Starting Out on the Wrong Foot

by Joey Davis

Last weekend, Sawyer and Olivia went to visit my parents. On the way to my parent's house, Sawyer fell asleep. When we got there, we had to wake him up and deal with Mr. Grumpy!

He growled and moped, and after finally getting out of the car, he started complaining about anything he could think of. So I stopped him in his tracks and said, "Mr.! You're already starting off on the wrong foot!"

What he did then cracked me up. He looked puzzled and then looked down at his feet. You see, he had never heard of "starting on the wrong foot." It's a military term that deals with marching and I'm not sure why I used the term with him. He thought something was wrong with his feet, when truth was, something was wrong with his attitude.

There are terms in the Bible that are much like "starting on the wrong foot." When we read them the first time, they mean something totally different than what they did w the readers who read and/or heard them first. It is only when we understand them in their original context that we can understand their application to us today.

For instance, when Jesus was on the cross, He cried out, "My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken me?" I've heard long dissertations about how God turned his back on the Son because He could no longer look on the sin that the Son carried. I dare not totally dismiss this line of thought because it does have some merit.

However, when Jesus spoke this on the cross, the people who heard it thought he was calling for Elijah. ( Matthew 27) Why did they think that? Because Jesus wasn't uttering words to invoke His Father's pity, but rather quoting the prophecy of Psalm 22. Read it! It is a prophecy of a Savior who snatches victory out of the jaws of defeat! When prophesying, why not call on a prophet. You see, the meaning changes in this light.

When studying the Bible, be careful to look deep into the text, or you'll be off on the wrong foot!