, the saint and the serial sinner. But like them, if we have met with Jesus in our lives, we will be strengthened to live above the opinions of others when it comes to living out the truth.
* * * See also the latest blog post on our Living With Faith website here.
The prophet Nathan served during the reigns of both King David and his son Solomon. Although Nathan was usually “behind the scenes” during the reigns of these kings, it is probable that no other single person was more influential during that pivotal era of biblical history.
Nathan is mentioned many times throughout the books of Samuel, Kings, and Chronicles – mainly during the darkest and most troubled times of King David’s reign. We first meet him in 2 Samuel 7:2 when David told the prophet of his desire to build a temple for God. At first Nathan encouraged the king, but we are told that later that night God spoke to Nathan, telling him in detail why he would not accept a temple built by David, stressing that David had shed much blood (1 Chronicles 28:3).
It was not a flattering message to have to relay, but we see something of Nathan’s character in that he did not attempt to smooth over the reason for God’s refusal of David (or to cover the fact that he himself had been wrong to originally encourage the king) – we are specifically told that “Nathan reported to David all the words of this entire revelation” (2 Samuel 7:17, emphasis added).
Later, Nathan had to confront David with the king’s sins of adultery with Bathsheba and of having her husband Uriah killed (2 Samuel 12:1-15). Considering the fact that David had already killed to hide this situation, we see Nathan’s tremendous strength of character and faith in boldly accusing the king. Nathan not only accused David as God had commanded him to do, but also predicted that David’s first child by Bathsheba would die, and that the king would suffer great anguish as a result of the actions of his own family members.
Close to the end of David’s life, Nathan related to David the news of his son Adonijah’s plan to seize the throne. In this way the prophet skillfully enabled the hasty coronation of David’s chosen heir – Solomon.
Nathan was not simply a bringer of bad news, however. He also encouraged the king and informed David that his throne would be established forever (1 Chronicles 17:1-15). He was clearly a trusted advisor throughout his service to the king and a man of important accomplishments. There appears to have been a book written either by Nathan himself or about his service as a prophet (1 Chronicles 29:29), and Nathan apparently wrote a history of King Solomon along with two others (2 Chronicles 9:29).
But Nathan’s major accomplishment was undoubtedly the true faith he repeatedly showed in expressing tough love for David and confronting the king with his errors. Nathan’s character and faithfulness in conveying the word of God, no matter how negative the message sometimes may have seemed, obviously gained him the respect of Israel’s greatest king. True to his name, the prophet surely was a “Gift of God” to David in helping him to correct his course when he went astray (for example, Psalm 51) – something the king must surely have appreciated over time. In fact, it is doubtless a sign of David’s respect and love for Nathan that the king named his third son after the prophet (1 Chronicles 3:5). And it is through that Nathan – not Solomon or any of David’s other powerful sons – that Jesus Christ was descended (Luke 3:31). The prophet Nathan served in a “behind the scenes” career, but one which had a tremendous effect for good. He is an example to all of us of the value of truth spoken in love, and of faith in dealing with difficult situations concerning those we strive to serve.
“When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good … she took some and ate it…” (Genesis 3:6, emphases added).
And so began the story of human gratification – a pattern that is repeated by men and women over and over in the biblical story:
“The sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were beautiful and they took them” (Genesis 6:2, emphases added).
“When Shechem son of Hamor the Hivite, the ruler of that area, saw her, he took her …” (Genesis 34:2, emphases added).
In all of these examples – and many more – we see the same pattern repeated. The Hebrew words for “saw” (ra’ah), and “took” (laqach) are identical in each case. We see the same pattern of stimulus and response, seeing and taking, seeing and doing – with essentially nothing between them.
We have expressions for this pattern today – “impulse buying,” “see and grab,” “instant gratification,” and so on. The very number of such expressions shows how common the pattern is in our society. Yet if we go back to the biblical accounts, we find something interesting. The pattern of see+take or see+act so often recorded in the narrative books of the Bible is said almost invariably of those who rejected or did not know God.
When we look at the accounts of those who followed God, we see stories that just as invariably show a different pattern: “see+consider+act.” This pattern is often clear in stories of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, of Moses, Joshua, Gideon, and other servants of God. Look at a single example:
In 1 Samuel 24, we find the story of how David saw an opportunity to kill Saul, who was hunting him, but after brief reflection, did not. This has everything to do with instant gratification. David had already been anointed to replace Saul as king (1 Samuel 16:1-13), and it was only a matter of time before David would become king in Saul’s place. In this instance there was a very rational reason to go along with the drive of “see+take.” Yet David resisted the desire to take Saul’s life, considered the situation, and waited once he saw God’s will in the matter (1 Samuel 24:3-6).
In examples like this we see the people of God placing thought and the application of knowledge between seeing and acting – and time and again they are credited for righteousness in doing so. The nature of the opposite approach is also repeatedly made clear. Take a single example of that also: “Desire without knowledge is not good— how much more will hasty feet miss the way!” (Proverbs 19:2). We can see and desire, but if we do not think about what we need to consider – apply knowledge to the situation – then our hasty feet “miss the way” which is so often a synonym for sin throughout the Hebrew Bible.
This pattern of delayed versus instant gratification, of placing thought between seeing and taking or other forms of action, is not just something that applies to wise shopping habits – it is a principle as broad as life itself. Interestingly, while God doubtless does not need to delay before acting, we find scriptures that indicate that he nevertheless does pause and consider. We see him waiting before acting in the days of Noah (1 Peter 3:20) and in the days of Lot (Luke 17:28). And we see God’s way of seeing, considering, and then acting extolled in the Psalms: “But you, God, see the trouble of the afflicted; you consider their grief and take it in hand …” (Psalm 10:14, emphases added). Even God considers between seeing and acting. How much more should we do the same!
“In the land of Uz there lived a man whose name was Job. This man was blameless and upright; he feared God and shunned evil” (Job 1:1). “…all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23).
These two scriptures – Job 1:1 and Romans 3:23 – are loved by skeptics as they feel the two verses provide a “perfect” example of biblical contradiction. How, they ask, could Job be “blameless” (NIV, ESV, etc.) or “perfect” (as translated in the King James Version) – in other words, sinless – if, as Paul affirms, all have sinned?
Many Christians realize that when the New Testament uses the word “perfect” (as when Jesus tells his followers to “be perfect” – Matthew 5:48), the Greek word used means “mature” or “complete” (see “Does God Expect You to Be Perfect?” here). In the Old Testament a similar situation occurs. The Hebrew word tam translated in Job 1:1 as “blameless” or “perfect” (and again in Job 1:8, 2:3) has several shades of meaning. It comes from a root word meaning to be complete or finished (Genesis 47:18, Deuteronomy 31:24) and in a secondary sense to be morally sound or upright (Job 22:3, Psalm 18:26). Tam itself can be translated “complete,” “finished,” “blameless,” “innocent,” or “having integrity.” In Proverbs 29:10, for example, the word is used in the phrase “a person of integrity.”
This meaning – of having moral integrity or “uprightness” – that lies at the heart of what we are told in Job does not imply perfection as we might think of the word in modern English usage. In fact, the respected Interpreter’s Dictionary of the Bible (Abingdon, 1981) states categorically: “the words which are rendered in English by ‘perfect’ and ‘perfection’ [in the Hebrew Bible] denoted originally something other and less than ideal perfection.”
So although Job 1:1 records that Job was blameless, and in Job 1:8 and 2:3 God is said to have declared Job to be blameless, the Hebrew word translated “blameless” does not have to mean morally perfect and completely sinless. This can be seen in that the book itself shows Job’s failings. In 7:21 Job states “Why do you not pardon my offenses and forgive my sins?” and in 42:6 Job confirms his own sinfulness when he says: “Therefore I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes.” When we take these facts into account, it is clear that being “blameless” or “perfect” before God in Job – and elsewhere in the Old Testament – means being morally upright, but it does not have to refer to some kind of sinless perfection.
Putting the scriptures together, then, there is no contradiction between what the Book of Job tells us and what Paul affirms in Romans. All humans, including Job, have sinned, as Paul stresses; but Job had attained a level of integrity or moral uprightness that God himself acknowledged as being remarkable – just as the Book of Job states.
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