“Sha’ul said to Sh’mu’el, ‘I have sinned. I violated the order of Adonai and your words too, because I was afraid of the people and listened to what they said.'”-1 Samuel 15:24
I wanna start today’s post by making an interesting statement…
And I wanna see if you agree with me.
So here it is:
“Most of your life choices stem from the fear of judgment by others.”
Am I right, or am I right?
Whether it’s to
Get married or not…
Keep your virginity or not…
Pursue a certain career or not…
Buy a house or not…
Blindly submit to a certain medical procedure or not…
And so on…
I’m willing to bet a good majority of your decisions were based on seeking outside approval from your peers or society.
They were EXTERNALLY directed as opposed to INTERNALLY motivated.
You were driven more by the fear of others’ perceptions than your convictions.
Most people, especially in our day and age, don’t have strong convictions.
And that’s why they so easily conform to the blind and mediocre masses.
King Saul was a good example of this.
See, he did finally admit to Samuel that his partial obedience was the same as full-blown disobedience.
He saw his behavior as the sin of idolatry.
But then what was his excuse?
“I was afraid of the people
and listened to what they said.”
That is NOT the type of statement any believer should ever say let alone the King of God’s Chosen Nation.
Unfortunately, based on my experience, most folks including many pastors, parents, and political leaders seek approval more from the world than than the Word.
And speaking of politicians, this leads to another interesting point you may find surprising.
The Bible does NOT support democracy.
Why?
Because democracy is fundamentally based on the will of the mediocre masses.
Just take a look at what happened at Mount Sinai.
There wasn’t some democratic voting process that took place there.
It was One God delivering His Law to His people and it wasn’t to be questioned.
And those who did question it were wiped out.
That’s why there will always be conflict between human and divine governments.
That’s also why in U.S. politics, you’ll notice a pattern of moving closer to or farther away from a government that isn’t connected to any particular religion.
Don’t get me wrong.
In terms of earthly governments, a democracy is probably the best we’ve got this side of heaven.
But it still contradicts the ways of God.
Public voting is cool as long as the options presented are personal choices, NOT absolute moral commands from a divine authority.
Unfortunately, King Saul gave the people the freedom to obey or disobey a non-negotiable and divine moral imperative.
And people being by nature sinful made an unwise choice that led to rebellion.
The takeaway here is clear.
No man can serve two masters.
You either fear God or fear man.
One choice leads to blessing and salvation…
The other leads to sin and disaster.
I leave you with this verse from the Book of Proverbs:
“Fear of man will prove to be a snare,
but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe.”
-Proverbs 29:25
CONNECTING THIS TEACHING TO THE NEW TESTAMENT
“Am I now trying to win the
approval of human beings,
or of God?
Or am I trying to please people?
If I were still trying to please people,
I would not be a servant of Messiah.”
-Galatians 1:10
“…so that your faith might not
rest on human wisdom,
but on God’s power.”
–1 Corinthians 2:5
This may sound cliche’, but that was the God of the OLD TESTAMENT. The God of the New Testament is MUCH DIFFERENT. FREEDOM.
Galatians 5:1
Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.
What was that YOKE of BONDAGE? The Law. Oh, I’m sorry, INSTRUCTIONS. Free from instructions!
Acts 6 tells us that Stephen was DEMOCRATICALLY chosen to be in charge of feeding the widows.
Verse 3
3 Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business.
Verses 5-6
5 And the saying pleased the whole multitude: and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Ghost, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolas a proselyte of Antioch:
6 Whom they set before the apostles: and when they had prayed, they laid their hands on them.
If there is a different God in the New Covenant from the God in the Old Covenant, then that means God DOES change, he ISN’T the same today, yesterday, and tomorrow.
But the one, true God DOESN’T change, and he is the same, all the time.
So if you follow the god of the New Covenant, who is different from the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, who is undeniably the God of the Old Covenant, who is also undeniably the one and only true God, then your New Covenant god must be a false god.
BTW… what name does that New Covenant god go by? It certainly isn’t Y-H-V-H, because that is the God of the Old Covenant, the one Yeshua followed and obeyed.
So, nu? Who’s your “daddy”?