Bears Are Better

“Let a bear robbed of her whelps meet a man, rather than a fool in his folly.” (Pr 17:12 AV)

This is pretty extreme. A bear robbed of her cubs is a pretty fierce animal.  Yet, the Bible is true.  Female bears are ferocious when it comes to their young.  The mother must protect her cubs from adult males who will attack and devour the cubs so that the female will mate again.  This happens frequently in the wild.  What is surprising is the females, although less powerful and smaller than the males, will successfully fend off the male’s attacks almost all the time.  This tendency and experience in fighting off a threat plays a large part in female bears attacking humans.  If she feels her cubs are in danger, she will fight ferociously.  Although female bears are extremely protective of their young, there are steps a person can take to avoid confrontation.  The first is to announce one’s presence long before a bear is encountered.  Yelling, banging metal objects, air horns, or all sorts of noisemakers works well. Bear spray is also a must.  If push comes to shove, a large caliber firearm will do the trick.  I mention all this because to meet a bear robbed of her young is something few survive.  It is extremely violent and hazardous to one’s life.  To compare a bear attack with the fool in his folly is pretty poignant.

To understand how this comparison can be made, one has to understand the meaning of the word, ‘folly’.  It means to despise wisdom and makes a mockery when found guilty.  The shortened definition is silliness.  But our use of that word today is a minor fault rather than a great one.  To Solomon, the fool is his folly is a person who makes a habit of life out of despising doing the right thing and mocking at justice.  The first difference I notice between a bear robbed of her whelps and a fool in his folly is motive.  The bear is acting out of a sense of protection or justice.  A wrong has been inflicted and therefore, she must make it right.  When she feels it is made right, the attack stops.  A fool, on the other hand, victimizes another for sheer pleasure.  He will continue until he is completely satiated.  Second, the bear will learn from her mistake that led to the encounter and will change her behavior so that it doesn’t happen again.  One of the ways to deter a bear from encountering humans is to make the experience memorable and distasteful enough that she will avoid all contact.  A fool, on the other hand, will deliberately force an encounter with the intent of inflicting misery on his or her victim.  They will learn to become more proficient rather than learn to avoid all interchange.  Third, a bear is not out for a profit of any kind.  She is not trying to take advantage of an unfortunate encounter.  All she is concerned with is getting her cubs back.  The fool, on the other hand, is an opportunist.  He is not satisfied until he believes he has gotten every advantage out of a situation.  The bear is just.  The fool is cruel.

Solomon’s advice here is one of caution.  A bear can be avoided.  One can stay out of bear country and never encounter one.  If they must travel in bear country, they can do many things to mitigate the chance of seeing a bear.  They can put their food and garbage far from camp.  They can put their food up in a tree.  They can wear bear repellent.  They can make noise while going through the woods. There are many things a person can do so they never do encounter a bear with her cubs.  If that is true, which it is, then it is equally true a wise person can take precautions against a fool in his folly.  He can avoid places where fools tend to go.  He can avoid unnecessary contact with fools while they are in their follow.  He can take steps to protect himself if he must interact with fools.  One does not have to be a victim of a fool.  Just like one does not have to be a victim of a bear.  Solomon’s advice is sound.  It is cruel to fall into the hands of a fool.  It is best to avoid where they roam.

Do What Comes Natural

“No man, when he hath lighted a candle, putteth it in a secret place, neither under a bushel, but on a candlestick, that they which come in may see the light.” (Lu 11:33 AV)

No matter the source of light, it is meant to be shown.  No one would buy a light only to leave it in the closet, unopened and unused.  The implication from our LORD is that it is natural to let a light shine and in context, it is the light of the gospel which has come into the heart and life of a lost soul.  Several things to note here before we look more closely at what the Spirit has impressed today.  Note, first, the candle possessor has lit the candle.  This was not something forced upon him.  The source of the flame is outside of himself.  The fuel for the flame he does not naturally possess.  Yet, he is the one that lights the candle.  Speaking of salvation, there is a choice we make.  That choice is to trust Jesus Christ.  That is the extent of our participation in the process of salvation.  It is all up to what Jesus did on the cross of Calvary.  Salvation requires a freewill choice on our part.  We choose to take the flame of salvation and allow it to burn in our lives.  Having made that conscience decision, it then becomes natural to let the light shine.  Why else would the flame be lit?  That is our thought for the day.  If we take salvation into our hearts, why wouldn’t we allow it to change others?

Sitting on my clothes dryer is a new exhaust fan and light for the bathroom.  We are upgrading.  The fan has a duel light option.  There is a regular light and a night light.  That fascinates me in the sense of how that night light will work with only one switch to operate the light.  I know nothing about installing this light.  If I do it, there will be a major construction project involved.  If I try to install it, we will be rebuilding the entire house around the damage that I would cause.  So, it sits there, in a box, until my associate pastor has time to install it.  The bathroom is one place where light might be optional.  In the middle of the night when one needs to make a quick trip to the bathroom and right back to bed one goes, the light may not be necessary.  Ambient light from the hallway will do just fine.  But if I am in there for any extended period of time, light is an absolute necessity.  I need that light.  Trying to function without it would be impossible.  My guests need that light.  It wouldn’t be right to send them up to use the facilities without one.  It would be rather odd to buy a light for the bathroom and leave it in the box.  I could brag about how good of a deal I got.  I could point out the features of the light.  I could even boast of how we saved money by getting only that which I needed.  We could marvel at how it will match the décor perfectly.  But as long as it remains in the box, it serves no purpose.  A light is meant to be used and shown.  It is meant to function for the needs and pleasures of others.   This is natural.  To do otherwise would be abnormal.

Which brings us to another thought.  Why is it that we do not let our light shine?  Jesus gives the answer clearly.  If darkness is allowed to be a stronger influence than light, the light will not be noticed.  Imagine I bought a lamp.  I put a rather large bulb in it. I plugged it in but instead of placing it in an area where it would shine the most light, I put it in an alcove in the corner of a room.  The lamp burned brightly.  But it only illuminated a small area.  I would allow darkness to dominate the light.  The more light we put in, Jesus says, the more light that will shine out.  If our light is not a bright beacon of hope in the gospel of Jesus Christ, it is because darkness still dominates in our hearts and souls.  If we want the light of the gospel to shine forth, then we must feed our souls with the light of God’s word.  The light of His truth and presence must dominate our every waking moment for the light to shine on others.  To do otherwise is to do something unnatural.

Faith Over Fear

“While he thus spake, there came a cloud, and overshadowed them: and they feared as they entered into the cloud.” (Lu 9:34 AV)

 

Trying to find out who the ‘them’ is that entered the cloud is very interesting.  There is a split decision as to it being just Jesus, Moses, and Elias; or all six.  I am no Greek grammar expert and I can see both sides as valid even though only one is.  The main point of those who think it was only the three honored guests is the three disciples heard the voice of God out of the cloud and not in the cloud.  But that is a very minor distinction.  Hearing the voice out of the cloud while being in the cloud is not impossible.  Imagine being in a fog in the middle of a large body of water.  You hear the fog horn out of the fog while being in the fog.  All this surmising, however, loses the point.  The three feared, yet they didn’t flee.  Whether in the cloud or outside observing the cloud makes no difference.  If they entered the cloud, it is significantly more important because, despite their fear, they entered into an obscured environment with little to no bearing, trusting the LORD to see them through it.  This kind of reminds me of the children of Israel as they crossed Jordan.  All they had to go on was the footprints of the priests that went before them.  That is what faith requires.  It requires acting without having all the answers and it requires overcoming fear in the process.

One of the ‘joys’ of driving in the winter in the Snow Belt (Erie, PA to Oswego, NY) is driving in whiteouts.  This is when the snow is falling so heavy that your headlights reflect off the snow right back at you and you cannot see any further than a few feet.  As you travel into the snow, the snow gives the appearance you are driving much faster than you are. With the road covered, all you can do is trust the tracks in front of you and keep in the same lane.  I have driven in whiteouts so bad that I had to drive by parking lights only.  Fog lights are a great help; if you have them.  They are smaller yellow-hued lights that seem to pierce through the fog and snow much better than the white lights of headlamps.  To say this experience is a bit harrowing is putting it mildly.  Especially when you are driving through the mountains with little to no shoulder.  Disorientation is a real problem.  Things get a bit skewed.  You think you should be coming up to your exit or turnoff and you are miles away.  When you think you have been driving for hours, you have actually been driving for minutes.  The world gets very small. 

I have noticed something about the people God uses.  They are just like us.  They deal with fear.  In the case above, it is the fear of the unknown.  I think we can all attest to that.  We enter every day not knowing exactly what the day may bring forth.  We do not know what next week or next month might bring.  The cloud is ever before us.  But entering is not a choice we can make.  Life goes on and we must trudge through the unknown.  There is nothing that will stop the sun from rising tomorrow.  Next week will come.  Next year is on the calendar.  The unknown is part of life.  The three disciples went into the cloud even though they feared.  Moses approached the burning bush even though he feared.  Joshua went up the mount with Moses to receive the law of God even though he trembled.  The men and women whom God uses are not absent of fear.  They allow faith to overcome fear.  Staying safe is not the way to live a life for God.  Trusting God amid fear, is.

Reciprocal Mercy

“Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful.” (Lu 6:36 AV)

That is a high standard. But a standard nonetheless.  How can one come close to what God has done for us?  He sent His Son upon who He exercised all His wrath for sin which He did not commit.  The Father inflicted on His Son all that was due us and then upon our faith in Jesus as our Savior, forgave all our sins.  He did this while we were sworn enemies of His.  He commanded His Son to suffer the full consequence of our enmity against Him that He might forgive us for it all.  The is no greater mercy than a man laying down his life for his enemy.  This standard of mercy is the mercy He requires from us.  In fact, in several passages, it is specifically because He has shown mercy that we are obligated to do the same toward others.

Many years ago, a Senior Pastor wished to test the spirit and love of his Associate.  It was their regular pattern to get coffee at the local coffee chain once a week.  Sometimes it was more than once a week, but they went at least once a week.  Whenever they went, the pastor would always treat the associate to a coffee.  After all, it was his obligation.  Also, he enjoyed doing it.  He wanted to show appreciation for his associate.  Over the next few years, as part of the associate’s pay package, the pastor would give him cash out of the petty cash fund.  As everyone does, he had to collect receipts equal to the amount he spent on his expenses.  They included fuel, dry-cleaning, meals, and other professional expenses.  A few months went by and another expense was covered.  The pastor gave him a small allowance for entertainment purposes.  However, he did not require a receipt for this allowance.  What he wanted to see is if his associate would use what was given to him to treat volunteers or perspective saints to a coffee from time to time just as he had done for him.  Before you ask the question, a pastor knows!  He knows more of what goes on in the lives and behavior of his people than they realize.  He doesn’t have spies.  He doesn’t need them.  All he needs to know is evident on the face of those with whom he has to do.  The pastor wanted to see if his associate was as gracious with others as he had been with him.

The LORD expects us to show the same mercy to others which He has shown toward us.  Nothing would please our Father more than to see His children as gracious and merciful.  Not just toward those whom they appreciate; such as other believers.  But more so, toward those who do not know him.  Yesterday, a lady who comes to church told me of an opportunity God gave to her to share the love of Christ.  She went to the county courthouse to witness to someone who she had never met.  She read of his situation.  He had committed murder during a drug deal.  She had his mug shot.  She went there specifically to share the love of Christ with him.  He didn’t know her and she had never met him.  Now that is mercy!  All God asks is that which we have freely received, we must freely give.  Again, not hard to understand.  But sometimes it seems impossible to do.

Of Turmoil and Tender Mercy

“To give knowledge of salvation unto his people by the remission of their sins, Through the tender mercy of our God; whereby the dayspring from on high hath visited us,” (Lu 1:77-78 AV)

 This is part of Zacharias’ prayer and praise over the birth of John.  It is quite appropriate Zacharias praises the LORD for the promise of the coming of the Messiah before he thanks God for the birth and calling of John.  Jesus comes first.  Having said that, the underlined phrase impressed me this morning as the Spirit reminded me of the ministry of John and what the tender mercy of God would entail.  John would severely rebuke the nation of Israel for their unfaithfulness and idolatry, calling them to national repentance in anticipation of the coming of the Messiah.  Furthermore, Zacharias makes a point of stressing the redemption of Israel.  But this will come by way of a cruel cross.  It is the fact the mercy of God is referred to as tender that struck me.  It indeed is.  But that doesn’t mean His tender mercy is comfortable mercy.  At least on the front of it.

There are many ways to show mercy.  Relieving the suffering of another is certainly one way to show mercy.  In fact, when different people groups came to John, this is what he instructed them.  He instructed the wealthy to relieve the needs of the poor.  He told the tax collector to only collect what the government allowed.  To those serving in the military, he told them to keep the peace and not inflict violence where violence was not needed.  These examples of mercy were intended to illustrate what mercy might look like.  But when it comes to the mercy God would show, the mercy man might exercise pales in comparison.  The mercy God will show is a result of exercising His wrath on another.  Mercy is extremely tender toward us because the justice of God was exceeding cruel to another.  Jesus suffered the full extent of the wrath of Almighty God which we deserved.  He suffered complete and total rejection from the Father.  This tender mercy which we enjoy meant torture for the Son of God.

When I think of tender mercy, I think of a child who knows they did something horribly wrong.  Instead of coming down hard on him or her, Dad does pass judgment.  But he does so with love, rather than with anger.  Like a father who sentences his son to clean out the garage, yet after about an hour of hard work, the father joins him for the next three to get the job done.  That is tender mercy.  Or a mother who sends her daughter to her room without supper.  Then about an hour later, takes a plate up and sits as she eats.  That is tender mercy.  We deserve a whole lot worse than we get.  No matter how much trouble God allows or sends in our lives, it doesn’t come close to the trouble we have caused Him.  His mercy is indeed tender and we should be eternally grateful for what He sends.  The people on the shores of Jordan did not come without some inner turmoil involved.  Repentance was required.  That took soul searching.  Serious soul searching.  Mercy may indeed be tender.  But it does come at a cost.  To presume upon God’s tender mercy will eventually dry it up.  Come to the rivers of repentance, with a heart broken over one’s sin, and the mercy that awaits is far more tender than you could ever imagine.

He Died For Me

“And Jesus cried with a loud voice, and gave up the ghost.” (Mr 15:37 AV)

 No explanation is needed here.  It is pretty straightforward.  When all the scripture was fulfilled concerning His death on the cross, He gave up the breath of life and died.  And He died for me!  Jesus said, “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” (Joh 15:13 AV)  But the thing is, I wasn’t His friend.  I was His enemy.  Paul explains this further.  “For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.” (Ro 5:10 AV)  When Jesus died on that cross for me, He wasn’t dying for someone who called Him friend.  He was dying for someone who considered Him his enemy.  This is no small matter.  When He died for me, the grace shown was more than the human mind can comprehend.  The debt was insurmountable.  The debt was compiled against the one Who died.  He didn’t just die for sin that was committed against others.  He died for the sin I committed against Him.

As a hospital chaplain near the largest Naval Basic training base, I had the privilege to minister to all sorts of military.  Both active and retired.  They are a special group of people. I spent time with someone who served on an aircraft carrier.  I met another who served on a sub.  I met a sniper, many corpsmen, several fire controlmen, a commander or two, several generals, and on and on. I particularly enjoyed the visits I had with WWII veterans.  Several stick out in my mind for their bravery and their ability to adjust beyond their horrific experiences.  One that sticks in my mind was an Aircorps flyer.  He was one of the first African American pilots to captain a bomber.  He had captained his plane for several years and flew hundreds of missions.  What he could never come to terms with were the two missions he missed.  One for appendicitis, and another for yet again a health issue.   In both of these missions, he lost crew members under heavy fire.  He could not get past the feeling it was he who should have died and not them.  He could not understand why anyone would take his place and suffer and torturous death because he was unable to fly.

This is how we should feel.  We deserve to be on that cross.  We deserve a devil’s hell for all that we have done.  As an eight-year-old boy, I wept on Easter Sunday morning because I realized Jesus loved me so much that He gave His life for mine.  No one, not even my parents, could love me like that!  No one; not even my wife and children could love me so deeply.  Only Jesus can and did!  Praise be to God for the love of Christ that drove Him to the Cross; to give up the ghost; to suffer the wrath of Almighty God; and rise on the third day victorious over sin and the grave!  There is no more important message than this.  The world is oblivious to the love that awaits if they will only repent and trust the offering of Jesus on an old wooden cross.  What an expression of love!  He died for me!

Stay Little

“Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child, he shall not enter therein.” (Mr 10:15 AV)

From time to time, we need to permit ourselves to be as little children regardless of how physically old we are.  Jesus is speaking to the rich man’s rejection of Christ. The rich man depended on his achievements and stature to gain him glory.  The little child is the antithesis of the rich man.  Complete humility and dependence toward one, and on one, infinitely greater than himself.  Why is it that we think there comes a time when we no longer have to be like a little child with God?  Do we really grow up so much that we think we can be less humble and less dependent on an all-powerful God?  Are we ashamed to admit to the LORD how much we really need Him?  What happened along the way?  Did we get too big for God?  Or, are we simply too ashamed to admit we are still that humble and simple child that came to Him years ago for salvation from our wickedness?

We know the word of God encourages us to grow up into the things of the LORD.  Verses such as, “But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, [even] Christ:” (Eph 4:15 AV).  Or, as Peter states, “As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby:” (1Pe 2:2 AV) and, “But grow in grace, and [in] the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him [be] glory both now and for ever. Amen.” (2Pe 3:18 AV).  Yet, our other in other passages of scripture, the believer is referred to as a little child.  In the epistle of 1 John, the beloved Apostle refers to believers as little children none times.  Paul refers to the believers in Galatia as his little children.  And, at the end of His three-year ministry with His disciples, Jesus refers to His twelve as little children in John chapter thirteen.  So, which is it?  Are we supposed to grow up?  Or, are we little children?  The answer is yes.

It is difficult to be an older adult son or son-in-law.  Our fathers and fathers-in-law will always see us as a child no matter how old we are or what we have accomplished.  It can be very annoying and humiliating.  As we age, we become less dependent on our fathers and fathers-in-law.  Although we would never call our fathers by their first names, to use our fathers-in-law's first names is not out of the ordinary.  We seem to outgrow them.  Although we are glad to have their fellowship and affirmation, we have grown into parenthood and grandparenthood ourselves.  That may be true of human relationships.  No so true of our relationship with God.  We can never outgrow Him.  We cannot come close to His level.  We are as far as the east is from the west.  So, to cease being humble and dependent on God as we were the first day we called upon Him is utter foolishness.  We are to grow into Christlikeness.  But we can never grow up into Christ.  We can never be equal with Him.  Ever!  Remain that little child.  It is ok.  He desires to be our benevolent and loving God who takes care of our every need.