Words and Conduct

 

Leviticus 23:32a (NET) - You must not profane my holy name,

When we think about profanity, we immediately think in terms of careless language.

The Ten Commandments found in Exodus 20 certainly warns of this.

We are commanded not to take the name of the Lord our God in vain.

But to be honest this warning from Leviticus goes beyond language.

Therefore, we must ask ourselves what the word “profane” really means.

Simply put, the verb “profane” means “treating the sacred with irreverence or disrespect”.

This certainly happens with a careless choice of words.

It also happens through a careless choice of conduct.

We must be as careful with our conduct as we are with our words.

Peter understood the importance of Christian conduct.

In fact, he pointed this out in his first letter.

1 Peter 1:15 (NET) - but, like the Holy One who called you, become holy yourselves in all of your conduct,

Peter stated that our conduct helps make us holy.

Controlling our words can be difficult.

Controlling our conduct can be even harder.

That is why we need Christ in our lives.

He understands that love is the key to controlling both.

Love helps us choose our words.

Love also helps us determine our conduct.

In Matthew 22, an expert in the law tests Jesus by asking Him which commandment is the most important.

Jesus surprised him with a two-fold answer.

The first is to love God with all our being.

The second is to love our neighbor as ourselves.

When we fail to love God, we profane God.

When we fail to love our neighbor, we also profane God.

John Amos Comenius (1592-1670) put it this way:

“Whenever you encounter one of your neighbors, regard him as yourself in another form (which he is), or indeed as God in another form, for he is the image of God, and God will be watching to see how reverently you treat him.”

Like most worthwhile things in life, we can find loving others difficult.

But God can help us.

He can help us reflect his infinite love through our words and our conduct.

He can bolster our faith and guide our steps as we move among those whom He created.

Blessings,

Jim Pokorny

The Other Brother Jim

Look for me at https://faithfulfeetteam.blogspot.com/ on Friday, September 3, 2021.

I will be back here on Friday, September 10, 2021

 

In Harmony

 

Job 21:22 (NET) - Can anyone teach God knowledge, since he judges those that are on high?

The book of Job can be puzzling.

It can and does raise several questions.

Why believe in God if there is no reward?

Why do good people suffer?

Why do the unjust get rewarded?

Job, in his misery and pain, began to question his faith and his very existence.

Even those closest to him were of no help.

Job’s wife suggested he “curse God and die.”

His friends were no better.

They inferred that Job must have been punished for his sin.

Job responded to one friend with the question: “Can anyone teach God knowledge, since he judges those that are on high?”

Job realized that man cannot fully understand the triune God.

In the end, Job repented.

Although we cannot fully understand the triune God, we can glimpse certain aspects.

Paul, in his letter to the Romans, grasped the harmony between Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

Romans 12:16 (NET) - Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty but associate with the lowly. Do not be conceited.

The Father creates.

The Son redeems.

The Holy Spirit makes holy.

These aspects of God work together in harmony with each other.

Although beyond our complete understanding, God demonstrates this to us.

We should therefore work in harmony with each other.

Considering today’s headlines, the world could certainly benefit from our working harmoniously with one another.

True, we cannot fully understand God, but we can learn from our glimpses of Him.

Blessings,

Jim Pokorny

The Other Brother Jim

Look for me at https://faithfulfeetteam.blogspot.com/ on Friday, August 20, 2021.

I will be back here on Friday, August 27, 2021