Imago Scriptura 34 - Two Faced

As I am coming to the close of 1 Samuel, I am reading the story of King Saul and the future King, David son of Jesse. Over the course of several chapters we see a split personality of Saul - times where he burns with jealousy and hatred of David and times where he is repentant and seems to promise to change his ways. Now that our kids have all finished reading Lord of the Rings, we are starting to watch the amazing Peter Jackson films. In the second film is the powerful scene of the two faces of Gollum...

https://youtu.be/NB2CNr692RE

This is a bit of how I imagine Saul. Times where he is all out for vengeance and driven by jealousy and times when he seems to want to honor his son Jonathan's friendship with David and move past the hate. And like this scene it's like it switches on a moment by moment basis.

It's nice to think that this is just other people, but there is a two faced element in each of us. I remember so many times where I have acted like Paul speaks of in Romans 7:23-25…

“So I find it to be a law that when I want to do what is good, evil lies close at hand. For I delight in the law of God in my inmost self, but I see in my members another law at war with the law of my mind, making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. Wretched man that I am!”

The good news that holds me in the midst, that speaks into the two faced times of my own life are the words that follow this confession of Paul…“Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!”