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HOUSMAIL HM063
9
September 2000 WHAT GOD THINKS ABOUT PRACTICAL JOKES We have
all been guilty of this sometime ..... haven't we? Practical
jokes I mean! Especially those that embarrass their victims the most. My wife
found this proverb this morning. Makes you think ..... doesn't it? Proverbs
26:18-19 RSV Like a madman who throws firebrands, arrows,
and death, is the man who deceives his neighbour and says, "I am only
joking!" ____________________________________________________________________________ What
could possibly be so bad about a seemingly harmless practical joke? Everybody
usually enjoys them ever so much. (Well ..... ALMOST everybody, that is! The person
on the receiving end seldom really enjoys the resulting embarrassment.) The
proverb quoted above tells us that God does have a view about them! Firstly - GOD DOES NOT ENJOY THEM AT ALL! And
He labels those who find enjoyment in deceiving and embarrassing others, as MADMEN! Secondly - There is no distinction between the various kinds of lie, that
people tell. ALL LIES are a serious sin, with eternal consequences! "EVERYONE
who loves and practices falsehood" will
be excluded from the Kingdom of God! (Revelation 22:15) Thirdly - Deliberately setting out to find enjoyment in the embarrassment
of friends (or enemies!) falls a long way short of the ROYAL LAW which says, "you
shall love your neighbour as yourself". (Matthew
22:39, James 2:8) Finally - Those who join in laughing at the victim, are no better in God's
sight than the perpetrator of the LIE which contains the "joke"! (Romans 1:32) So,
what do we do with this information? For those whose priority is to “seek first the
Kingdom of God, and His righteousness”, (Matthew 6:33) it would seem that the
ONLY adequate
answer is to REPENT! And seek FORGIVENESS! After
all, ..... who wants to be on God’s list of MADMEN? Allon |