Skip to main content

If only...




If only you would slay the wicked, O God!
Away from me, you bloodthirsty men!
They speak of you with evil intent;
your adversaries misuse your name.
Do I not hate those who hate you, O LORD,
and abhor those who rise up against you?
I have nothing but hatred for them;
I count them my enemies. (Psalm 139:19-22)
     From yesterday's crescendo, it seems to me this section begins with a sigh. If only these terrible people didn't exist. If only they would leave me and mine alone. If only those who oppose God would just die. If only things could be the way they should be, whatever that may mean to you.  If only a knight in shining armor would come along and make everything right. If only we could be the knight who goes out against the dragon, Wrong.  If only everything worked the way it should. We sigh with David.

       These adversaries weren't just people who hated David or wanted his kingdom. They were people who spoke of God with an evil intent. They misused God's name. They hated God. They rose up against God. David does not ask God to consider David's enemies God's enemies.  These are the people David considered his enemies: people who were enemies of God. Some of these enemies might have been like Goliath, who effectively spat in God's face. They could also have been like Eli's two sons, who served as priests and used the positions to their own advantage. They could have been people who spoke of God in order to manipulate - wolves in sheep's clothing who brought death into the land in God's name.

      Those people still exist. Four particular groups come to mind. The first is those who say that it doesn't matter what you believe. All that matters is your behavior. This one goes around as a meme on a regular basis. The second is those who say it doesn't matter how you behave. All that matters is what you believe. They are the reason the meme about behavior goes around on a regular basis. The third is those who say that you don't need the Church to be a Christian. The fourth is that group that uses Christianity and/or God for their own profit; who use Christianity or God as a means to an end. These are greater enemies than the "Goliaths" out there, the Daesh and other terror organizations  around the world because they attack from within and often without our even realizing it.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Higher Thoughts

  “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the  Lord . “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. (Isaiah 55:8-9)           The person with the Spirit makes judgments about all things, but such a person is not subject to merely human judgments,   for, “Who has known the mind of the Lord      so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ. (I Corinthians 2:15-16) If you read about the ancient gods of the various peoples, you’ll find that they think just like people. In fact, they think just like the sort of people we really wouldn’t want to be around. They think like the most corrupt Hollywood producer or, like hormone overloaded teens with no upbringing.   It’s embarrassing to read. I have a friend who argues that because God is not just like us, He is so vastly dif...

Think About These Things

                 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. (Philippians 4:8) This passage is a major challenge for me. Like everyone else, I struggle to keep my thoughts from wandering off into the weeds, then wondering what possible benefits those weeds might have… Sigh. But as a writer, I have to delve at least a little into the ignoble, wrong, impure, unlovely, and debased. After all, there’s no story if everything’s just as it should be and everyone’s happy. As Christians, there are times when we need to deal with all the negatives, but that makes it even more important that we practice turning our minds by force of attention to what is noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, and praiseworthy. It’s just too easy to get stuck in a swamp. With my...

A Virgin?

           Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel. (Isaiah 7:14)           This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. (Matthew 1:18)           But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.”            “How will this be,” Mary asked the...