The Deadly Dangers of Being Like Everyone Else

So the Philistines were subdued and they did not come anymore within the border of Israel. And the hand of the LORD was against the Philistines all the days of Samuel.  The cities which the Philistines had taken from Israel were restored to Israel, from Ekron even to Gath; and Israel delivered their territory from the hand of the Philistines. So there was peace between Israel and the Amorites.  Now Samuel judged Israel all the days of his life. (1 Samuel 7:13-15 NASB

Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah; and they said to him, "Behold, you have grown old, and your sons do not walk in your ways. Now appoint a king for us to judge us like all the nations." (1 Samuel 8:4-5 NASB)

Nevertheless, the people refused to listen to the voice of Samuel, and they said, "No, but there shall be a king over us, that we also may be like all the nations, that our king may judge us and go out before us and fight our battles." (1 Samuel 8"19-20 NASB)

The reasons the people asked for a king are interesting. First they say they want a king so they can be like the other nations, and because Samuel's sons don't walk in his ways.  It's true, his sons don't.  But the comment from chapter 7 says that Samuel was still judging Israel, so a new judge can be found.

The second reason, after Samuel has warned them what it will be like for them under a king, is that they want a king to be like the other nations, and to go out before them to fight their battles.  The problem here is that the Philistines have been subdued, and remained so during Samuel's life.  In fact, under Samuel, the people recovered cities taken by the Philistines under Samuel.  So this "battle chief" reason doesn't really work either.

The only consistent reason is that they want to be like all the other nations.  Unfortunately, they get their wish in spades.  Samuel lines out for them what life under a king will be like, but even he paints a rosier picture than what actually happens.  The kings of Israel are corrupt, and pagan.  They are so much like the nations around them that it's a good chance that the latter kings of Israel in Samaria weren't even Israelites. 

This goes way beyond, "Be careful what you wish for."  This signals the destruction of the people of Israel on a very fundamental level.  On the other hand, at the beginning of the monarchy, the people are more consistently unified than they had ever been, even entering the land under Joshua.  That unity lasts through the first three kings and blows apart with the fourth.  Actually, for Israel as "the people of God", it was all down hill from king number three.

So, when do I "want to be like all the other nations"?  When do I look around me and wonder what it would be like to have that, or go there, or achieve this or that?  What if I had the money they have, or went on vacations where they went with the stuff they take?  What if I worked my job like they do or viewed what I do with the same mentality?  I too could be a big shot, have boats, big expandable motor homes, larger houses, monstrous debt, lose my family, destroy my marriage, and "vaguely remember" what church was like. Yeah, I could do that.

I probably won't though.  The reasons are varied, and only partly make me look good.  I have other ways that I wind up choosing to be like "the all the other nations."  When I choose vacations over worship, I'm a lot like the other nations.  When I choose a church based on what it does for me, I'm a lot like the other nations.  When I read Scripture and pray a list of wants to my Master off a routine checklist, then I'm a lot like other nations.  Whenever I begin to marginalize my relationship to my Master, putting His things into boxes of the same size as other personal and family activities, then I'm a lot like the other nations.

I don't do a lot of these things, but I do some.  There are other things I could put on the list, some of which I struggle with, some I see in others.  The reality is that it is just as easy for me to choose to be like the other people around me as it was for the Israelites, and often it's even easier.  I didn't even touch on how worship sometimes flows from what we see in the world, whether concerts, performers, TV shows, or even other churches.  Whenever it stops being about my Master and me bowing before His throne, I've chosen to be like the all the other nations.

So, today, I will choose to pray listening for His word.  I will seek to honor Him at work; to make Him and His church the priority it should be, focus on my family and their spiritual health, as He wants me to; and look forward to, again, bowing before the throne of my Master with my fellow followers of Jesus.

Where and How Do I Spend My Time?

Day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved. (Acts 2:46-47 NASB)

Culture has a huge part to play in how I prioritize my time.  But I can't blame everything on culture.  In the early days of the Jerusalem Church, being in the temple every day wasn't a huge deviation from their culture.  I don't think the traveling dinner was either.  But these things weren't common either.

In my culture, being at the meeting house or sanctuary is just another appointment or part of our week.  The meetings go on my calendar, and the Sunday worship time is something I know I'll do every week.  For some in churches in this culture, going to the church property for meetings and even worship can be usurped by baseball or soccer games if they're scheduled then.  Vacations always take priority over time at church.  And it seems that giving is only something done when church is attended, if at all.

When my wife and I were dating, we'd visit my family and attend my church when in town.  When we'd visit her family, we thought about finding a church to visit, but decided to avoid the uncomfortable feelings of visiting a strange church and spend more time with her family.  It's odd, but now, 20 years later, we don't even question that practice.  Is that a lesson I want my daughter to learn?

I can't help but look at the description of this group of believers in Jerusalem and feel like I'm missing something very important, actually several things.  I need to air them, examine their validity, and maybe make some changes in how my family spends our time through the week.

First, day to day they met on temple grounds and in one mind.  I get to our church grounds twice a week, only three if necessary.  I could easily add another day just to help clean the place, pick weeds, or whatever needs to be done around there.  And those are pragmatic reasons beyond the opportunity to just go and pray for those who go in and out of those doors, pray for my pastors and their staff, and pray for those who drive by and see our sign.  I can always do that.

Second, they broke bread from house to house.  The small group I have the privilege to lead decided on their own to serve dinner just before.  The dinner and ensuing discussions take up as much time as the study itself.  We spend time talking about all sorts of things sharing and learning about each other.  It has built intimacy that no Bible discussion could have.  We do that once a week.  For our culture, that's a lot.  And we are considering adding a regular, possibly quarterly (or seasonal) backyard barbecue into the mix.  So, there I think I have been led to follow the pattern of this Scripture to a comfortable degree.  But I also see the benefit of it.

The last things are the attitude of sincerity and unity that pervaded the group.  In my culture, we don't say what's on our mind, we use "tact" to beat around the bush, and avoid confrontation.  Ironically, that doesn't necessarily characterize our families.  So how intimate is a group relationship when we don't feel we can be honest, forthright, and don't feel safe to criticize?  This does not characterize church in most cases.  I do know one person in my church who doesn't have a problem with this, and I really appreciate him, as do many of our congregation.  He's not perfect, but he is respected.  He's both honest and forthright, but I never got the impression he was belligerent or mean, in fact he was a concerned about how he might be taken, but not deterred by that concern.  Why can't that characterize everyone or most rather than one?  I'd like it if it characterized me at least.

If these things characterized me, my Master's presence in my life would be noticeable.  It is beginning to characterize my small group.  That will become an influence in my church (we're not that huge that 10 or 12 people won't have an effect).  I hope that my life will begin to change and take on more of these qualities, but I will have to let it and encourage it.  It will affect my attitude toward my church, they will become a huge priority.  It will affect my life with my Master, He will have more of me to use for His purposes and Kingdom.  It will affect my influence in my community, I will be more bold to engage them with the good news I know, and they need.  And it will make an impression on my daughter who will see the validity not just sincerity of a Biblical-based church, and will seek that for the rest of her life.  Life change, that is the main effect; and my Master will add daily to the numbers of those being saved through this sub-culture.