If You Sense Defeat Avoid It By All Means

Matthew 5:25-26
(25) “Settle matters quickly with your adversary who is taking you to court. Do it while you are still together on the way, or your adversary may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and you may be thrown into prison. (26) Truly I tell you, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny.

What do you do when you sense defeat? What do you do when you suspect things will not go as you planned? What do you do when you stare at failure? If you sense defeat, avoid it by all means!

In the sermon on the mount, Jesus gave advice on what to do when you sense defeat coming your way. Jesus said that if you have an adversary or an enemy who has decided to take you to court, be careful. As you head to court, assess the situation and whether you will win or lose. If you are sure you will win this case, you may go to court, but Jesus says if you think you will lose this case, act before you get to court.

Jesus says that if you think you will lose the case, settle the matter with your enemy before going to court. If you think you will lose the court case, don’t go to court. Seek an out-of-court settlement. Surrender to your enemy and end the matter out of court. If you sense defeat, avoid it by all means!

We need to be sensitive enough to know when failure is coming. That sense of knowing when failure is coming is critical for survival. Do not be bold and falsely confident then meet disaster of failure. If you sense defeat, avoid it by all means!

Do not let anger cause you to walk into a trap of failure. Pray against a short temper and a vindictive spirit that will drive you blindly to failure. Even in anger, know when failure is coming your way. If you sense defeat, avoid it by all means!

How will that back and forth with your employer going to end? How will that altercation with your spouse end? How will that dispute on property and details of a contract end? How will that traffic incident by the roadside end as you argue with the other driver? How will that quarrel with an armed stranger going to end? If you sense defeat, avoid it by all means!

You have just been questioned on something you didn’t do right. Do you plan to apologize after much time has been spent proving you are wrong and everyone involved is exasperated? Can’t you sense defeat? You have won in the past, but does this look like anything in your past? If you sense defeat, avoid it by all means!

Avoiding defeat is not the same as compromising to avoid death or pain. If we are called to choose between remaining right and suffering pain on one hand and avoiding pain by doing wrong, we will choose to be right and suffer pain. If we are called to choose between faith in God which means we face death and denying faith to enjoy life, we will choose death and faithfulness to God! To avoid defeat is about knowing when I am wrong and looking for a less painful, less harmful way to resolve my wrongdoing. If it becomes clear to you that you are wrong and will be punished, don’t pretend you are right and insist on facing justice, it will be easier to reconcile, apologize and seek an out-of-court settlement. If you sense defeat, avoid it by all means!

Dear God, grant us wisdom that can sense defeat. Give us spiritual insight that will inform us to avoid defeat. Save us from anger and false confidence that may cause us to walk foolishly into defeat. Help us dear God to sense defeat and avoid it, in Jesus’ name, Amen!

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