Concentrated nurturing systems

Concentrated nurturing systems

Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ. – Ephesians 4:11-12

1 Corinthians 12:24-27

 24 So God has put the body together such that extra honor and care are given to those parts that have less dignity.

 25 This makes for harmony among the members, so that all the members care for each other.

 26 If one part suffers, all the parts suffer with it, and if one part is honored, all the parts are glad.

 27 All of you together are Christ’s body, and each of you is a part of it.

Modern tech companies tend to cloister in the hubs like New York, Boston, and Silicon Valley. As a consequence of the coronavirus, tech firms began to migrate to new locations. Such places have been dubbed “wannabe innovation hubs.” They include such places as Dallas, Atlanta, and Miami. Yet, tech workers gravitate to areas with clusters of like-minded individuals. They seek conditions where they can network with other like-minded individuals. Such environments provide conditions for them to do innovative and exciting things. Such locations are called “Concentrated echo systems for nurturing innovation,” a.k.a. effective knowledge networks.

These networks are composed of unique and diverse individuals with various backgrounds, expertise, training, and experiences working together on common challenges with a common goal. In the modern tech world, “Innovation is the process of idea management” (Tim Kastelle).

“The premise that innovation prospers when ideas can serendipitously connect and recombine with other ideas when hunches can stumble across other hunches that successfully fill in their blanks may seem like an obvious truth, but the strange fact is that a great deal of the past two centuries of legal and folk wisdom about innovation has pursued the exact opposite argument, building walls between ideas, keeping them from the kind of random, serendipitous connections that exist in dreams and in the organic compounds of life . . . [in a network environment] people can concentrate on coming up with new ideas, not building fortresses around the old ones. And because these ideas can freely circulate through the infosphere, they can be refined and expanded by other minds in the network” (Where Good Ideas Come From).

Concentrated echo systems for nurturing are not new. The Father employed this concept in the New Testament when He launched the church. Local churches are intended to be nurturing centers where unique and diverse individuals with various backgrounds, experiences, and spiritual gifts work together with a common goal: to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ (Ephesians 4:12).

REFLECT & PRAY

“The tests we face in life’s journey are not to reveal our weaknesses but to help us discover our inner strengths. We can only know how strong we are when we strive and thrive beyond the challenges we face” (Kemi Sogunle).

Father you had such a remarkable idea to create an environment where spiritual maturity and growth are the byproducts of children of the King working together in love. It is so sad that this potentiality is often unrealized. Every day is a new day. Encourage the members of the body of Christ, the church, to lovingly work together.

INSIGHT

All children of the King are given spiritual gifts to nurture one another. The body of Christ is a concentrated echo system designed to be an innovative, creative, transformative network of individuals. They are to support and nourish one another, encouraging growth, development, stability, and permanence.

The body of Christ was designed to be a source of comfort, consolation, understanding, and knowledge that promotes growth leading to maturity and security.

Regrettably, throughout the past two millennia, the children of the King, and those merely associated with His Son’s name, the Lord Jesus Christ, built walls and not bridges. They are divided and often dreadfully separated. They defend the past, right or wrong, and build fortresses to protect and idealize what has come before.

The word of God does not need to be protected. “The Word of God is like a lion. You don’t have to defend a lion. All you have to do is let the lion loose, and the lion will defend itself” (Charles Spurgeon).

However, human-made ideas, doctrines, and traditions often require fortresses to protect them. This is the environment the Lord Jesus Christ entered in the first century. Religious leaders of His day had built a “fence around the Torah.” The learned rabbis meant well. Their writings consisted of ideas and teachings developed and passed on by people, not the Father. These teachings were meant to safeguard the law of God from being violated. They were not seen as additions or subtractions but rather as aids in understanding and protecting the integrity of the Mosaic law itself.

The idea of building a fence around the Torah is found in the early writings of Rabbinic Judaism dating from about 20 A.D. One section is called the Pirke Avot, The Sayings of the Fathers. It stated that “Moses received the Torah from Sinai and committed it to Joshua, and Joshua to the elders, and the elders to the Prophets, and the Prophets to the Men of the Great Assembly. They said three things: Be deliberate in judgment, raise up many disciples, and make a fence around the Torah.”

“The Torah is conceived as a garden and its precepts as precious plants. Such a garden is fenced round for the purpose of obviating willful or even unintended damage. Likewise, the precepts of the Torah were to be ‘fenced’ round with additional inhibitions that should have the effect of preserving the original commandments from trespass” (Israelstam).

The Lord Jesus Christ disagreed. He stated unequivocally that human-made laws did not protect the law of God; they invalidated it.

Mark 7:13 You cancel the word of God in order to hand down your own tradition.

The Lord Jesus Christ kept the law of God perfectly. Yet, He demonstrated that the law of God was often in conflict with the rules made by people. He went out of His way to stir things up. He intentionally violated the rules that people made. The religious leaders of His day were stunned. Time and time again, they were furious because He did not keep their human traditions, particularly their Sabbath Rest laws which were not part of the Mosaic law.

To be an innovative, creative, nurturing system for all children of the King, the body of Christ must focus on God and lay aside human traditions, doctrines, practices, and socialization. And instead, focus on graciously living out the principles of Scripture set forth by the prophets and the apostles.

1 Corinthians 12:24 So God has put the body together such that extra honor and care are given to those parts that have less dignity.

The Greek word translated as put together, composed, or blended “ is sugkerannumi. Sugkerannumi has the sense of assembling a unified whole by mixing or combining different parts. Sugkerannumi comes from sun – together or with, and kerannumi – to mix. Thus, it means intermingle, mix, blend, unite, or combine. Here it signifies unifying a diverse group of individual members into one functioning spiritual body, the body of Christ.

Ephesians 4:15-16

 15 Instead, we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church.

 16 He makes the whole body fit together perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love.

For the body of Christ to be healthy, vibrant, mature, and nurturing, it must grow up into Christ who is the head. Things that divide and separate need to be acknowledged, addressed, forgiven in love, and laid aside. The individual members must work in a coordinated fashion, full of love, growing to maturity.

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

© Dr. H 2022

Preoccupation limits seeing ∙

Preoccupation limits seeing ∙

She turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus. – John 20:14

John 20:13-16

 13 “Dear woman, why are you crying?” the angels asked her. “Because they have taken away my Lord,” she replied, “and I don’t know where they have put him.”

 14 She turned to leave and saw someone standing there. It was Jesus, but she didn’t recognize him.

 15 “Dear woman, why are you crying?” Jesus asked her. “Who are you looking for?” She thought he was the gardener. “Sir,” she said, “if you have taken him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will go and get him.”

 16 “Mary!” Jesus said. She turned to him and cried out, “Rabboni!” (which is Hebrew for “Teacher”).

Preoccupation with sorrow and disappointment is a mental merry-go-round. People get stuck in a rut and are unable to escape from it. It is easy to get consumed with the micro minutia of everyday life. Often, our ability to see becomes limited to what is immediately before us, and we become distracted. We cannot see the forest for the trees. We lose sight of the bigger picture of what’s really important. In light of this, could it be that our greatest fear should be the fear of succeeding at things in life that do not really matter?

So often, our ability to see is diminished and clouded because of our fixation and self-reflection. So it was with Mary. She failed to see and recognize the Lord Jesus Christ due to her grief, self-reflection, and preoccupation. We see only what we have the inward power of seeing (Westcott).

“From ancient times, the core idea of the soul is the capacity to integrate different functions into a single being or into a single person. The soul is what holds us all together: what connects our will and our minds and our bodies and connects us to God.”

“A healthy soul is whole and integrated. It is connected to God. A person with a healthy soul is at peace with God, with himself, and with other people. When the soul is understood and attended to, we can be liberated from hurry, preoccupation, unsatisfied desires, and chronic discontent” (John Ortberg).

After the death of the Lord Jesus Christ, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb early. The stone rolled away, the tomb was empty, and His body was gone (John 20:1-2). She ran to get Peter and John. When the three of them returned, the tomb was empty (John 20:3-10). Grief-stricken, Mary waited outside in her grief (John 20:11). When Jesus Christ appeared, “she did not recognize that it was Jesus” (John 20:14). Instead, she thought that He was the gardener (John 20:15).

How is it even possible that Mary could not recognize the Lord Jesus Christ after she had spent so much time with Him? Her expectation colored her perception. She anticipated finding a tomb with the stone covering the entrance. Behind the stone would be a corpse. However, he was standing right in front of her. He was alive! He

How was she able to finally recognize Him? At the very moment the Lord Jesus Christ spoke her name, “Mary,” something suddenly clicked. She knew it was Him. Down through the millennia, when someone hears their name spoken by the Father or the Lord Jesus Christ, people recall the voice. Many of us remember the sound of our mother’s voice. We can never forget. Undoubtedly, that’s how it was with the Lord Jesus Christ and Mary.

REFLECT & PRAY

How often do we only see what we only want to see? Daily events, preoccupation, and the vicissitudes of life often obscure what the Father is trying to reveal to us.

Father give me discernment to see the Lord Jesus Christ with the eyes of my heart. Enable me to discern Your guidance and recognize whatever You desire to teach me.

INSIGHT

How do treasury agents learn to detect counterfeit money? You would think the answer is simple, study counterfeit money to become aware of its characteristics. But in fact, it is just the opposite.

Treasury agents become very, very familiar with the characteristics of real money. One treasury agent summarizes the approach with the phrase, “touch, tilt, look at, look through.”

And so it is with the children of the King. The more we get to know the real thing, the real Lord Jesus Christ, the more we develop protective discernment against counterfeits.

This does not happen overnight. It takes practice, determination, and experience.

Hebrews 5:14 Those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil.

We should expect to see the Lord Jesus Christ and hear His voice as we walk through life. The more familiar and acquainted we become with Him, the more we see Him.

In the Gospel of John, some outsiders, probably Gentiles, came to worship. They had undoubtedly heard the stories about the Lord Jesus Christ, and they were excited to meet and spend time with Him. They came to Philip.

John 12:21 “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.”

If you wish to see the Lord Jesus Christ, pray for the eyes of your heart to be enlightened. This is Paul’s prayer for every child of the King.

Ephesians 1:18-19

 18 I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope he has given to those he called – his holy people who are his rich and glorious inheritance.

 19 I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God’s power for us who believe him.

It is common for people as they age to have cataract surgery. Over the years, their vision has become blurred and even discolored. Modern medical science has made the procedure quick and easy, and very safe, one done by the hands of an excellent eye surgeon. Our spiritual eyes are often blurred, and our spiritual eyesight is significantly diminished. Paul prays that the Father will perform spiritual surgery in order to sharpen our spiritual eyes.

¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 4-07-2

© Dr. H 2022

The burning crucible of the desert

The burning crucible of the desert

Fire tests the purity of silver and gold, but the LORD tests the heart. – Proverbs 17:3

Exodus 3:1 Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father in law, the priest of Midian: and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb.

Deuteronomy 8:2-18

 2 Remember how the LORD your God led you through the wilderness for these forty years, humbling you and testing you to prove your character and to find out whether or not you would obey his commands.

 3 Yes, he humbled you by letting you go hungry and then feeding you with manna, a food previously unknown to you and your ancestors. He did it to teach you that people do not live by bread alone; rather, we live by every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD.

 5 Think about it: Just as a parent disciplines a child, the LORD your God disciplines you for your own good.

 7 For the LORD your God is bringing you into a good land of flowing streams and pools of water, with fountains and springs that gush out in the valleys and hills.

 14 do not become proud at that time and forget the LORD your God, who rescued you from slavery in the land of Egypt.

 16 He fed you with manna in the wilderness, a food unknown to your ancestors. He did this to humble you and test you for your own good.

 17 He did all this so you would never say to yourself, “I have achieved this wealth with my own strength and energy.”

 18 Remember the LORD your God. He is the one who gives you power to be successful.

The film The Ten Commandments was released in 1956. It was filmed in Egypt, Mount Sinai, and the Sinai Peninsula. In 1957, the film was nominated for seven Academy Awards. It is also one of the most financially successful films ever made, grossing approximately $122.7 million (equivalent to $1.17 billion in 2020). In 1999, it was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.” American television has aired the film in prime time during the Passover/Easter season every year since 1973.

The movie dramatizes the biblical story of the life of Moses, played by Charlton Heston. Moses is the man that the God of Israel chose to lead the children of Israel out of Egyptian bondage. Before Moses became the leader of men, he became the leader of sheep. Because of Pharaoh, he leaves Egypt. He has to pass through the terrible desert on his way to the land of Midian and Mount Sinai. In Midian, he settles down, gets married, and becomes a shepherd. He thinks to himself, “Whatever happens in Egypt, stays in Egypt.” Life is good.

How did the Father prepare Moses to become the leader of the Exodus and free the people of Israel from Egyptian bondage? The Father led him into the harsh and terrible wilderness. Moses’ life expectancy was practically zero. It was a time of testing and preparation. Recall that much the same thing happened to the Lord Jesus Christ before He began His work as the Messiah of Israel.

Matthew 4:1 Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted there by the devil.

As Moses wanders in the desert, he is repeatedly near death and is filled with uncertainty and fear. Yet, a remarkable inner transformation occurs. As he wanders, a narrator speaks in the background.

“He cannot cool the burning kiss of thirst upon his lips nor shade the scorching fury of the sun. All about is desolation. He can neither bless nor curse the power that moves him, for he does not know where it comes.”

“Learning that it can be more terrible to live than to die, he is driven onward through the burning crucible of the desert, where holy men and prophets are cleansed and purged for God’s great purpose, until at last, at the end of human strength, beaten into the dust from which he came. The metal is ready for the Maker’s hand.”

The wilderness becomes a metaphor for preparation. The wilderness has been dubbed the backside of the desert, where the Father meets and prepares people for service.

Exodus 3:1 Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father in law, the priest of Midian: and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb.

REFLECT & PRAY

The Father has prepared personalized, specially designed experiences for the wilderness journey of every child of the King.

Father thank You for leading me into and out of the wilderness You prepared for me long before the earth was created.

INSIGHT

All too often, children of the King struggle with the adversity they face. Many of them succumb and give up and throw in the towel. Others persevere and become overcomers. We are vitally connected to the greatest Overcomer of all, the Lord Jesus Christ. He encourages us, strengthens us, and shows us how to stand firm and endure.

John 16:33 Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.

It is an open secret that the Father tells us repeatedly throughout the Scriptures. Adversity builds endurance and character.

Romans 5:3-5

3 We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance.

 4 And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation.

 5 And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.

The purpose of the wilderness is no mystery. The Father spelled out 3500 years ago.

Deuteronomy 8:2-16

 2 Remember how the LORD your God led you through the wilderness for these forty years, humbling you and testing you to prove your character, and to find out whether or not you would obey his commands.

 3 Yes, he humbled you by letting you go hungry and then feeding you with manna, a food previously unknown to you and your ancestors. He did it to teach you that people do not live by bread alone; rather, we live by every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD.

 5 Think about it: Just as a parent disciplines a child, the LORD your God disciplines you for your own good.

 16 He fed you with manna in the wilderness, a food unknown to your ancestors. He did this to humble you and test you for your own good.

The Father leads every child of the King as they walk through the wilderness. In the wilderness, we are humbled and learned to depend upon him fully and completely. He tests us to determine if it is in our hearts to obey when things go from bad to worse.

The Father leads us through the rough times. His stated objective is to do us “good in the end.” This was not always apparent when we were in the wilderness. That’s where faith and trust come in. In fact, our faith and confidence grow as we see Him faithfully care for us.

The wilderness is where we learn to trust and respond in faith. We are humbled and cease to be full of ourselves. What we learn in the desert prepares us well for what happens next. We learn that the Father is the source of our ability to have success.

“What you resist persists” (Carl Jung).

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

© Dr. H 2022

The Peace Child

The Peace Child

For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ, and through him, God reconciled everything to himself. He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of Christ’s blood on the cross. This includes you who were once far away from God. You were his enemies, separated from him by your evil thoughts and actions. Yet now he has reconciled you to himself through the death of Christ in his physical body. As a result, he has brought you into his own presence, and you are holy and blameless as you stand before him without a single fault. – Colossians 1:19-22

Luke 2:9-14

 9 Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them. They were terrified,

 10 but the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people.”

 11 “The Savior – yes, the Messiah, the Lord – has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David!”

 13 “Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast host of others – the armies of heaven – praising God and saying,”

 14 “Glory to God in highest heaven, and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.”

The Sawi people of Western New Guinea, now called Irian Jaya, were made up of approximately 400 individual tribes. Each tribe had a distinct and unique worldview and belief system. Many of them were headhunters and cannibals. They maintained an existence totally alien to life as we know it in the Western world.

The Sawi had a dreadful, horrifying cultural tradition: the worship of treachery. Not only were betrayal, murder, and cannibalism practiced, they were a time-honored custom of their mythic tradition.

War and acrimonious bloodshed were a way of life. Revenge was manly and essential. Treachery was the highest good of all. They would fain friendship with others and then betray, murder, and eat them. When they heard the story of the Lord Jesus Christ, they presumed Judas was the hero! The Sawi people loved Judas because they were a tribe of Judases.

In 1962, Don Richardson, a Christian missionary from Canada began to work with the Sawi. As a linguist and Bible translator, he developed an alphabet for the Sawi language and eventually translated the New Testament into Sawi. He spent 15 years of his life in and amongst them.

It was very difficult to communicate the idea of redemption and the thought that one would die for another. He sat among the tribe, praying, “Lord, help, I need a gift of wisdom here.” The Father provided a perfect redemptive analogy: the Peace Child. It was the key that Richardson needed to communicate.

The Peace Child was one person the Sawi would not betray. A tribal leader made an extraordinary gesture. He gave a Peace Child, his own child, to the enemy tribe. According to custom, there would be peace between warring tribes as long as the child was alive. War and betrayal were out of the question. No one would betray the Peace Child.

The Peace Child was the perfect metaphor to make the Sawi understand what God the Father had done. It was the key to the hearts of the Sawi. The Gospel story started to click. The Lord Jesus Christ was God’s Peace Child to remove the conflict between man’s sinfulness and God’s righteous judgment. Richardson explained that the Father had surrendered His own Son, the perfect Peace Child, to bring peace to all people. Cannibals were transformed into Christ-followers.

Over the years, most Sawi people accepted Christ as their Lord and Savior. Many became missionaries to bring the gospel to neighboring tribes. What became of the Peace Child? He became the first Sawi to graduate from higher education. He became A primary school principal.

REFLECT & PRAY

Paul’s philosophy of evangelism was adaptive and transcended petty cultural norms and religion itself. His concern was to do whatever it took to make disciples.

Father I want to do as you have commanded to make disciples. Enable me to be adaptive, sensitive, aware, and become whatever it takes.

INSIGHT

The Father sent His Peace Child, His very own Son, into the world.

Colossians 1:20 [Through the Lord Jesus Christ] God reconciled everything to himself. He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of Christ’s blood on the cross.

The Lord Jesus Christ commands the children of the King to carry the message throughout the entire planet.

Matthew 28:19-20

 19 Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.

 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.

While the meaning of this verse is obvious, unpacking it a bit provides even greater insight. The sentence contains only one verb make disciples. The Greek word is matheteuo. It is imperative, that is, a command, and it means instructing others in the ways and teachings of a teacher. But it means more than simply teaching. But instead, it embraces the idea of becoming attached to the teacher, following them in belief and conduct. That is, become a disciple.

The words translated as go, baptizing, and teaching are participles. They are how the primary command is carried out.

Going into all the world and making disciples requires effective communication. Communication requires understanding between the sender and recipient. Making disciples of all the world needs a degree of sensitivity to the receiving people’s culture, beliefs, and value systems. Wisdom and discernment, ideal redemptive analogies often rise to the surface.

Paul shows the way.

1 Corinthians 9:20-23

 20 When I was with the Jews, I lived like a Jew to bring the Jews to Christ. When I was with those who follow the Jewish law, I too lived under that law. Even though I am not subject to the law, I did this so I could bring to Christ those who are under the law.

 21 When I am with the Gentiles who do not follow the Jewish law, I too live apart from that law so I can bring them to Christ. But I do not ignore the law of God; I obey the law of Christ.

 22 When I am with those who are weak, I share their weakness, for I want to bring the weak to Christ. Yes, I try to find common ground with everyone, doing everything I can to save some.

 23 I do everything to spread the Good News and share in its blessings.

Paul became all things for all people that he might save some.

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

© Dr. H 2022

Bad company corrupts good morals

Bad company corrupts good morals

Do not be deceived: “Bad company ruins good morals.” – 1 Corinthians 15:33

1 Corinthians 15:30-34

 30 And why should we ourselves risk our lives hour by hour?

 31 I face death daily. This is as certain as my pride in what Christ Jesus our Lord has done in you.

 32 And what value was there in fighting wild beasts – those people of Ephesus – if there will be no resurrection from the dead? And if there is no resurrection, “Let’

s feast and drink, for tomorrow we die!”

 33 Don’t be fooled by those who say such things, for “bad company corrupts good character.”

 34 Think carefully about what is right, and stop sinning. For to your shame I say that some of you don’t know God at all.

Mom Warned Me about Running with a Bad Crowd was published on December 10, 2014.

He often heard his mother say that so-and-so had “fallen in with the wrong crowd.” It was intended as a precautionary tale. His mom was trying to warn me that people often adopt the bad habits of the company they keep.

At any age, we are shaped by the habits of our circle of peers. “Social learning, as behavior analysts have discovered, has more influence on adults than we would like to believe, manifesting itself in sometimes subconscious ways.”

Further, “researchers have discovered an ‘emotional contagion’ phenomenon.” That is our emotions tend to converge with those of our peers. Solomon suggests that we do a self-check regarding the crowd we run with. He offers some guidance.

1. Take inventory. Identify people with negative energy who tend to express an overall bad attitude. They often drain others of energy. Such folks often complain and express a great deal of anger and frustration.

2. Pull back from spending time with them and put some space between you and them.

3. Be intentional and set wise priorities. Seek to be with people who have a successful, upbeat spirit.

4. Elicit input from people you want to emulate. When possible seek their advice, guidance, and mentorship.

5. Work at developing your own positive mental outlook. Develop and reinforce wise, positive habits.

These principles are nothing new. Solomon offered the same advice 3000 years ago.

Proverbs 13:20 Walk with the wise and become wise; associate with fools and get in trouble.

Proverbs 22:24-25

 24 Don’t befriend angry people or associate with hot-tempered people,

 25 or you will learn to be like them and endanger your soul.

Who would have thought? The Father placed wise counsel in His book for children of the King to follow to live successfully in a fallen world.

REFLECT & PRAY

What is bad company? Bad company does not encourage you to walk closer to the Father (Stanley).

Father help me to be aware of the attitudes and dispositions of those around me. Encourage me to make wise choices that I may be wise and walk with You.

INSIGHT

Children of the King have been declared righteous and forgiven. Their sins are washed away through the redemptive work of the Lord Jesus Christ.

1 Corinthians 6:11 You were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God.

Paul exhorts us to live exemplary lives in a fallen world. He shows us the way

Paul references a common saying of the day that was derived from Menander, a Greek dramatist from Athens. “Bad company corrupts good character.” Such wisdom is recognized across generations and cultures. “Keeping company with evil companions can have a corrosive influence on one’s own attitudes and behavior” (Fee). This implies that we should disassociate ourselves, evil companions, and their conversations.

1 Corinthians 15:33 Do not be deceived: bad company corrupts good character.

The Greek word translated as deceived or fooled is planao. Planao meansto cause to wander, to go astray, or be misled. In the ancient world, human observers noted that the stars, the sun, and the moon move through the heavens in predictable regularity. This was not so for planets such as Venus or Mars. They seemed to wander through the heavens. Hence they were called planets, wanderers.

The Greek word translated as corrupts or ruins is phtheiro which means to waste, pine, corrupt, destroy, defile, spoil, subvert, or bring to a worse state.

The English word ethics comes from the Greek word ethos translated as character, morals, habits, or manners. It refers to the inherent complex of habits and attitudes which determine a person’s moral and ethical actions and reactions.

Regrettably, we often choose the wrong crowd to hang with and delude ourselves in the process. It is as though the apostle Paul shouting at us: stop it, stop it!

He wants us to stop deceiving ourselves, and/or allow ourselves to be misled. When we are deceived, our beliefs and subsequent behavior are affected.

How much bad influence does it take to get us off course and change the trajectory of our lives? Just a little.

1 Corinthians 5:6 Don’t you realize that this sin is like a little yeast that spreads through the whole batch of dough?

It is important to recognize that we allow ourselves to be misled. It is a decision that we make. We decide to do so. But the anonymous others who do the misleading share responsibility.

This thought is expressed elsewhere in Scripture

1 Corinthians 12:2 You know that when you were still pagans, you were led astray and swept along in worshiping speechless idols, however, you were led.

The Lord Jesus Christ spoke of the culpability of those who lead the innocent astray.

Matthew 18:6 But if you cause one of these little ones who trusts in me to fall into sin, it would be better for you to have a large millstone tied around your neck and be drowned in the depths of the sea.

The film, Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade speaks to the outcome of our choices: life or death. The Grail Knight who is guarding the Grail warns, “You must choose. But choose wisely. For as the true Grail will bring you life, the false Grail will take it from you.”

Choose wisely!

¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 3-03-2

© Dr. H 2022