Balance
The Tight-Rope Life of a Christian Man
Min. (Dr.) Franklin D. Coleman, D.D.
When we talk of God we mention that He is God in three
natures; God the Father - God the Son - God the Holy Spirit.
All God, always in balance.
When it comes to man and his nature we come to a consensus
that we are triune as well; Man the spirit - Man the soul - Man the body.
All man, however always endeavoring to create a balance.
Men walk a tight-rope of life trying to balance these
natures and is many times found wanting.
The busy man-husband-father (for those of us married with
children) has particular challenges, especially as a Christian. As a husband,
he must attend to the spiritual, emotional and physical needs of his wife. As a
father, he must attend to the spiritual, emotional and physical needs of his
children. As a Christian, he must attend to his overall spiritual condition as
it will be a reflection of the condition of those he is charged by God to care
for.
Men are charged to be the "priests" in their homes.
As such, the Old Testament priest serves as an example of what we are to do.
There were several things that a priest had to do, that we today, need to be
doing as well. I'm not going to go over all of these in this writing but let's
come together at another time to discuss them.
Let me tease you by talking about this first issue ... a
priest had to keep himself undefiled by sin. Since he had to make sacrifices
for the people, he couldn't be in a place of sin himself. Every time a priest
came on duty, the first thing he did was to make atonement for his own sin,
before being in a place to intercede for the people. If the high priest was in
sin when he went into the Holy of Holies, he would die.
In our families, we must become the example of Christ. As our
wives strive to submit to us, we should be so much like Jesus, that they are
submitting to Him. Just as Jesus was without sin, we too must endeavor to be
without sin.
Too often we try to "fix" our lives or find a
"balance" without handling this first thing, namely, REPENTENCE.
Now that we've looked into ourselves, lets see how we can
start on that tight-rope.
One of the eternal struggles of the Lord’s disciples is to
learn and practice a proper balance between the affairs of this life and the
affairs of the kingdom of heaven. What we often feel we need is many times just
something we want and the kingdom of heaven and our families are left lacking
of our time and talents while we spend these in carnal pursuits.
Sometimes I feel I'm in somewhat of a robotic mode trying to
get this or that accomplished and there just doesn't seem to be enough time in
the day. Sadly the things that seem to be of most importance are often put on
hold: family being a big one, but most importantly God, the giver of family, life,
and even our abilities.
I don't know that we were designed to take on as much as we
do sometimes. I wonder if the result of taking on more than people should
(emotionally and mentally as well as physically) is one reason so many are on
medications to help them cope.
Like I said, there is a balance in these matters and we must
learn it or be found wanting. The Bible does not condemn Christians engaging in
business enterprises. In fact, examples abound which show disciples of the Lord
practicing different forms of business. Matthew was a tax collector, Lydia a
seller of purple, some of the apostles fishermen, and Jesus Himself certainly
knew the carpentry business. The “worthy woman” of Proverbs 31 made and sold
fine linen garments to the merchants. In addition to these examples of industry
by faithful people, we may add the scriptures that censure those who would not
“provide for his own” (1 Timothy 5:8) or who refuse to “labor with his hands”
(Ephesians 4:28).
I don't know the schedule or the demands of each person's
day. I will assume most people can consider reevaluating their priorities.
Maybe you feel there is no way to get out of the duties that consume your time.
How about changing your perspective? Are your first commitments to your job or
to your family? Are the demands of your family leaving you with no time to
devote to God?
I recall the words from DC Talk's song Wanna Be Loved where
it says, "I've never heard a dying soul wish that he had taken more time
on his portfolio."
The following are some verses from Ecclesiastes:
·
"There is no remembrance of men of old, and
even those who are yet to come will not be remembered by those who
follow." (1:11)
·
"Naked a man comes from his mother's womb,
and as he comes, so he departs. He takes nothing from his labor that he can
carry in his hand." (5:15)
·
"All man's efforts are for his mouth, yet
his appetite is never satisfied." (6:7)
·
"Remember Him—before the silver cord is
severed, or the golden bowl is broken; before the pitcher is shattered at the
spring, or the wheel broken at the well, " (12:6)
Scripture references are quoted from the NIV.
Though some might question the ways of God or why their
prayers might appear unanswered, I doubt very much God has ever told anyone,
"Sorry my child, I'm just too busy for you." I think the least we can
give Him is a little devotion for all He's done for us.
