Proverbs 26:18,19 - "As a madman who casteth firebrands, arrows and death, so is the man that deceiveth his neighbor and saith 'Am not I in sport ("I was only joking" - New Living Translation)?'"
Ephesians 5:3,4 - "...let it not be once named among you...neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting: which are not convenient..."
filthiness = Greek "aischrotes" = obscenity, vulgar/indecent conversation
foolish talking = Greek "morologia" = senseless, "stupid" chatter
jesting = Greek "eutrapelia" = quick-witted scorn or ridicule
Years ago as a pastor, I preached this message; and it created quite a debate among the members of the church, as to just how far can a Christian go in saying things in fun that ordinarily would be offensive.
"You're so big that when you hang your shirt out to dry, people think someone is holding a tent meeting."
"Well, you're so old that you were a waitress at the Last Supper."
I actually heard that exchange between two ministers...and yes, I laughed. Down through the years of my life, I have engaged in humor that, if spoken outside of humor, would have been hurtful.
The question is: does saying hurtful things become OK just because we add the disclaimer "Oh, I was just kidding"?
The Holy Ghost in Proverbs 26 gives the picture of an insane person on the loose with dangerous weapons in their hands. They certainly may not mean to hurt anyone - but hurt someone they certainly will! Regardless of innocent intentions, hurtful talk hurts - always! Insulting and degrading jokes, IN GOD"S EYES, have no place among those who aspire to imitate Him!
Ephesians 5:1 - "Be ye therefore followers (imitators) of God, as dear children."
Ephesians 5:2 - "And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us..."
Ephesians 5:3 - "...as becometh saints (holy ones)"
Bottom Line: we are holy ones, governed by the love of Christ, who seek to imitate our dear Father! Coarse jesting is ranked in the same category as fornication and uncleanness and is not to be "once named among you" - it is not to exist in our ranks!
Ephesians 5:14 - "...Awake thou that sleepest..."
A sleeping person is alive; but they are unaware...especially of any danger that may be lurking nearby. When Christians engage in the wordly behavior mentioned in our texts (including low-grade humor), they begin to "go to sleep" and to become unaware of what is really important.
Most certainly Christians can and should laugh - but on the high level of "...IN THE LORD"...not in the lowlands of mockery and scorn, hurting beloved fellow saints and possibly becoming a stumbling block to their faith! We are EDIFIERS - and we are to "redeem the time" for edifying one another, agrressively strengthening, exhorting and encouraging one another to the fullness of Christ!
Even if no one's feelings are hurt, scornful ridicule is a waste of "redeemed" time!
Colossians 4:6 - "Let your speech be alway with grace, seasoned with salt..."
It is our responsibility to accustom our conversations with themes and tones of God's grace, the full scope of God's unmerited-yet-aggressive favor in Jesus Christ. His grace in our words will be like salt to food - it makes the food both wholesome and palatable!
And let that grace first make "palatable" our own thoughts, feelings and opinions - long before those thoughts, feelings and opinions come out of our mouth! Let grace be real and "believable" to our own hearts, about our own selves first; then it will come more natural to spread that grace to one another, rather than spread the corrupting bacteria of a dirty or distasteful joke!
Friday, August 27, 2010
Thursday, August 5, 2010
SINCERELY PERFECT
Philippians 1:9,10 - And this I pray...that you may be sincere...
In the profession of a stone mason, the craftsman may once in awhile strike the stone in a wrong manner and thus create a flaw in his work. If he is a bona fide artisan, he will simply start over. If however he is half-hearted in his ethics, he may try to "patch" the flaw with a little wax. Once the wax hardens, it would be virtually invisible to the untrained eye...except on a really sunny day. Just as soon as the heat sets in good on that wax, it will begin to melt and thus reveal that the carving was not in truth what it had appeared to be.
The word "sincere" means literally "to be without wax"; and here in our text, Paul prays that the believers in Philippi will be "without wax", that they will always be in truth what they seem to be and that there will never be a part of their heart that they reserve in secret for themselves alone while the other part of their heart is given to God and their brethren. This latter condition is of course called hypocrisy - when what appears is not what really is.
Besides the quality of faith, if there is anything that God requires in order to walk with Him, it is sincerity. GOD WANTS US TO BE REAL...or better yet...TO BE REALLY AND COMPLETELY HIS!
Genesis 6:9 - Noah was a just man and perfect in his generations, and Noah walked with God.
Genesis 17:1 - The Lord appeared to Abram, and said unto him "I am the Almighty God; walk before me and be thou perfect."
These two men were certainly far from being "flawless" (as some take the word "perfect" to mean); but they were REAL with God - there was no passion, desire or any part of their heart held back from Him!
Deuteronomy 4:29 - But if from thence thou shalt seek the Lord thy God, thou shalt find him, if thou seek him with ALL thy heart and with ALL thy soul.
"...ALL thy heart..." The bottom line in walking with God is not a condition where we will never fail again; but it is keeping ALL of our heart before God and belonging to God!
When I was in my twenties, I went on a hunting trip with some brethren out in the woods of northeast Mississippi. Our number was divided between some older, experienced hunters and some younger, unseasoned "deer chasers". As we quietly plodded along a certain trail with our guns resting back on our shoulders, one of the older gents up front slyly whispered
"Got your safety on, Brother Jay (what I was called back then)?"
There could then be heard a slight "click" coming from my direction, followed by my reply
"Oh, yes sir...always got that safety on."
Can you say "wax-covered hypocrite"? By close observation, I had learned how to mimic the walk of those experienced hunters, possibly fooling my peers; but the shrewdness of that "real McCoy" veteran of the woods melted the wax of my disguise and revealed a "green horn" just trying to fit in!
Ananias and Sapphira were not wholehearted with the Holy Ghost, and it cost them their lives (Acts 5). Paul feared for the Corinthian believers that they would be corrupted from the "simplicity" (singleness, wholehearted devotion to Jesus that has no competitors) that is in Christ (II Corinthians 11:3). Christ Himself commanded in Matthew 5:48...that word again was "commanded"...that we be perfect (wholeheartedly devoted) even as our Father which is in heaven is perfect (wholeheartedly devoted)!
Weaknesses and yet-to-be-refined flaws all included, GOD WANTS US TO BE REAL WITH HIM AND REALLY HIS...or simply said...sincerely perfect!
In the profession of a stone mason, the craftsman may once in awhile strike the stone in a wrong manner and thus create a flaw in his work. If he is a bona fide artisan, he will simply start over. If however he is half-hearted in his ethics, he may try to "patch" the flaw with a little wax. Once the wax hardens, it would be virtually invisible to the untrained eye...except on a really sunny day. Just as soon as the heat sets in good on that wax, it will begin to melt and thus reveal that the carving was not in truth what it had appeared to be.
The word "sincere" means literally "to be without wax"; and here in our text, Paul prays that the believers in Philippi will be "without wax", that they will always be in truth what they seem to be and that there will never be a part of their heart that they reserve in secret for themselves alone while the other part of their heart is given to God and their brethren. This latter condition is of course called hypocrisy - when what appears is not what really is.
Besides the quality of faith, if there is anything that God requires in order to walk with Him, it is sincerity. GOD WANTS US TO BE REAL...or better yet...TO BE REALLY AND COMPLETELY HIS!
Genesis 6:9 - Noah was a just man and perfect in his generations, and Noah walked with God.
Genesis 17:1 - The Lord appeared to Abram, and said unto him "I am the Almighty God; walk before me and be thou perfect."
These two men were certainly far from being "flawless" (as some take the word "perfect" to mean); but they were REAL with God - there was no passion, desire or any part of their heart held back from Him!
Deuteronomy 4:29 - But if from thence thou shalt seek the Lord thy God, thou shalt find him, if thou seek him with ALL thy heart and with ALL thy soul.
"...ALL thy heart..." The bottom line in walking with God is not a condition where we will never fail again; but it is keeping ALL of our heart before God and belonging to God!
When I was in my twenties, I went on a hunting trip with some brethren out in the woods of northeast Mississippi. Our number was divided between some older, experienced hunters and some younger, unseasoned "deer chasers". As we quietly plodded along a certain trail with our guns resting back on our shoulders, one of the older gents up front slyly whispered
"Got your safety on, Brother Jay (what I was called back then)?"
There could then be heard a slight "click" coming from my direction, followed by my reply
"Oh, yes sir...always got that safety on."
Can you say "wax-covered hypocrite"? By close observation, I had learned how to mimic the walk of those experienced hunters, possibly fooling my peers; but the shrewdness of that "real McCoy" veteran of the woods melted the wax of my disguise and revealed a "green horn" just trying to fit in!
Ananias and Sapphira were not wholehearted with the Holy Ghost, and it cost them their lives (Acts 5). Paul feared for the Corinthian believers that they would be corrupted from the "simplicity" (singleness, wholehearted devotion to Jesus that has no competitors) that is in Christ (II Corinthians 11:3). Christ Himself commanded in Matthew 5:48...that word again was "commanded"...that we be perfect (wholeheartedly devoted) even as our Father which is in heaven is perfect (wholeheartedly devoted)!
Weaknesses and yet-to-be-refined flaws all included, GOD WANTS US TO BE REAL WITH HIM AND REALLY HIS...or simply said...sincerely perfect!
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