Okay,
Proverbs 28:2 has the serious potential for a reasonable rabbit trail for
me. I’m aware of this. So I’ll try and keep it on point as much as
possible. But this is a topic that is
very important to me.
Unity Trumps Fragmentation
Proverbs
28:2 tells us that a land with transgression has many leaders; but a land with
a single leader that has knowledge and understanding has stability. I’ve read all kinds of thoughts from all
kinds of people about the “State of the Union” – many of whom are close friends
of mine and even readers of this blog whose opinions I respect very much. Some people are angry. Some people are confused. Many people easily fall into the category of
“unsure.” I know I would readily put
myself into the category of “unsure!” I
am worried for our country. I’m worried
for my new state. I’m worried for my new
community. I’m worried even down to the
level of the individual families in our country.
I’ve heard
people talk about how we are fragmenting as a culture; I believe that to be
true. I’ve heard many people talk about
how we are more polarized than ever on all issues – not just voting party; I
believe that to be true as well. I
believe the first half of Proverbs 28:2 is speaking directly to us and countries
like us.
Okay,
here’s where the rabbit trail begins. I’ll do my best with it. Look at what Proverbs 28:2 says is the root
of the problem: too many leaders. Now,
I’m going to go a bit figurative here.
Yes, we have physical leaders in our world. We have the president, athletic superstars,
pop-culture sensations, famous authors, movie stars, etc. But we have figurative leaders as well:
personal rights, feminist movements, health care, the banking industry, the price
of oil, the “Almighty Dollar,” academic institutions, etc. Our country is fragmenting because all of
these leaders – or leading ideals – pull our country in a direction of their
own choosing. You can turn on FOX News
and be pulled one way. You can turn on
CNN and be pulled the opposite way. You
can turn on Disney and be pulled in a completely different way {and yes, Disney, Nickelodian, etc all have
their agendas!}. You can read a
paper and be pulled another way. You can
listen to radio and be pulled some more.
You can listen to secular music and be pulled all over the map! Our kids can worship the “gods” of athletics
and winning and competition. Our kids
can worship the “gods” of education and pursue competition and other unhealthy
dynamics there as well.*
The truth
is: we have too many “leaders” in our life.
God tells
us the solution. The question is: are we
going to listen to it? As a community,
there is one answer to fragmentation: reduce the number of “leaders” in our
life. A community with one understanding
and knowledgeable leader will have stability.
One leader means one vision. One
vision means people are buying into the vision.
When people buy into the vision we learn that we don’t have to compete
for our time; rather, we begin to see ourselves as a part of the greater picture. Instead of life being about what I want and
my ability to assert myself and the leaders I’m trying to follow, life becomes
about following “the leader” and playing my part. Do you see the difference? A life of many leaders is about being assertive
and aggressive towards other “leaders” and their agendas. A life of one leader is about humbleness,
being willing to follow, and being a disciple.
Who Is The Leader
The
million dollar question is: who is the one leader? There can only be one answer: God. Now I know what you are saying. “Gee, wouldn’t that be nice? If God came down here in person I would
happily follow Him.” Well, He did. He’s called Jesus. The solution to our fragmenting country – or
world, even – is that we need to turn more and more towards Jesus. He needs to become our leader. His teachings need to infiltrate EVERY aspect
of our life. Everything we do needs to
begin with the premise of: how does this fit into God’s plan?
Sound
impossible? It’s not. It is very hard,
I’ll give you that. But it is not
impossible. It goes back to that
reoccurring theme I’ve been chasing inside and out of these Proverbs. Humbleness comes before honor. Am I willing to let everything pass under
God’s judgment? Am I willing to get rid
of those things in my life that are not of Him?
Am I willing to cast away those “leaders” who are pulling me in many
directions and only bringing confusion into my life?
We are a
fragmented nation. We are a fragmented
world. But let’s face it. We’ve also fragmented Christ’s church. We’ve fragmented our families. We’ve fragmented our lives. It starts right here and right now. It starts with a single person studying God’s
Word. It starts right here with
you. Are you willing to get on your
knees, humbly confess the “leaders” in your life that are not following God’s
agenda, and then ask God to reveal to you how to cast them out of your life?
A few days
back I had an interesting discussion online with a man I’d never met and likely
never will meet. He was talking to me
from the assumption that He believed I thought I could change the world. I can’t.
You can’t, either. All I can
change is me. All you can change is
you. But if I change my “leadership” and
reduce it down to one leader (God) and you change the same, together we might
be able to be the inspiration of the Holy Spirit in the life of a third
person. Together we three might be able
to inspire a fourth.
You see, I
don’t really believe the world is changed in any other way than one person at a
time. Jesus did it one person at a
time. His disciples also did it one
conversation at a time. That’s good
enough for me, too.
So here’s
my question at the end of this rabbit trail.
Are you willing to be humble to the truth in Proverbs 28:2 and confess
all the leaders in your life? Are
willing to confess that not all of them are following a godly agenda? Are you willing to cast away those who are
not godly? Are you willing to follow God
and live a life that genuinely desires to make all decisions under the pattern
of aligning with what God would have you choose?
<><
Nota Bene:
I realize that this whole blog post appears to have centered on a single verse
in this chapter. I do not apologize for
that. However, for further reading I
would encourage you to consider how Proverbs 28:4-5, 7, 9-10, 14-16, 18, 20,
and 26 really had a say in all that I said above.
*Note: I’m not saying
things like sports, athletic programs, and education are bad things. But when we focus on winning, beating down
our competitors, and sacrificing many things in our life for ultimate success
we can even take good things and turn them into false gods. Our culture is very good and turning good
constructive things into false gods.
No comments:
Post a Comment