To the Winner Belongs . . .
Keeping away from strife is an honor for a man, but any fool will quarrel. Proverbs 20:3 NASB
Keeping away – What does it mean to “keep away” from strife? Does it mean to turn the other cheek? Does it mean to walk away? Does it mean to never press for the truth? When you are confronted by strife (the Hebrew is rib – dispute, brawl, lawsuit, legal case), how do you react? A quick look at the Hebrew verb for “keeping away” reveals something we must know. That verb is shebet. Look carefully. What do you see? Do you see the connection to shabat – to rest, to cease, to desist? Do you see the attitude of shabbat emerging?
In our culture, winning is the only thing that matters. Someone challenges my belief. I argue in order to win my point of view. I must defeat the opponent. Someone insults me. I bring a lawsuit. I need to win. Someone challenges me to a fight. He impugns my character or my prowess. I’ll show him who’s boss! After all, to the winner belongs the spoils.
But consider the biblical connection to shabbat. When I rest in the Lord, I implicitly leave the consequences in His hands. That’s the whole idea behind Shabbat. I deliberately set aside my penchant for control and turn over the day to God’s hand. Now Solomon tells me that honor comes to the one who practices the same release of control under strife. This is exactly the opposite of the way that we think. For us, honor attaches to the victor. For God, honor attached to the one who lets Him determine the outcome. The world of the victor is temporary. His accolades are short-lived. He seeks glory in conquest and death. But for the one who understands Shabbat as an attitude of being, trusting God is of eternal consequence. The rewards last forever. Glory falls to the only One who is worthy of it. And the focus is entirely on life everlasting.
Do we really have to win the battle in order to glorify the King?
Shabbat is practice for eternal communion. It is not simply one day of the week, one time to set aside life’s routine. It is practicing release. It is learning to let go. If you know the joy of Shabbat, then you realize that it is part of a way of life, not just temporarily suspending some tasks. Shabbat is the once-a-week rehearsal of deliberate trust. The one who learns this earns honor in the sight of God.
Topical Index: shebet, shabbat, cease, keep away, strife, rib, Proverbs 20:3
For God, honor attached to the one who lets Him determine the outcome.
Hmmm
Earlier this evening my daughter called to inform me that she wanted to go to school down in LA
And I was very upset because she has two good jobs here and can live at home
The thought occurred to me that I could just turn the issue over to God and let him worry about it
But I could not do that and the thought of her moving to LA upset me when I thought about it
For the rest of the evening
Later in the evening I was in a meeting where men were talking about turning things over to God
And one person whom I can relate to a lot made the point that it is a lot easier just to be unhappy
At the moment it seems sort of silly not to turn things over to God
But for me that is not always easy to do
How good are our eyes?
Do we see well closely?
Do we see well far away?
Or can we see things that are eternal?
“while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the
things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary,
but the things which are not seen are eternal.” 2 Cor 4:18
Later in 2 Cor 5, Paul discusses more about why we see “differently”
than we used to see.
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away;
behold, all things have become new. Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us
to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us a ministry of reconciliation.” 2 Cor 5:17-18
Seeing as God sees is so radically different . . . and new.
We even get to learn how to watch our cares slide off our backs! It takes practice. And faith.
To that end, Jesus chose His words to us carefully so they would hit us right between our eyes.
“In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer. I have overcome the world.” Jn 16:33
Look up! And be of good cheer!!!
This is a bit confusing for me. It doesn’t seem as though the original question was really answered. I get that I don’t have to “win”. I can express my opinion or even show how something could be done better but if my opponent will not hear me, I can cease and desist and leave the outcome to God. Agree to disagree so to speak.
On the other hand, if some man approaches me with intent to rape me, are you implying that I cannot resist– certainly not to the point of maybe using deadly force? I can’t see myself saying, okay rape me and I’ll rest and simply pray. You win.
Maybe that is extreme but it is reality and I can tell you that I would resist with everything I had. Are you saying that pacifism is what pleases God? That we are never to fight to protect ourselves or for what is right? Are we not to oppose evil?
I do agree that winning everything is NOT important and trusting God IS important. I personally believe that we must carefully choose our battles and there is very little worth actually fighting for but there are those times. I do trust that God will lead me if I am depending on Him and I trust that He is an integral part of my life enough so that when those surprise moments come–I will chose wisely.
Maybe I am making this into something more than you intended today. It certainly has gotten the brain juices flowing this morning!! 🙂
But rape isn’t strife in the biblical meaning of the terms. Strife is ARGUMENT. There is every reason and biblical foundation for resisting rape (and punishing it severely). But what is in mind here is tension, argument, dissension, quarreling, group-think, etc. There is little point in engaging those who do not want to hear. There is every reason to resist those who want to harm.
Okay. Thank you. Seems like I was making more of it that was necessary.
I see the point.
Would throwing pearls before swine also apply here?
Good morning Skip,
I’ve appreciated your posts these last couple days, they’ve really hit home for me. To put it in perspective, I brought an issue up to the pastor of the local congregation in regards to some statements in the children’s sunday school curriculum. To be brief, the lesson given was regarding the parable of the good Samaritan and the terms used in addressing the behavior of the “questioning lawyer” were derogatory to put it mildly. My approach to him was my concern that we were teaching our children that it was ok to “hate” a general group of people. His response was that it was not teaching to hate, but rather that it was teaching that we didn’t want to be a “Pharisee.” Even though the motives of the lawyer in question was not declared in the story, his attitudes and motivations could be determined by the “overall testimony” of scripture concerning these men. To make a long story short, he felt that it was perfectly acceptable to teach our children in this way and I was deeply grieved.
When will we learn the simple lesson that teaching division causes division in spades. I’m pretty well convinced that the ?teen thousand denominations are a judgment for fomenting division in the first place. “in the measure you use”…..
I solicit your prayers and the prayers of this community, that God brings it to a right and just conclusion, no matter what that entails.
YHWH bless you and keep you……
Amazing! “We aren’t teaching hatred toward a group, just toward the Pharisees.” Did your pastor ever take a course in logic? It’s not unusual, unfortunately, for the Protestant Christian Church to take this position because they follow Luther’s view of Catholicism transferred to the Jews. What a shame?
Why don’t you ask him to read John Gager, The Origin of Anti-Semitism?
Thank you for the suggestion, I will even buy the book myself. I have to tread carefully here, if I display even a hint of discrimination in the opposite direction I’ll have become guilty of the same issue I confronted. Needing Wisdom.
Trust in my own strength… (no, that’s not it.)
Trust in my own abilities..(no, that’s not it.)
Trust in what others say.. (no, that’s not it.)
Ah, trust in government.. (no, that’s not it.)
Oh!… trust in hoarded-stockpiled gold!! (no, that’s not it.)
~ What do the scriptures say? ~ Is the Word of God our final authority for rightly-related living?
“Trust in the LORD.”
A very interesting word this “trust.”
“How blessed is the man who has made the LORD his trust” ( Psalm 40:4)
Notice with me, not just “blessed,”- but “how blessed!” Not just happy (happy).. but “how happy!”
Very interesting, how all these things are “interleaved,interdependent, intertwined and intermingled! Because of Christ our victorious conquering King who now has been given dominion and authority over Death, Sin, the Grave and hasatan, *in Him* we now have this living Hope!
…so that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which is perishable, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus (who is the) Christ; and though you have not seen Him, you love Him, and though you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, obtaining as the outcome of your faith the salvation of your souls.… (1 Peter 1.7,8)
~ How blessed is the man who has made ADONAI his trust ~ (Psalm 40:4)
For further study and blessing, “marinate” your soul in Psalm 37. Yes, – “how blessed!”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BeHjYK2Z1YI&noredirect=1
Should we not express concern, or warn others of impending danger if we see further down the road then they do on a subject?
I have an issue with a person in our community who is a Pastor’s wife (we only have two non mormon churches in our community) who consistently sucks people into her web and abuses and takes advantage of them. I have seen it happen to many people I know and love. Another set of friends are getting ready to get ground up in the trap she sets.
Though I tried very hard not to say anything to them, to stay my tongue, I did end up running into them in a providential way. So warned them to not get tangled up with this person in a way that could ruin their finances and make them dependent on her for their survival. I didn’t bad mouth her or expound on what she has done, just passed along the warning.
I know what the pastor’s wife is trying to do to this couple, it is unconscionable, in my opinion. It is hard to rest when you see things like this going on in the name of the Lord.
Seems like a set up to me. Just yesterday in prayer as I asked the Father to cleanse me and draw me into truth. Today, go to work and now mind you I read and prayed this am as I do every morning this study, and what a set up. Ok so I do my work and after I do the particular OR case one of my follow up routines is to follow a certain procedure to clean the colonoscope which I have done many times the same way for many years. Today one of the nurses says to me, “Babs, did you suck water through that scope like you were supposed to?”, My answer, “yes, I always do.” She said “well if you did, why is this cup still full of water?” I know I didn’t lie. I stood there looking at a full cup of water knowing I didn’t lie and knowing I didn’t skip a step. Interesting. I walked away and pondered the entire way I did the end of the cleaning and remembered how I actually sucked water just like I always did and it wasn’t through the cup but through a bottle. Long story, this has a point, I got hot under the collar and made a decision I on intended to just let that little nurse know that I most certainly did what I was supposed to do and that what I did wasn’t wrong, and oh by the way, did I mention she called me out in front of my peers? Oh yeah. Well this little girl didn’t take long to go marching into the lounge and letting her know that I was a fool yes I walked right into it, a setup. Thanks! Later I confessed to the Father, her and of course everyone who got to hear me and my foolish words. Maybe this will be a life lesson to walk in for more than a day or two. His words are definitely for showing the hidden motives of our hearts aren’t they?
I guess there will always be strife, not setting that in concrete :-), but there will be folks, even Believers who will not study, nor dig into the Word for themselves; rather, they would presume they are so right
these folks would set out to strife with anyone who crosses their paths, not acknowledging their own ignorance and dogmaticism.
Someone argued that the ‘ark’ of Noah was not in the shape of a box, as it looked precariously unstable.
I had to remind that person that YHWH is in charge, and the pattern and measurements are from Him, and He is the One Who will keep the ark safe! Ark means a vessel, a box, a chest, so it’s not the shape, but the function of it that is of significance, built according to YHWH’s specifications.
Even a small issue like this can arouse strife, to become a cause for dissension! 🙁
I believe it arises from unbelief.