If we look back at our life, we can realize that many of our sufferings were caused by the peculiar traits in our disposition. Because of his disposition, a student may be frustrated from studying, and his professors may not care for him personally. As a result, he will not be able to make good grades. If that person’s disposition could be changed, he would be able to make better grades. In a law court, a judge may be negatively influenced by a person’s peculiar traits, causing that person not to receive a favorable judgment. Even in a family, one child may suffer more than the other children because of his disposition. An employer may realize that an employee has a peculiar trait, but because the company needs him, they will keep him on. However, when the company begins to lay off its workers, he may be the first one to go. We may also suffer in our own neighborhood because of our peculiar traits. We may love people and love to help people, but because of our peculiar traits, none of our neighbors may care for us.
The negative factor in our marriage life and family life is our disposition. Seemingly, the problems between parents and children are due to certain mistakes. However, mistakes are easy to deal with. Mistakes are like dust on a desk top that can be wiped away. The real cause of the problems between parents and children are the peculiar traits in their makeup. If either the parents’ or the children’s disposition would change, there would not be such problems. However, even the parents are not able to change themselves. Eventually, the problems accumulate. Year after year there is an accumulation of problems. This accumulation may be compared to the cause of earthquakes. An earthquake is caused by the gradual accumulation of pressure underneath the earth which finally breaks forth. Even though the parents and children love each other and live for each other for many years, the accumulation eventually may lead to a big problem.
Our peculiar traits also cause us to suffer in our marriage life. A husband and a wife may love each other, but after being married for several months, the wife may discover a “burl” in her husband. The real problem between husbands and wives is the particular and peculiar part of their makeup, their disposition. This is the factor that can make the husband and wife unhappy. A pleasant husband and a pleasant wife are those who have no peculiar traits. A wife’s beauty does not make her pleasant for long. A brother may be charmed by a sister’s beauty while they are dating and on their wedding day, but after they live together for a short time, he may realize that he married a beautiful sister who is very hard to deal with. From that time on, the peculiar traits will cause trouble between them. The husband and wife may love and appreciate each other, but the accumulation of problems produced by their peculiar traits may eventually lead to divorce. In the church life, the accumulation of problems over many years may lead to rebellion.
In the four Gospels, Peter’s most difficult dealing before the Lord was related to his disposition. Even by the time of Galatians 2:11-21, Peter’s disposition had not yet been thoroughly dealt with. Something troubling still remained within him. According to the record of the whole New Testament, however, Peter eventually broke through. In Galatians 2 Paul rebuked Peter to his face because Peter still lived in his disposition to some degree, but in 2 Peter 3:15-16 Peter highly commended Paul. If Peter had been still living in his disposition, he would not have made such a strong commendation of the one who rebuked him. Rebuking offends people, but Peter was not offended. This may indicate that the “burl,” the troublemaking factor, had been removed from him.
By man’s hand there is no way to remove the factor of the disposition, but in the Lord’s hand there is a way. In Matthew 19:25 the disciples asked the Lord, “Who then can be saved?” The Lord replied, “With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible” (Matt. 19:26). This word must have been fulfilled in Peter. In 2 Peter 1:5-11 Peter wrote concerning the development of what the Lord has given us by the growth in life unto the rich entrance into the eternal kingdom. Peter was able to write such a word because he had learned the spiritual lessons. The Lord broke through in him. It is impossible for us to break through the problem of our disposition, but it is possible for the Lord to do it.
In the first few years of our spiritual life, we may have grown quickly. However, our growth may have slowed down or even come to a standstill because of our disposition. We should be warned concerning our disposition. We must learn to take care of the “burl” in our makeup, our disposition. If we deal with the “burl,” we will grow quickly and have a free way in our spiritual life without any hindrances to our growth in life. We will also become more useful to the Lord.
Question: Why does our disposition not frustrate our growth in life at the beginning of our spiritual life?
Answer: At the beginning of our spiritual life, our disposition was buried by our worldliness, weaknesses, and sins. We grew quickly by dealing with the world, our weak points, and our sins. After we dealt with these superficial, negative things, we reached a deeper problem. The deeper problem was what we are. In our being, there was a “burl.” Our free way was cut off. We could not go on and became blocked in our spiritual life. Our disposition has become our problem. It hinders us from growing in life and from being used by the Lord, and it has made trouble for us, causing us to suffer.
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