Quantity or Quality?

A man of many companions may come to ruin,
    but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.

Proverbs 18:24 

I like to ponder and think.  One of my favorites things to consider happens to be the words we use and how their meanings have changed with the passing of time.  Take the word "love." It was once a word of intimacy and trust. For example, if one loved one's friend then that friend was completely trusted without question and you knew that friend would NEVER turn their back on you or turn against you.  Now, it is used to describe pretty much any type enjoyment.  

"Friend" is another word which has changed with the years.  There was a time when the term Friend had meaning.  If someone called you "Friend" that was a title you cherished and strove to keep true.  If you remember in Scripture, David and Jonathan had that kind of friendship.  Now, however, the term "friend" has come to mean "I don't know you very well, but I recognize your face or name so we're good."  And we have become so adept at gathering large numbers of "friends" around us so we feel popular.  Even Facebook has become just another place where we garner large numbers of "friends" many of whom we have never met, yet that is one of the markers of popularity.

Let me ask you...would you rather have a large number of "friends" or a few true Friends?  You see, Jesus, even though large groups gathered around Him wherever He went, had only a few true friends.  Remember, Lazarus was the only Friend,Scripture tells us, Jesus wept over.  So consider, what category do you fit into, "friend" or Friend?

 

Decisions Decisions!

 Jesus returned to the Mount of Olives, but early the next morning he was back again at the Temple. A crowd soon gathered, and he sat down and taught them. As he was speaking, the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in the act of adultery. They put her in front of the crowd.

“Teacher,” they said to Jesus, “this woman was caught in the act of adultery. The law of Moses says to stone her. What do you say?”

John 8:1-5

     Decisions!  We face them every day.  Some are easy to make (Coffee before speaking for me please). And some are not so simple (Bacon wrapped salad or salad wrapped bacon?).  But have you ever had a decision to make that, no matter what you decided, someone was going to be ticked off at you either way?

     In today's passage, a woman has been brought to Jesus who was caught in the very act of adultery.  Adultery, in Jesus' time, was punishable by death!  Jesus taught grace, love and mercy.  And this woman has been brought to Jesus, by the religious leaders, and put in front of Jesus for a decision.  Jesus was teaching a crowd of people about God's love, mercy, forgiveness and grace, and now He has to make a decision that is going to make Him EXTREMELY unpopular with either the "Church Folk" who brought the woman or the people He had been teaching.  Jesus had been put in a "damned if you do and damned if you don't" situation.

     What about us?  Do we have decisions to make that are "damned if you do and damned if you don't"?  Let's face it, you can't make EVERYBODY happy. And let's also understand, you will discover who your TRUE friends are in such situations because they will stand by you even if they disagree with your decision.

     Meanwhile back at the ranch, Jesus has a decision to make.  If he decides that the "Church Folk" are correct, then His teaching about love, mercy, grace and forgiveness will be seen as a pack of lies and no one will want to listen to Him ever again.  On the other hand, if He decides to go the route of mercy, grace, love, and forgiveness, the "Church Folk" will take umbrage and tell the Romans that Jesus should be killed because He was inciting the common folk to go against the church.  What to do, what to do?

     But Jesus took Door #3 and told the "Church Folk" if their way was so good, then they needed to be the ones to STEP UP and prove it!  Were the "Church Folk" right?  Technically, yes!  According to the Law of Moses, having been caught IN THE ACT of adultery, the woman should have been killed (and so should the man she was with).  But the reality is this, none of the "Church Folk" were willing to step up and hurl the first rock.  They liked Jesus even less after this, but they preferred to be cowardly and make a lot of noise rather than step up and prove their ideologies.

   And this same struggle continues. So we have a decision to make (damned if you do and damned if you don't): Will you cut and run?  Will you step up and prove your ideology?  Or will you just make a lot of noise for attention and so people will think your noise makes a difference?  

Let's Talk For A Moment

Always be joyful. 
Never stop praying. 
Be thankful in all circumstances, 
for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.
~ 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

Let's talk about the 800 pound gorilla in the room, shall we?  When we tell someone that we are praying for them, do we or are we just saying we will OR are we saying it because it's been so long since you actually talked with God that you have forgotten who He is?

Let's start at the top...Paul tells us to be "Joyful."  There is a HUGE difference between being "joyful" and being "happy" and we seem to have them confused.  You see "JOYFUL" is a conscious decision that we make because of, or even in spite of, our circumstances, predicaments, situations, or feelings.  On the other hand "Happy" is momentary, fleeting, situational, and is a feeling which is subject to change at a moment's notice.  Hmmmm......

Next Paul reminds us to "Never stop praying."  This does not mean you quit your job, wander off to some monastic facility in the mountains and live the rest of your life as a hermit talking only to God.  Let's say your best friend calls; you answer the phone without looking at the caller ID; how do you know it's your best friend? Because you know the voice!  And how did they become your best friend? Because you invested yourself into each other's lives, learning to trust each other and keep no secrets from each other...you can talk about anything and everything.  Hmmmm.... When we develop that kind of relationship with God, you have the best possible best friend EVER!  Have I achieved that status? No, but I'm still talking to Him and we have lots of conversations about....well, YOU!

Finally, Paul reminds us to "Be Thankful In ALL Circumstances."  Here's a little tidbit for the mind to chew on today: Circumstances change! Gratitude for who God is doesn't! We make the choice many times every single day: Either we determine to maintain our attitude of gratitude OR we let our circumstances decide for us if we are going to be grateful or ticked off.  

There's a lot going on in these few brief words of today's passage.  Talking with God and developing that relationship that is beyond description should cause us to be eternally grateful REGARDLESS of our circumstances.  But the 800 pound gorilla in the room is this: What will you decide and when are you going to start?