You can’t go far without hearing some negative talk about certain leaders of certain countries, not to name any in particular. I’m not here to convince you of anything pertaining to either of those, I mean of any specific people, nor do I care to hear your opinion of certain individuals so widely hated and publicly denigrated. I simply want to offer one alternative notion with a shift in focus for our OWN path through life.
All throughout history, people have asked for rulers and pushed against them. People have promoted leaders and kicked them out. People have demanded rules and continually broken them.
We are hard wired with a circuit mandate to function with order, to have a guide to follow, a code to live by, and boundary lines to for survival. Whether you are a rule follower or a rebel without a cause, everyone has the need for a checks-and-balance system of some kind.
And yet, as much as we NEED this guiding, we kick against it. We fight the direction and run into, and sometimes through, the boundary lines set before us.
This tale is as old as time. Whether it was rules or rulers or both, the human race has struggled with and without law. The issue really isn’t with the regulations but within the heart of those for whom they are made.
There is a funny phrase, “skleros sy laktizo pros kentron,” in scripture that the Romans used and everyone understood exactly what it meant.
“kicking against the goads”
This nonsensical expression meant that something is futile and stupid. This is where it came from: Farmers would use oxen to work their fields and they would use a ‘GOAD’ to poke the animals and keep them on path and moving. Think of a cattle prod. The oxen didn’t like to be jabbed in the side so they would kick against the sharp stick, but their kicking only increased the poking. It became better to simply comply instead of resisting.
So, as we march through Lent and find ourselves bucking the system of sacrifice or maybe just struggling to do the right thing or stay on track in general, remember, it is foolish to fight the restraints.
We need to remind ourselves that boundaries are there for our protection and rules are meant to prevent chaos.
Most importantly, we must be mindful that human leaders are going to fail us…they’re humans.
But we have a leader who is GOOD and TRUSTWORTHY and uses a shepherd’s rod and not a cattle prod.
God will NEVER fail us nor will we be abandoned. We will NOT be led into despair, darkness, or destruction.
However, there will boundaries set, rules established, sacrifices required, and changes needed. And just like the oxen, it is absolutely futile to kick against the instruction, direction, and correction of the LORD.
The oxen are bound in a yoke; it’s what shoulders the load and is an instrument for doing the work at hand. We are called to work in this life but the way in which we go about it can either be sustaining or draining. This is why Jesus says that rest is found in him and his yoke (or method of shouldering the work-load of life) is easy (Matt 11:28-30).
Don’t get bogged down and beat up over the rules. Don’t let rulers ruin your joy! Take on the yoke of Jesus let him lead you in the path of restoration (Psalm 23).
#GetYoked
#LookingForLeadership
#AshesToAshes
#RestoringWholenessOfLife
Brett
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