Friday, July 25, 2014

The Harm in Doing More

16 Meanwhile, the remainder of the Jews who were in the king’s provinces also assembled to protect themselves and get relief. They killed seventy-five thousand of them but did not lay their hands on the plunder. Esther 9

The narrator states in multiple places that the Jews did not plunder when the raid occurred.  Why is the narrator so emphatic about this point?  You need to go back to 1 Samuel to find the comparison.  God had told the Israelites to destroy the Amalekites.  They did that, and then they plundered.  God wasn't pleased with this, and Saul lost his kingship as a result.  He went beyond what God had instructed him to do.  He did something for the purpose of benefiting himself, not benefiting God.

We are all given direction and instruction from God.  We have specifics direct from God.  He has a narrow path for us to follow.  Yes, it is difficult and there are temptations along the way, but God only wants us to do EXACTLY what he wants us to do.  There are multiple passages in Numbers where the Israelites are passing through various territories and they request passage, stating, "We will not stray to the right or to the left."  It's the same concept.  They're doing exactly what God had told them to do.  They stayed focused on the path.

I see various ad campaigns now that focus on "Do More."  I argue that we shouldn't do more, as it may not be in God's will.  Instead, we should "Do God's Will."  That will suffice, and nothing more will be needed.

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