The Christian Who Acts Carelessly
"Where there is no vision, the people cast off restraint; but blessed is he who keeps the law." (Proverbs 29:18)
During the time of the prophet Ezekiel, the people of Israel committed what God considered to be "acts of the rebellious pit" (Ezekiel 16:30). They believed in the glory that God had clothed them with, and, trusting in their own reputation, they committed adultery and indulged in much immorality (Ezekiel 14-15). They built lewd temples for themselves and committed adultery there (Ezekiel 16:16). They made idols out of the material blessings God had given them and engaged in idolatry (Ezekiel 16:17). Furthermore, the people of Israel offered their children to idols (Ezekiel 16:20). Yet, they considered their sexual immorality to be a small thing (Ezekiel 16:17). Their lust was never satisfied, and “they committed adultery with the Assyrians, and even though that was not enough, they went on to commit adultery in the land of the Chaldeans, not realizing that it was already too much” (Ezekiel 16:28-29). This is the kind of “rebellious pit activity” that God saw (Ezekiel 16:30). Their hearts were so weak that the people of Israel fell into these rebellious, sinful behaviors (Ezekiel 16:30). Are we, as Christians today, not acting in the same way as the Israelites did during the time of the prophet Ezekiel?
The Israelites also acted carelessly during the Exodus (Exodus 32:25). When they saw that Moses was delayed in coming down from Mount Sinai, they gathered and told Aaron to make them a god who would lead them (Exodus 32:1). As a result, they made a golden calf and worshiped it, committing a great sin (Exodus 32:8). Moses saw that the people of Israel were out of control (Exodus 32:25). The cause of this was that Aaron allowed them to act recklessly (Exodus 32:25). As a result, they became a laughingstock to their enemies (Exodus 32:25). Truly, the people of Israel were a people who acted recklessly (Exodus 32:25). They were a corrupt people (Exodus 32:7), quickly abandoning the path God had commanded them to follow (Exodus 32:8), and they sinned against God. They were also a stiff-necked people in the eyes of God (Exodus 32:9). Are we, as Christians today, acting recklessly like the Israelites did during the Exodus?
God promised Moses that He would raise up a prophet like him to speak to the Israelites, and He would put His words in that prophet’s mouth (Deuteronomy 18:18). Therefore, God intended for that prophet to tell the people everything He commanded (Deuteronomy 18:18). However, the issue was with the false prophets. False prophets would speak carelessly in God's name, delivering messages that God did not command them to speak, or they spoke in the name of other gods (Deuteronomy 18:20). How can we know if a prophet speaks recklessly? We can tell by the fact that there are no signs or fulfillment in what they said in God's name (Deuteronomy 18:22). Even today, don't we have many false prophets, false preachers, and pastors who prophesy falsely among us?
The Bible says, "The wise fear and depart from evil, but the fool rages and is self-confident" (Proverbs 14:16). The wise Christian, fearing God, departs from evil, while the foolish Christian, arrogant and careless, does not. The foolish Christian does not fear God and thus rejects being bound by God's law (Proverbs 29:18). However, the wise Christian keeps God's law, watches his behavior, and thus keeps his soul (Proverbs 19:16). The Bible says that such a Christian is blessed (Proverbs 29:18). Are you a foolish Christian, or are you a wise Christian? Are you a Christian who acts recklessly, or are you a blessed Christian who keeps God’s law?