It is to a person’s honor to avoid strife, but every fool is quick to quarrel. ~Proverbs 20:3
Like one who seizes a dog by the ears is a passer-bye who meddles in a quarrel not his own. ~Proverbs 26:18
Without wood a fire goes out. Without gossip a quarrel dies down. As charcoal to embers and as wood to fire, so is a quarrelsome person for kindling strife. ~Proverbs 26:20-21
Stone is heavy and sand a burden, but provocation by a fool is heavier than both. ~Proverbs 27:3
I will listen to what God the Lord will say; He promises peace to His people, His saints—but let them not return to folly. Surely His salvation is near those who fear Him, that His glory may dwell in our land. Love and faithfulness meet together, righteousness and peace kiss each other. Faithfulness springs forth from the earth, and righteousness looks down from heaven. The Lord will indeed give what is good, and our land will yield its harvest. Righteousness goes before Him and prepares the way for His steps. ~Psalm 85:8-13
Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud but be willing to associate with people of low position. ~Romans 12:16
If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. ~Romans 12:18
Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy. Without holiness no one will see the Lord. ~Hebrews 12:14
Yes, we’ve been here before. What more can be said than what has already been said? Peace is God’s way. Strife is satan’s way. God wants building. Satan wants destruction. God wants harmony. Satan wants discord. God wants unity. Satan strives for division. God wants peace. Satan loves war. This is not to say that there aren’t times when division and separation aren’t necessary. God Himself called His people out to live a “Holy life, because He is Holy.” “Without holiness no one will see the Lord.”
Jesus Himself stated that He did not come to bring peace but division! So, how do we make sense of it all? It’s all in the reason why. When satan causes division, he gets us to contemplate selfish motives and self-centered ambitions. When God separates it is to maintain purity and prevent corruption. Satan divides what belongs together and mixes what does not. God builds for harmony and separates things that do not belong together, the holy from the unholy, the sheep from the goats, wheat from the tares.
Consider a few of the examples mentioned in the proverbs. There is never a good reason to just grab a dog by the ears, unless it is attacking an innocent victim. Satan would have you do it just for fun, or to be mean. Yes, those people exist. A godly reason would be to save a life.
Fire can be a useful tool. We’ve certainly been using it lately to clean up our yard, not spreading it around, just throwing brush and scrap would in the fire pit. But to build a fire just because you enjoy destroying, is foolish. To separate friends, just to be mean is just as foolish as the unnecessary fire. Stone and sand are useful in construction, but to just create chaos and a mess to be cleaned up by others, or to ruin to provoke others, is foolish behavior that satan may enjoy, but God does not.
We are Called, by God, to live at peace with all. Even in our standing firm, as we mentioned yesterday, it isn’t just to be stubborn or to be declared “right,” but to stand for truth, the light in the darkness of the chaos, that will attract others because of what His light offers. Jesus did not compromise with the religious leadership, but He didn’t purposely provoke them either. He remained what He is, the light and the truth. It was they who didn’t like what He stood for and created the controversies.
“It is to a person’s honor to avoid strife, but every fool is quick to quarrel.” The leadership are certainly guilty of continually trying to pick a quarrel, but so many times, we read that Jesus simply left. His mission wasn’t to pick quarrels and show the religious establishment how wrong they were by using words and causing arguments. His mission was one of peace for all, including the religious leadership, through the cross.
When we feel an urge to argue, politically, over religious matters, or any number of issues, we would do well to check our motives. Are our motives aligned with God’s, to promote Holiness so that more can see Him, or are they for more selfish reasons, to win, to be right, to destroy? Being willing to engage in conflict is a serious matter that shouldn’t be taken lightly. The more thought and prayer we can put into how to proceed before we begin, the better our chances that we will engage His way for His reasons and the less likely we will give in to emotional passions for our own reasons.
“If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.” That is a lot of responsibility to put on us, but He must believe we can do it which is why He depends on us to do it and we, in turn must depend upon Him for the strength to do it well.
Prayer: Father, thank you so much for making me whole in Jesus, putting me together in harmony with my brothers and sisters in the Lord, and for removing my sin from me, as far as the east is from the west, by your holy fire. May I have the mind of Christ to resist satan’s destructive schemes and do as you would do, with the peace of Christ ruling in my heart. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Song: Peace
Comments
Post a Comment