2 Corinthians 13:5 (A Personal Reality Check)

Three blind mice, three blind mice, see how they run, see how they run, they all ran after a farmer’s wife who cut off their tails with a butcher’s knife, have you ever seen such a sight in your life, as three blind mice? When that Nursery Rhyme was first written, Mother Goose was a popular political commentator who used the symbolism of verse to get her points across. Yet, over the years, through endless repetition, society has forgotten the meanings behind her message.

Three blind mice. Who were they? In the days of Mother Goose, the farmer’s wife was Bloody Mary. Her husband’s name was Gardiner. The three blind mice were three Reformers who opposed the queen’s false teachings on the ordinances of the church. Because they stood for the truths of a Higher Authority than their queen, the three Reformers were burned at the stake. It was “quite a sight” at that execution in Oxford England when, as the fire was being lit at the feet of Latimer, Ridley, and Cramner, that one of those blind mice Latimer turned to Ridley and said, “Be of good comfort, Mr Ridley and play the man. For we shall this day light such a candle in England that I trust no one will put it out.” They did light that candle because the testimony of their sacrifice motivated other believers to translate God’s Word into a language that all English speakers from that day until now can actually understand.

What does God expect from His blood-bought people? God wants us to have more than information about His Word. He wants us to experience a transformation in our lives.

Paul was confronting a people group who were practicing Churchianity, not Christianity. To a people who were merely going through the motions of playing at church, Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 13:5 Examine yourselves to see if you’re of the faith. Then, sometime later, another writer known only to God wrote in Hebrews 2:3 How shall we escape if we ignore such a great salvation? God wants us to do more than remember the message. He wants us to apply the meaning to our lives.

Has indifference or complacency set in to your life? Has your relationship with Jesus Christ been reduced to ritualistic observances that you repeat on a regular basis, or have you allowed the claims of Jesus to so impact your thoughts, actions, and daily life that everyone around knows that you take seriously your relationship with Christ? And, when was the last time that you performed a reality check on your life? Even if you do attend a local church (and I hope you do), God wants more than attendance, He wants attachment to Jesus Christ.

It meant something for three Blind Mice to create a sight at their place of ultimate commitment. It ought to mean so much to us that Jesus Christ died on Calvary to save us from our sins that we should let it show and live and act like Christians. The spiritual life is first a test and then a testimony. Since no one likes to be accused of gross neglect, in our personal examinations, let’s make sure that our Christianity is real. Now go and live a God-centered life.