Criticism, courage, insightful judgement

 Greetings in Jesus ‘ name!

This week we look at criticism, courage, and insightful judgement.

But first, the health note for this week: as far as possible, keep your distance from prescription medication. Take what you need, and no more; take a look at the legally required side effect information on any medication you might be taking and ask yourself what exactly is going on; monitor yr meds carefully on at least an annual basis; learn everything you can about whatever condition you have that requires such meds, and find out what you can do to reduce your dependence. It will pay dividends. Years ago, I had a high cholesterol issue and my MD cardiologist friend was hesitant to put me on a statin drug because I was in good health with no meds at all; I suggested (on K’s advice) that we give red yeast rice a shot. Took it for a year, dropped the bad cholesterol 100 points. Cool; doesn’t work for everyone, so you have to do your homework on these things! But on that one, check out what the FDA did to red yeast rice once it became known that this simple cheap alternative was destroying (undercutting) the market for expensive high cholesterol statin drugs! The FDA does a lot of neat things; after all, we got Warfarin (rat poison, stuff that makes rats bleed out and die) working for us as a blood thinner. Anyhow, behind all of this is the careful requirement that we must be very aware of what we eat and how it will affect our bodies; too much sugar, too much salt, processed food, seed oil, and so on. We should teach our children these things because our school systems don’t! They should. Anyways, good health to all of us.

And to our themes for this week - what are the prerequisites? We have 2 faces constantly presenting before us; the first one is that of blatant cruelty disguised with a smile; the other is the old traditional mode of trying to be ‘nice’, no matter what! Where are we in all of this, what are we to do, how are we to respond?

Once again, a bit of scripture to keep us on our toes..

Ecclesiastes 3:7b….a time to keep silent, a time to speak..

When do such ‘times’ apply? Perhaps, when we are not sure of a thing, we should not rush into saying anything about it; when a thing begins to take shape, it may be better to let it grow into ‘maturity’ and expose itself fully for what it is, before responding.

The Good Samaritan Luke 10:25-37

In any situation where harm threatens, action is always warranted. The Good Samaritan jumped in to help and did what he could. A Samaritan, even, in that time and place? But why not? There’s good in everyone, and the doors of the Kingdom are open to all who practice goodness to one another. God wills that we live in community, no distinctions.

And the key issue that beckons to us? Justice.

Proverbs 31:9

defend the rights of the poor and the needy; stand up for those who cannot stand up for themselves…

Micah 6:8

What does the Lord require of you? To act justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.

Luke 11:42 where Jesus says

Woe unto you, Scribes & Pharisees…you tithe….but forget justice!

Ephesians 5:13

Everyone who does evil hates the light, and does not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed; but whoever practices the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen clearly.

As I’ve said, God does not need our money, or seek our devotional prayers, or desire our praise. God seeks our participation in upholding justice! God seeks our participation in building community!! How we go about responding to encountered situations of injustice in our lives is what each one of us has to figure out; the when and where and how.

And what’s important here is our understanding of the enabling that empowers, for without it we are either too afraid to speak up or too paralyzed to take any action. We end up making no difference, and that is not what we are called to.

Once again it is the vine and branch analogy that Jesus speaks to us of; Never a question of ‘Is God with us?’ but rather one of ‘Are we with God?’ When we are in relationship with God, we are not just enabled, we are also protected. Our relationship with God is answered by God’s commitment to us. Relationship brings commitment. We know how that works, and how it does not work. Hence, we sometimes end up with a  ‘none of my business’ response. Out of my purview. No relationship pertains. I can’t really get involved. No commitment needed on my part. 

We may indeed speak out, and go forward, but we do so in our own name, and that will never be enough. This is why it is important to find our will in God’s will, and not just to say that an action of ours, any action, is sufficient in and of itself. Like that incredible line in the history of the Crusades, where someone calls out “God wills it’ (Deus Vult!) and everyone follows and they go off on a killing spree. Nothing to do with the will of God at all!

     This is why Jesus said put up your sword. You live by the sword, you die by the sword. You are fighting per your own will, not God’s will. God’s will is an entirely different mode of confrontation! How so? Because God is part of it! This is why in the entire history of the powerful deeds of God in the Bible, there is no need for armor, and weaponry, and strategy and so on and so forth. Why? Because the Lord your God goes with you and will fight for you. It is never enough to feel tied to a cause. There are a great many causes and many of them work for the good of others. But human will is not necessarily God’s will. God’s will is clear, never ambiguous, and its clarity and strength come out of a relationship. Much more than faith and belief, but one of knowing. The will of God that causes a thing to happen is a little different from our human bent. It’s like traveling within a just cause and finding as you go that it is indeed a godly cause.   

An example?” Sure. Go back to the Gideon story in Judges. An Angel comes and says: You mighty man of valor, you. Go in this might of yours and deliver Israel! Gideon is taken aback at this. Huh? Me? My clan is the weakest in our tribe. I am the least of my clan. Must have the wrong guy.

 But the Angel is not persuaded. And after Gideon tries out a few tests, it seems that God is indeed on his side. So he goes. Still wary, he takes the Ba’al manifestation down by cover of night! But he gains strength as the story goes and leads in a strange battle. This, you see, IS the God factor. When relationship is real and clear and strong, God might call on you. But God will also equip you to do God’s will. God’s equipping is not our idea of equipping. A lot has been attributed to God’s will that really has nothing to do with God at all. We just took the name of the Lord in vain and paid the price (or will pay the price) for that attempted manipulation down the road.

But when God calls, you will not fail. So Gideon defeats the Midianites. With strange stuff like trumpets, empty jars, torches, craziness. But it worked. Remember again, not by might, nor power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord; this God knows what he is doing. This is where the walk of faith kicks in! Strange stuff in the Bible. Like the sun standing still at the battle of Ai. All we have done is grow in the strength of technology through the ages, from wood to metal to lazer beam power. And as the Corporations gain more control, as government is compromised, as leaders are easily corrupted, the rich grow richer and stronger, and the average person…….is still a systems slave. The road before us is long, but we are not alone. 

The good fight is what Ephesians 5 calls us into. God is light, and when we walk in that light we don’t just have fellowship, we have strength and dynamic ability. You may not see it or even realize it. It will all be God’s doing and then we can only marvel at it. That’s it.

People, especially corrupt political leaders and crooked businessmen, always seek to control the narrative of what our reality is, and so distort and hide the truth, because when the truth is known about them and their doings, they can no longer hide, there will be  consequences, and we can no longer be made use of. Christian duty? Expose the evils of this world. Be not afraid. If and when you are called to it, the Lord your God will fight for you. Walk in his light and be at peace in Jesus. G.