“…nor sits in the seat of scoffers (Ps. 1:1).”

Scoff: verb 1. Speak to someone or about something in a scornfully derisive or mocking way; an expression of contempt (synonyms: mock, deride, ridicule, taunt, dismiss, or belittle)

My son just returned home from playing with another boy in the neighborhood.  As he has on many occasion after playing with this particular boy, Jacob came in with frustration, and was a little bit angry.  This time, the other boy had mocked Jacob for wanting to return a ball that Jacob knew didn’t belong to his friend.  While Jacob knew this was the right thing to do, the other boy didn’t want to do it.  He began to tease Jacob and say hurtful things to him.  He was scoffing at Jacob for wanting to do what was right.

David continues to describe the downward progression that we began talking about a few blogs ago.  In the Keil and Delitzsch commentary on Psalms, the authors offer this rendering of the verse, “Blessed is he who does not walk in the state of mind which the ungodly cherish, much less that he should associate with the vicious life of sinners, or even delight in the company of those who scoff at religion.”  We might think this is a lesson only for the young; but, how easy it is for a lot of us to get sucked into the lifestyle of the ungodly, especially when our reputations are at stake.

 We don’t want to be seen as “pushing our religion down their throats,” or as “holier-than-thou,” or, heaven forbid, judging others.  While all of that may be true, there is nothing in the Scripture that suggests we should hide our faith, or pretend as though it isn’t important to us, and join these others in their sin.  It is preferable to take a firm stand for what we believe is right, than to succumb to the temptation that results from not wanting to offend someone.

 This brings up a related issue.  Why do we feel the need to always be on the defensive when it comes to our faith?  From childhood, we learned we were not supposed to “hide it (our faith) under a bushel.”  We are called to be salt and light, and we are reminded of the words spoken by Paul to Timothy, “God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline (II Tim. 1:7).”

We have effectively been intimidated into not sharing our faith, even while others are apparently free to openly discuss their lifestyles, their values, and their behaviors.  We worry about being ostracized, isolated, judged ourselves, and even ridiculed.  I have been so as well; but, I found there are many opportunities where I can share what I believe, and that it sometimes makes a difference to those around me.  Sometimes, we are the ones who can effectively turn the conversations around to what is more appropriate and productive.  Sometimes, choosing to act upon what we believe can make a difference in terms of the outcome of a project, or the outcome of a major decision.

 A couple years ago, I and others in my office were in a very difficult situation, which could have resulted in a loss of business, and a scarring of our reputation, even though we had done nothing wrong.  I was encouraged in my time with God to express confidence that we were going to come out of our situation unscathed.  I especially felt compelled to share this with one of my supervisors, a marginal Christian, who never openly spoke of his faith.  I not only spoke to him on a regular basis; but, I also would text him Scripture to give him encouragement.  We did come out of it as I had hoped, and his faith grew exponentially, I believe as a result of my sharing with him.  I also spoke to one of my other supervisors, who was not a Christian.  I continue to trust God used that time to influence him.

At times, it is best we not associate with those who only scoff at our beliefs.  But, there are other times, we need to take a stand for what we do believe, and not back down.

Godspeed, Phil