The phrase, “You dirty rat,”
has often been attributed to James Cagney, but he never
said it. Nevertheless,
bad guys don’t like “dirty rats”. They’re also called “snitches or squealers.”
The police agencies call them “informants.” Any way you cut it, they certainly
would not be safe in most prisons.
When we were youngsters, we
called them “tattletales.” Have you ever had someone tattle on you in your
childhood days; a sister or brother? Maybe one of your fellow classmates turned
you in. I recall one time in particular of being reported to the higher authorities
(parents). Who hasn’t experienced at least once being “ratted out?” Oh my, those were the days.
Have you ever considered the
fact that Satan is the biggest tattletale of all? If you don’t think so, you
might want to talk to Job about that. The thing with Satan is he doesn’t care
about getting his facts straight either. But alas, what does it matter? We’re
all guilty as sin anyway (pardon the pun), when he points his gnarly finger at
us when talking to God.
The Bible says, “For all have
sinned, and come short of the glory of God;” (Romans 3:23)
It also says, “For whosoever
shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all.”
(James 2:10)
Jesus even tells us in the
Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7) that we’re guilty of murder even if we don’t
commit the crime, but have hate in our heart toward another.
My goodness, we’re guilty any
way we turn aren’t we? Maybe that’s why we need a Savior.
But let’s get back on track.
I was talking about tattletales and Satan being the worse. I don’t think Satan
runs to God and “spills the beans” on those who are not Christians. They’re
already his anyway, and God only disciplines His own children. That leads me to
say that I know Satan runs to God every time a Christian slips up.
Christians if you weren’t
aware before, know this, Satan loves to go to our Parent (God) and tell Him
everything we’ve done wrong. However, always keep in mind that Jesus died for
all our sins; past, present and future. That knowledge alone should have us
thanking the Lord every day for His unmerited grace of which we know we do not
deserve … and knowing we don’t deserve it, makes it even sweeter. This leads us
to another point; because of His love for us, we should show our love for Him
by obedience to His will.
What about the tattletale
though? What makes a tattletale? It seems to me that in most cases jealousy and
pride plays a big part in Satan’s constant accusations. He had it all, and he
lost it all because of pride. Apparently there isn’t a humble bone in his
angelic body. It’s all about his pride.
I’m not saying it’s always wrong
to turn someone in to the higher authorities when the situation merits it. For
example; if you witness someone breaking the law, you should be a good citizen
and turn them in.
The tattletales I’m speaking
of are those who are just petty, wanting to get someone else in trouble while
elevating themselves in the eyes of the one holding authority. That is Satan.
Every time Satan accuses us,
and his accusations are probably very accurate, he is just trying to make
excuses to God, the highest authority. He is trying to show in our failures
that we are no better than he. Even though he rebelled against God, so do we.
The difference is, we have come to our Father and received eternal forgiveness
by putting all our faith in His Son Jesus who died for us. Satan regrets none
of his actions and is still trying to usurp God’s throne.
Sometimes we Christians
attempt to judge ourselves before God by the failures of our fellow siblings in
Christ. This is wrong. This is exactly what Satan does, but Satan’s accusations
will one day end for good.
“Then I heard a loud voice in
heaven say: “Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our
God, and the authority of his Messiah. For the accuser of our brothers and
sisters, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down.”
(Revelation 12:10 NIV)
So remember brothers and
sisters in Christ, everyday Satan stands before God pointing each of us out to
our Father in Heaven as sinful failures. He calls out our name and spits out a
list of atrocious sins that are ours. I’m sure he has tattled on me many, many
times, but in my imagination I see God looking over toward His Son when the
accusations are made. The Son quickly responds with something like, “This one
is mine. I’ve paid their debt.” Our Father God looks back at Satan and responds
with something like, “You lose…again.”
Good riddance, blabber mouth.
Grant Phillips
Email: grantphillips@windstream.net
