Post by Cindy on Jun 22, 2019 8:42:38 GMT -5
When a woman makes a vow, because she is under the authority of her husband (or father if unmarried) the husband or father can nullify her vow to the Lord, or they can approve it, in which case she must honor them. The Lord also says though that if the husband or father know about her vow(s) and say nothing about them day after day, then by their silence they have approved them and she must honor them. (Numbers 30:2–15) Silence can sometimes be more powerful than words and have much greater consequences.
This is every bit as true about sin as well. When we say nothing to a person about their sin, then we might as well pat them on the back and tell them "good job", because we are approving them. (Ezekiel 3:20–21) God tells us beginning in Genesis and all the way through Revelation that we are our brother's keeper and that we are responsible for each other. He tells us that includes everyone we meet too. Remember when the man asked Jesus do define who his neighbor was? We may not like it, but as far as God is concerned, we are to love everyone the same way He loves us, which means being concerned about the state of their souls. If they're believers, then we're to try even harder to help them. But that doesn't mean that we're not to give our best to help those who aren't saved too.
Jesus warned us that following Him wouldn't be easy. He told us it would cost a lot, and mainly in relationships. Most of us haven't taken Him seriously, and do all we can not to "rock the boat" so that we can have our cake and eat it too. But God didn't grant us salvation so we could sit comfortably at home and have the best of both worlds. In fact, He tells us that if we're living like the world, that we're acting like His enemy again and not His child! That's very strong language! He tells us that He saved us so that we would bear fruit and bring Him glory. Our purpose on this earth isn't to "be happy", or to make money, or even just to lead good lives. It's to bring God glory and bear fruit for Him. He cares about every person and wants us to be telling people when they're doing things that are harmful to them. There just isn't anything more harmful then sin, since all sin brings destruction and ends in death. Although someone who is saved certainly won't lose their salvation if they're sinning, they do hurt their relationship with the Lord, because He can't be close to them until they repent and turn back to Him again.
Maybe that's it... maybe what we need is to remember just how awful sin is and what it really does to us; what it means to be saved and forgiven of our sins. Maybe, if we focused on that more, we'd be more willing to step out on that limb, rock the boat, and warn our brothers and sisters, our neighbors and friends that the things they're doing/saying can't be tolerated, that they need Jesus, or need to repent and obey Him. I've found that even Christians seem to think they can get away with sin, especially if it's something they've somehow decided is a "little sin" or of no big consequence. Mainly I've heard that about swearing and telling lies, especially "little white lies". But God says all sin, not just some of it, will be paid for by death; that it all causes destruction, and all is contagious and leads to yet more sin. Nor does God differentiate between small and big lies or call some lies "good". But God does call Satan the master liar, however I don't think that's someone we should emulate.
John 15:5–10; John 15:16–22; Romans 7:4 ; 2 Thes 1:11–12; Col 1:10; 1 Cor 6:20; 1 Peter 4:11; James 4:4; Numbers 30:2–15, But I'd especially like you to note these verses from Numbers:
““When a young woman still living in her father’s house makes a vow to the LORD or obligates herself by a pledge and her father hears about her vow or pledge but says nothing to her, then all her vows and every pledge by which she obligated herself will stand. But if her father forbids her when he hears about it, none of her vows or the pledges by which she obligated herself will stand; the LORD will release her because her father has forbidden her.” (Numbers 30:3–5)
“But if her husband says nothing to her about it from day to day, then he confirms all her vows or the pledges binding on her. He confirms them by saying nothing to her when he hears about them. If, however, he nullifies them some time after he hears about them, then he is responsible for her guilt.”” (Numbers 30:14–15) By the way, a woman that's not under the authority of either her father or husband, like a widow or a divorced woman, is responsible for her own vows. (Numbers 30:9).
This is every bit as true about sin as well. When we say nothing to a person about their sin, then we might as well pat them on the back and tell them "good job", because we are approving them. (Ezekiel 3:20–21) God tells us beginning in Genesis and all the way through Revelation that we are our brother's keeper and that we are responsible for each other. He tells us that includes everyone we meet too. Remember when the man asked Jesus do define who his neighbor was? We may not like it, but as far as God is concerned, we are to love everyone the same way He loves us, which means being concerned about the state of their souls. If they're believers, then we're to try even harder to help them. But that doesn't mean that we're not to give our best to help those who aren't saved too.
Jesus warned us that following Him wouldn't be easy. He told us it would cost a lot, and mainly in relationships. Most of us haven't taken Him seriously, and do all we can not to "rock the boat" so that we can have our cake and eat it too. But God didn't grant us salvation so we could sit comfortably at home and have the best of both worlds. In fact, He tells us that if we're living like the world, that we're acting like His enemy again and not His child! That's very strong language! He tells us that He saved us so that we would bear fruit and bring Him glory. Our purpose on this earth isn't to "be happy", or to make money, or even just to lead good lives. It's to bring God glory and bear fruit for Him. He cares about every person and wants us to be telling people when they're doing things that are harmful to them. There just isn't anything more harmful then sin, since all sin brings destruction and ends in death. Although someone who is saved certainly won't lose their salvation if they're sinning, they do hurt their relationship with the Lord, because He can't be close to them until they repent and turn back to Him again.
Maybe that's it... maybe what we need is to remember just how awful sin is and what it really does to us; what it means to be saved and forgiven of our sins. Maybe, if we focused on that more, we'd be more willing to step out on that limb, rock the boat, and warn our brothers and sisters, our neighbors and friends that the things they're doing/saying can't be tolerated, that they need Jesus, or need to repent and obey Him. I've found that even Christians seem to think they can get away with sin, especially if it's something they've somehow decided is a "little sin" or of no big consequence. Mainly I've heard that about swearing and telling lies, especially "little white lies". But God says all sin, not just some of it, will be paid for by death; that it all causes destruction, and all is contagious and leads to yet more sin. Nor does God differentiate between small and big lies or call some lies "good". But God does call Satan the master liar, however I don't think that's someone we should emulate.
John 15:5–10; John 15:16–22; Romans 7:4 ; 2 Thes 1:11–12; Col 1:10; 1 Cor 6:20; 1 Peter 4:11; James 4:4; Numbers 30:2–15, But I'd especially like you to note these verses from Numbers:
““When a young woman still living in her father’s house makes a vow to the LORD or obligates herself by a pledge and her father hears about her vow or pledge but says nothing to her, then all her vows and every pledge by which she obligated herself will stand. But if her father forbids her when he hears about it, none of her vows or the pledges by which she obligated herself will stand; the LORD will release her because her father has forbidden her.” (Numbers 30:3–5)
“But if her husband says nothing to her about it from day to day, then he confirms all her vows or the pledges binding on her. He confirms them by saying nothing to her when he hears about them. If, however, he nullifies them some time after he hears about them, then he is responsible for her guilt.”” (Numbers 30:14–15) By the way, a woman that's not under the authority of either her father or husband, like a widow or a divorced woman, is responsible for her own vows. (Numbers 30:9).
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