“The proud city of Samaria— the glorious crown of the drunks of Israel— will be trampled beneath its enemies’ feet. It sits at the head of a fertile valley, but its glorious beauty will fade like a flower. Whoever sees it will snatch it up, as an early fig is quickly picked and eaten. Then at last the Lord of Heaven’s Armies will himself be Israel’s glorious crown. He will be the pride and joy of the remnant of his people.”
Isaiah 28:3-6 NLT
Why do people sometimes fail to see serious problems and issues and carry on their lives regardless? The leaders in Samaria failed to see that their inebriation was badly affecting their ability to make rational decisions, including that of worshipping God. But Isaiah could see a time when the drunkards were no more, and “at last the Lord of Heaven’s Armies will himself be Israel’s glorious crown”. But verse 6 ends with the sobering thought that there will only be a remnant of the people left. The majority will have disappeared along with the bad leaders.
But returning to our initial question today, consider an alien from another planet observing the human beings on Planet Earth and the way they were conducting their lives. They would observe the same drunkenness affecting people’s behaviour, and they would wonder why they did it. Add into the mix the other drugs that seem to underpin so many lives, and they would be left scratching their heads in wonder. How could such an intelligent species fall into such strange and debilitating habits? must have been their question. In Samaria, drunkenness led to the collapse of a nation. Today, in 21st-century Britain, drugs destroy lives and lead to the rest of society having to mop up the after-effects. Ruined lives and families, and health care costs that reach eye-watering levels.
Of course, the drug community is small, compared with society as a whole, but it is still significant, affecting society negatively. But in another part of society we have the Christian believers, who are also small in number. They are also significant, but nevertheless have a positive impact on society because of Jesus’ exhortation to be “salt and light” in their generation, their families and amongst their friends and communities. Jesus said, “You are the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost its flavour? Can you make it salty again? It will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless. You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father” (Matthew 5:13-16).
Salt adds flavour to the food we eat, and in times gone by, before refrigeration had been invented, salt was used to ensure food, particularly meat, didn’t spoil. In our societies, the analogy extends to believers, pilgrims such as us, who are meant to stop moral decay in our society by standing up for honesty, kindness, and justice. I support an organisation called the Christian Institute, and they do just that. They constantly lobby politicians and others in authority, trying to introduce or develop Godly influences into the very seat of our governments. Often the work that they do goes on under the radar and away from the public gaze. Only rarely does their work generate a media headline, but the “salt” in their activities achieves many good results. We pilgrims, too, have the same influence when we interact with our fellow citizens, and it is worth considering joining a community group, where our knowledge of God and His ways will counter the enemy’s disruptive activities. Believe it or not, this is also an important role in our churches because some congregations lose their way from time to time, building their spiritual activities on liturgies and jumble sales rather than the Word of God. But we remember that salt only works if it keeps its unique properties. If a believer acts just like those in the selfish world around them and forgets God’s teachings, they lose their spiritual impact and become useless to God’s mission. A sobering thought.
We pilgrims also remember that we are beacons of light in our communities. A question sometimes asked, “If you were arrested for being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you?” I ask this in a positive way, because unless those around us know about our faith, how can we ever hope to “give light to everyone in the house”? Our “house” will extend beyond our homes to anywhere we go, such as our places of work, or the supermarkets, the local park, care home or wherever. Jesus referred to “good deeds” in His analogy and how they can influence people so that they see God in all that we do. Evangelism is mostly not up-front Gospel preaching on a street corner, or the handing out of tracts outside a nightclub, but demonstrating that, in all that we do, we are doing it for God. People will then see from the quality of our work that we are of a different spirit. Colossians 3:23, “Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people”. Someone once said, “Preach the Gospel and if necessary use words”.
Samaria was facing destruction and exile in the years to come, but “the Lord of Heaven’s Armies will himself … will be the pride and joy of the remnant of his people”. God always has a remnant of His people who carry the torch of His presence from generation to generation. As we pilgrims know, we are just such a people. Through our Godly lifestyles, we worship and praise the One who one day will bring to fruition a world full of remnants, gathered over the centuries. A people that the Apostle John could see, as we read in Revelation 21:7, “All who are victorious will inherit all these blessings, and I will be their God, and they will be my children“. We may be facing all sorts of challenges, but one day things will be different, as we dwell in God’s presence forever.
Dear Heavenly Father. We thank You for Your Word and Your Spirit, which assist us in every situation we find ourselves in. Drunkenness is not for us, and we pray today that You fill us afresh with Your Holy Spirit, so that we can be effective for You wherever You have planted us. We praise and worship You today. Amen.
