The fate of a coconut monkey…

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A few years ago I came across an interesting article in a magazine that illustrated the hunting practices of a particular African tribe.Their technique relied on three very important elements; a coconut, an orange and the prey’s inability to let go.

The tribal huntsmen take a coconut and drill a small orifice in it, after draining the milk from the coconut they place a juicy orange in it. So then, with the coconut and the orange inside they fasten it to a tree.  The monkey, upon smelling the orange swings down from the tree and goes for the coconut.  Driven by instinct and passion the monkey sticks its hand into the hole to grab the tasty orange.

But, there is just one problem…

When the monkey goes to pull out the bait it realizes that it cannot take its hand out of the hole while holding on to the orange. You see, the monkey’s hand fits perfectly in the hole however once it has grasped the fruit its fist is larger than the opening therefore causing the monkey to become captive. In spite of the fact that it realizes it has become “trapped” and “susceptible” it remains unwilling to let go. Its stubbornness allows the hunter to shoot his dart with precision piercing the primate consequently taking its life.

How does the coconut monkey’s fate relate to our spiritual lives?

Oftentimes, we are hurt or offended by others and we may find ourselves displaying the coconut monkey’s mindless behavior. We feel entitled to hold a grudge on someone because of the way we were treated and we find ourselves grasping on to something that  gradually sets us up for “spiritual death”. Just like the monkey holds on to the bait unwilling to let go, we too hold on to Satan’s snare and quickly become spiritually “trapped”.

Unforgiveness in our hearts can become a stronghold that keeps us from growing, prospering, moving forward and even staying healthy. Unforgiveness has often been compared to a person who drinks rat poison expecting the other person to die. In all reality only the unforgiving become weak, wither and eventually die. Salomon wrote in the Book of Proverbs that “A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones”. A damaged, wounded or corrupted spirit is a “crushed one” and it has the power to dry up and crush your bones. I have yet to meet an unforgiving person who lives a cheerful and faith filled life.

When I am tempted to hold something against someone I have immediate flashbacks of the movie “The Passion of the Christ”. I picture Jesus, unrecognizable no longer human like, stretched out on a cross after being brutally nailed to it. Pain and suffering become mercy and compassion as he cries out “Father forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing”. With  this in mind it becomes impossible to hold something against another but yet possible to let go and extend the same mercy that was shown to us.

As we search the scriptures we learn three basic principles; 1) forgiveness is not optional, 2) forgiveness is a beneficial to you and 3) forgiven people should be forgiving people.

In his book “Desiring God”, John Piper,  gives the “five dark benefits” of unforgiveness…

Unforgiveness is power. There is power in having something to hold over another’s head. There is power in using a person’s weakness and failure against him or her. In moments when we want our own way, we pull out some wrong against us as our relational trump card.

Unforgiveness is identity. Holding onto another’s sin, weakness, and failure makes us feel superior to them. It allows us to believe that we are more righteous and mature than they are. We fall into the pattern of getting our sense of self not by the comfort and call of the gospel but by comparing ourselves to another.

Unforgiveness is entitlement. Because of all the other person’s wrongs against us, he or she owes us. Carrying these wrongs makes us feel deserving and therefore comfortable with being self-focused and demanding.

Unforgiveness is weaponry. The sins and failures that another has done against us become like a loaded gun that we carry around. It is very tempting to pull them out and use them when we are angry. When someone has hurt us in some way, it is very tempting to hurt them back by throwing in their face just how evil and immature they are and…

Unforgivenes puts us in God’s position. It is the one place that we must never be, but it is also a position that all of us have put ourselves in. We are not the judge of others. We are not the one who should dispense consequences for other’s sin. It is not our job to make sure they feel the appropriate amount of guilt for what they have done. But it is very tempting to ascend to God’s throne and to make ourselves judge.

If any of this sounds familiar and you feel like you fit into any of the categories then it is likely that you have allowed unforgiveness and bitterness to taint your heart. You have become the enemy’s coconut monkey and your fate will be as painful and destructive IF you don’t decide to LET GO.

Forgiveness is a no-brainer. You need to decide to forgive. Depend on God’s power to forgive through the Holy Spirit and obey His Word. Scripture reminds us (Prov 4:23) to “Guard our heart above all else, for it determines the course of our life”. What’s your direction???

It’s time to let go and let God…

Shalom,

Milton