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The Sabbath God, when He instituted the Sabbath, made the seventh day a day of rest for the benefit of MAN. After a hard six days of labor, God knew that man needed a time to relax, unwind, rest from the labors of his hands. The Jewish legalists, on the other hand, had created a number of laws to interpret what God had said. They had made MAN for the SABBATH - putting the day before the creature or the Creator. It was forbidden to cook on the Sabbath. But a person could lift a fork to eat. It was forbidden to herd sheep on the Sabbath, but a shepherd could pull a wayward sheep from a ditch. It was forbidden to heal on the Sabbath - even though the situation presented itself. You see Jesus healed the blind man on the Sabbath- breaking MAN's interpretation of GOD's law. These "leaders", interpreters of the Law, saw a challenge to their authority and they were furious! Times really haven't changed much. We, the righteous elder brothers, have a tendency to interpret the ways of Jesus much to narrowly. Almost every state has their "blue" laws- laws determining what can and can't be done on Sunday. Every church organization has a list of what can and can't be done by their members. Some denominations forbid dancing- but David danced before the Lord. Others forbid using instruments in worship- but the Psalms tell us to worship God with the sound of the harp and the flute and the tambourine. Some forbid emotions in worship while others tell us to raise our hands in praise and shout joyfully! Who is right and who is wrong? Are the modern Pharisees- the theological leaders of our denominations- interpreting the laws of Jesus too strictly? I see Jesus presenting only two laws: "Love the Lord your God with all your heart... and love your neighbor as yourself. In these are all the law fulfilled." Do not imitate what is evil, but what is good. "Beloved, do not imitate what is evil, but what is good. He who does good is of God, but he who does evil has not seen God." III John 1:11 There it was, right in plain sight. There is no way she should have missed it- but she did. Then again, it wasn't her office. And it wasn't her receipt book. How often do we fail to see the obvious like the woman I met in a business office the other day? She couldn't find the receipt book- because it was right out in the open. I know that I often miss seeing the item I am looking for because I have a preconceived idea of what it looks like. I see the front view- it is presented as a partial side view. I though it was silver, it was red and black. Have you ever done that? There it is, right in the middle of a perfectly good small epistle from John. Today's verse holds a lot of truth- but we often miss it because it is in a little book we often overlook because it is so small. "... do not imitate what is evil, but what is good." Hmmm. What could John have meant? Let's see... If the women of the world wear short skirts, does that mean the women of the church should follow in their ways? If the men of the world crush their fellow employees in order to climb the corporate ladder, does that mean the men of the church should do likewise? If a boy's best friend smokes "pot," does that mean he should - even though he is a Christian? Oh. Those are a bit obvious. Let's try some other possibilities. If my neighbor buys a new Lexus, should I go into debt to buy a new luxury car, too? If my best friend wears Armani suits, should I max out my credit card to do the same? If my co- worker makes personal copies on the company color copier, does that mean I should feel free to copy my grandkids' pictures on it? If one of my kid's best friend lifts a CD from Wal-Mart, does that mean she should try to do it too? See John's point? Just because someone we look up to does something bad doesn't mean we should do the same. A couple of centuries ago sailors were fed apples from a barrel while they were at sea. In this way the captain could be assured that his crew would remain healthy. But, when one apple with a bad spot on it was packed in the barrel, it wasn't long before the entire lot was rotten, thus the term "one rotten apple spoils the whole barrel." Another turn of the phrase goes like this: "Bad company corrupts good morals." Both parables teach the same thing John was trying to get across in today's verse. We must make a special effort to remain above evil. We must flee from it. We must abandon everything to keep ourselves from imitating the evil the world so willingly models for us. Instead, we need to set our eyes on the Captain of the host, the Savoir of our souls, for only in following Him - only in emulating Him - will we find ourselves in a close relationship with God. And a close relationship with God has its own rewards. Hallelujah, Amen. Judge not, that you be not judged. "Judge not, that you be not judged. For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you" Matthew 7:1-2 I will admit that one of my favorite shows on TV is "Law & Order." There is just something about that show that has a wonderful mix of action, intrigue, and intelligence. Each show starts with one or more police problems - some mundane, some serious, some out of the daily news I watched a couple of hours earlier. Inevitably the show winds up in a courtroom somewhere. The prosecutor and defense attorney use different legal maneuvers to try the suspect of the crime. Unfortunately, most of us - though we often act like prosecutors, judge, and jury - do not give our "suspects" the benefit of the doubt. We, in direct opposition to the American legal system, consider someone "guilty until proved innocent." It never ceases to amaze me how judgmental I can be. I can jump to a conclusion faster than a speeding bullet. Mostly, I believe someone is guilty based upon my "gut feelings" not the evidence. Often I am totally wrong in my judgments and I am forced to back down from my snap decision. Over the years I have at least learned to keep my decisions to myself - or at least share them only with my longsuffering wife. Jesus tells us that we should be slow to judge and quick to offer mercy. "How slow to judge?" you may ask. He put it this way: judge others with the same standards and the same way that you want to be judged. "Ah!" you respond. "If I want to be judged fairly and justly, then I should do the same to others." Now you're cookin'. Indeed Jesus goes a step further. He tells us that we shall be "judged as we are judged." If we are merciless, we will be dealt with mercilessly. If we are gracious, we will be handled mercifully and with graciousness. "Whatever measure you serve judgment with will be used to judge you," Jesus says. Isn't that the truth? I have been merciless at times in my snap decisions. I have cut and slaughtered without concern for the welfare of others and without basis in fact. I have been dealt with in exactly the same way. It was a hard lesson for me to learn, and, in some respects, I am just now beginning to see the full implications of my actions. I am rather certain that I am not where God intended me to be in the beginning of my ministry. He had to put me "on the shelf" and wait for me to mellow out. It was a very long wait for I was a very slow learner. Now that time is past and I am moving in a direction that I probably would never have gone - and may never had been intended to move - simply because the opportunities I had then are past. Am I saddened? Yes. Am I dismayed? Certainly. Am I distraught? Hardly. I am once again in the center of God's will, moving with Him and holding my judgments until I have all the facts. Amen "Who among you fears the LORD? Who obeys the voice of His Servant? Who walks in darkness And has no light? Let him trust in the name of the LORD And rely upon his God." Isaiah 50:10
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