BREACKING THE ALTAR OF BITTERNESS BY DR JOHN MUSUBAO KATSUVA CHRISTIAN DOCTORS ASSOCIATION “AMC” DRC NATIONAL BOARD CHAIR ”Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up troubles you, and thereby many be defiled.” Hebrews 12:15. The word « bitterness » is from the Greek word pikria, a word which is only found in four New Testament passages (Acts 8:23; Rom 3:14; Eph 4:31; Heb 12:15). Bitterness is a hostile disposition and a poisonous frame of mind that causes people to brood, scowl and become repulsive in demeanor. What are the roots Cause Bitterness? Sin and the guilt it produces. Sin is at the root of the problem—sin leads to guilt and depression, and sinful handling of sin further complicates matters leading to greater guilt and deeper depression, for a wicked man will be « caught in the cords of his sin » (Prov 5:22). The story of Cain illustrates the progression of sin. Cain began by giving a sinful offering (Gen 4:1–8). Abel gave his best, whereas Cain merely brought an offering. When God rejected the offering, Cain complicated the matter by responding wrongly—he got angry and depressed: his face « fell. » Cain’s anger was noted by God, who warned against the consequences of this wrong response. God graciously said, « If you do well, will you not be accepted? » Or, as some translations say, « If you do right, you will feel right. » Trials When Ruth’s mother-in-law, Naomi, returns to Bethlehem, she says, “Stop calling me Naomi; call me Mara (bitter), for the Almighty has filled me with bitterness « (Ruth 1v20); Why ? Her husband Elimélec was dead then her 2 sons, Maklon and Kiljon. This accumulation of deep wounds prevented her from seeing life normally. She had no joy in coming back to her country, her city. The bitterness stems from the fact that she had lost what she held dear. Further reading: Proverbes 26:23–26, Lamentations 1:4-5, 1sam 30 Payer : Father Lord, here I am to bow down. I praise your name and ask forgiveness for the long standing bitterness in my heart. Dear Holy Spirit helps me read out of me every roots of bitterness and gift my life with joy, peace and love in Jesus name. What are the fruits of bitterness ? “David was greatly distressed because the men were talking of stoning him; each one was bitter in spirit because of his sons and daughters. But David found strength in the LORD his God.” 1Sam 30:6 Bitterness hurts, but this bitterness is not only psychological: it can lead to bitterness on the physical plane and it can deteriorate other areas: it disrupts relationships with others: David’s soldiers, while they have just discovered that they had lost their families and their property, turn against… their leader: « They were talking about killing David with stones ». Relations are turned upside down; good understanding has turned into rejection, and that is the work of bitterness. This can explain a lot of aggressive reactions, which may have originated from a past unhealed injury. James speaks of one who is filled with bitter jealousy (James 3v14, 16) and then lives there « disorder and all kinds of unworthy practices ». I can wonder when I create tensions, arguments, if the reason is not further upstream, because of a bitterness lurking deep in my consciousness but which wreaks uncontrolled havoc. I can also move past the argument I’m going through to try to figure out what the other’s bitterness is. It disrupts my relationship with God: Naomi comes to blame God when she says, « The Almighty made me bitter and afflicted me. » It’s her fault that I’m so overwhelmed. And yet, despite these accusations, God blessed him: he doesn’t stop at these reactions because he sees the heart. Same reaction with the Sunamite: she accuses Elisha, the prophet, of having deceived her by miraculously giving her a son and then killing him. Bitterness, in its intractable logic, makes God responsible; it disrupts thought and reactions. It is internally disturbing: in Proverbs 31v6-7, one who has bitterness tries to drown it in alcohol, to forget, to flee the crushing weight and to try to heal. But the consequences of this flight are heavy, often dramatic. So, aren’t there other ways to heal? Further reading: James3:14-16, Ruth1:20, 2kings4:27-30, proverbs 31: 6-7 Prayer: will you Father Lord restore my broken relationships with my family, my colleagues and with the Holy Spirit? What about our personal responsibility for our bitterness? “Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. 32 Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” Ephesians 4:31-32 Speaking to the Christians of Ephesus, Paul said: « Remove all bitterness from among you » (Ephesians 4v31); it is about the disturbed mutual relations and the poison which infects them. You have to root out the evil and not just convince yourself that over time everything goes away … healing can only be superficial, and the poison does its work in silence. Another part of God’s response is to offload it … on God: « Cast all your worries on him » (1 Peter 5v7); Anne expressed this confidence: her inability to have a child made her embittered. « Full of bitterness, she prayed to the Lord » (1 Samuel 1v10); and after that, « she went away and her face was not the same. » The life of the prophet Jeremiah was a succession of rejections, so much so that he wrote « the lamentations »; he refers to what the people of Israel subjected him to, which was a real poison: « My people have made me drink wormwood » (Lamentations 3v15); he speaks of « his suffering, of the poison, of the wormwood with which he is drunk » (v19). And the fact that he goes over it destroys him even more (v20). And then there is a « but » which changes everything (v21): « But here is what I want to remember and which gives me hope:
