The previous post (
Click Here for Previous Post) brings me to my point today I wanted to convey; that is, the
Faithfulness/trustworthiness/following through with promises to the point of bringing Honor to God. Boaz didn't marry Ruth because he
can but he allows, he is obedient to the law; whereas, he doesn’t try to pull a fast one on the other family member who is next in line to redeem Elimelech's name and take Ruth for his wife. As we saw
last week, Ruth is basically saying "
I can be yours" and now Boaz is saying
"Yes, I want to be yours too" but he must remain faithful to God before he can be
this kind of faithful to Ruth.
I want to compare
that kind of faithfulness with today's
"faithfulness". Today we are quick to abandon things and go back on our promises, aren't we? I mean let us look at marriages. What is the divorce rate in our country? According to the
Center of Disease Control (CDC) the following statistics (
Click Here) have been observed:
- Number of marriages: 2,162,000
- Marriage rate: 7.1 per 1,000 total population
- Divorce rate: 3.5 per 1,000 population (44 reporting States and D.C.)
Or let us look at church membership. How many of us know someone who became a member of a local church and skipped on the church when "someone rubbed them the wrong way"? Let me break it down closer to home. How many people do you know who were promised a raise in 6 months or promised a particular rate of pay at hire and then come to find out - you didn't get that pay or after 6 months, then 9 months then one year - NEVER got that raise?
When things get tough we abandon them. Just like friendship, once it becomes difficult or there is some friction between 2 people we’d rather abandon them than engage them. That is why people don’t talk about issues, they are afraid of conflict - they don't want to engage, they'd rather be passive and call it "love". Why you ask? It is SO EASY to run from a problem than it is to correct it. We today are not that good at fulfilling our promises and for that reason we are numb to the
damage breaking a promise does.
Now let us look at some application of Faithfulness from Proverbs:
FAITHLESSNESS IN PROVERBS
Proverbs 12:22
Lying lips are an abomination to the LORD,
The first thing I want to point out, God calls a lie an "Abomination" which can be accurately defined as something that is "disgusting, ethically evil, detestable, vile, disgrace, outrage, or hateful". So when you break a promise or aren’t there for a friend, or don’t follow through with something you said you would do – you just lied. You lie and God thinks you are a disgusting, detestable, vile person who should be disgraced and makes him outraged. When someone talks bad about someone and you sit back and listen "in love" (note the sarcasm) you are a liar. You are a liar by a sin of omission, you are omitting your feelings so you "agree" with them to "please" their insecurity. That is a lie. Then you meet that person your friend was just talking about and "act like nothing was ever said" "
in love". Again, you lie. That is evil and demonic.
Proverbs 23:27-28
For a harlot is a deep pit And an adulterous woman is a narrow well. Surely she lurks as a robber, And increases the faithless among men.
The reason why God hates liars, they just make more liars. Like a virus they spread from one human to another. And this virus infects you heart by just listening others "
in love". Do you find yourself around a liar and find yourself lieing? Like in the previous example, you are now lieing because that person lied. Playing this fake, mask of counterfeit with others - Is a lie. All of this is why Proverbs says:
Proverbs 25:19
Like a bad tooth and an unsteady foot Is confidence in a faithless man in time of trouble.
A person who isn’t trustworthy, cannot be counted on. For instance, a “
bad tooth” – where every time you try to nourish yourself (through eating), you get hurt and so your careful to nourish yourself to avoid the pain. Ever have that in a friend? Where you say, “
Man I am struggeling, maybe I should go to evening service" – then your friend is like “Nah” we should just hang out tonight and watch movies or have a Friends marathon? And you ditch worship or Sunday school or any service to Jesus? You don't need friends that infect you with worldly means to take care of spiritual needs!
Or they can be like
An unsteady foot – when you lean on them they are not there. Like when you are going through a tough time; perhaps in sin or falling away from God, maybe your struggling with something someone else did and it affects you and you just want to escape, you go to lean on a friend and rather than hold you up so you can walk to Jesus, you fall. For instance, Perhaps, you are trying to get back into your devotions and you go to a friend and say “
Hey let us do devotions together” and they say "
Sure" but NEVER follow through, they are an
unsteady foot. They do not lift you up, they will not be there for you to lean on. Then when you fall (and you will fall) you lose faith in God and you yourself become a faithless person. This same concept can be found in Paul's writings: Paul to write:
1 Corinthians 5:9-11
I wrote you in my letter not to associate with immoral people; I did not at all mean with the immoral people of this world, or with the covetous and swindlers, or with idolaters, for then you would have to go out of the world. But actually, I wrote to you not to associate with any so-called brother if he is an immoral person, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or a swindler--not even to eat with such a one.
Who is Paul talking about? Those people who claim to be a "Christian" they claim to be a
steady foot or
good tooth. They are deceivers, liars, evil and detestable in the sight of God. That is what Proverbs is speaking about. When you have a friend who is a liar, aren’t trustworthy, one who increases your faithlessness, one who is like a
bad tooth or
unsteady foot – Paul is literally saying “
WHY ON EARTH DO YOU HANG OUT WITH THESE PEOPLE?!?!" They ARE
NOT your friend, they
ARE your
ENEMY. And again Paul sees the same problem in, not only in Corinth but Thessolanica:
2 Thessalonians 3:13-15
But as for you, brethren, do not grow weary of doing good. If anyone does not obey our instruction in this letter, take special note of that person and do not associate with him, so that he will be put to shame. Yet do not regard him as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother.
Paul tells us that maybe, just maybe we will be surrounded by a great bunch of people who are faithless, but YOU - DO NOT LOSE
YOUR FAITHFULNESS TO DOING GOOD! But aim to correct them and if they wont’ be corrected DO NOT ASSOCIATE with them, for their own works put them to shame and will BRING YOU DOWN TOO.
Moreover, the Bible says that those who don't change when rebuked are stupid. Don't be STUPID!
Proverbs 12:1
… But he who hates reproof is stupid.
BUT THERE IS HOPE!
FAITHFULNESS IN PROVERBS
Proverbs 25:13
Like the cold of snow in the time of harvest Is a faithful messenger to those who send him, For he refreshes the soul of his masters.
This speaks about life in the midst of harvest, a busy busy time how something quenches the thirst (i.e. snow). When we struggle we feel as if we are running out of gas and faithful friend soothes our souls and is like a breath of fresh air! A faithful person is one who makes your heart joyful. Not necessarily with Happiness; but with refreshment like
“Oh someone does care about me.” Or “
Someone really does have my back”. For instance, there are men that I get with from time to time, because I just need to be refreshed, where we just sit and talk about Jesus for hours and that just re-energizes my soul. They are like a snow in the heat of a desert. They help me get focused and back on track to finish up what I am working on. This concept is also found here:
Proverbs 27:6
Faithful are the wounds of a friend,
I hit this verse a lot, but the friend who steps up to you reprove you. Is a true friend. Sometimes, when I struggle with sin or frustration, I get with a buddy of mine who just gives me a shot in the arm when I need it. Not necessarily to tell me I a m wrong, but to reconcile my relationship either with a.) God, b.) Friend c) themselves;
that is faithfulness. We ALL need someone like that, and if we don’t’ have that – then we will Find ourselves slowly moving away from God. We not only to check ourselves before we wreck ourselves but also someone else to check us.
Proverbs 13:17
A wicked messenger falls into adversity, But a faithful envoy brings healing.
The faithful person is a person who brings joy/refreshment to your life but also healing. When a faithful person comes to you and seeks to remain by your side through thick and thin, they will not only be like a breath of fresh air, but will be like a Tylenol. For example, when you get a headache you RUN for the Tylenol. That is what a true friend should be, you IMMEDIATELY run to them for healing.
To the praise of the glory of His grace
Judson
