Love the Word

¹ Joyful are people of integrity,
    who follow the instructions of the Lord.
² Joyful are those who obey his laws
    and search for him with all their hearts.
³ They do not compromise with evil,
    and they walk only in his paths.
⁴ You have charged us
    to keep your commandments carefully.
⁵ Oh, that my actions would consistently
    reflect your decrees!
⁶ Then I will not be ashamed
    when I compare my life with your commands.
⁷ As I learn your righteous regulations,
    I will thank you by living as I should!
⁸ I will obey your decrees.
    Please don’t give up on me!

Psalm 119:1-8

Psalm 119 is the longest book of the entire Bible, but it really isn't so horrible to read.  In fact, the more I read it, the more I love it.  Every eight verses is like a stanza of a poem and most verses speak of laws, statutes, decrees, commands, or regulations.  I still sometimes wonder how David can say all of that; however, the more time I spend reading the word, I, too, fall in love with it.

I think we all crave order in some fashion or another.  God's commands are not demands as we have a choice to follow them or not.  We will suffer consequences if we choose to disobey, but oh the joy when we obey!  "Joyful are the people of integrity..."  Joyful?  Yes, Joyful!  I was reminded in a podcast yesterday that joy and happy are not the same thing.  Joy is a state and happy is an emotion.  When we are in alignment with the Law, there is this state of joy that is actually peaceful and contented.  

You may know someone who has been a Christian a long time that is always grumbly and grumpy.  I would ask, then, are they a person of integrity, or a person of rules?  Don't ask them and don't judge them, but as a tree is judged by its fruit, you can judge the fruit of the person.  Not if they produce apples, but maybe fruit of the Spirit... love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.  There isn't much joy in just being a rule follower, I have been in that category a lot and it actually produced bitterness in me for anyone who did not follow the rules.  I couldn't stand to see someone walk outside of the lines!

So I'm sure it sounds like I'm promoting judging and permissiveness.  AGH!  That's not what I mean!!  Here's the thing.  If you're turned off by Christians and don't want to be one because of the dogmatic, bitter rule-follower that you know, I want you to realize that there is so much more to the law than that!  Maybe no one you know is a great example, but many of us are trying!  I think this section of Psalm 119 actually outlines the right mindset.  Follow instructions, obey God's laws, search for Him with all your heart, do not compromise with evil, walk ONLY in His paths, keep His commands, have actions that reflect His law consistently, learn his righteous regulations, thank Him by living as you should, and obey.  I love how he closes this stanza, "Please don't give up on me!"  This sounds to me like trying to please God and not being dogmatic about the rules.

Deuteronomy 6:4-6 says, "Listen, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord alone. ⁵ And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength. ⁶ And you must commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these commands that I am giving you today."  He says, "must," and must is a strong word!  The speaker is Moses.  He understands the promise and the consequences.  There is an urging and compassion for the people of Israel.  Then we come to the New Testament.  Jesus says in John 14:15, "If you love me, obey my commandments."  His commandments are not for harm, but for good!  It is not something to fear!

I will leave you with a few verses to meditate on.  I would encourage you to look at them in context as well.  

Matthew 5:17  "Don’t misunderstand why I have come. I did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, I came to accomplish their purpose."

I John 4:7-8  "Dear friends, let us continue to love one another, for love comes from God. Anyone who loves is a child of God and knows God. ⁸ But anyone who does not love does not know God, for God is love."

Romans 13:10  "Love does no wrong to others, so love fulfills the requirements of God’s law."

John 3:16  "For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life."

John 13:34  "So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other."

John 14:21  "Those who accept my commandments and obey them are the ones who love me. And because they love me, my Father will love them. And I will love them and reveal myself to each of them."

I John 4:17-19  "And as we live in God, our love grows more perfect. So we will not be afraid on the day of judgment, but we can face him with confidence because we live like Jesus here in this world.

¹⁸ Such love has no fear, because perfect love expels all fear. If we are afraid, it is for fear of punishment, and this shows that we have not fully experienced his perfect love. ¹⁹ We love each other because he loved us first."

All quoted scripture is from the New Living Translation unless otherwise specified.

Hospitality

I have read this story several times and am so appalled by the end that I miss the beginning.  In Judges 19 there is a story of an unfaithful wife who returns home to her parents. She is also called his concubine. He goes to get her and each night her dad begs them to stay just one more night.  After 6 nights they go and the night they leave she is raped to death by men from Benjamin and then her husband cuts her into 12 pieces and sends her body to the tribes of Israel to rally them against the men of Benjamin because they are so evil.  

It is a terrible story and I almost just skimmed it this morning, but I read it anyhow.  I have no insight and still don't like to read it.  But today, I really paused at this part:

“So they went on, and the sun set as they neared Gibeah in Benjamin. There they stopped to spend the night. They went and sat in the city square, but no one took them in for the night. That evening an old man from the hill country of Ephraim, who was living in Gibeah (the inhabitants of the place were Benjamites), came in from his work in the fields. When he looked and saw the traveler in the city square, the old man asked, “Where are you going? Where did you come from?” He answered, “We are on our way from Bethlehem in Judah to a remote area in the hill country of Ephraim where I live. I have been to Bethlehem in Judah and now I am going to the house of the Lord. No one has taken me in for the night. We have both straw and fodder for our donkeys and bread and wine for ourselves your servants—me, the woman and the young man with us. We don’t need anything.” “You are welcome at my house,” the old man said. “Let me supply whatever you need. Only don’t spend the night in the square.” So he took him into his house and fed his donkeys. After they had washed their feet, they had something to eat and drink.”

Judges 19:14-21 NIV

http://bible.com/111/jdg.19.14-21.niv

I think that most of the people in the town must have been afraid at how travelers were treated so they were not hospitable.  The old man apparently knew because he told them that they must not stay in the town square.  Of such a night I remember reading in Genesis with the 3 visitors and Lot in Sodom and Gamorrah. 

Anyhow, I think about today, there is no such hospitality to strangers.  Our culture, our country, is not set up to take people in.  When you go to a town of your kinsmen, you don't sit in the center of town until someone takes you in.  There is so much "stranger danger" mindset with grown-ups that we wouldn't dare take in someone we do not know.  We are the rest of the town.  We may choose to give $10 to someone's "fund me" page, but rarely ever to a stranger's. Who knows if they're really in need or just scamming.  

I know that my heart has hardened to giving to those who live off of others' hospitality.  It makes me cautious to give to anyone.  There will always be poor among you, but you will not always have Me is something Jesus said when anointed with expensive perfume.  There will always, I'm guessing, be those who take advantage of hospitality, but the love your neighbor as yourself principle didn't go away.  And interestingly when Jesus explained who my neighbor is, He didn't give an example of someone in my family tree or even my same race.  He gave an example of hospitality given by a Samaritan.  Someone who was detested by those He spoke to, was to be considered a neighbor. 

How do I know if I will be taken advantage of or not?  I don't always know, but I can use the discerning brain God gave me to detect a scam.  We all know someone who we believe abuses the hospitality of others.  When I see it, I get mad, but there is often a child watching and the child sees that people still give and still care.  I have also seen a begging child in a third world country who had cash taken away by his handler as soon as they thought the foreigners were out of sight.  It breaks my heart, but someone with me reminded me that the child was at least fed by our money.

I am just rethinking how I can be giving and hospitable.  The next time I have an urge to be hospitable, it is likely the Holy Spirit guiding me to be an answer to someone's prayer.  I am praying to be more sensitive as to when I should or should not.  

“Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it.”

Hebrews 13:2 NIV