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A Series on ‘Security’…
Security of marital life/property
This time around, even as we are taking our baby steps in this new year,
I would like to focus upon a subject which would interest us all irrespective of our
religious affiliation for who would not like to have … Security at all times.
Dear
friends, this was the buzzword in my family circles, when I decided to
quit my job & enter into full-time work. Many honest doubts
were expressed about my future prospects with a very gloomy picture of it being drawn at
least initially by many who had never experienced God's redemptive love, first-hand.
Oxford dictionary may state the meaning of the word Security as 'condition or
feeling that guards or guarantees our present & future'. In modern context,
the moment we contemplate the word 'Security' a picture of a smiling &
healthy family in a well-furnished house protected by a proverbial
'ring of fire' would emerge in our minds. There is absolutely nothing
wrong in desiring to be well protected. Mind you, the good Lord in
His wisdom has placed an instinct for 'self-preservation' in his
entire creation, leave alone mankind. This instinct is conspicuous
in a tiny ant as well as in a mighty blue whale. In fact this trait brings
along with it stability & order in our society, for in its absence absolute
confusion would prevail. Imagine our mind reeling at the sight of people
playing with fire everywhere or reaching out to the overhead live electric
wires or driving recklessly in our roads or wild animals venturing
into our habitat & vice-versa.
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Security (along with it the instinct for self-preservation), important as they are, was meant to bring man
into closer relationship with his Creator. The one of joyous dependence on his Creator akin to that of a child on
its parents. However, what saddens our Creator is our tendency to seek security in everything under the sun, except
in Him, not even acknowledging in the process that He is the source behind the security all around us.
How misplaced are our priorities when we say that our job or our business is the basis of our security,
rather than the one who has given it to us in the first place. Our priorities are just as misplaced
when we say that our Government or its laws, which ensure order in our society, are the sole
providers of our security. Mind you, the Bible states emphatically that 'there is no government
anywhere that God has not placed in power…' (Romans 13:1). Take out the Truth, which is the cornerstone of
any commercial deal in our world order & the economies world over would collapse like a pack of cards.
The person who said 'I am the Truth' (John 14:6) is the One who is holding together this world by putting
in man some portion of his character, which oozes with 'truth' & 'fairness'. When Bible says that God has
created man 'in His own image' (Genesis1:27), it means that not only do we bear physical resemblance to Him
but emotionally & spiritually also we are like Him. That is why the moment we lie or act unfairly the bell
of conscience starts ringing like an 'alarm bell' because God's holy nature in us has been violated.
So, in every sphere of our life, if not for God, there would be no truth or fairness in dealings
(Proverbs 16:11),
which would lead to anarchy, breakdown of law & order & total absence of security.
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Despite providing natural safeguards to protect mankind in general & placing in-built safety mechanisms to
ensure our society safety as a whole moves in proper order like factory goods in a well-grooved assembly line,
our God being a personal God rejoices in providing security to each one of his children, especially from the
dangers brought about by circumstances or by people who have no respect for Him or His ordinances. The Bible
abounds with cases of God providing extraordinary security to the lives/property/social & emotional well
being of his people.
In this essay, I would like to bring to the fore such cases of God's unique protection.
One common feature, one would observe in all these cases (4 of them totally, but in this
edition, I would touch upon 2 of them) is that in the Bible there is no mention of God's
direct involvement in these cases. In fact, the Bible does not even explicitly state in
all these cases that God's hand was there in deliverance of His people from their respective
problems, so much so, there may be a temptation to attribute them all to pure coincidence or
a stroke of fortune, however, for the spiritually discerning, His role would be a bit too
obvious to miss. So what are those cases? Well, they pertain to the social/emotional
well-being & economic security of 2 women of the Old Testament. Let us go in a chronological
order.
- Ruth (around 1100 BC ):While , my main topic , is security , I would be failing in my
duties if I miss out on one single truth, which runs across the pages of the Bible which is
that God has
not left any issue untouched in the vast panorama of human relationships. Oh yes, He has not left
untouched even the most sensitive relationship between a mother-in-law & a daughter-in-law often dubbed
in Indian colloquy as a 'Tu Tu Main Main' relationship which has been a theme of many a TV Soap opera
(in the Indian context).
In fact in the short, delightful story of Ruth (I would exhort all my friends to read this book before
reading my article any further), we see the portrayal of an ideal mother-in-law (Naomi) & a selfless
daughter-in-law (Ruth) who instead of asserting their rights gladly seem to sacrifice them for the
benefit of the other.
Nowhere in the Scriptures does the truth that God 'is the helper of the helpless'
(Psalms 10:14)
ring more true than in the lives of these 2 widows, who begin their long, arduous task of re-building
their lives after the shattering loss of losing their husbands to untimely deaths wrought by sicknesses’.
The news of good crops in her native land draws Naomi (an immigrant Jew) in the land of Moab back to the
land of her fathers along with a determined widowed daughter-in-law (of different nationality) who would
not let her mother-in-law experience the travails of widowhood all alone
(Ruth 1:6-17). The inspiring
words of Ruth steeped in agape, self-sacrificing love recorded in verse17 would make any person taking his
or her marital vows proud. Also by stating 'Your people shall be my people & your God shall be my God'
(verse16), she was walking effectively into the loving, strong, supportive arms of her Creator, who true to
His nature would not let her down…once under His protective care. So much, for the theory that God in Mosaic
law times loved only the Jews!
Even as we all rejoice at the happy ending of this story, of Ruth not only being happily married to Boaz
(her kinsman redeemer - a pointer towards the ultimate redeemer the Messiah) but also of her giving her aged
mother-in-law a precious grandson (Obed), who eventually was going to be an ancestor of that great king David
& the Messiah himself, let us not forget, how the first meeting of Ruth & Boaz came about.
It all begins when Ruth with the permission of her mother-in-law to glean in some fields during the barley harvest, goes in
search of a field & walks by Divine providence straight into the fields of Boaz
(Ruth 2:3). The key operative
words in the entire book of Ruth, are enshrined, as it were in verse 3 'As it happened, she found herself in the
field belonging to Boaz, this relative of Naomi's husband'. Is it a mere coincidence, an accident? NAY! At a
time when she could have landed up in any other field, without meeting Boaz all her life, it was the good Lord,
who led her straight into the fields of Boaz & as it were, into his heart.
He, who Ruth accepted 'as my God'
true to His nature of being her security of all her social & emotional well being from that very moment onwards
eventually brought 'all good things to pass' in her life.
- The Shunamite lady (around 850 BC): This prominent, hospitable lady, a resident of the town of
Shunem (this town which was originally allotted to the tribe of Issachar after the Canaan conquest
-Joshua 19:18
- lies in the plain of Esdraelon, 4 miles north of Jezreel –refer also Map no XIV in the OT Maps section) is not
named in the Bible nor is there an account of she personally 'accepting the Lord' in the manner of Ruth. However,
from her God-honoring actions in line with the spirit of Jesus' teachings in
Matt: 10:40 of welcoming men of God
(in her case, it was prophet Elisha), one can gauge her devout nature.
II Kings 4:8-37 &
II Kings 8:1-6 dwells on her life & the blessings God poured into her life on account of her hospitable
disposition with His servant Prophet Elisha. Besides other blessings, what is so conspicuous in her life is the
restoration of her property… miraculously by God. However to understand the nuances of this story, let us go step
by step.
Initially, we see her as a barren lady (being barren carried with it a social stigma - barren
Jewish women despaired in not having played any role in the lineage of the Messiah), however, as
per God's will, we see her being blessed with a baby boy
(II Kings 4:17), later when that boy
succumbs to a sun-stroke, we see Prophet Elisha bringing him back to life
(II Kings 4:32-36).
The blessing of having a son contributed to this erstwhile barren woman's social well being.
Later in
II Kings 8:1-2, we see her going away to live amongst the Philistines away from her native land,
as she had been forewarned by Prophet Elisha about the impending famine in her native land. As the famine
ended, knowing very well that somebody else would have been occupying her land & property & that it would
not be an easy task to recover the same, we see her going directly to the court of final appeal, which was
King Joram, the ruler of Israel, in her case
(II Kings 8:3&4). Incidentally, she took her son along with
her. Dear friends, those of us, who have had a tug-of-war with the tenants of our homes, who would not
simply vacate, despite we having served them notice well in advance, can well sympathize with this lady.
We can also wonder what anxious thoughts were going through her mind, as she went to petition the King.
How would she represent her case? Would she find proper words in placing the problem before the King in
proper light? Would the King be in a mood to lend a sympathetic ear to her problems, especially as she
carried no recommendation letter with her?
Doubtless, all these questions would have been playing in her
troubled mind, as she entered the King's presence. But she was in for a major surprise. A very pleasant
one at that! Let us pick-up the action as it were directly from the from the scriptures, as I cannot put it
in a more apt manner than that … verses 4-5 of II Kings 4th chapter 'Just as she came in, the King was
talking with Gehazi, Elisha's servant & saying "Tell me some of the stories of the great things Elisha has
done" and Gehazi was telling the King about the time when Elisha brought a little boy back to life at that
very moment, the mother of the boy walked in. " Oh, Sir!" Gehazi exclaimed. "Here is the woman now, & this
her son-the very one Elisha brought back to life!"
Realising in an instant that she was a VIP (a person whom mighty prophet Elisha himself held in
high regard - mind you, Elisha had a crucial role to play in the affairs of King Joram's Kingdom),
we see the King taking personal initiative in restoring her property (with accrued income if any on
the same) to her (Verse 6).
Now lets replay that scene of Gehazi, prophet Elisha's servant speaking about this very lady,
'just' as she entered the King's chambers with presumably worry lines creasing her forehead.
Was that a coincidence? An accident? NO! It all happened as per God's will, because He wanted
to ensure that his devout follower got back her property without any hitches.
Well, does God take care of our property? Something materialistic, not concerning soul or spiritual
life? Yes, he does, because what worries us, his precious ones, worries Him also? Can He be our
economic security also? Yes! As this short, moving story so clearly illustrates in ample measure.
Dear friends, if Jesus is same yesterday, today & forever (Hebrews 13:8), then His words uttered 2000 years
ago ' Seek ye first the kingdom of God & all these things shall be given to you'
(Matt 6:33) was true yesterday,
today & forever.
In the coming fortnight, I propose to dwell on 2 other cases, where you would see God acting as a security to the
physical lives of His loved ones'. So till then… Bye! Remember me, in your prayers. GOD BLESS YOU ALL!
Yours in His service,
(Suresh Manoharan)
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