Rebuking Non-Believers

Verse

Num 9:14 And if a stranger shall sojourn among you, and will keep the passover unto the LORD; according to the ordinance of the passover, and according to the manner thereof, so shall he do: ye shall have one ordinance, both for the stranger, and for him that was born in the land.

Summary

For a stranger (orang asing) to keep the Passover, he must follow the rites of the Passover, the most important and essential one being circumcision. The others would be sanctification and cleansing etc. The LORD was saying that even for strangers of the land, the Passover must be observed in the way that He commanded (not merely wanted).

It has always been carved into our minds that the Israelites were to be a holy people separated for God. They were supposed to be different from the rest of the peoples around them. And that was all.

Or so we thought. I thought so anyway.

This verse gives us a glance at what God really wanted. He didn't just want a holy people in the midst of a bunch of evildoers, or a speck of white in a whole swarm of black. He wanted this holy people to set the standard for those other peoples, and for this swarm of black to eventually turn white. The Israelites were never meant to just be secluded on one side while the others rot in sin. They were supposed to show and tell the others how to live the way God wanted.

SC

I don't really rebuke non-Christians for the wrong that they do; wrongs that I would normally chew Christians out for doing. No la, not really. Nowadays I don't scold Christians anymore cuz past experiences with them has led me to become too careful with what I do and say around them.

Because of my constant quarrels with Seoks over matters which she deemed "Christian" and which I deemed universal, I've become quite tawar hati about rebuking non-Christians. I always think that I should just put in a word or two to tell them that I think what they're doing / saying is wrong, and then just leave it at that if they don't agree. If they agree, then I'll cautiously explain why it's wrong. I thought that as non-Christians, they won't agree with me anyway since they don't have the Holy Spirit in them. Frankly, I was also afraid they'll say I'm this holy holy goody two shoes super Christian freak la. Which has happened before.

This verse seemed to tell me that I shouldn't let them get away with sin. I should rebuke them for it, not just say that it's bad and then keep mum about it. I'm here in this world not just to be a decorative light, I'm supposed to use that light to lead them to the Light of the World, which means that some action is required, not just some good testimony or example. I was still a little confused about it, so I put a question mark beside that verse in my spiritual diary, and did something on Joshua instead. I wasn't sure if that verse only applied cuz the Israelites were in power at the time, like a huge portion of the Islamic law.

The very next day, God threw a situation at me. I have a friend who sometimes draws what she calls art, and what I call pornographic material =_= In the past, I just let her go with a just two tiny words: "Yer, porn!" Perhaps even without the exclamation mark. That day, I said the same thing: "Yer, porn!" But I suddenly felt as if I should say something more, like there was something else I was supposed to do. She answered: "No, this is art."

Now this wasn't an instance where I "said something before I could stop myself" or "suddenly blurted out something", it was like I was actually faced with two options: To rebuke or to keep quiet. The verse from the day before flashed in my mind, and although I still was a bit confused about it, I felt that I should go ahead and say something.

"Do you know that a lot of pornographic sites label themselves as artistic sites, and that most people who're addicted to porn call it art?"

I could tell she was a little ruffled, cuz I usually don't go on so far, but she said:

"In the West, there're a lot of portraits of naked people, and they're all very famous works of art."

"Ya, and have you ever asked why those kind of paintings are mostly done by Westerners, and not Asians? It's because we Asians have a higher moral sense, and a greater sensitivity for religion and God. In other words, we know that such paintings are wrong."

"But when study art overseas, they really give you one naked model to draw wan noe? It's even in the study of art!"

"Note the word 'overseas'. Again, you don't really get that kind of 'education' in Malaysia, do you?"

The next thing she said made me quite angry.

"It's ok wat. The original people (Adam etc.) also naked wat."

Aargh! I know she took in from the Doraemon comic series because I read it before but I still got dreadfully upset cuz I really hate it when people blatantly misquote the Bible and the truths in it. If it wasn't for the fact that I was totally reminded of my quarrels with Seoks and the fact that my PA teacher was still teaching, I would've done something dumb like raise my voice and turn red or something.

"Whoaa-a, don't quote that out of context. Firstly, there were only two of them unclothed humans at that time, and they were husband and wife, ok? Secondly, they were naked for a reason, and it was because they still hadn't eaten the fruit, and they were still pure in mind and heart, and simply would not have the kind of thoughts we would have today. People today just draw and watch those stuff to satisfy their lust and desire k? Last time it was because they didn't have the thought about satisfying lust by looking at nakedness. So it's totally irrelevant."

After that, the teacher suddenly decided to talk more loudly for some reason (hmm) and we went back to staring blankly at him. She was more than a little upset, I know, but somehow I didn't regret telling her what I did, unlike how I would normally feel.

C

I know it doesn't always work like that, that I can't always be so straightforward and so panjang lebar with non-Christians (and sometimes, actually most of the time, Christians), but that day I really felt that God was prompting me to put into practice what He'd shown me the day before.

How odd. God always seems to wait a little while (like till I forget I learned it) before testing me on things I've written under the SC and C sections. It's like He wants to really test me about it after some time to see if I still have it on my mind. But with things that puzzle me and which I'm not quite sure about, He throws a situation that relates exactly to those things the next day, or when they're still fresh on my mind, as if to help confirm what I read and to show me what He really means.

How awesome to know that He actually cares about giving me the best 'education'! Just like a Father, isn't He? ^^

Anyway, changes I must make: Stop condoning the things non-Christians do which are obviously wrong, like saying the F word and misusing God's Name. And of course drawing porn. Also, mustn't be afraid to tell Christians they're doing something wrong if they are.

And God's confirmed what He's been telling me over the years: Always act on the Spirit's prompting. At once! Never delay or hesitate! If I'd hesitated at that moment, I would've never told her all those stuff. I would've regretted it for a super long time, and probably hesitate even more the next time He sent a situation like that again.

I learned something from a book I never intended to take on for my QT! At least not till I finish Joshua and Judges la.