Today’s Scripture Reading (September
28, 2015): Numbers 17
Politicians
quickly learn that what they say often begins to have a life of its own. As a
speaker, I am often amazed at what it is that I say that finds root in someone
life – and often not in a good way. I was recently questioned about whether I
was a racist because I spoke about the pentatonic scale being played on the
black keys of a piano – and that African American spirituals can be played on
just the black keys. But I also openly wondered about the hymn “Amazing Grace”
written by John Newton, a white slave trader. I wondered if just maybe the tune
for this awesome song was taken from the slaves that Newton once transported
from Africa to the Caribbean. Because “Amazing Grace” is a white spiritual – it
is built around a pentatonic scale and can be played on just the black keys of
the piano.
But the consequence
of my words is that someone thought that I was racist. It wasn’t intended. But
it was how my words had been interpreted. And I needed to re-evaluate my words.
How can it be phrased differently? I know it was not my intention, but I want
to make sure that I am not being misunderstood. (Unfortunately, to stop being misunderstood
I might have to stop speaking – and writing.)
We fear
consequences. And actually this is a good thing. People who have no connection
between an action and consequence are often sociopaths causing much damage to
themselves and to others in our society. Proverbs repeatedly tell us that “The
fear of the Lord is the beginning
of wisdom.” But it is often not the Lord that we fear, it is the
consequences of the Lord that scare us. And there were consequences to the
Korah rebellion. The consequences were severe. The rebellion cost those who
participated in the rebellion, and those that sympathized with the rebellion,
their lives. And the rest of the community feared God because of the
consequences. What they didn’t do was have a deep change of heart – and we know
that because they kept on coming back to Moses and Aaron with an attitude of
rebellion. Once the fear of the consequences had eased, they returned to the
same rebellious place of the soul.
One of the eternal
biblical truths is this - we can’t turn away from something without filling the
emptiness that is left, or what we turned away from will just return and take
its place once again in our lives. This was the experience of Israel. They
turned away from rebellion, they swept their lives clean, but they did not take
on the things of God in its place. And the fear of the consequences of God dissipated
and the rebellion returned.
Misunderstandings
happen. And I hate consequences. But I believe that if I fill the emptiness
with Jesus, then the love that he brings into my life will win out over the
misunderstandings. But if I leave the emptiness then I might as well be silent,
because nothing good is going to come from my words.
Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Numbers
18
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