Slow to Speak

James 1:19 My dearly loved brothers, understand this: Everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak, and slow to anger, 20 for man’s anger does not accomplish God’s righteousness.

This describes me pretty well.  I feel as though I am quick to hear and slow to speak.  Most of the time I do not get angry, and I rarely speak out of anger.  I tend to hold it in.  If you cannot tell from the first sentence, this will be a very personal post.  It will be a lot of information about me and how I work, why I do what I do and don't do what others think I should.

Earlier this week, I was accused (using the word lightly. I was not offended in anyway by what was said, because it was all true and is something I need to work on) of being too quite and unwilling to open up, particularly to those in my Bible Study group.  They are right.  I do not speak much in public.  I do not speak much in groups, unless I am close with every person in the group.  In just about every Sunday School class or Bible Study I have been in, I just sit.  I listen.  I do not volunteer answers.  If I am asked my opinion, I will usually give it if I have one.

Proverbs 23:12 Apply yourself to discipline and listen to words of knowledge.

Again, this is something that describes me.  I am the youngest person in my Bible Study.  I am the one who has the shortest marriage, the youngest child.  I know I am not the newest Christian, but given my background and the church I grew up in and the shape of that church's theology at that time (It has improved since then!) I did not know much of anything about a real life in Christ until about 4 years ago when my husband and I went to Kentucky for him to attend Seminary. (I do feel I was saved before then, just did not have an environment that encouraged growth.)  We learned then what a real Christ fearing church was supposed to be like.  Anywho, what I am getting at is that I view the other women in my Bible Study as having more experience in certain areas of life that we are specifically discussing and feel as though what they have to say will benefit me more than me opening my mouth with my inexperience in those areas.

I am also the type of person that must thoroughly think through what I want to say before I say it, especially if it is something that should require thought, like my position on certain theological issues or my opinion on certain things within the church.  I want to make sure I say what I want and I want to make sure I make sense in what I say without having to clarify or restate.  I mentioned to one friend that I express myself better through writing down what I want to say.  Even though this is true, it does not mean that writing down my thoroughly thought out responses to Bible Study questions will make me more inclined to speak and read what I wrote.  I am not very confident in what I say and write.  Yes, I have this blog, but I have not shared it with anybody I actually know, except my husband.

Another thing I thought of, is PLEASE do not look at me and say "You don't talk much" or "You are too quiet" because it makes me want to show you just how quiet I can be.  I put up a wall, as though I am being told that not talking or being quiet is a bad thing.  I get defensive about it, but instead to talking and arguing about it and showing my defensiveness verbally, I close up and hide behind myself.  I do not like to be argumentative.  I will simply smile at you and nod and not say one single word.

So, if you want to get to know me, I must first be let into your space.  I don't make friends well. I do not approach people I do not know unless I am with my husband.  (I will sometimes initiate a conversation with someone I do not know, but if I see them time and time again and they never approach me, then I tend not to go and start up more conversations with them, and I am talking more than a "Hey, how are you?" as they walk by, but a real sincere "how are you?"  One where you want to spend a while and talk.).  Most of my friends were people who first came to me and started conversations with me or as a result of befriending my husband first.  My husband and I love to have people into our homes and treat them to a meal.  I always have my husband ask people over.  I tell him to choose anyone he wants, and sometimes I tell him to choose a couple we do not know well, just for the purpose of getting to know them.  You will find, once inside our personal space, I open up a great deal more. One of my friends was told one time that I never speak to anyone, and her response was, "get her in a room alone with you, and that girl will talk."

Exodus 20:15 -- Do Not Steal

Well, it has been nearly 2 months since I have made a post on here.  I must admit I have not been doing my daily reading as I should.  Not to make excuses, because there were no good reasons why I have not been, but I did find out I was pregnant, had bad morning sickness, and then 2 weeks later found out that we lost the baby. We spent the next two weeks dealing with the miscarriage.  When that was over,all three of us got sick!  I guess when it rains it pours...  Also during this same time, my daughter gave up her morning nap, which is when I normally typed the blog and did my reading.  I am still trying to find a new normal.

Anywho, on with the bible study.

Exodus 20:15  Do not steal.

This seems pretty self explanatory.  Do not take something that does not belong to you.

Exodus 22:1 “When a man steals an ox or a sheep and butchers it or sells it, he must repay five cattle for the ox or four sheep for the sheep. 2 If a thief is caught in the act of breaking in, and he is beaten to death, no one is guilty of bloodshed. 3 But if this happens after sunrise, there is guilt of bloodshed. A thief must make full restitution. If he is unable, he is to be sold because of his theft. 4 If what was stolen—whether ox, donkey, or sheep—is actually found alive in his possession, he must repay double.

Exodus is clear about the punishment for a thief.  He must repay MORE than he took to repay the person he stole from.  If the thief cannot repay, he must be sold to cover the costs to the owner.

Proverbs 30:8 Keep falsehood and deceitful words far from me.
Give me neither poverty nor wealth;
feed me with the food I need.
9 Otherwise, I might have too much
and deny You, saying, “Who is the Lord?”
or I might have nothing and steal,
profaning the name of my God.

Here we see that stealing is the same as profaning the name of God.  When we steal, we are looking at God and saying, "I do not trust that you will provide my needs."  or we are saying, "God, I am not satisfied with what you gave me."

Let us look at one thief in the Bible

John 12:1 Six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany where Lazarus was, the one Jesus had raised from the dead. 2 So they gave a dinner for Him there; Martha was serving them, and Lazarus was one of those reclining at the table with Him. 3 Then Mary took a pound of fragrant oil—pure and expensive nard—anointed Jesus’ feet, and wiped His feet with her hair. So the house was filled with the fragrance of the oil.
4 Then one of His disciples, Judas Iscariot (who was about to betray Him), said, 5 “Why wasn’t this fragrant oil sold for 300 denarii and given to the poor?” 6 He didn’t say this because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief. He was in charge of the money-bag and would steal part of what was put in it.
7 Jesus answered, “Leave her alone; she has kept it for the day of My burial. 8 For you always have the poor with you, but you do not always have Me.”

 Judas, who the Bible calls a thief, was put in charge of the money bags.  He was so greedy for worldly wealth  that he betrayed Jesus, the one whose eternal reward is FAR more than any earthly money, for just 30 pieces of silver.  Judas's punishment was a death on a tree, hung and left to rot.

There is another thief in the Bible who repented of his thievery and is now rejoicing with Christ.

Luke 19:2 There was a man named Zacchaeus who was a chief tax collector, and he was rich. 3 He was trying to see who Jesus was, but he was not able because of the crowd, since he was a short man. 4 So running ahead, he climbed up a sycamore tree to see Jesus, since He was about to pass that way. 5 When Jesus came to the place, He looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down because today I must stay at your house.”
6 So he quickly came down and welcomed Him joyfully. 7 All who saw it began to complain,“He’s gone to lodge with a sinful man!”
8 But Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, “Look, I’ll give half of my possessions to the poor, Lord! And if I have extorted anything from anyone, I’ll pay back four times as much!”
9 “Today salvation has come to this house,” Jesus told him, “because he too is a son of Abraham. 10 For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save the lost.”

As a tax collector, Zacchaeus took more than he should have from the people to make himself rich.  When we met Christ, he turned from that lifestyle and all those he cheated, he was willing to repay 4 times what he took.  As a result, we know that Zacchaeus will be one in heaven rejoicing with all the saints.

Judas and Zacchaeus both stole for earthly gain.  Judas saw earthly wealth as greater than the eternal whereas Zacchaeus recognized the far greater wealth of what Christ offers those who repent from their sinful ways.

Exodus 20:14 -- Adultery

Exodus 20:14 Do not commit adultery.

This is very cut and dry.  Do not commit adultery.  Do not forsake your spouse by being with someone else, whether in thought or deed.

Leviticus 20:10 If a man commits adultery with a married woman—if he commits adultery with his neighbor’s wife—both the adulterer and the adulteress must be put to death.

Again, breaking this commandment leads to death.  The ones who committed the acts must die.

Proverbs 6:27 Can a man embrace fire
and his clothes not be burned?
28 Can a man walk on burning coals
without scorching his feet?
29 So it is with the one who sleeps with
another man’s wife;
no one who touches her will go unpunished.

This is what Solomon had to say about adultery.  Sleeping with another man's wife is like embracing fire and getting burned.  It is dangerous.  You will get punished.  Proverbs goes on to say:

Proverbs 6:32 The one who commits adultery lacks sense;
whoever does so destroys himself.
33 He will get a beating and dishonor,
and his disgrace will never be removed.

You have no sense and you will be disgraced.  You destroy yourself when you commit adultery.

Matthew 5:28 But I tell you, everyone who looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

Matthew is saying here that just looking at a women with the desire to sleep with her is just the same as actually committing the act itself.  You have had her in your mind, so how is that different than actually do it?  God knows your heart and your intentions when you think them.  Many people praise the fact that they did not commit some particular sin, but fail to mention that they thought about wanting to do it all day long.  Like our pastor said concerning adultery in one of his sermons: "A man came home and told his wife, 'you would be proud of me today, honey.  I did not commit adultery, but man I really wanted to!'"

Matthew 5:32 But I tell you, everyone who divorces his wife, except in a case of sexual immorality, causes her to commit adultery. And whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.

and

Matthew 19:9 And I tell you, whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another, commits adultery.”

Here is states that if a divorced person remarries, then they are committing adultery.  I wonder how many Christians read this today?  There are many people who claimed to be Christian when they divorced and then later remarried, for reasons that were not considered sexual immorality.  Do those Christians know they are committing adultery?

Adultery is rampant in our culture.  A lot of times it is swept under the rug, or whispered about behind ones back instead of confronted and dealt with.  Divorce is out of control, especially within the church.  If we truly loved God and our fellow man like the Bible says we ought, then I think the divorce rate among Christians would drop drastically.  We, as a society, had a hard time understanding sacrificial love, that is necessary to keep a long term relationship going.  You can't be in a healthy marriage if all you worry about is yourself and how you can be happy.  There must be concern for the other person involved.  You must love them so much that you are willing to sacrifice some of your wants and desires to make them happy or feel loved or satisfied.  Marriage is not a one way street.

The Bible also talks of adultery in a much deeper sense when referring to Israel's relationship with God.

Jeremiah 3:6 In the days of King Josiah the Lord asked me, “Have you seen what unfaithful Israel has done? She has ascended every high hill and gone under every green tree to prostitute herself there. 7 I thought: After she has done all these things, she will return to Me. But she didn’t return, and her treacherous sister Judah saw it. 8 I observed that it was because unfaithful Israel had committed adultery that I had sent her away and had given her a certificate of divorce. Nevertheless, her treacherous sister Judah was not afraid but also went and prostituted herself. 9 Indifferent to her prostitution, she defiled the land and committed adultery with stones and trees. 10 Yet in spite of all this, her treacherous sister Judah didn’t return to Me with all her heart—only in pretense.”

Both Israel and Judah have given themselves to foreign gods and worshiped them.  They have made their idols out of stone and wood and worshiped them instead of the on true God.  They have betrayed God and followed after other gods.  As we know from the New Testament, Christ is our groom and us, as the church is his bride.  We must remember the bride of Christ is both Christ and the chosen Jews.  For any of us to follow after other gods or idols is like us committing adultery against God.

Exodus 20:7 -- Do Not Misuse the Name of the Lord

Exodus 20:7 Do not misuse the name of the Lord your God, because the Lord will not leave anyone unpunished who misuses His name.

We should not use the name of the Lord in a way that would bring dishonor to him.  We should not use his name unless we are addressing Him or telling someone about Him.  Passages in the Old Testament tells us to take our oaths in Him name.  

The Bible is filled with references telling the people to not misuse God's name, here are a few.

Leviticus 18:21 “You are not to make any of your children pass through the fire to Molech. Do not profane the name of your God; I am Yahweh."

Leviticus 19:12 You must not swear falsely by My name, profaning the name of your God; I am Yahweh.

These two verses are straight forward.  Do not profane the name of God.

Deuteronomy 18:19 I will hold accountable whoever does not listen to My words that he speaks in My name.20 But the prophet who dares to speak a message in My name that I have not commanded him to speak, or who speaks in the name of other gods—that prophet must die.’

Here, a punishment is given for those who profane or misuse the name of God, he must die.

Psalm 74:10 God, how long will the enemy mock?
Will the foe insult Your name forever?
11 Why do You hold back Your hand?
Stretch out Your right hand and destroy them!

The Psalmist is pleading with God to destroy those who insult the name of the Lord.

Proverbs 30:8 Keep falsehood and deceitful words far from me.
Give me neither poverty nor wealth;
feed me with the food I need.
9 Otherwise, I might have too much
and deny You, saying, “Who is the Lord?”
or I might have nothing and steal,
profaning the name of my God.

Here in Proverbs it suggest that having plenty or too little could cause someone to profane the name of God.  Having just what one needs can help keep one from doing so.

Ezekiel 20:39 “As for you, house of Israel, this is what the Lord God says: Go and serve your idols, each of you. But afterward you will surely listen to Me, and you will no longer defile My holy name with your gifts and idols.

Ezekiel is telling Israel that they are defiling the name of God by serving idols.  By rejecting God and raising our lives to another god profanes God's name because we are not seeing Him for being the Holy God he truly is.

Ezekiel 36:21 Then I had concern for My holy name, which the house of Israel profaned among the nations where they went.
22 “Therefore, say to the house of Israel: This is what the Lord God says: It is not for your sake that I will act, house of Israel, but for My holy name, which you profaned among the nations where you went. 23 I will honor the holiness of My great name, which has been profaned among the nations—the name you have profaned among them. The nations will know that I am Yahweh”—the declaration of the Lord God—“when I demonstrate My holiness through you in their sight. 

Romans 2:23 You who boast in the law, do you dishonor God by breaking the law? 24 For, as it is written: The name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.

These two verses show that the name of God is defiled when those who proclaim His name do not act as though they follow God.  They confess with their lips but their actions are completely different.  Thus, those who see them out in the world get the wrong view of God, this His name is profaned.

1 Timothy 6:1 All who are under the yoke as slaves must regard their own masters to be worthy of all respect, so that God’s name and His teaching will not be blasphemed.

If you are subjected to following the rules or under the authority of another individual, no matter who they are, or how they act, you must show them respect so that your witness in Christ may be protected and that you will blaspheme the name of God.

Revelation 16:8 The fourth poured out his bowl on the sun. He was given the power to burn people with fire, 9 and people were burned by the intense heat. So they blasphemed the name of God, who had the power over these plagues, and they did not repent and give Him glory.

The people here experienced something horrible.  Instead of turning to God and repenting or even acknowledging the power of God to remove these horrible plagues, the people grumbled and complained that they were being burned.  Grumbling and complaining against God is another way to blaspheme His name.

There are many ways we can defile the name of our God.  It is more than spewing out a profanity.  It is a way of life.  If we have idols, if we grumble and complain against Him, if our actions do not match our speech concerning Him, if we deliberately sin, we are guilty of profaning the name of God.  God is all about His glory.  His name must be praised and exalted.  We must strive to do this every day by praising him and turning from our sins.