#2 Irritant: THE FLY IN THE OINTMENT.
Thanks to Phil Walton for the fodder for this sermon. Thank you. This follows part #1. FLIES: Irritant, show me what ticks you off… This is part #2: IRRITANT: THE FLY IN THE OINTMENT. I have a fly swatter, some rubber flies, and a jar labeled as OINTMENT with a rubber fly in it.
Ecclesiastes 10:1 Dead flies cause the ointment of the apothecary to send forth a stinking savour: so doth a little folly him that is in reputation for wisdom and honour.
Ecclesiastes 10:1 (MSG) Dead flies in perfume make it stink, And a little foolishness decomposes much wisdom.
DEAD FLIES IN THE OINTMENT IS AN IDIOMATIC EXPRESSION THAT STATES SOMETHING MORE THAN WHAT IS SAID. Idiom means you cannot derive the meaning just from the meaning of the words used. It is figurative not literal meaning.
DEAD FLIES IN THE OINTMENT?
FLY: a two winged, six legged insect. Goes through complete metamorphosis, egg, larva (maggot, will eat on anything), adult fly.
Flies often travel in groups we call: SWARMS.
OFTEN WHEN WE DISCUSS FLIES WE ARE TALKING ABOUT LITTLE THINGS THAT CAN IRRITATE, AGGREVIATE, ANGER AND OR FRUSTRATE INDIVIDUALS. * Irritate: aggravation, frustration, causing trouble, difficult, to provoke impatience, anger or displease; annoy, bother, bug, often by repeated acts, quick brief attacks, source of vexation, nuisance.
OFTEN WE FIND IN THE BIBLE OINTMENT WAS ASSOCIATED WITH REJOICING AND JOY… FLIES IN THE OINTMENT SPEAK OF DRAWBACKS TO GOOD VALUES. LOOK AT POULTICE, PLAISTER AND OINTMENT.
Hezekiah was dying. He set his face to the wall and repented and prayed. The Preacher had good news if HEZEKIAH would listen. Was the healing in the ointment or in the obedience?
Isaiah 38:21 For Isaiah had said, Let them take a lump of figs, and lay it for a plaister upon the boil, and he shall recover.
*PLAISTER: an obsolete word, a strip of material to cover for medication
*POULTICE: a soft, usually heated medicated mass spread on a cloth or applied to sores or lesions.
We had an old man that attended church that would often tell us how his family and friends would make POULTICES and OINTMENTS in the fall in preparation for the winter sicknesses that would come. His mother was a mountain woman that knew the recipes to help cure all.
Every fall they would kill 3 skunks and bake them down and make a grease like poultice to use all winter. The man’s father and uncles were serious moonshiners and alcoholics. They had been out hunting raccoons late one night and when the dad got home the whole family was asleep in bed. The father opened the wood stove oven and low and behold there was “leftover” meat in the oven. The old man told us his dad helped himself to the meat and went to bed.
The next morning the old man’s father told his mother that meat was pretty good that he ate when he came in from hunting. The whole family started laughing as they knew the meat was SKUNK POULTICE for the winter. They had a fear of their dad’s alcohol, so they never told their dad that he ate the SKUNK POULTICE. This may have been a wise choice for the family?
*OINTMENT: a salve for application to the skin, VARIOUS FRAGRANT PREPARATIONS FOR MEDICAL and CERMONIAL PURPOSES. We know the role of anointing oil both in the Old and New Testament.
Psalm 133:2 It is like the precious ointment upon the head, that ran down upon the beard, even Aaron's beard: that went down to the skirts of his garments;
Proverbs 27:9 Ointment and perfume rejoice the heart: so doth the sweetness of a man's friend by hearty counsel.
DEAD FLIES OR SMALL THINGS CAN AFFECT THE VALUE OF SOMETHING. LITTLE WORDS? LITTLE ATTITUDES? LITTLE DEEDS? LITTLE ACTIONS? PESSIMSITIC? OPTIMISTIC?
Song of Songs 2:15 Take us the foxes, the little foxes, that spoil the vines: for our vines have tender grap
NOW LET US STUDY THE FLY… THE FLY IN THE BIBLE SPEAKS OF PESTS, VERMIN, ANGER, FRUSTRATION.
FLY: a very grievous pest that often carries diseases. The flies in Biblical times were known to inflict very painful bites with their jaws. The germs and bacteria they carried would often lead to terrible infections. Their bites could possibly lead to death if not treated.
There was in the Middle East and Africa a fly that had a poisons bite. Isaiah refers to a hiss fly that had a painful bite. Today we know of the TSE TSE FLY that is known as the SLEEPING SICKNESS CARRIER.
Isaiah 7:18 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the LORD shall hiss for the fly that is in the uttermost part of the rivers of Egypt, and for the bee that is in the land of Assyria.
We probably fail to realize ancient Egyptians and Phoenicians would worship and involve flies to curse other people.
In Egypt the fly was referred to as the “DOG FLY.” What ancient pagans did not understand they would often worship.
GOSHEN (GOD’S PEOPLE) SHALL BE EXEPMT. The flies will not bother or bite them.
Exodus 8:21 Else, if thou wilt not let my people go, behold, I will send swarms of flies upon thee, and upon thy servants, and upon thy people, and into thy houses: and the houses of the Egyptians shall be full of swarms of flies, and also the ground whereon they are. 22 And I will sever in that day the land of Goshen, in which my people dwell, that no swarms of flies shall be there; to the end thou mayest know that I am the LORD in the midst of the earth.
Exodus 8:29 And Moses said, Behold, I go out from thee, and I will intreat the LORD that the swarms of flies may depart from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people, to morrow: but let not Pharaoh deal deceitfully any more in not letting the people go to sacrifice to the LORD. 30 And Moses went out from Pharaoh, and intreated the LORD. 31 And the LORD did according to the word of Moses; and he removed the swarms of flies from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people; there remained not one.
THE GREAT I AM, the God of Abraham, Isaac… the Creator of ALL, showed PHAROAH WHO WAS IN CONTROL. The flies were more than annoying. They caused pain and infection. Pharaoh begged Moses and God to remove the flies.
Irritate: aggravation, frustration, causing trouble, difficult, to provoke impatience, anger or displease; annoy, bother, bug, often by repeated acts, quick brief attacks, source of vexation, nuisance.
LET US RECALL THE LITTLE DUTCH BOY FINDING A SMALL LEAK IN THE DIKE. THE LEAK WOULD HAVE GROWN LARGER AND LARGER. THE LITTLE BOY COULD NOT RUN TO GET HELP BECAUSE THE LEAK WOULD HAVE GROWN AND FLOODED HAARLEM AND PROPERTY AND LIFES WOULD HAVE BEEN LOST. HOLLAND WAS SAVED BY A LITTLE DEED?
CONCLUSION: FLIES IN THE OINTMENT, SMALL THINGS CAN SPOIL SITIUATIONS THAT COULD HAVE BROUGHT HEALING AND GOOD THINGS. THE OINTMENT COULD HAVE BROUGHT PLEASURE AND BEEN POSITIVE. THE DECAYING FLIES CAN SPOIL GOOD OINTMENT. Not only are the dead flies annoying they could be carrying infectious diseases.
Isaiah 61:3 To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified.
WHAT WOULD MOM THINK OF THAT?
ABEL MURAI was in a competition running. Abel was from KENYA. Kenya is famous for championship runners. Abel had run a good race and was leading the pack. ABEL MURAI was just feet away from the finish line. Abel did not understand the signs and the crowd was cheering him on… ABEL STOPPED RUNNING THE RACE AS HE THOUGHT HE HAD CROSSED THE FINISH LINE.
IVAN FERNANDEZ from Spain came up behind ABEL and realized that ABEL THOUGHT HE HAD WON THE RACE. So Ivan started yelling at ABEL. He told him that he had not crossed the finish line. IVAN was yelling in Spanish and telling ABEL he had not finished the race. IVAN told him to keep running. ABEL DID NOT UNDERSTAND? The crowd was yelling in excitement. IVAN caught up with ABEL and from behind IVAN PUSHED ABEL ACROSS THE FINISH LINE. ABEL WON THE GOLD MEDAL. IVAN WON THE SILVER.
A sports reporter ran up to IVAN: WHY DID YOU DO THAT? IVAN said: HE ALWAYS WISHED THE WORLD WAS A LITTLE KINDER. The reporter went on to ask: BUT WHY DID YOU ALLOW THE KENYAN TO WIN THE RACE? Ivan said: I DID NOT ALLOW HIM TO WIN. He was winning the whole race. HE WAS GOING TO WIN. The reporter screamed: YOU COULD HAVE CROSSED THE FINISH LINE FIRST AND WON THE RACE!
IVAN answered: WHAT WOULD HAVE BEEN THE MERIT OF MY VICTORY? WHAT WOULD HAVE BEEN THE HONOR OF THE GOLD MEDAL? WHAT WOULD MY MOM HAVE THOUGHT OF THAT?
What are we teaching our young people LITTLE THINGS MATTER? Win at any cost? Do we teach there are wrong ways of winning? You can look it up on YOUTUBE: RUNNER LOSES RACE ON PURPOSE.
I BELIEVE: YOU CAN DO IT, IF YOU WANT TO TRY. I BELIEVE ALL THINGS WRONG CAN BE MADE RIGHT. I BELIEVE IF WE WANT TO CHANGE WE CAN. BUT I THINK BEFORE YOU TRY TO CHANGE THE WORLD YOU MUST CHANGE YOURSELF.
WILL THE FLIES IN THE OINTMENT HINDER AND SPOIL OUR POSITIVE POTENTIAL?
His servant, Wade Martin Hughes, Sr. Kyfingers@aol.com June 27, 2020
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