Trivia:
Well I got this one wrong myself. The author that was responsible for penning the expression "ships that pass in the night" was Henry Wadworth Longfellow. Henry first used this phrase in 1863 in his poem "The Wayside Inn" in which he attempted to express the thought of two people becoming disconnected in their relationship and slowly moving away from one another unintentionally.
Do you know which U.S. state has the Pacific Highway running down its coast? Florida; Texas; California; or Arizona?
Challenge:
Psalm 101:5-8 "I will not tolerate people who slander their neighbors. I will not endure conceit and pride. 6 I will search for faithful people to be my companions. Only those who are above reproach will be allowed to serve me. 7 I will not allow deceivers to serve in my house, and liars will not stay in my presence. 8 My daily task will be to ferret out the wicked and free the city of the Lord from their grip."
In order to draw from these verses what the ultimate lesson is for us, that we must gain from its words, it is important to return to the very first commitment that David promises God that he will uphold personally and as the nations leader. In verse 2 he communicates his ultimate purpose to uphold, "I will be careful to live a blameless life".
Then yesterday we learned the first few steps that we need to take to cause this to be faithfully carried out.
In verse 3 we learned the necessity of guarding our eyes from any wicked things, and the importance of refusing to be drawn into partnership with anyone who habitually attempts to trick others into actions that will draw us into wrong dealings.
Then in verse 4 we are reminded of the necessity of guarding our thoughts and especially our hearts from thoughts that would be offensive to the Lord.
Now today we move into not just what we allow to potentially bring harm to our Christian walk but also the importance of being cautious about others who may ultimately influence our relationship with the Lord and also other people in our life. (neighbors, etc.)
In verse 6 he recognizes the importance of just who we bring into close contact in our lives. These people who we join forces with in our lives and ministry, they should be people who are faithful, dependable, and above reproach. Then he goes on further to tell us that we should guard ourselves from any friends who may draw us into deceitful dealings, and untruthful practices.
Finally verse 8 he recognizes the importance of taking seriously the work of removing those people who are determined to live their lives in rebellion to God with the intention of leading others away from obedience and surrender to His will in their lives.
We may ask ourselves the question, Wasn't Jesus called the friend of sinners? So shouldn't we also be drawn to this task? That is a great question.
So let's back up to look at this concern. How do we balance this example of Jesus, being a friend of sinners, and yet uphold our promise of verse 2 to live lives that are blameless? Paul gives us the solution to this question in Romans 12:2 "Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind."
We can best understand this consideration by recognizing the proper definition of "wicked" in verse 8.
Wicked isn't speaking of someone who unknowingly sins against God and His instruction, NO, it is someone who knowingly continually rebels and resents even the thoughts of God. These people are the folks we should ferret out of our lives. (keep at a distance as they intentionally hate God and His love for them) They are purposing striving to bring hurt and harm to our relationship with God.
SO WALK WITH GOD my children, and just as He loved the sinner, but at the same time hated his sin. Walk blamelessly in that's same way.
California