September 23

Sep 23 - Today from Proverbs 23 we look at verses 10 and 11
"Do not move an ancient boundary stone or encroach on the fields of the fatherless, for their Defender is strong; he will take up their case against you."

Wisdom understands the concepts of and reasons for boundaries - and honors them. Our founding fathers were wise, and incorporated the concepts of boundaries in our founding documents. They recognized the Creator (What? I thought there was to be a separation of church and state!). In recognizing the Creator, they identified the inalienable rights of every man. Inalienable is that which cannot be transferred to another. The Creator has endowed very man with personal boundaries that are not to be encroached upon by others - "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness". Every man. This means that our liberty ends at the boundary of my neighbor's endowment. As the old adage goes, "I have the right to swing my fist, but that right ends at the tip of my neighbor's nose."
The law is not so much a list of my personal rights as much as it is a set of boundaries that are there to protect my neighbor's rights. We were created to serve, not to be served. The first of the Ten Commandments establishes the sovereign authority of the Creator who endows (indicative, or 'because'). Unless this authority is first recognized, honored and established, there is no accountability to an absolute in keeping the boundaries of the next nine. The second half of the Ten Commandments establishes the boundaries of those endowments under the authority of the Creator (imperative, or 'therefore'). "Love the Lord your God (indicative - because He is the Lord your God) with all of your heart, soul, mind and strength, and your neighbor as yourself" (imperative - therefore love Him with your all and your neighbor as yourself). This is to fulfill all of the law.
To love your neighbor as yourself (imperative) is:
- To seek to elevate the quality of life for your neighbor ("I was hungry and you fed me, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was naked and you clothed me, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you visited me. . ." -Jesus, Matthew 25:35,36)
- To protect your neighbor's liberty ("Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you." -Ephesians 4:32)
- To aid your neighbor in the pursuit of happiness (Love is patient, kind, does not envy, does not boast, is not proud, is not rude, is not self-seeking, is not easily angered, keeps no record of wrongs, does not delight in evil, rejoices with the truth, always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres." - I Corinthians 13:4-7)
To encroach upon the boundaries of one's neighbor is to take from another that which the Creator has endowed them. To take particular advantage of the weak and unsuspecting because they appear to be easy pickings, (e.g. 'the fatherless' ), is to challenge the Creator Himself. It is He who has endowed, and He will take up their case against the perpetrators. Let's look at some of the big encroachments:
Yesterday 'the fatherless' were humans created in the image of God and relegated to human slavery by selfish men who moved boundary stones to make people with dark skin appear less than human in their eyes.
Today 'the fatherless' are the unborn humans created in the image of God and relegated to 'products of conception' by selfish men who moved the boundary stones to make the unborn appear less than human in their eyes.
Tomorrow 'the fatherless' may very well be any human who has no 'social value' and is relegated to a 'negative quality' of life to be terminated by selfish men who moved the boundary stones to make the aged and disabled appear less than human in their eyes. This is already a reality in some extremist cultures, and our 'civilized' Western culture is rapidly approaching it.
When we remove recognition of and honor to the Creator revealed in the first tablet of the Ten Commandments, who is there to protect the inalienable rights of every man revealed in the second tablet? Are we to entrust ourselves to a system of shifting values (self-centered vs. God-centered), and apply those values to our relationship with our neighbor? When the indicative is removed, there is no integrity in the imperative. To write and display the commandments on stone is of little value to a culture. They must be written in the hearts of men. Wherever the commandments are written in men's hearts, there is to be fruit to evidence the reality of God's character through acts of grace. This is the task of the church. Love God, love your neighbor. Honor the boundaries.