November 4 Day 308 Warnings These days, practically everything you buy in a shop seems to carry some kind of warning on it. The warnings on some of these items can seem a little ridiculous. For example: Sainsbury’s peanuts: ‘Warning – C.......................................ontains nuts’ Nytol Nighttime Sleep-Aid: ‘Warning – May cause drowsiness’ On a hair dryer: ‘Do not use in shower’ On a household DIY drill: ‘Not intended for use as dentist drill’ Because so many warnings seem almost absurd, the danger is that we ignore them. But not all warnings are so ridiculous. It was a foggy day in March. The fog led to one of Britain’s worst road accidents. Ten people died and twenty-five people were injured in a disaster on the M4 motorway on 13 March 1991. In the midst of the accident one man was hailed as a hero. Alan Bateman climbed out of his damaged car and ran along the central reservation to try to warn oncoming vehicles of the wreckage ahead. Not all appreciated the warnings. Some drivers sounded their horns at him and drove on towards the crash. Alan’s warnings to the other drivers were not only heroic; they were an act of love. Jesus himself often warned of dangers ahead (see for example Matthew 7:13,19,26–27). Jesus knew that in the long run it is more loving to warn people by telling them the truth. God loves you. He does not want you to get hurt. There are many warnings in the Bible and they all stem from God’s love for you. 1. Warnings about human nature Proverbs 26:23-27:4 It is an almost invariable principle of life that what you sow now, you reap later. Much of the teaching in this section of Proverbs is summed up by the verse: ‘If you dig a pit, you will fall into it; if you roll a stone, it will roll back on you’ (26:27). In other words, you reap what you sow. The writer warns against malice: ‘Malice backfires; spite boomerangs’ (v.27, MSG). However much we try to conceal our desire to hurt other people, it will eventually be exposed: and we will reap the consequences. Next, he warns against, ‘a lying tongue’ (v.28). We need to be very careful that we only speak the truth about others. It is sometimes tempting to tell exaggerated stories about our opponents. But the writer warns, ‘A lying tongue hates those it hurts’ (v.28). He goes on to warn about boasting (27:1). We should not boast about what we are going to achieve, as we don’t know what the future will hold. It is alright to receive praise from others but it should not come from our own lips (v.2). Then, he warns against provoking people: ‘Stone is heavy and sand a burden, but provocation by a fool is heavier than both’ (v.3). Finally, in this passage, he warns that jealousy is an even more powerful and dangerous force than anger and fury (v.4): ‘We’re blasted by anger and swamped by rage, but who can survive jealousy?’ (v.4, MSG). Shakespeare described jealousy as the ‘green-eyed monster’ that eats us up and at the same time mocks ‘the meat it feeds on.’ Lord, thank you for these warnings about human nature. Help us to avoid hypocrisy, malice, deception, boasting, provocation, anger, fury and jealousy. Guard our hearts. Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us. Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. 2. Warnings about immaturity Hebrews 5:11-6:12 God’s desire for you is that you ‘grow up in Christ’ (v.11, MSG). He wants you to grow into a healthy, strong, spiritual maturity. Maturity requires a listening attitude. The Christians addressed here have ‘picked up the bad habit of not listening’ (v.11, MSG). God is continually speaking to us (Matthew 4:4). We need to develop a regular habit of listening to him – as he speaks to us primarily through the Bible. The writer of Hebrews warns his readers against spiritual immaturity. They ‘ought to be teachers’ (5:12). This does not mean a specialised group. Anyone instructed in the faith was expected to teach others (1 Peter 3:15). One of the best ways to start growing in your faith is to pass it on to others. This is why we often invite those who have encountered Jesus on Alpha to come back and help on the next course. He wants them to move on from milk to solid food. Teaching is part of Christian maturity. He encourages them to move on from the elementary teachings about Christ: repentance, faith, baptism, laying on of hands, the resurrection and judgment (6:1–2). We feed ourselves through Bible study, reading and listening to good teaching. He says, ‘Solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil’ (Hebrews 5:14). In other words, maturity comes through practice – applying God’s words to our lives. As John Wimber used to say, ‘the meat is on the street.’ Maturity is not just about head knowledge. You learn as you live out your faith. He then warns them of the danger of abandoning, or renouncing, their faith (vv.4–8). This is a very difficult passage, as at first sight it seems to suggest both that a Christian can fall away, and that there is a group of people for whom repentance is impossible. These are two things that the rest of the New Testament makes clear are not the case (see especially Romans 5–8). His main aim is to encourage perseverance. The severity of the warnings in Hebrews 6:4–8 makes clear how important this is. However, the point about falling away is not developed or explained further because he is confident that they will not do so – ‘I’m sure that won’t happen to you, friends’ (v.9, MSG). He then goes on to congratulate and reassure them for the fruit they are showing in their lives. The deeds of kindness that they have done to the people of God are already reckoned by God as if they were done to himself (v.10). He will reward them. They have started well and now he encourages them to finish well – ‘to show this same diligence to the very end’ (v.11). Generally in life it is much easier to start things than to finish them. When the initial enthusiasm wears off, follow through requires hard work, patience and courage. Success, fruitfulness and reward come to those ‘who stay the course with committed faith and then get everything promised to them’ (v.12, MSG). Lord, help us all to finish well. Help us to grow in maturity through action and study. Keep us from drifting away. Help us not to ‘become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised’ (v.12). 3. Warnings about judgment Ezekiel 4:1-6:14 From the start, it is clear that warning people is never an easy job! This passage is all about God warning his people about what is going to happen to them. Furthermore, what is about to happen to Israel is intended to be ‘a warning … to the nations’ (5:15). Yesterday we read about how the Lord said to Ezekiel, ‘I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel; so hear the word I speak and give them warning from me’ (3:17). In today’s passage we see Ezekiel taking the first steps in speaking out the warnings that God had instructed him to give. Ezekiel is asked to enact visual aids to show the seriousness of sin and the warning of the impending judgment that will happen if they do not repent. Ezekiel must have appeared to be rather eccentric. Lying on his side for a total of 430 days (4:5–6) must have seemed a little odd – but it was a powerful visual aid. (It has probably always been the case that people are more likely to remember what they see than what they hear.) Judgment was coming because the people of God had ‘not even conformed to the standards of the nations around [them]’ (5:7). God never issues empty threats, ‘I did not threaten in vain’ (6:10). God’s warnings are always acts of love. He desires that all people should repent and ‘come to the knowledge of truth’ (1 Timothy 2:4). Today, we are so worried about sounding negative or judgmental that there is a danger of us being unloving by not being sufficiently bold in warning people of the dangers ahead. It was love for God and for God’s people that caused Ezekiel to carry out these visual demonstrations warning of God’s judgment ahead. Ezekiel was told to ‘bear the sin’ of the people (4:4–6). This visual aid was also a sign of what was to come. Jesus did what Ezekiel was only able to foreshadow. Jesus bore our sins on the cross (1 Peter 2:24). He took the judgment of God upon himself and enabled you and me to receive all the wonderful promises of blessing for those in Christ. As you read this Old Testament passage through the lens of Jesus, you are in a different situation. The life, death and resurrection of Jesus changed everything, yet the warnings for us are still real and serious. Indeed, these warnings make the reality of salvation and the many blessings available in Christ all the more amazing. The gospel is good news. Lord, give us wisdom in how we communicate the good news of Jesus with sensitivity and faithfulness. Give us courage to proclaim the whole counsel of God. Pippa Adds Ezekiel 4:1–14 Poor Ezekiel! It sounds awful lying on one side for 390 days and eating food cooked over dung. I dont think God has asked me to do anything like that. Thankfully, we dont all have to be eccentric
Posted on: Mon, 04 Nov 2013 09:51:59 +0000
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