2020-02-14
1 Johannes 2:19 NLV
Daar is sommige mense in die lewe met wie ons goed oor die weg kom en ander met wie ons nie doen nie. In sommige gevalle is ons nie veronderstel om met hulle oor die weg te kom nie! Kom ons wees duidelik: Jy moenie liefdeloos, ongevoelig of veroordelend wees nie. Paulus sê: ‘Sover dit vir julle moontlik is, moet julle goeie verhoudings handhaaf met alle mense (Romeine 12:18 NLV). Ons praat hier spesifiek van die mense wat God ons beveel om van weg te breek. Wanneer dit by die mense kom wat nie in jou lewe hoort nie, is daar twee dinge om te oorweeg. Eerstens is daar die openbaring. Die Bybel sê: ‘Hulle het uit ons geledere gekom, maar was nooit regtig deel van ons nie. As hulle regtig deel van ons was, sou hulle nou nog by ons gebly het. Hulle het uit ons geledere weggegaan sodat dit aan die lig sou kom dat hulle nie regtig deel van ons was nie.’ Net soos jy nie olie en water kan meng nie, is daar mense wat eenvoudig net nie in jou lewe hoort nie. Tweedens is daar skeiding. Paulus het gesê: ‘Moenie saamspan met ongelowiges nie… watter gemeenskap kan daar wees tussen lig en duisternis? Watter ooreenkoms kan daar wees tussen Christus en Belial?.. Dit is soos God gesê het: ‘Ek sal onder hulle woon en rondbeweeg, en Ek sal hulle God wees en hulle sal my volk wees.’ Daarom: ‘Gaan van hulle af weg en hou julle eenkant, sê die Here… dan sal Ek julle ontvang.’ En ook: ‘Ek sal vir julle ‘n Vader wees, en julle sal vir My seuns en dogters wees, sê die Here die Almagtige’ (2 Korintiërs 6:14-18 NLV). Wanneer God vir jou sê dat ‘n verhouding nie reg is vir jou nie, luister na Hom en gehoorsaam Hom.
Sielskos: Ef 5:21-33; Hoogl 2:1-7; Ps 45; Spr 5:15-19
Matthew 10:14 NIV
There are some people in life we get along well with, and others we don’t. And that’s okay. It doesn’t mean we should be unloving, insensitive, or divisive. After all, Paul says, ‘Do all…you can to live in peace with everyone’ (Romans 12:18 NLT). We’re talking about people God specifically tells us to break away from. There may be people in our lives right now who God doesn’t want us to be connected to. Perhaps they lead us away from Him, change our character, or hold us back from fulfilling our God-given purposes. Paul said: ‘Do not be yoked together with unbelievers…what fellowship can light have with darkness? What harmony is there between Christ and Belial?…what does a believer have in common with an unbeliever?’ (2 Corinthians 6:14-15 NIV). This doesn’t mean we should never be friends with non-Christians, but we need to be careful who is speaking into our lives, influencing us, and who we spend the most time with. When Jesus was sending out the disciples, He said: ‘If anyone will not welcome you or listen to your words, leave that home or town and shake the dust off your feet.’ If people don’t accept us, or don’t accept Jesus, we don’t have to stay around them. Sometimes we can feel like we have to be the hero and fix people’s situations. It’s true that God can use us in people’s lives. But if God’s telling us that it’s not right, we need to let them go. Our relationships with others should lead us to become more like Christ; if they’re not, we need to honestly assess whether it’s a relationship God wants us to have. And when God tells us that a certain relationship is not right for us, we need to listen and obey Him.
Eph 5:21-33; S of Sol 2:1-7; Ps 45; Prov 5:15-19
1 John 2:19 NIV
There are some people in life we get along with well, and others we don’t. And in some cases, we’re not supposed to! Now let’s be clear: We’re not talking about being unloving, insensitive, or divisive. Paul says, “Do all…you can to live in peace with everyone” (Romans 12:18 NLT). We’re talking about people God specifically tells us to break away from. When it comes to those who don’t belong in your life, here are two things to consider. First, there’s the revelation. The Bible says: “They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us…if they had…they would have remained…but their going showed that none of them belonged to us.” Just like you can’t fit a square peg in a round hole, or mix oil and water, there are people who simply don’t belong in your life. Second, there’s the separation. Paul said: “Do not be yoked together with unbelievers…what fellowship can light have with darkness? What harmony is there between Christ and Belial?…what does a believer have in common with an unbeliever? What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: ‘I will live with them…walk among them…be their God, and they will be my people.’ Therefore, ‘Come out from them and be separate…and I will receive you.’… ‘I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters'” (2 Corinthians 6:14-18 NIV). Bottom line: When God tells you a relationship is not right for you, listen, and obey Him.
Soul food: Eph 5:21-33; S of Sol 2:1-7; Ps 45; Prov 5:15-19
2020-02-13
Jonah 1:12 NIV
We shouldn’t hold on to a relationship with someone when God is telling us to let go. Whether we’re dating someone or just friends, we need to be listening to God’s guidance. If we keep holding on, we can end up feeling like we’re in an emotional storm. We feel like we’re torn between doing what we want to do and doing what God wants us to do. Until we obey God, the storm we’re in will keep getting worse, as in the case of Jonah. The Bible says: ‘The sea was getting rougher and rougher. So they asked him, “What should we do to you to make the sea calm down for us?” “Pick me up and throw me into the sea,” he replied, “and it will become calm. I know that it is my fault that this great storm has come upon you.” Instead, the men did their best to row back to land. But they could not, for the sea grew even wilder…Then they took Jonah and threw him overboard, and the raging sea grew calm’ (vv.11-15 NIV). Sometimes we have to make the decision to let people go so that the storm can calm in our lives too. God loves everyone and has plans for everyone’s lives, but other people can sometimes get in the way of us fulfilling those plans. God wanted Jonah to go to Nineveh, but he went the opposite way. The people on the boat were not the right people for Jonah to be with – he needed to be going towards Nineveh, while they needed to go in another direction. In our lives, there may be people who are taking us the opposite way to God’s plan for us, or we might be holding other people back from what God has in store for them. We need to consider and ask God whether we should let them go.
Rom 3:21-6:23; Matt 14:1-12; Ps 145:1-13; Prov 4:20-22
Jonah 1:12 NKJV
It’s a mistake to cling to someone when God is telling you to let them go. Until you obey God, the storm you’re in will keep getting worse, as in the case of Jonah. The Bible says: “The sea was growing more tempestuous. And [Jonah] said to them, ‘Pick me up and throw me into the sea; then the sea will become calm for you. For I know…this great tempest is because of me.’ Nevertheless the men rowed hard to return to land, but they could not, for the sea continued to grow more tempestuous…Therefore they cried out to the Lord and said, ‘We pray, O Lord, please do not let us perish for this man’s life, and do not charge us with innocent blood; for You, O Lord, have done as it pleased You.’ So they picked up Jonah and threw him into the sea, and the sea ceased from its raging” (vv. 11-15 NKJV). God has a plan for the “Jonahs” you’re dealing with, and it may require them to hit the bottom before they rise again. And as long as you keep trying to rescue them, God’s plan is being thwarted and delayed. Jonah’s problem wasn’t that he didn’t love God, it was that he didn’t want to do God’s will. So God resorted to extreme measures to get his attention, push him toward his destiny, and save the city of Nineveh. You have no idea what God has in mind for the person He’s asking you to let go of. If they are His redeemed children, He wants to prosper them (See Jeremiah 29:11). That’s why He wants to save them – so let them go!
Soul food: Rom 3:21-6:23; Matt 14:1-12; Ps 145:1-13; Prov 4:20-22
