Proverbs 30:5 Every word of God is flawless; He is a shield to those who take refuge in Him.
Charles Spurgeon said, “We shall not adjust our Bible to the age; but before we have done with it, by God’s grace, we shall adjust the age to the Bible.”
As I was reading my bible or The Book Of Loopholes as it is sometimes used in that way, I was struck by the fact that I caught myself looking in the scriptures for a way out of doing something God asked me to do, rather than being humbled that God asked me to do something for Him. Why is it, when I am walking right with the Lord, the illuminated word of the Bible becomes a lamp for my steps in life and a light to make the road ahead clear to see? Psalm 119:105 Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. However, when I am falling into an area of sin, then the convicting word of the Bible becomes the book of loopholes that I am using to try and justify my poor choices. I find myself using the same book in two entirely different ways.
As the Apostle Paul said in exasperation, “Oh the wretched man that I am.” Rom. 7:24 Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin and death? If we are going to participate in stretching the truth to suit our moods, then we are setting ourselves up for disappointment. Self-deception can be worse than being deceived by Satan because when the deception has been fully exposed, there is an added feeling of stupidity on top of the shame and guilt Satan is accusing us of. Then we beat ourselves up with accusing questions of “Why of my own free will, did I do these stupid things? It was clearly a bonehead thing to do, and yet, I talked myself into this mess.” Prov. 14:12 There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to death.
Within the human race, there is a tendency to try and save ourselves. The fact is that Jesus is the only saviour who can wash away our sins and create within us a new heart of praise for the Lord. As Jesus said, “You cannot patch up old garments with a new cloth,” There has to be an entirely different way of getting the real results God wants in our life. Mark 2:21 No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. Otherwise, the new piece will pull away from the old, making the tear worse. We often think we have a new idea to fix our old problems but as the scripture says the method of repair has to be a whole new way of getting our souls and hearts healed. It cannot be the same old thing packaged as a new cure. It has to be God’s way of doing things and His way is through Christ. It is not a patchwork of our own doing, it is a clean and holy finished work of the Lord’s doing.
It does not matter the cleverness a person puts into searching the word of God to make it say what the reader wants it to say. The loopholes are not there. The interpretation of what is there can be made to become a loophole, but at the end of all the mental wrangling and carnal invention persuing this vanity, the word of the Lord speaks plainly. It does not say, “Thow shalt not steal between the hours of.” It says, “Thou shalt not steal!” The word of the Lord does not imply, “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbour unless he is with the Republican party.” No, it says, “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbour.” There are no loopholes to suit your personal bias and judgments unless you make them up. Prov. 30:5 Every word of God is flawless; He is a shield to those who take refuge in Him.
There is a story in the book of Daniel where the magicians, governors, and princes of Babylon were trying to destroy Daniel because of the favour Daniel had with King Darius. The schemers concluded the only way to attack Daniel was through the law of his God. They produced a plan that would appeal to King Darius’ ego – that no one in the kingdom could make a prayerful request for anything to a man or God. Only the king himself could be petitioned for thirty days. Dan. 6:8 And now, Your Majesty, issue and sign this law so it cannot be changed, an official law of the Medes and Persians that cannot be revoked. However, Daniel continued to pray three times a day and give thanks to the Lord.
Daniel was reported to the king for praying to God, and now, the king had to act on the law that was unchangeable. There were no loopholes for the king to use to deliver Daniel, and therefore, Daniel was lowered into the lion’s den. The king was overjoyed when he found out the next day that the true God had delivered Daniel. We have to be careful in creating doctrines and rules to suit personal bias, because as the magicians and governors found out – that by creating a scheme that had no grace for Daniel, also had no grace for the same jealous people who had plotted a vengeful ruse. Dan. 6:24 Then the king gave orders to arrest the men who had maliciously accused Daniel. He had them thrown into the lions’ den, along with their wives and children. The lions leaped on them and tore them apart before they even hit the floor of the den.
The word of God is a light for my life’s righteous journey and not a book of loopholes to ingratiate my whims. Like the magicians and governors, the loopholes that are looked for to have our own way can come back to damage the real relationship that we have with God. Yes, God is always there to love and heal us, even from our own stupidity, but why make it harder on ourselves than it has to be? Why look outside of God’s holy leading? Why look for loopholes, isn’t God’s grace enough? Isa. 59:1 Listen! The LORD’s arm is not too weak to save you, nor is his ear too deaf to hear you call. Yes, saints, God is more than enough. Amen!
These are great words to really let sink in. Thank you.
Amen!