BARBARISM - A BARBAROUS OR UNCIVILIZED STATE OR CONDITION
We live in a civilized land and of course, consider ourselves to be civilized. Oddly enough though, we often do things that the barbarian would never do. Let’s be realistic the heathen of the South American or African jungle would never even think of doing some of the things we do in this civilized country. When was the last time you heard of a barbarian killing his wife and their children and then fighting off others for hours before finally taking his own life. It happens several times a year in this country. Even though the barbarians as we call them will fight viciously against an enemy tribe, they do not make a habit of fighting among themselves like we do. Even those battles between tribes with spears and bows and knives over such petty things as tribal boundaries can't compare with our civilized wars with guns, tanks, bombers and missiles.
Spiritually we find some of those same human weaknesses in us as Christians. While the barbarian would shout a warning or possibly even physically intervene to stop a companion from going over the edge of a cliff, we are too civilized to do that. Everyday somewhere around 8 - 10 million people die in this world and the vast majority of them do it outside of Christ. Right near us the local papers are filled with obituaries of people who have stepped off the cliff into the great eternal abyss, and what are we doing about it? Nothing. How barbaric. We haven’t seen the worst yet. There are often Christians who begin drifting away from Christ in one way or another, and do we help hold onto them to bring them back? Do we even shout a warning to them? The fact is that in many cases we help push them off the edge. It happens with the new Christian who doesn’t say or do something just right and instead of exhorting them to continue to grow and encouraging their willingness to try, we jump on them and condemn them for not knowing everything we know. Or we see someone do something and immediately tell everyone in the congregation how wrong they were for what they did instead of going to them. In neither of these cases do we ever think that it has taken us a number of years to grow beyond the stage this individual is. In neither of these cases do we stop to first examine our own life, attitude, and motives.
I wish I could say I never faltered in this area. I know as well as you do how difficult it is to have the courage to say or do something, and how much more difficult it is to be sure to say or do the RIGHT thing. We don’t have the ability to see others’ hearts and minds to know just what will get through to them the way Jesus could, but we do each have the ability to look at our own lives and attitudes and to control the way we react. If we will go as we should the blood of those going over the cliff will not be on our hands, but if we fail to warn them we will be to some degree responsible. (Ezek 33:7-9) “So thou, O son of man, I have set thee a watchman unto the house of Israel; therefore thou shalt hear the word at my mouth, and warn them from me. {8} When I say unto the wicked, O wicked man, thou shalt surely die; if thou dost not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand. {9} Nevertheless, if thou warn the wicked of his way to turn from it; if he do not turn from his way, he shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul.”
Are you your brother’s keeper? If not you should be.
We live in a civilized land and of course, consider ourselves to be civilized. Oddly enough though, we often do things that the barbarian would never do. Let’s be realistic the heathen of the South American or African jungle would never even think of doing some of the things we do in this civilized country. When was the last time you heard of a barbarian killing his wife and their children and then fighting off others for hours before finally taking his own life. It happens several times a year in this country. Even though the barbarians as we call them will fight viciously against an enemy tribe, they do not make a habit of fighting among themselves like we do. Even those battles between tribes with spears and bows and knives over such petty things as tribal boundaries can't compare with our civilized wars with guns, tanks, bombers and missiles.
Spiritually we find some of those same human weaknesses in us as Christians. While the barbarian would shout a warning or possibly even physically intervene to stop a companion from going over the edge of a cliff, we are too civilized to do that. Everyday somewhere around 8 - 10 million people die in this world and the vast majority of them do it outside of Christ. Right near us the local papers are filled with obituaries of people who have stepped off the cliff into the great eternal abyss, and what are we doing about it? Nothing. How barbaric. We haven’t seen the worst yet. There are often Christians who begin drifting away from Christ in one way or another, and do we help hold onto them to bring them back? Do we even shout a warning to them? The fact is that in many cases we help push them off the edge. It happens with the new Christian who doesn’t say or do something just right and instead of exhorting them to continue to grow and encouraging their willingness to try, we jump on them and condemn them for not knowing everything we know. Or we see someone do something and immediately tell everyone in the congregation how wrong they were for what they did instead of going to them. In neither of these cases do we ever think that it has taken us a number of years to grow beyond the stage this individual is. In neither of these cases do we stop to first examine our own life, attitude, and motives.
I wish I could say I never faltered in this area. I know as well as you do how difficult it is to have the courage to say or do something, and how much more difficult it is to be sure to say or do the RIGHT thing. We don’t have the ability to see others’ hearts and minds to know just what will get through to them the way Jesus could, but we do each have the ability to look at our own lives and attitudes and to control the way we react. If we will go as we should the blood of those going over the cliff will not be on our hands, but if we fail to warn them we will be to some degree responsible. (Ezek 33:7-9) “So thou, O son of man, I have set thee a watchman unto the house of Israel; therefore thou shalt hear the word at my mouth, and warn them from me. {8} When I say unto the wicked, O wicked man, thou shalt surely die; if thou dost not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand. {9} Nevertheless, if thou warn the wicked of his way to turn from it; if he do not turn from his way, he shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul.”
Are you your brother’s keeper? If not you should be.
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