Going against the grain

“Two women will be grinding grain together; one will be taken and the other left.”

Luke 17:35

Going against the grain is doing something contrary to the natural order of things. This stems from the direction wood grows which is splintered when cut in the wrong direction or is said when cleaning a wooden floor, it’s swiped with the grain of the wood.

Have you ever been so determined to do something the way you think it should be in your mind and at every turn, there lies another obstacle. I have and it’s very frustrating when no progress is being made and for every step forward it seems two are taken back. Sometimes we just have to reboot and rethink what we are doing.

Paul writes to the Roman church and lets them know he doesn’t like the direction it was headed so he calls out the hypocrisy from the Jewish leaders who teach the Old Testament laws yet fail to obey them. He’s reminding them that it’s inexcusable to judge others and reminds them they have been freed from the law. He’s also trying to convey that salvation comes through faith not works and God loves both Jews and Gentiles saying in Romans 2:11, “For God does not show favoritism.”

As Christians, we are set apart, which basically means our ideology does not conform to the world’s. Our focus is on gaining favor from the Lord, not others. There’s an old saying that the ground is level at the foot of the cross which means it’s approachable to everyone and all are welcome.

When we choose to live a life apart from God, we are going against the grain and we’re going to get splinters, there’s no way around it. He offers protection, guidance, and comfort through all the daily stuff we go through. He just makes life easier.