Another great morning! Numbers chapter 34.
In this chapter God established what boundaries the Israelites were to establish once they entered into the land of Canaan, the Promised Land. God appointed specific leaders who were to be a part of the assigning of the territories distributed amongst the tribes. He appointed Eleazar the priest, Joshua the leader, and one leader from each of the 12 tribes.
There seems to be great wisdom in having leaders within the church who are first and foremost assigned by God. Once the leaders are established then they are to be respected and followed. It seems like no matter who the leaders are, people are always going to oppose or complain about decisions made. This can be leaders within the church or leaders of other organizations. As a young adult, I remember the local hospital putting on a talent show every year to raise money for a certain need within the hospital. A committee always shared how the money would be used. It seems like no matter what they chose, someone always felt there was a better idea. Rather than rejoice over the idea and support it 100%, they had to complain.
Lack of support for leaders equals DIVISION. GOD'S DESIRE IS UNITY: a UNIFIED Body.
There are two things that hinder or prevent a Vision moving forward:
- Complainers and
- Those who do nothing.
Complainers: As I said, complainers cause division. Hebrews 13:17 States, and I'll paraphrase, that those who can't obey leaders suck the joy out of the ministry the leaders are trying to do. Yes it causes division and where there's division is a great hindrance in the moving forward of what God is trying to do.
Those who do nothing. I suppose we could complain about those who complain, but if we are doing nothing to help move forward what God is trying to do, the results are the same as the complainers. It hinders or prevents what God's trying to do, or be accomplished.
Challenge:
What is it that you are doing to help move the vision of the church, or Ministry of the church, forward?
Or what is it you are NOT doing?
*JUST A SIDE NOTE. If the leadership is blatantly opposing God's TRUTH then of course you don't support that. More often than not, however, it's a TASTE ISSUE versus a TRUTH ISSUE.
God gave precise instructions on the borders for the land that He promised the children of Israel. Yet, they never conquered all this land. He gave them so much and had so much more for them. It makes me wonder how much I’m missing out on if I’m too comfortable where I’m at and/or don’t deal with the fleshly issues in my heart. I too might only be possessing a fraction of what the Lord has for me.
Plans for the leaders and the boundaries are discussed in Chapter 34. There’s great insight once again here from my friends. We certainly don’t want to miss out on all that the Lord has for us. I think that those who complain and those who do nothing usually hinder a vision from moving forward unless God uses it to motivate others even more to follow the vision. The saying goes that the squeaky wheel gets the oil so sometimes when a complainer voices their complaint, the leader will listen and work torwards making improvements if corrections are actually needed. I also think that problems mostly arise when a complainer stirs up trouble by complaining with coworkers or those around them instead of speaking directly with their leader about the issue.
I know that for me, when it comes to children, my ears seem to listen better to the ones who only complain rarely or occasionally rather than the ones who tend to complain frequently. An example would be if I hear a child complain that a certain meal is gross. Kid: “EWWWE! There’s mushrooms on my pizza!” (I use this example because I, myself don’t like mushrooms.) I would probably try harder to accommodate the child with alternative foods if this was a rare instance of this child complaining.
Me: “Would you like this other slice that only has cheese on it?”
On the other hand, a child who complains about almost every meal, I would probably be less likely to try to accommodate with other food choices that I’m thinking that they would probably not like either.
Kid: “EWWWE. The cheese is touching the sauce again!”
Me: “Hey kid! Would you like a slice of bread?”
It’s probably similar with adults, just on a different level. I’m reminded of Proverbs 3:27.
Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in your power to do it.
I’m thinking of a parody by ApologetiX called Complain.
I hope that you enjoy it. Please don’t complain if you dislike it.
https://youtu.be/jdtW2GE2gzw
When I step outside of God’s boundary line, whether I realize it or not, it’s usually followed by a correction or punishment, I can’t complain, especially if I’m guilty
PB challenge:
I go to church ever Sunday, but I don’t take advantage the rest of the week, I’m going to not do nothing.
Sorry I’ve been MIA in the comments recently friends!!!! I allowed life to get in the way and was not making our bible study a priority!
I appreciate all the comments on this chapter! Jim your examples are making me laugh because as a teacher I deal with this often! And I can see myself treating those “rare complainers” in a more accommodating way, when exactly like you quoted proverbs, don’t deny our goodness and kindness and love to anyone! I’m also laughing at the “if you don’t like the video, don’t complain” LOL
I think sometimes in our life, just because we may not have titles attached to us like “CEO” or “Principal” or “Manager” we feel like we aren’t in leadership positions. But those “titled” leaders are counting on us to lead at the level we are at, and God is expecting it! We are leaders in our marriages, our families, our smaller work teams, our communities… and while it’s easy to complain about other workers or family members NOT doing the expectation of the one in charge, why not try to LEAD them where we see they need it. I know as a teacher working with others but not being in a “leadership role” I often make a judgement on those not following what is asked of them or taking short cuts or not respecting the principal, and instead of helping them, communicating with them, I just complain about them! That is the opposite of leadership and that is the opposite of who God has called us to be! I pray I can work on that this school year.