Wrong Doing Compounds Problems

     It is often stated that a wrong-doing can never solve a problem, but living our lives in accordance with the guidelines given to us by God WILL solve problems.  Take a look at a family brothers described in the Bible, all members of one family, the sons of Israel. Ten of them so jealous and hateful of Joseph their brother that the very sight of him provoked their worst behavior.
     One day they saw him coming to visit them, “Then they said to one another, ‘look this dreamer is coming!’ “(Gen. 37:19). Have you noticed how quickly one sinful act can lead to another? Joseph’s brothers are a good example!  As soon as they saw Joseph coming, they began to plot his death, but when Midianite traders came by, it seemed more advantageous to sell him for twenty pieces of silver. Getting rid of a brother and make money at the same time was an idea that appealed to their self-interest and fitted their hate.
     Ah, but the trouble had just begun. They had to kill a goat (clever deception) and wipe Joseph’s coat in its blood. Finally, there was the lie they had to tell Jacob. Helplessly they watched as their father was overcome with grief. After all, they were the ones who had gotten rid of Joseph- so what comfort could they possibly give?
     Another example is David the King, the sweet psalmist of Israel. Early in his reign he was at war with the people of Ammon. He sent his troops to battle and he himself remained at home. Instead of being in the battle with his men, he chose to rest, but in his resting he became restless.  Being restless, he became sleepless and went up to the roof of the house. There he saw a woman taking her bath. He desired her, a woman who was already married to one of his best soldiers (2 Sam. 23:39) and the son-in-law of another of his best soldiers ( 2 Sam. 23:23). This woman was even the granddaughter of his special adviser, Ahithophel (2 Sam 17: 1-23).
     David lured her to bed, and, when he was told she was expecting his child, he arranged her husband’s death in the battlefield. Think about it. It started with laziness that turned into restlessness, then insomnia, followed by lust of the flesh, misuse of power and influence compounded by betrayal, deception, adultery and finally cold blooded murder.
     How easy it is for one, seemingly isolated, disobedient act to spiral into compounded problems.  One lie leading to another lie and another lie spiraling out of control. How simple for one tiny deception to grow into a multitude of sins.
     God's guidelines clearly tell us to say "No" right away to disobedience.  Doing so saves us a lot of trouble in the long run.  "For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that denying ungodliness and wordly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously and godly in the present age looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works. " (Titus 2:11-14).

The Christian Walk: Refection 2

Henry Drummond (1851-1897) was walking with a Glasgow businessman down the street one day. He saw a merchant throw a stock of round strawberry boxes into a gutter. Instantly a group of boys swooped down upon the boxes and put them on their heads as a cap. Then they lined up in military formation and marched away. “There is an idea for you,” Drummond told his friend, and out of that ‘coincidence’ grew the Boys Brigade program that God still uses to win boys to Christ.

D.L. Moody speaks of Drummond as a man who lived nearer to the Master and who sought to do His will more fully. Due to his walk, he was able to see in common events an uncommon path in fulfilling the great commission.

Our service for our fellow humans does not come from strained efforts on our part to live for them but rather from seeing Jesus doing so, and then simply making ourselves available to Him. We do so that we may be channels of His grace and power to them. This is the way in which He walked in His relationship with the Father, and it is the way in which we must walk in our relationship with Him.

Jesus said, “The Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He seeth the Father do, for what things soever He doeth, those also doeth the Son likewise (John 5:19). We, too, can do nothing but what we see the Lord Jesus doing until we see that we are helpless, and our service is nothing more than self-initiated striving. It is not ours to originate anything but simply to yield ourselves to Him to be the channel of what He initiates and carries through and to trust Him to do so through us.

In the words of Roy and Revel Hession, The Lord Jesus is for others, just as the Vine does not bear the grapes for its own refreshment but for the refreshment of others…The Lord Jesus is not alone in this. He draws redeemed men into cooperation with Himself in the outworking of His glorious purposes, and they become His branches on which His fruit is borne. Just as apart from Him the branches can do nothing of themselves, so it is that apart from them the Vine does not bear fruit. The branches cannot, however, produce or initiate the fruit; that is altogether His work! They simply bear what He produces as He lives His life again in them (1958, 132).