Slippery slopes

Genesis 13; Nehemiah 2; Matthew 12; Acts 12

The contrast between good and evil is sometimes sharp, sometimes subtle. Those without faith in Christ can do what appears to be good but falls short of the glory of God. Those with faith in Christ can divert from the will of God into doing what seems okay at first but later realize it was a slippery slope.

In Genesis 23, Abraham and his nephew are both so prosperous that their herdsmen fight over who gets what pasture for their flocks. Abraham decides this is not good so offers Lot his choice. Lot picks what looks good. Instead of seeking the Lord and walking by faith, he walked by sight and stepped onto a slippery slope, winding up living in the sinful city of Sodom. However, Abraham trusted God and knew he would get whatever God wanted him to have.

In Nehemiah, this man was still in captivity and heard his homeland city was in a mess. He privately prayed, received permission and blessing from the king (his captor), privately checked out the condition of Jerusalem then told the people what they were going to do. It would not be easy. Two enemies protested but he replied: “The God of heaven will make us prosper, and we his servants will arise and build, but you have no portion or right or claim in Jerusalem.” (Nehemiah 2:20)

Nehemiah would go on to rebuild the city, withstanding the harassment of these enemies. His life of prayer and seeking the Lord’s will kept him off that slippery slope called fear that leads to disobedience.

Matthew tells how the Pharisees determined that living by sight was not good, nor should they be distracted from following God by the threats of enemies. But their solution was a list of rules for life. However, that list began to mess with their ability to use logic and care about people.

For example, their rules were more important than the basic human need for food, than the value of a man over an animal. They saw the goodness Jesus was doing as the activity of Satan and failed to realize that His gentle way of dealing with sinners was a fulfillment of the prophets. Their determination to do ‘faith’ by rules made them blind to His identity and blind to the reality that their own hardness of heart was at the root of their behavior.

Their rule-making lives were oblivious to the grace of God in Jesus Christ, even as He cast out demons and blessed all those who were concerned to do the will of God. Jesus told them that even a person freed from evil could not keep himself free by his own efforts or by rules. Such a person was in danger of being overtaken by much worse. He also made it clear that family relationships do not make a person right with God. They missed the point that Jesus desired mercy (inner spiritual vitality) rather than the external formality of merely following rules. Instead of trusting Him, they conspired how to destroy Him. (Matthew 12:14)

In my own life, insisting on a ‘rule’ is dangerous. It leads to self-righteousness, blindness to goodness in others, and makes me rigid and narrow-minded. Living by my rules is a terrible slippery slope, yet many Christians have a list of them and miss the joy of walking in the Spirit.

In Acts 12, the issue is glory — the desire for it. This is a departure from faith in God and easy to spot in pagans, not so much in practicing Christians. Herod (Agrippa I) killed James. When he realized this move made him popular with the Jews, he arrested Peter planning to do the same. However, his claim to fame didn’t work as the Lord sent an angel to set Peter free. Herod put to death the sentries who had guarded Peter. His desire for power and glory was at the expense of others.

In my own life, when God enables obedience, I can say so, say thank you, or pat myself on the back. Glorifying God instead of basking in compliments keeps me in place but as soon as I start reveling and thinking ‘look what I did’ (or ‘didn’t do’) the ground begins to tilt.

Too often this slope brings down pastors, entire churches, and certainly a lot of us average people. It certainly brought down King Herod. He later sat on his throne before an adoring group:

And the people were shouting, “The voice of a god, and not of a man!” Immediately an angel of the Lord struck him down, because he did not give God the glory, and he was eaten by worms and breathed his last. But the word of God increased and multiplied. (Acts 12:22–24)

Today I’m so thankful for the grace of God and for the many times He has rescued me from my own stupidity and selfishness. This is grace.

Today, hubby and I are still coughing and decided to stay home from church rather than share our germs. We went online to Scottsdale Bible Church and listened to the first part of a series on Grace by Pastor Jamie Rasmussen. I believe this is the reason God allowed us to get sick, since we rarely get colds. Rasmussen is an ordinary guy blessed by God and blessed us incredible with a message that everyone should hear. LINK