Delayed Obedience

October 15

(Psalm 119:57-61 NIV) “You are my portion, O Lord; I have promised to obey your words. {58} I have sought your face with all my heart; be gracious to me according to your promise. {59} I have considered my ways and have turned my steps to your statutes. {60} I will hasten and not delay to obey your commands. {61} Though the wicked bind me with ropes, I will not forget your law.”

(Ecclesiastes 5:4-5 NIV) “When you make a vow to God, do not delay in fulfilling it. He has no pleasure in fools; fulfill your vow. {5} It is better not to vow than to make a vow and not fulfill it.”

(James 4:17 NIV) “Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins.”

Every day, people make commitments to the Lord. We promise to obey God and to walk in His ways. We have good intentions, but something gets in the way. Perhaps we realize that our decision will cost us more than we thought. Obedience can often set us back before it ever rewards us… and so we delay our obedience. We put off doing God’s will until tomorrow or the next day. We fail to do what is right because we’re not ready to stop doing what is wrong. When God calls us to do something, or to stop doing something, we should move as quickly as possible to obey. Hasten to obey! In this case, haste does not make waste -- haste makes sense. In putting off obedience, we are putting off God. Seek His face with all your heart. Turn your steps toward His will and move quickly. Delayed obedience is disobedience. Delayed obedience is sin. -- Friar Tuck’s Word of the Day

Grey Wickedness

October 14

(Psalm 119:53-56 NIV) “Indignation grips me because of the wicked, who have forsaken your law. {54} Your decrees are the theme of my song wherever I lodge. {55} In the night I remember your name, O Lord, and I will keep your law. {56} This has been my practice: I obey your precepts.”

(Proverbs 28:4 NIV)  "Those who forsake the law praise the wicked, but those who keep the law resist them."

(Matthew 13:47-50 NIV) “Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was let down into the lake and caught all kinds of fish. {48} When it was full, the fishermen pulled it up on the shore. Then they sat down and collected the good fish in baskets, but threw the bad away. {49} This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous {50} and throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

In days gone by, being gripped with indignation at the actions of the wicked was a positive trait. Today, it would more likely be viewed as a self-righteous display of hypocrisy. We have lost our sense of good and evil. All the lines have become fuzzy and blurred. We now have this vast no man’s land between goodness and wickedness, where no one seems able to distinguish between darkness and light. There is no black and white -- everything has become grey. The wicked are praised; the righteous are mocked. Our world has turned upside down. But God is not confused. His lines are never blurry. He still rewards those who obey His word and who resist evil. Don’t give up! A day is coming when the Lord will separate the wicked from the righteous… forever. There will be no confusion. There are no grey areas in the holy light of God. -- Friar Tuck’s Word of the Day  

Mocked for Faith

October 13

(Psalm 119:49-52 NIV) “Remember your word to your servant, for you have given me hope. {50} My comfort in my suffering is this: Your promise preserves my life. {51} The arrogant mock me without restraint, but I do not turn from your law. {52} I remember your ancient laws, O Lord, and I find comfort in them.”

(Luke 18:29-33 NIV) ““I tell you the truth," Jesus said to them, "no one who has left home or wife or brothers or parents or children for the sake of the kingdom of God {30} will fail to receive many times as much in this age and, in the age to come, eternal life." {31} Jesus took the Twelve aside and told them, "We are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written by the prophets about the Son of Man will be fulfilled. {32} He will be handed over to the Gentiles. They will mock him, insult him, spit on him, flog him and kill him. {33} On the third day he will rise again.””

Those with deep faith in God have always been in the minority here on Earth. From the days of Abel to the days of David, from the days of Jesus to this present day, those who trust, worship, and honor God have been criticized, ostracized, and killed. If your hope lies in God rather than the current power structure, you will be suspect and labeled somewhere between strange and seditious. If you take God’s word seriously and openly follow Jesus as Lord and Savior, you will likely have more enemies than friends. If you stand up for the faith that has saved millions down through the ages, you will be mocked without restraint -- you may even be spit on, beaten, and killed. Our comfort lies in knowing that in the age to come, an eternity of joy awaits those who persevere. The world will continue to descend into disorder, despotism, and decadence. The faithful will rise again. -- Friar Tuck’s Word of the Day   

Freedom in the Word of Truth

October 12

(Psalm 119:43-48 NIV) “Do not snatch the word of truth from my mouth, for I have put my hope in your laws. {44} I will always obey your law, forever and ever. {45} I will walk about in freedom, for I have sought out your precepts. {46} I will speak of your statutes before kings and will not be put to shame, {47} for I delight in your commands because I love them. {48} I lift up my hands to your commands, which I love, and I meditate on your decrees.”

(James 1:17-25 NIV)  "Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. {18} He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created. {19} My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, {20} for man's anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires. {21} Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you. {22} Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. {23} Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror {24} and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. {25} But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it--he will be blessed in what he does."

When many Christians think of the law, they often think of bondage. They see the law as something to be avoided or shunned. After all, we live under grace, not the law. It is true that we are saved by grace through faith. We are not saved by obeying the law. But the writer of Psalm 119 sees the law as a blessing, not a burden. He sees the “word of truth” as the road to freedom, not bondage. He loves the commands and delights in them. They have helped to free him. In the New Testament, James tells us that we should “look intently” into the “perfect law”, and do more than just listen to it -- we must do what it says. Perhaps we should reevaluate how we look at God’s law (i.e. the word of truth). It is the only perfect law ever given. It cannot save us, but it can redirect our lives. It’s about liberty, not bondage, and it can free us if we will walk in its wisdom. God is good. -- Friar Tuck’s Word of the Day