Doing Violence to Words

As one who reads, teaches and loves God's word, I appreciate the precision and impact of words to effectively communicate with others.  For a long time I have made it a regular practice to observe the way people use words and the intended meaning behind them.  During my lifetime I have seen words come and go as they fall out of favour.  I have observed the definitions of words morph and change over time.  While I am all for biblical translations in a modern language people can understand, I am also cognisant simplifying words is like adding water to stew.  At some stage words can be so watered down we can hardly recognise the soupy mixture we are swallowing.

God exposed the sins of His people in Zephaniah 3:4:  "Her prophets are insolent, treacherous people; her priests have polluted the sanctuary, they have done violence to the law."  The prophets and priests in Jerusalem were guilty of breaking the Law of Moses--doing violence to it by their perverse justifications and oral traditions.  At times I have heard people do violence to God's word by pulling verses out of context, and people also do violence to the English language to advance their own agenda.  Today I read an article that termed corporal punishment as violence that should be outlawed, and this is certainly not an accurate representation of the facts.  While abuse has certainly occurred under the guise of corporal punishment or discipline, the foray into criminal behaviour that injures children should in no way disparage Bible-based disciplinary methods.

In his 1828 Dictionary, Webster defined "violence" in this way (condensed):  "Physical force; strength of action or motion; 2. Moral force; vehemence; 3. Outrage; unjust force; 4. Eagerness; vehemence. 5. Injury; infringement; 6. Injury; hurt; 7. Ravishment; rape."  This description shows violence is far more than physical action or moral force:  it is unjust, vehement, intended to injure, humiliate and subjugate.  Violence does not provide any allowance for the love of others, the fear of God or having constructive purpose aside from inflicting intentional harm.  There are those who sadly have suffered violence at the hands of people closest to them, but to say corporal discipline cannot be administered humbly, consistently, and in an age-appropriate manner is misguided.  Discipline may sting, but it does not mean anyone was injured.  Parents who fear God and know they will be judged by Him are led to have self-control, compassion and mercy in all they say and do as they rear their children.

Proverbs 13:24 says, "He who spares his rod hates his son, but he who loves him disciplines him promptly."  Parents who discipline their children in a God-honouring way are looking out for the well-being of their children presently with an eye on their future.  It must be love that guides our hands in discipline--never anger, wrath, malice or bitterness.  While the flesh quickly and easily lashes out to assert self, love is longsuffering and moves carefully with the good of others in mind.  Devoid of God's love, discipline at the mercy of easily offended flesh can quickly cross the boundary into sin.  As God's people, let us ensure we never venture towards violence in our relationships with anyone because we are guided by God's love for us.

The Giver is Greater Than the Gift

"Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning."

James 1:17

Our lives and all we have is a gift from God, and God is infinitely greater than His gifts.  Our flesh is prone to love the gift more than the giver because we naturally treasure ourselves over all others.  When Jesus gave 10 lepers the gift of cleansing and restoration to family and society because they cried out to Him, only one of them returned to even give thanks.  They were pleased to receive cleansing and go their own way, but a Samaritan among them recognised the greatness of Jesus who cleansed him and glorified God with thanks.

During my life I have been blessed to receive many gifts from loving, thoughtful and generous people.  I don't know that anyone has been more blessed than me by God's grace shown through immediate and extended family, friends and the body of Christ, the church.  In some cases, I received tools and possessions from my grandfathers and my dad before they passed away.  The generous gifts they gave me--even the intangible ones--cannot compare with them as people.  Having them around would be more precious and valuable than antique tools and rare artefacts that sit in my garage or on a shelf.  It is easy to see people we love are far greater than any gift they could give, even as the altar is greater than a gift offered on it.

In the parable Jesus told of the prodigal son, it could be said the younger son who demanded his inheritance loved the monetary gift more than his father who granted his request.  In the story, the wayward son had the opportunity to return to his father after he wasted his inheritance, and this is the opportunity God extends to all people as long as we live on earth.  The temporal things God gives us can be wasted, stolen or be parted from us, yet we can return to the LORD who was, is and will always be.  God who has given us life on earth provides the promise of eternal life to all who trust in Him, and His presence is a most generous gift which will never be withdrawn from His redeemed, beloved children.

The gifts which can mean so much to us were all provided by a giver who ought to be more precious and valued in our eyes than anything we have received.  The greatest of all givers is God, for every good and perfect gift is from Him--and He never changes.  I have with gratitude received gifts from people I have not spoken to in years because it seems their view of me has changed for whatever reason; evidently our relationship is not close as it once was.  But God is never far from those who seek Him, for Jesus has promised He will never leave or forsake us.  The giver is greater than the gift, and may we continue to return to God with thankful hearts for all He gives.

Embrace Being Changed

God has put in human beings a thirst for knowledge and understanding.  As little children grow they begin to ask questions about everything and love to learn, drinking in everything they see and hear.  When children are at an appropriate age, given their physical and social development, they often undertake formal schooling.  At some point, the marks students receive and doing what is required to pass a class begins to overshadow the joy of learning--especially when the information in a course seems irrelevant, has little immediate benefit, or is difficult to understand.

As a student in school, when I struggled to understand maths concepts I would look at examples and try to mimic them; I turned to the back of the book to find the correct answer and work backwards to see how to arrive at that solution.  I approached the teacher and fellow classmates for more information and details to better understand.  I dug into textbooks (in days before the internet) and asked questions because I wanted to know how to find the correct answer.  It wasn't because I had a burning desire to be competent in calculus, but because I needed to pass the class.  I wasn't interested in personal enrichment, gaining knowledge I would use in a career, or to claw my way out of ignorance:  I wanted to pass the class and move on.

I have observed we can have a similar approach concerning spiritual matters.  Sometimes we are content to be told what to believe without having to think or examine ourselves according to God's word.  We simply desire the security and comfort that comes from believing we know what is true and right.  We look for an answer to our question to support our beliefs, to show others they are wrong, or to validate or justify our practices.  We may not be interested or willing to learn to change at all!  But God is wise to give us His word, the Holy Spirit, and to connect us with fellow believers in a world that is contrary to God so we might learn, grow in understanding, be further refined and fruitful.  While we are seeking a formula to follow so we can arrive at our preferred end, God works to transform us from the inside out and make us more like Him.

As students we were told to correct our own papers that were written in pencil.  There was always a temptation to rub out the wrong answer and change it to right one when it is we who needed correction and changing.  When God tests us, it often isn't a test we pass or fail:  God's tests are meant to refine and purify us, to expose our sin to us so we will repent.  We can be so focused on being told what to do or believe we neglect seeking God for His sake and embracing our personal sanctification.  While we are looking for a checklist of spiritual disciplines like chores to do so we can move on from them, as God would have us continue to rely upon Him, abide in and follow Him.  God is doing a work in our hearts by His grace and He impacts our entire lives presently and our future.  Jesus did not always give easy answers, but He bids us to take His yoke upon us (which is easy and light!) and learn of Him, for in Him we find rest for our souls.

Context That Compliments

It is vital to keep the big picture in mind when we read, interpret and apply Scripture.  Many well-meaning people can be led astray from sound doctrine when they deviate from the immediate context of passages, cherry-pick phrases or view a verse as standing alone when the accurate interpretation is supported by verses around it.  Because the entire Bible is God's word, no verse stands alone as an outlier.  What can seem contradictory at first glance may be complimentary after consideration.  Understanding the immediate context and to whom the book originally was directed can aid us in rightly dividing God's word and living our lives according to His truth.

An example of this is seen in the book of Jeremiah.  Through the prophet, God spoke pointed words to His people and foretold of coming judgment He would bring upon them for their sin they refused to acknowledge or repent of.  He asked in Jeremiah 7:9-10:  "Will you steal, murder, commit adultery, swear falsely, burn incense to Baal, and walk after other gods whom you do not know, ¹⁰ and then come and stand before Me in this house which is called by My name, and say, 'We are delivered to do all these abominations'?"  Did God deliver His people from slavery in Egypt to remain slaves of sin?  Did He bring them into a good land so they could justify what the LORD deemed abominable?  God forbid.

Later in this section God said to Jeremiah in Jeremiah 7:16:  "Therefore do not pray for this people, nor lift up a cry or prayer for them, nor make intercession to Me; for I will not hear you."  If we read this verse on its own, we might think it falls to us to judge if people are worthy of being prayed for, and we should not pray for people who are in sin--but this would be a very bad interpretation as it violates what God says in other places in the Bible.  For instance, when Jesus was being crucified, He interceded on behalf of the Romans who crucified Him and even the Jews who mocked Him:  "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do."  Paul said it is God's will we pray for everyone in 1 Timothy 2:1-4:  "Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, ² for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence. ³ For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, ⁴ who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth."

It is not difficult to reconcile the command not to pray for the inhabitants of Jerusalem though it is God's will for all people to be prayed for and saved.  The problem was, Jeremiah's hearers refused to heed God's warnings or repent of their sin.  The judgment God would bring upon His people would not be turned away by the prayer and intercession of God-fearing people, for their continuance in sin meant their judgment was set in stone.  If they would be broken and repent of their sin, the commandment to destroy could also be broken.  In the case of God's people in Judea, what was needed was contrite hearts and repentance of sin before God, and God would not force their will.  Praying for ourselves and others--knowing God hears us and answers--is to be our rule of life as Christians because this is God's will.  The Jeremiah 7 passage in no way prohibits us praying for others, but it reveals when the iniquity of people is full, intercessory prayer on their behalf will not benefit them.