Biting and devouring

From the April 1926 Present Truth:

BITING AND DEVOURING ONE ANOTHER
THE APOSTLE Paul in Gal. 5: 15 uses some very forceful language in warning against the evil course of some of the Lord's professed people: "If ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another," Of course he does not by these words refer to literal biting, devouring and consuming; for he is not addressing cannibalistically inclined people, but new creatures. The biting, devouring and consuming are, therefore, symbolic, yet none the less real. The figure contains an allusion to wild beasts who quarrel with one another and as a result bite, devour and consume one another. There is a symbolic biting that tears away parts of the new creature and devours them and, if continued, ends in consuming the new creature entirely. Often unbrotherly words and acts have bitten away and broken into pieces parts of a new creature's faith, hope, love, obedience, etc. And not seldom under such treatment has the entire new creature been consumed. Have we never heard of some of the Lord's people being so mistreated in word and deed by their brethren as to have been bereft of some of their growth in various graces? Yea, have we not heard of some of them being so greatly injured in their new creaturely qualities as to have been destroyed entirely as new creatures? Sad to say this has happened. It happens almost always when we put stumbling blocks in the way of our weak brethren, and they perseveringly bite back in the same spirit, or being discouraged, they give up.

In various ways such biting, devouring and consuming are done. Some among the Lord's people are so contentious that they, like briars in the pathway, tear such as pass their way and respond in the same spirit. These bite peacefulness and devour it in their brethren. Some by rude, rough and even ruffianly words bite their brethren and arouse in them anger and resentment, thus devouring their longsuffering. Some by evil surmises expressed, in language fill their brethren with sorrow and thus bite and devour their joy. Some by vindictiveness bite their fellows and arouse resentment in their brethren, and thus devour some of their love. Some by proud looks, haughty words and arrogant acts bite pieces out of their brethren's friendliness and thus consume it. Some by their stubbornness bite and consume their brethren's meekness. Some by their headiness bite and devour their brethren's love for fellowship in meetings. Some by their ambition to be somebodies bite and devour their brethren's desire for unity with one another, and by dividing the flock make a sectarian spirit grow where the unity of the spirit once was. Some by vanity chill the warmth of their brethren's esteem, thus biting and devouring their apprecia-tion. Some by coldness and indifference bite and devour the brotherly amiability of fellow new creatures. Some by teaching and spreading error bite and devour the brethren in their faith. Some by habitual fault-finding bite and devour- their brethren in their courage and proper self-confidence. Some by clumsily bringing up dead past acts stir up strife and thus bite and devour their brethren's gentleness. Some by tactless criticism bite and devour their breth-ren in their zeal. Some by selfishness bite and devour their brethren's love. Some by pessimism bite and devour their brethren's hopefulness. Some by suggesting anxiety and unbelief devour their brethren's peace. Thus in a great variety of ways some bite and devour one another, the one who is devoured weakly responding to the wrong treatment.

This biting and devouring spirit does not come from the Lord; for its nature and effects are the reverse of what the Lord seeks. It must come from the flesh, the world and the adversary. If we look at the qualities above mentioned; contentiousness, wrong speech, evil surmisings expressed, vindictiveness, pride, haughtiness, arrogance, stubbornness, headiness, selfish ambition, sectarianism, vanity, coldness, indifference, teaching error, fault-finding, digging up dead acts, tactlessness, selfishness, pessimism, evil suggestions, etc.—we will at once recognize such biting and devouring as not coming in any sense from the Lord's spirit. Rather they come from the spirit of the flesh, of the world and of the adversary.

The source of such biting and devouring is thus evil. Its purpose, therefore, cannot be other than evil, and certainly these considerations should arm us against the biting and devouring habit. It certainly betrays by its very nature, its origin and its purpose, and gives the well developed new creature all the ear-marks of evil necessary to put him on his guard against it. Our hatred for the spirit of the flesh, the world and the adversary, should arouse us against such biting and devouring. Our love for the Lord, the Truth and the brethren, should arm us against it; and our desire to develop Christlikeness should fortify us against it. There is no real justification of the biting and devouring habit. There is every reason of wisdom, justice, love and power against it. The fact that we have done it in the past, and that it is more or less a quality of our dispositions cannot justify our indulging it. Rather this fact calls upon us to take counter-active measures against it. Nothing worth while is in its favor, but everything worth while calls upon us to set this habit aside.

From the pen of the much maligned Paul S. L. Johnson

Bro. Harold