LET US LOOK IN A MIRROR --- MOVING TO ISOLATION?
By Wade Martin Hughes, Sr. Kyfingers@aol.com
I have a bunch of banana’s and I lift them high. Is there a lesson here? They are all safe together … but when you break one from the bunch it will be isolated, skinned and it will be ate.
WARNING, WARNING: Life is about priorities… This is a dangerous lesson and can easily be abused or neglected. First let us start out in this lesson by addressing the most important issue.
Matthew 22:37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. 38 This is the first and great commandment.
Come with me as we make this a priority system. The priority is not LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR FIRST. It is secondary. LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR and then LOVE YOURSELF… Do we honestly recognize God and His son Jesus as God? Jesus is the way, the truth, the light and the life. Do we really love God with all our heart, with all our soul and with all our mind? Do we KNOW OF GOD, or DO WE REALLY KNOW GOD?
Jeremiah 24:7 And I will give them an heart to know me, that I am the LORD: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God: for they shall return unto me with their whole heart.
LOVE MUST BE OUR GOAL AND PURPOSE in our daily walk. LOVE NEVER FAILS.
Matthew 22:37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. 38 This is the first and great commandment. 39 And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
Patterson tells us that Jesus said, Love the Lord your God with all your passion and prayer and intelligence. This is the most important, the first on any list. But there is a second to set alongside it: Love others as well as you love yourself.
Romans 13:9 For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
LOVE GOD? LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR? LOVE YOURSELF ARE ALL AT THE ROOT OF THE GOLDEN RULE… DO WE UNDERSTAND THE ROOT STRUCTURE OF THIS LOVE IS FOUND IN THE STORY OF THE GOOD SAMARITAN? WHO IS MY NEIGHBOR? LOOK IN THE MIRROR!
Matthew 7:12 Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets.
Hebrews 13:1 Let brotherly love continue. (Will we keep on loving others, or will we quit?)
John 13:34 A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.
NO MAN IS AN ISLAND TO HIMSELF… Is an idiomatic expression… (words that mean more than the sum total of the words: Like raining cats and dogs)
A person requires the company and support of others, the church and society to thrive. We need each other. We depend on one another. Each person is a piece of the Master’s Plan and Purpose. There is a tendency for people to desire to withdraw from other people. People make me angry? People hurt my feelings? Therefore we desire ISOLATION. God designed us as social beings. We need our families, churches and communities to thrive.
In 1624 a man named JOHN DONNE penned these words:
*No man is and island entire of itself, every man is a piece of a continent, a part of the main. If a clod of dirt be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less…
THERE IS GREAT POWER IN UNITY AND TOGETHERNESS…
Matthew 12:25 And Jesus knew their thoughts, and said unto them, Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation; and every city or house divided against itself shall not stand:
Luke 11:17 But he, knowing their thoughts, said unto them, Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation; and a house divided against a house falleth.
I HAVE A SKEIN OF YARN, AS I TALK I RUN A PIECE OF RED YARN TO EACH INDIVIDUAL IN THE CROWD… THEN I ATTACH IT TO THE CROSS ON THE PODIUM, TO ILLUSTRATE HOW IMPORTANT WE ARE TOGETHER…. LET US CALL IT A GOD’S KNOT
Ecclesiastes 4:12 And if one prevail against him, two shall withstand him; and a threefold cord is not quickly broken.
WHEN A WHOLE COMMUNITY COMES TOGETHER…
I read 50 years ago of a lady in a community. She had mental issues and had little to nothing to do with anyone. Occasionally she would allow a man to visit for a night. She had four children, NO ONE KNEW. There was a small cave behind her house. Her children were locked in the cave 24/7. There was a door built over the entrance of the cave. The children were locked in the cave and they never had lights, just the sunlight. The children never saw anyone. In the darkness of night the mom placed food through a hole into a pig trough. The kids crawled on all fours. They ate the food like a dog or a pig. They could not talk. They could not walk. They had no bowel control. They had no social skills whatsoever as they were never around humans.
One day hunters saw the cave and notified social services as to what they had seen. In hours the 4 children were in protective services. An old couple in the community agreed to open their home to all four of the children IF THE COMMUNITY WOULD AGREE TO HELP? The children were loved for the first time. The children were distant at first, they were afraid. Slowly the children felt the love of the couple and enjoyed the home. They could not walk or talk. They loved the black and white television. Many felt the children were mentally ill. The couple would lay a large rubber sheet out at meal time and the kids were like hogs. The old couple would sit at the table and eat. The kids would watch. The kids watched the man and woman walk. There was a great fear of the water in the bath tub. Gradually the kids listened to the TV and the couple talking and they started picking up words here and there. They learned to use forks and spoons. The kids learned so fast. The community supported and helped… it was an absolute miracle.
The kids loved church so much as the church people smothered them in love and friendship. After learning to communicate the oldest child was asked did he believe in God? He said: Absolutely, he knew God all of his life. He went on to say I knew God, I just did not know His name.
Their lives had been terrible and dark. There was great light when a Christian couple saw their potential. The four trapped in the cave had no hope. Other people loved them and saw their potential. With much individual attention and private tutoring the 4 kids graduated high school and became productive citizens in their new family, church and community. All the 4 kids needed was a chance to see examples before them.
CONCLUSION: We used to sing this kids song: IF WE ALL PULLED TOGETHER, TOGETHER, TOGETHER --- HOW HAPPY WE WILL BE… It is human nature to be negative and TEND TO WANT TO DESIRE TO WITHDRAW AND ISOLATE OURSELVES FROM CHURCH AND FROM SOCIETY. Life hurts us? We are disappointed by others? Death is cruel? COVID 19? How can we have a healthy relationship with others IF WE CAN NOT HAVE A HEALTHY RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD? OUR SELF AND OUR FAMILIES? We need COMPASSION…
Jude 1:22 And of some have compassion, making a difference:
WE MUST RECOGNIZE HOW THE ENEMY IS TRYING TO USE FEAR AGAINST US… WHAT I FEAR CAN HAUNT ME… LOOK IN THE MIRROR: YOU ARE LOVED. SEE GOD HAS A PLAN FOR YOU. Life is a test, a lesson to learn. You are a student! You are a teacher! What are you teaching others?
Galatians 6:9 And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.
2 Chronicles 15:7 Be ye strong therefore, and let not your hands be weak: for your work shall be rewarded.
Trust God’s plan and purpose… Look in the mirror of life. We need you! You need us! We need each other!
Look in the mirror! I have a mirror! What do you see in the mirror? Jesus help us correct our attitudes.
His servant, Wade Martin Hughes, Sr. Kyfingers@aol.com.
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