WHAT PRICE LOYALTY?

2 Samuel 15:23-16:23; John 18:25-19:22; Psalm 119:113-128; Proverbs 16:10-11

“’And where is Mephibosheth, Saul’s grandson?’ the king asked him.

 ‘He stayed in Jerusalem,’ Ziba replied. ‘He said, “Today I will get back the kingdom of my grandfather Saul.”’

 ‘In that case,’ the king told Ziba, ‘I give you everything Mephibosheth owns.’”

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“No! Not this man. We want Barabbas!”

“Give discernment to me, your servant….”

It is amazing how fast the tide of loyalty can turn. By 1992, still as a young attorney, I had worked my way up to the coveted position of partner in a local law firm. For those who don’t know, the designation of “partner” is a big deal to lawyers. It represents more money, of course, but more important, it is supposed to convey a sort of tenure, or security, not otherwise available in our profession. Partners are expected – or used to be expected, anyway - to stand behind each other and hang together, come what may. Unfortunately, it doesn’t always work that way. One evening around 8:30pm as I was deep in the middle of negotiations over a client’s “bet your company” $6+ million contract, the senior litigator in the Firm knocked on my door. “You know times are tough, Tom. We appreciate all the good work. However, the Management Committee has met, and we have decided to let you go. We know you’re a partner and we can’t just lay you off under your contract, but if you don’t accept our severance package, we will institute formal proceedings to remove you as a partner for cause. Oh, and don’t ask why; we’re not going to get into that. Let’s just make this a friendly severance.”

Is there such a thing? Absolutely stunned – I was and had been one of the top five or so most productive and profitable attorneys in the Firm for several years – I was barely able to choke out a reply. “If that’s how you treat your partners around here, I’ll make it easy. I don’t want to be your partner.” The next day, with several other “partners,” I packed my things. But those I felt worse for were the six young counsel who were up for partner that year. Rather than judge them fairly on the basis of individual merit, the Firm just fired the entire class en masse.

Now, of course, the fact that the Firm would not discuss reasons did not mean there weren’t any. We both knew better, and partners who remained on the inside have long sense confirmed it. Two years earlier, I had been involved in a major construction case, covering for the senior partner who was the number one rainmaker in the Firm. Dozens of contractors had been sued. I walked into a deposition to find all their attorneys already at the table with an ultimatum of sorts. “We have an agreement in principle. All it will take is for your client to pitch in “X” dollars, and this whole thing will be over. But if the deposition starts, we lose the offer.” I tried to call the partner; he would not take the call. So, I called the client direct. The amount was far less than just defense costs, let alone actual expected liability. The client’s response was, “I’ll write you a personal check if I have to. Get it done.” So I did, having absolutely no idea that, that very day, the partner had sent a letter to the client anticipating over a $500,000 fee. Which the settlement prevented.

For the next two years, that partner stewed. In one pique of rage, he actually accused me privately of malpractice, although we both knew the client had been extremely well served. Finally, though, when Firm finances got tight and layoffs became inevitable, he “got even.” He insisted my name be added to those on the chopping block, or he threatened to leave. So it came to pass. And within the next two years, he left the Firm anyway. The fact they bet the wrong horse gave me no satisfaction whatsoever.

I’ve already told the back half of this story. Things worked out better than I ever imagined they could. God protected, preserved and blessed us mightily. But to this day, my number one sensitive hot spot concerns loyalty. People are so cavalier about this issue. We dare to shift fidelity on little more than personal convenience. We have little regard for the fact that, every time we do, we further undermine the foundation of trust and respect on which any life worth living must be based.

I know what it feels like to be betrayed. I testify Jesus can and will heal even those feelings. But the real point is this: my little matter cannot begin to compare to the damage I do when I betray Christ. Especially when others see me do it. We cannot overestimate the harm our hypocrisy works in the lives of others. When we act as if we aren’t Christians, we teach others it’s not safe to be Christian. Jesus taught Martha that very few things are worth undying loyalty. But those that are must be safeguarded at all costs. When we hold the heart of another in our hands, we do well to cherish it and protect it. The potential, negative effects of our failure to do so are just too costly to the Kingdom for a child of God to consider any other course.