Most of us will try very hard to stay out of our neighbor’s business, as we give them space, and try to respect their privacy. But in our study today I want us to think about the scenarios where we are accountable to our neighbor, for it matters to them what we do. Sounds far fetched? Well, stay with me for the ‘rest of the story’!

 

DATE POSTED Friday, 2021-09-10
WRITTEN AT: Okeechobee, FL

BY: Ed Algreen

 

SCRIPTURE FROM: Judges 2:1-3
TRANSLATION: Living Bible (TLB)

 

BIBLE TEXT:  1 …. “I brought you out of Egypt into this land that I promised to your ancestors, and I said that I would never break my covenant with you, 2 if you, on your part, would make no peace treaties with the people living in this land; I told you to destroy their heathen altars. Why have you not obeyed? 3 And now since you have broken the contract, it is no longer in effect, and I no longer promise to destroy the nations living in your land; rather, they shall be thorns in your sides, and their gods will be a constant temptation to you.”

 

APPLICATION: Very early in the Bible, Cain was asked about his brother, Abel’s whereabouts. In Genesis 4:9 we can read where Cain responded to the Lord ‘Am I my brother’s keeper’? Of course we know the full story, for Cain was not ready to acknowledge to the Lord that he had killed his brother. This phrase is repeated still today when one is not wanting to be held accountable for a brother. But let’s look closely into our Scripture today. When your brother, neighbor, friend, or someone you know, does something that will impact your life, shouldn’t you be concerned about what they do? God made a covenant agreement with the Israelites very early on. This meant that he promised to do something for them, if they promised to do what he told them. Friends, unlike covenant agreements made at wedding ceremonies, that are often broken, God stands firmly by His covenant agreements. He promised that He would see that they and/or their successors will make it into a land flowing with milk and honey. Much different to the country of Egypt where they were enslaved and where they did exactly as they were ordered to do. At this point in our Scripture reading, God had brought the nation of Israel into this promised land, however it was very obvious that the Israelites had no intention of holding up their covenant agreement with God, for they did not totally destroy the idols and everyone in the new land they were about to occupy. So they were all about to receive God’s hand of judgment. Do you suppose that every individual was guilty of the sin God saw in them? Now look around you and think about the bad things that others see happening in your church, or in your school. Because you are a part of those entities, you are also determined guilty of the sin your neighbors think about when you tell them that you attend church there, or you went to school there. Friends, I believe that God showed me today that although He expects me to keep myself holy and in tuned with my maker, that I should also do all within my power to impact the lives of those around me. God was upset with the Israelites for not destroying the idols they found, because He knew they would soon turn and worship them. While we are tasked with the responsibility of witnessing to our neighbors, we must strive to win them over, otherwise their sinful acts might start to influence us. Be concerned about your neighbors my friend, if they are not for the Lord, then they stand a chance of distracting us from our course as we strive for righteousness through the power of the Almighty God. There’s no way of being classified as anything different to what the world sees in the majority of folk around us. Yes, God knows our individual hearts, and I thank Him for that. But let’s pray that the world will see our church as an extension of God’s grace and power. May they see our cities as filled with children of God waiting for the return or our Lord and Savior. May they become weak in their sin, so that their hearts may be attracted to the love and grace of our Father in heaven. Be concerned about your neighbor, may they know Jesus just like you do!

 

BLESSING(S) NOTED: God is holy, and He is looking for a holy people to occupy heaven with He, His Son, and His angels. May we look at our neighbors and be concerned about their lifestyle, if it does not imitate that of Jesus.

 

PRAYER: Lord, we may have been deprogrammed to turn our heads away from our neighbor’s business. But I believe that You are much more concerned about their heart than us interfering in their personal business. May we make it our business to know that they are a child of the King and that they are determined to live out their time on earth imitating Your walk among us and responding to Your desire to know them personally. May we, as a church, as a city, as a country, be known as followers of Jesus because of the way we live, love and act. AMEN!

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