Gaming disorders ∙∙

Gaming disorders ∙∙

Don’t you realize that you become the slave of whatever you choose to obey? – Romans 6:16

John 8:34 Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin.

Romans 6:16-23

 16 Don’t you realize that you become the slave of whatever you choose to obey? You can be a slave to sin, which leads to death, or you can choose to obey God, which leads to righteous living.

 17 Thank God! Once you were slaves of sin, but now you wholeheartedly obey this teaching we have given you.

 18 Now you are free from your slavery to sin, and you have become slaves to righteous living.

 19 Because of the weakness of your human nature, I am using the illustration of slavery to help you understand all this. Previously, you let yourselves be slaves to impurity and lawlessness, which led ever deeper into sin. Now, you must give yourselves to be slaves to righteous living so that you will become holy.

 21 And what was the result? You are now ashamed of the things you used to do, things that end in eternal doom.

 22 But now you are free from the power of sin and have become slaves of God.

 23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.

In May 2019, the World Health Organization added a new condition to its classification of addictive behaviors and substance-related disorders. The 2019 International Classification of Diseases edition now includes “Gaming Disorder.” This disorder is characterized by a persistent or recurrent pattern of gaming behavior that is so severe that it takes priority over other life interests and daily activities, resulting in significant impairment in personal, family, social, educational, occupational, or other important areas of activity. The disorder must have been present for at least 12 months to be diagnosed.

It is no secret that video games are designed to be addictive. The captivating nature of video games is well-documented. Video game developers encode their games using psychological techniques. The virtual fantasy world they create is enticing, engendering an insatiable, almost unquenchable craving for more.

Video games have evolved beyond simple digital pastimes to become sources of personal identity, self-worth, fulfillment, and accomplishment. They reward persistence without real-world penalties for failure. This dynamic can offer a sense of satisfaction often elusive in real-life interactions, jobs, or hobbies. Meghan Vivo observed, “Video games have done far more than change how we entertain ourselves. They have changed how we communicate, how much time we spend with friends and family, and how much time we invest in active, real-life pursuits.” This shift towards virtual interaction can significantly hinder direct, face-to-face social development.

Research published in the Journal of Youth and Adolescence, “More Than a Just a Game: Video Game and Internet Use During Emerging Adulthood,” January 10, 2009). The results suggested numerous adverse outcomes for both men and women. Gaming disorder was included in the 11th Revision of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11) in 2018

The more time students spent playing video games, the worse their relationships with peers and parents became. Digital relationships are simply not the same as physical ones. In many cases, video games provide make-believe personal and family relationships. In certain instances, video games become a surrogate occupation.

In the real world, fallen people are easily enticed. Potential addictions are lurking all around us. An addiction is a state of being enslaved to a habit or practice or to something that is psychologically or physically habit-forming. In Scripture, activities that are addictive have a simple label: sin.

Sin is an unseen master that enslaves us.

Romans 6:16 Don’t you realize that you become the slave of whatever you choose to obey?

John 8:34 Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin.

REFLECT & PRAY

If someone who is blind leads another who is blind, both will fall into a ditch. – Matthew 15:14

Father thank You for making it possible for the children of the King to be free from sin and addictive behaviors. Encourage us to make the best possible choices and live in freedom.

INSIGHT

Being enslaved to a master is somewhat of a paradox. Often, we think we are most free when we are most enslaved. Because we are born in sin, we are born enslaved to sin. Being a slave is what we know; it may be all that we ever know. We may have some choice regarding the brand and model of our sin, but it is still sin.

Thanks be to the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who have provided the path to freedom.

John 8:36 So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed.

John 8:31-32

 31 You are truly my disciples if you remain faithful to my teachings.

 32 And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.

Freedom from the addictions of sin comes through choice. Because of the Lord Jesus Christ, we can now choose freedom. We can exchange masters. For those with gaming disorders, their master is the video game. The gamers are its slaves.

Freedom is possible through understanding the truth of God’s word and choosing to be free. When we decide to let the Lord Jesus Christ be our master, our former master loses its power over us. We no longer have to obey its commands.

The apostle Paul is a perfect example of this. He was enslaved to self-righteous arrogance. He would go on rampages, searching out the Father’s children to imprison or worse. He brought havoc and devastation wherever he went, and Paul loved it. A significant intervention was needed to turn things around.

Paul’s raging, ravaging behavior came to a sudden halt. His addiction ended in a moment. All it took was one brief but rather tumultuous and devastating encounter with the Lord Jesus Christ. What irony, what Paul had sown, he reaped. The devastator was devastated.

Acts 9:3-5

 3 As he was approaching Damascus on this mission, a light from heaven suddenly shone down around him.

 4 He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul! Saul! Why are you persecuting me?”

 5 “Who are you, lord?” Saul asked. And the voice replied, “I am Jesus, the one you are persecuting!”

Paul instantly knew that he was in the presence of a messenger from the Father. Paul calls Him lord. But this was no ordinary messenger. This was the Lord Jesus Christ Himself! He was amazed. He was literally blinded. Paul was toast. He turned 180°. Instructions soon followed.

Paul was the Lord Jesus Christ’s chosen instrument to take His message to the Gentiles, kings, and the people of Israel. From that moment on, He served the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul immediately began preaching about Jesus in the synagogues, saying, “He is indeed the Son of God!”

Paul found real freedom and ultimate satisfaction through his new Master. Paul had a favorite personal designation. Paul repeatedly self-identified himself as a slave of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Mick Jagger never did, at least, so he sang.

I can’t get no satisfaction; I can’t get no satisfaction

‘Cause I try and I try and I try and I try

I can’t get no, I can’t get no

When I’m drivin’ in my car, and the man come on the radio

He’s tellin’ me more and more about some useless information

Supposed to fire my imagination

I can’t get no, oh, no, no, no, hey, hey, hey

That’s what I say

I can’t get no satisfaction, I can’t get no satisfaction

‘Cause I try and I try and I try and I try

I can’t get no, I can’t get no

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© Dr. H 2024

God is God, we’re not ∙

God is God, we’re not ∙

Take time to think about the great things God does. – Job 37:14

Job 37:14-24

 14 Listen to this, O Job, stand and consider the wonders of God.

 15 Do you know how God controls the storm and causes the lightning to flash from his clouds?

 16 Do you understand how he moves the clouds perfectly and skillfully?

 17 When you are sweltering in your clothes, and the south wind dies down, and everything is still,

 18 He makes the skies reflect the heat like a bronze mirror. Can you do that?

  23 We cannot imagine the power of the Almighty; dismiss, but even though he is just and righteous, he does not destroy us.

 24 No wonder people everywhere fear him. All who are wise show him reverence.

Goosebumps are also referred to as goose pimples, goose flesh, horripilation, and piloerection. The medical term is cutis anserine (cutis means skin, and anser means goose). Goosebumps are a skin response, a temporary change in texture from smooth to bumpy. They result from the contraction of the piloerector muscles, triggered autonomously by the sympathetic nervous system.

Goosebumps erupt often when we are extremely cold. They frequently occur in unpleasant situations involving fear or, perhaps more accurately, horror. Goosebumps usually arise during awe-inspiring experiences, when things happen that give us “chills,” or when we are spiritually or emotionally moved. Their eruption is often concurrent with awe, pride, exhilaration, listening to music, and the excitement of experiencing God.

Fallen humanity cannot comprehend the marvels of the creation and the creator God, the Father who made them all.

“It is good to remind ourselves that the Lord is God and we are not. He is the Creator; we are the created. He is the Original; we are the image. He is our Friend, but absolutely not our peer” (Stanley).

Psalms 111:2-4

 2 How amazing are the deeds of the LORD! All who delight in him should ponder them.

 3 Everything he does reveals his glory and majesty. His righteousness never fails.

 4 He causes us to remember his wonderful works. How gracious and merciful is our LORD!

The Father’s creation appears without end. In the book of Job, Elihu, one of his friends, points this out to him. He reminds Job that the Father alone is God, and Job is not. The Father is unlimited and all-powerful. The Father has perfect knowledge. Elihu is awed by the Father, the living God. He fixates on the Father’s majesty and perfection in everything He thinks and does. Elihu reminds Job that we humans can’t begin to understand the complexity of the Father and His creation.

Job 37:22 God is clothed with awesome majesty.

Elihu challenges Job to call to mind the Father’s excellent majesty as Job struggles with his losses. He warns Job against giving into arrogant conceit.

Job 37:24 All who are wise show him reverence. He does not regard any who are wise in their own conceit.

Ultimately, there are only two responses to the majestic glory of the eternal, omniscient, omnipotent, omnipresent God. Either people are wise and respect the Father, or they are conceded, wise in their own eyes, and turn away from the Father.

No matter what we’re going through, the Father is God. He is always at work, even though we cannot see or understand what He does.

Job 5:9 He does great things that are too marvelous to understand. He performs countless miracles.

Contemplating the Father and all He is, all He has done, and all He is doing should give the children of the King chills. He is totally awesome!

REFLECT & PRAY

The Father is always at work. We are fascinated and moved to worship Him as we observe and recognize His handiwork and creativity. His extraordinary intelligence and splendor give us chills.

Father thank You, for Your magnificent creation. Thank You, for even when we cannot see You, You are at work in our lives. Empower me to see You with the eyes of faith.

INSIGHT

Our God is an awesome God. He reigns from heaven above.

With wisdom pow’r and love. Our God is an awesome God.

Deuteronomy 10:17 For the LORD your God is the God of gods and Lord of lords. He is the great God, the mighty and awesome God.

The Hebrew word translated as excellent is yare. Yare means to inspire awe, reverence, or fear.

Job and his friends Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar engage in three rounds of heated discussion. They finally reach an impasse regarding theodicy, the question of why a good God permits evil. Elihu, being the youngest, waits for his turn to speak and now chimes in with his insights (Job 32-37).

Job 37:14 Pay attention to this, Job. Stop and consider the wonderful miracles of God!

Elihu draws attention to the Father’s immense power,  majesty, and sovereignty. He challenges Job to “consider the wonderful miracles” (Job 37:14).

The Hebrew term “amad” is often translated as “stand” or “stop.” Here, it conveys the idea of pausing, remaining quiet, suggesting a moment of contemplation or silence. Similarly, the Hebrew word “bin,” translated as consider, has a sense of diligently considering, observing, and carefully seeking to understand or discern. 

Elihu essentially says to Job, “Focus on me while you ponder the astounding deeds of God” or “Take a moment to reflect on the magnificent acts of God” (UBS). He emphasizes that the Father orchestrates the workings of His creation.

Elihu aims to instill a sense of humility in Job, urging him towards repentance by confronting him with questions to explain the inexplicable. Namely, the Father’s mysterious command over natural elements like clouds, lightning, winds, the heavens, and the sun (Job 37:15-24).

Hebrews 11:3 By faith, we understand that the entire universe was formed at God’s command and that what we now see did not come from anything that can be seen.

Hebrews 11:6 It is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.

The Father is God, and we are not!

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© Dr. H 2024



Blind justice ∙∙

Blind justice ∙∙

He will judge the world with justice and rule the nations with fairness. – Psalms 9:8

Psalms 85:10 Lovingkindness and truth have met together; Righteousness and peace have kissed each other.

Jeremiah 23:5 “For the time is coming,” says the LORD, “when I will raise up a righteous descendant from King David’s line. He will be a King who rules with wisdom. He will do what is just and right throughout the land.”

In contemporary society, justice is often symbolized through images or illustrations as a blindfolded woman holding a balance scale and a sword pointing upwards. This imagery suggests that justice should be blind to biases, aiming for fairness, impartiality, and equality. It implies an ideal where decisions are made without regard to an individual’s nationality, ethnicity, religion, skin color, or gender.

Traditionally, and regrettably still prevalent today, the concept of justice has been simplistic: the principle that “Might makes right.” This notion, enduring through the ages, posits that those with wealth and power are unaccountable, essentially becoming the law themselves.

Where did their power and control come from? Power dynamics, defined by various factors such as wealth, familial background, religion, race, ethnicity, gender, and social status, have historically dictated what is deemed right and wrong, creating a divide between the “haves” and the “have-nots” and fostering an uneven playing field and systemic injustices.

Before the “woke” movement emerged, social justice was understood as active social engagement – feeding the hungry, caring for neighbors, and volunteering time and resources to aid those less fortunate. This definition emphasized acts of kindness and community support.

However, the “woke” reinterpretation of social justice introduces a new perspective. Influenced by Marxist principles, it critiques the notion of private ownership and frames societal issues primarily as conflicts between those with power versus the powerless. This contemporary approach to social justice seeks to challenge power imbalances and rectify systemic inequalities.

This perspective perpetuates the optimistic hope that the government can fix everything. It suggests that improvements for the powerless will follow by surrendering personal freedoms and properties to state control. However, this raises questions about the implications for the “haves.” What happens to those with wealth, power, or status? Things do not work out too well for them. They are to become disenfranchised.

Advocates of a “woke” approach to social justice often recommend an equitable redistribution of wealth and assets as a solution. They argue that such measures would achieve social justice and pave the way for a utopian society. Yet, it’s worth taking a moment to consider the effectiveness of these strategies. Ask yourself, how well has this worked out anytime, anywhere, in the world? Have these strategies ever resulted in a fair and just society?

REFLECT & PRAY

“True peace is not merely the absence of war but the presence of justice.” This statement has been attributed to Jane Addams, a pioneering social worker, activist, and Nobel Peace Prize laureate (1931). However, it is more commonly associated with Martin Luther King Jr.

Father thank You for being just and righteous. You defer to no one. Your absolutes in the Word of God provide a firm foundation for life, law, governance, fairness, and justice.

INSIGHT

It was rare to find laws with universal accountability outside the Scriptures, such as those seen in the Ten Commandments or the Torah. Civilizations such as Egypt, Assyria, and China operated under legal systems emanating from the decree of absolute monarchs or sovereigns. Hammurabi’s code stood out as an early attempt at codifying laws. Ancient Greeks and Romans also developed legal standards of conduct. Although every culture had its own set of rules, not all were universally applied to every member of society.

Viewed through a “woke” lens critical of societal inequities, many social issues are traced back to foundational injustices within societal frameworks. These injustices often stem from poverty and unequal distribution of resources. Francis Schaeffer articulated this by pointing out that “‘unjust social structures’ and in particular ‘the maldistribution of wealth’ are the real causes of evil in the world.”

In a theistic worldview, there is a God who exists. He created all that is and created people with whom He can interact. Without this type of God, there are no absolutes; everything is arbitrary. “Might makes right!”

But the Father has an entirely different way for society to function. He has provided absolute standards of right and wrong, good and evil, found in the Word of God. Societies based on absolutes derived from the Scriptures have a legal framework and a consensus within which they function. For Americans, this is expressed in one phrase from the Pledge of Allegiance, which was added in 1954: “One Nation under God.”

Biblical justice rests upon the absolute truth of the word of God. Because of absolute truth, justice, and impartiality, every person may be viewed with an unbiased lens.

Justice is not blind. It is impartial. Everyone is judged based on the Father’s absolutes and principles derived from them. Judges are bound to make objective decisions based on the law. No favoritism is permitted. Those who serve as witnesses or defendants swear before God “to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.”

This revolutionary approach to justice, characterized by its impartiality and adherence to absolute truth, was unprecedented in the world until it emerged during the Reformation in sixteenth-century northern Europe.

The Reformation laid the groundwork for a society that gave rise to freedom without chaos or capriciousness in Western European nations that adopted its principles. It positioned the Scriptures as the core foundation for morality and legal frameworks.

In 1905, Paul Robert unveiled his mural “Justice Lifts the Nations” in Lausanne, Switzerland, within the stairwell of the old Supreme Court Building. This artwork served as a daily visual prompt for judges heading to their courtrooms, reinforcing that justice is insightful and grounded in the divine absolutes provided by the Father God.

The mural presents Justice as a figure of a woman without a blindfold. She is holding a scale of balances and a sword. Her sword is not pointed vertically upward but downwards towards a book inscribed with the words “The Law of God.” This artistic choice emphasized to judges that their rulings should be anchored in unchanging truth rather than society’s transient or arbitrary norms.

Various legal scenarios in the foreground of the artwork illustrate the diversity of cases judges encounter. The mural’s overarching message is straightforward yet profound: God’s law is the basis for justice and freedom.

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© Dr. H 2024

The Love Giver ∙∙

The Love Giver ∙∙

God is love. – 1 John 4:8

1 John 4:18-19

 18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love.

 19 We love, because He first loved us.

Many individuals grapple with the question, “Does God exist?” This inquiry often leads to a follow-up question: “If God does exist, is He a loving God?”

These are some of the most significant and profound questions people can ever ask. They naturally lead to another query: “Where does love come from?”

We know that matter and energy exist. Over the centuries, we have discovered various laws that govern their behavior. If we were to assume the absence of a divine creator, then we are left with the premise that everything in existence sprang from nothing, without any guiding force or intelligence behind it.

The formula is simple and straightforward: Nothing + No one = Everything.

I find this logically untenable.

I utterly reject the notion that there is no God. The Scriptures address this very question, providing insight and guidance on the matter.

Psalms 53:1 The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.”

As to the second question, is God loving? The Scriptures speak plainly.

1 John 4:8 God is love.

In my heart of hearts, I know what I am truly like. God is good, righteous, and holy. He is perfect in all of His purity. I fall short of His magnificent, omnipotent splendor and majesty. Can I ever be lovable enough to deserve the Father’s love? How could He ever really love me? If He does love me, why does He love me?

The Scriptures provide an unequivocal answer: God is love. The Father doesn’t just love; He embodies love itself. Love defines the very core of the Father’s being. Love is not merely an attribute of the Father; it is the essence of His being, saturating every aspect of who He is. Love, agape love, emanates from Him. The Father lavishes His love on undeserving people just like us. His love is unconditional and sacrificial.

Romans 5:8 God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.

1 John 4:9 God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him.

Even with our fallen human limitations, most of us have experienced the joy of loving and being loved. So, where does this ability to love originate?

1 John 4:7 Love comes from God.

Is the source and ultimate cause of all human feelings and actions of love. “Human love is a reflection of something in the divine nature itself” (A. E. Brooke).

The Father is the primary and supreme Source of Love, from whom all forms of love flow.

REFLECT & PRAY

All fear fades away when we understand that the Father loves us unconditionally.

Father thank You for loving me without reservation. It is so incredible that I can hardly take it in.

INSIGHT

1 John 4:18-19

 18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love.

 19 We love, because He first loved us.

Agape love is unconditional love. This profound sense of assurance does not depend on anything we do or don’t do. Something amazing happens when we reflect upon this and allow it to penetrate the deepest recesses of our souls. All fear is removed because there is no fear in love.

The Father is not “out to get us.” He is not seeking to punish us. Because we are His children, He is always at work to bring us to maturity. Because He loves us, He disciplines us.

Hebrews 12:7 As you endure divine discipline, remember that God treats you as his own children. Whoever heard of a child whom its father never disciplines?

The Greek word translated discipline is paideia. Paideia comes from the Greek verb paideuo, which means to rear or guide a child toward maturity, train, instruct, or correct. Pediatrics comes from this word.

Discipline and punishment are not synonyms. It’s crucial to distinguish discipline from punishment. Discipline is forward-looking, focusing on personal growth and development. In contrast, punishment is backward-looking. It is all about receiving a just penalty for previous wrong actions.

Because of the Father’s unconditional love for us, fear and dread should not be part of our vocabulary. Love and fear cannot coexist; they are mutually exclusive. Perfect love casts out fear (1 John 4:18).

If we continue to experience fear and dread, we do not fully comprehend and realize the Father’s magnificent and more than abounding love for us. We have not fully experienced His perfect love (1 John 4:18).

Because of what the Lord Jesus Christ has done, the Father fully accepts us unconditionally. We are the Father’s beloved children. He cherishes us, and we are precious to Him. We should have absolutely no doubt regarding His commitment toward us. We are now part of His “Forever Family.”

Consider the incredible love that the Father has shown us in allowing us to be called “children of God” – and that is not just what we are called, but what we are. – 1 John 3:1 [Phillips translation]

The Father’s love is personal. He knows each of us individually and loves us personally. His love has no beginning and no end. Making it possible for children of the King to experience the Father’s love distinguishes Christianity from all other religions.

Why does Father love us? It is because of who He is: “God is love.”

But there is more.

1 John 4:19 We love because He first loved us.

The Father not only loves us but allows us to experience his love. Because we have received the Father’s agape love, we are capable of loving Him back.

His agape love empowers us to love other fallen people, even the unlovely.

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© Dr. H 2024

OK Boomer ∙∙

OK Boomer ∙∙

Stand up in the presence of the elderly, and show respect for the aged. Fear your God. I am the LORD. – Leviticus 19:32

1 Timothy 5:1-2

 1 Never speak harshly to an older man, but appeal to him respectfully as you would to your own father. Talk to younger men as you would to your own brothers.

 2 Treat older women as you would your mother, and treat younger women with all purity as you would your own sisters.

In the 1970s and 80s, a vast archive of TV commercials was created. Among them were standout 30-second spots featuring actress Dena Dietrich for Chiffon Margarine (1971-79). Portraying “Mother Nature” in a flowing white gown adorned with a crown of daisies, these advertisements depicted her mistakenly believing she was tasting butter directly from nature. She praises its quality, commenting on how wonderful it is, only to be corrected by an off-screen narrator (voiced by Mason Adams), “That’s Chiffon Margarine, not butter.”

Confounded, she asserts, “It’s impossible for this to be margarine because it tastes too much like real butter.” The narrator counters, “The margarine is indeed so close to real butter that it could fool even ‘Mother Nature.’”

Reacting with indignation, Dietrich’s character exclaims, “It’s not nice to fool ‘Mother Nature!’” and then summons the forces of nature as retribution and bad things happen.

Disrespect for authority can have major negative consequences.

The New York Times has written that ‘‘OK Boomer” marks the end of friendly relations between the generations. Their assessment is about 2800 years too late. But we’ll get to that later.

“OK Boomer” has become a potent symbol of Generation Z’s frustration with the Baby Boomers. Generation Z folks see a society in crisis for which they are not responsible and are fighting back. They fear a seemingly irreversible global catastrophe that looms on the horizon. Somebody is to blame! It’s the Boomers! It’s a declaration of grievance, pointing an accusatory finger at the Boomers for the challenges Generation Z faces.

Generation Z is often described as “woke,” in contrast to Baby Boomers and similarly minded individuals who are labeled as “un-woke.”

Let’s briefly overview the generational cohorts since World War II: Generation Z spans from the late 1990s to the 2010s, Millennials cover 1980 to the late 1990s, Generation X includes 1965 to 1979, and Boomers range from 1946 to 1965.

The trend of younger generations challenging their predecessors is nothing new. It is almost a time-honored practice going back thousands of years. Indeed, the Baby Boomers themselves felt the same way about those preceding them. They rebelled against their parents. They pushed back against a generation that had weathered the Great Depression and emerged victorious from World War II. We might all be speaking German or Japanese if the Greatest Generation lost the war.

However, the Boomers rebelled against the “Establishment” and the “Military-Industrial Complex.” They spearheaded the Civil Rights Movement and contributed to the end of the Vietnam War.

Existential fear for the survival of planet Earth is nothing new. Boomers lived in fear of nuclear destruction and the end of the world. They built in-home bomb shelters and had routine bomb drills in schools.

Yet, not all Boomer-led cultural shifts were universally applauded at their inception. This era introduced rock ‘n’ roll, disco, Woodstock, the emergence of flower children and hippies, the rise of the drug culture, and iconic yet controversial and now almost forgotten bands like the Beatles and the Doors.

Young people often see things with a keener eye. There’s lots of unfinished business that cannot be papered over or ignored. But utter disrespect and disdain for elders bring matters to a whole new level.

REFLECT & PRAY

Respect is an expression of high regard, esteem, deference, or acknowledgment of the value of others, especially those deserving of it. For children of the King, respect is given generously and unconditionally. It does not have to be earned.

Father thank You for the guidance You have given us regarding honoring those who came before us. Help us to be guided by Your Scriptures rather than the shifting norms of culture or society.

INSIGHT

The Scriptures clearly direct the children of the King to show honor and respect to their elders. Yet, as previously discussed, showing disrespect toward authority can lead to severe repercussions.

Around 850 BC, an extraordinary event occurred involving the prophet Elijah, who was miraculously taken to heaven in a whirlwind, leaving his protégé Elisha to assume the mantle as the Lord’s prophet. Elisha was now the prophet in charge.

Elisha was en route to Bethel when he encountered a group of young troublemakers, reminiscent of modern-day street gangs, likely armed and looking to cause mischief. Their idea of entertainment often involved harassing or even assaulting passersby.

Unfortunately for them, they chose the wrong target that day. Underestimating Elisha, they mockingly taunted him about his baldness, not realizing the gravity of disrespecting a prophet of the Lord.

2 Kings 2:23-24

 23 Elisha left Jericho and went up to Bethel. As he was walking along the road, a group of youths from the town began mocking and making fun of him. “Go away, baldy!” they chanted. “Go away, baldy!”

 24 Elisha turned around and looked at them, and he cursed them in the name of the LORD. Then, two bears came out of the woods and mauled forty-two of them.

To modern ears, the punishment does not fit the crime. Mocking elders is never a good idea. It’s acknowledged that showing disrespect towards one’s elders is inappropriate. But mocking elders who are the Father’s servants and have the power to bless and curse is a far worse idea. Disrespect towards the prophets of the Father is, in essence, disrespect towards the Father Himself.

The gang had crossed a critical line. They had disrespected someone they shouldn’t have. They had dissed the wrong guy. In response, Elisha invoked a curse in the name of the Lord. Subsequently, two bears emerged, mauling 42 members of the group. Remarkably, they were not killed; instead, their injuries would serve as a lasting testament to their disrespect and contempt for the living God and His servant.

It is doubtful Elisha was taunted or ridiculed again.

2 Chronicles 36:16 But the people mocked these messengers of God and despised their words. They scoffed at the prophets until the LORD’s anger could no longer be restrained, and nothing could be done.

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© Dr. H 2024