Let your eyes look directly ahead and let your gaze be fixed straight in front of you. Watch the path of your feet and all your ways will be established. Do not turn to the right nor to the left; turn your foot from evil. Proverbs 4:25-27
I’ve been on the road the last couple of days. While I basically know my route, I haven’t driven it enough nor have I driven the area my mother-in-law lives in often enough to navigate without a bit of effort. Heading home, I needed to take route 95 south to the toll road. The last time I left, I went north to toward the beach instead of south toward our home. This time I had a series of wrong turns that cost me some time and took me into the heart of Boston which is not a particularly easy drive. Even though I knew where to go, in the moment that I should have turned, I only saw half of the signage that reported the northern part of the route and chose not to turn as I didn’t want to repeat my last mistake. I wasn’t terribly worried as the next road would take me to route 1 south which was the reverse of how I had come on the trip north. What I didn’t know was that getting from route 1 south to 95 south was not as easy as going north. Consequently, I missed another opportunity to take the correct path. I had another chance to get back on track, but because I was totally ignorant of the path, the signage and the lane changes, I missed it as well despite using GPS. Finally, by following the instructions that GPS was providing and being able to see on the map what I was to do, I got back on track. I lost about 45 minutes in time, but I was finally where I needed to be. As I reflected on my errors, I couldn’t help but see the parallel in our spiritual lives. As sinful people, we often get off course in our lives as well as our spiritual condition. There are so many ways that we can get misdirected and one apparently small error often leads to others. In the end, we’re left in a place where we did not intend to go.
My error in going north on my last trip was purely habit. We usually fly so I have only driven the route five or six times. More often than not, when I get on route 95, it is to go north to the beach. I may do that several times in vacation, but I only go south once…to go home. In life, we need to establish good habits to live well. They can make life easier because, once established, they don’t take a lot of thought. Good ones can be hard to get going and bad ones take much effort to stop. Consequently, we must be intentional. Christ led by example as He regularly spent time in prayer communing with the Father. Regularly spending time in the word and meeting with other Christians for worship keep us in step spiritually as well. Scripture also reminds us of things that we should think about and others that we should avoid. We’re encouraged to be kind, humble, loving, gentle and merciful, etc. but to avoid anger, bitterness, rage, envy, strife, and the like. By focusing on things that we are to do, we develop good habits that draw us close to God, nurture our souls and improve our relationships. They also help us break the bad habits as the Holy Spirit convicts us. The goal is to echo the words of Psalm 119:56: “This has become mine, that I observe Your precepts.”
My first error on this trip was due to partial truth. I knew the correct action to take, but in the moment of decision I only saw half of the picture…the part of the sign that said north. In reality, the correct turn would have put me on a road that divided; one lane going north and another going south. Similarly, we sometimes do this with scripture by not looking at all the God has to say on a particular topic. A good example is the concepts of mercy and truth. If one focuses on all of the passages regarding truth and God’s judgement, they tend to become judgmental and legalistic. If one focuses on all of the passages regarding mercy, they tend to become too lenient. However, when the whole of scripture is applied, one realizes that there must be balance between truth and grace to avoid either error. No matter the topic, when we are seeking God’s instruction, we must look at all He has to say, not just the passages that we prefer. It is the only way to avoid error.
Despite the saying, ignorance is rarely bliss. That was certainly the case as I was driving through an underground tunnel with multiple lanes and trying to find the right exit. I would have preferred someone with me who knew the correct path. 2 Timothy 3:16 tells us “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness.” Proverbs 4:2 says “For I give you sound teaching; do not abandon my instruction.” By immersing ourselves in scripture and subjecting ourselves to sound teaching, we receive the redemptive work of Christ, draw close to the Father, listen to the Holy Spirit, grow in our faith, and develop godly habits that help us overcome our ignorance and errant ways.
While this was not the case in my example as I had no prejudice with respect to the instructions my GPS was providing, I would be remiss if I didn’t touch on the fact that some may choose what they want to believe. However, allowing our emotions or our sense of what is proper to override passages in scripture that challenge us will regularly lead to a bad outcome. Many believe that a loving God would not send a “good person” to hell because it would make us uncomfortable to think that someone we love might live with eternal punishment. Yet scripture tells us clearly that unless we accept Christ as our savior, that is exactly what will happen despite all of the “good deeds” we do. Scripture has many concepts that can be difficult to accept unless we consider them in the context that God loves us, wants the best for us and desires to mature our faith.
While I had no passengers, I had GPS to get me back onto the right path. By surrounding ourselves with godly people, we stay on the path of righteousness. David had Nathan to redirect him. Matthew 18:15-17 and Galatians 6:1 encourage us to do that privately for our brothers and sisters in Christ; and like David, we need to listen when our godly friends who seek to help us. We’re also instructed to avoid those who are angry, fractious, blasphemous, etc. as they would lead us away from the truth and godliness. While we need to be inclusive and a witness to the unsaved, we need to be discerning with respect to how our interactions with individuals impact our own behavior and thought processes.
As I said, there are many ways that we can get misdirected and one innocent mistake often leads to other bigger ones leaving us in circumstances that were not intended. Isaiah 55:6-7 speaks to this very situation: “Seek the Lord while He may be found; call upon Him while He is near. Let the wicked forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts; and let him return to the Lord, and He will have compassion on him, and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon.” God has given us the tools to get back on track. He willingly accepts our repentance and encourages us to: draw near to Him, use prayer and scripture, find direction and seek fellowship with those who will properly encourage us. He even redeems our errors by using them to teach us and make us sensitive to others who make similar mistakes so that we may help them get back on the right path. We can’t change the past, but we can listen to the instruction of our Heavenly Father, our Savior and the Holy Spirit and take steps as they direct us to get back on course.
May the Lord lead you in His righteousness and make your way straight before you.
Will