06-18-12
The Problem of Evil in a world of Good
“Naboth the Jezreelite had a vineyard . . .”  1 Kgs 21:1-16

Now the story went, that King Ahab wanted Naboth’s vineyard,
except Naboth held that vineyard as something very important to himself,  because it was his ancestral heritage.
So he refused to give, trade or sell it.

Well Ahab acted like a little child in the whole matter
and went home pouting.
But behind that weasel of a man was a very powerful and evil woman named . . .

. . . Jezebel.

Do you think Naboth was willing to actually risk his life for that inheritance?
Did he even imagine that holding on to that ‘principle’ would cost him his life,
and in dying, the vineyard would be lost anyway?
It did and it was!

So, what are we hanging on to, that we’re willing to die for?
Property, home, car, trinkets, money, job, family, even life itself.
People DO die for all of these every day somewhere in the world.
And yet, if we didn’t stand up for what is right,
the whole world might be in total chaos, because of the evil within it.
Sometimes I wonder, are we already acting like the wimpy Ahab and allowing
the Jezebel’s of the world take it over???
hmmmmm

And yet . . .

Jesus said, “I say to you, offer no resistance to one who is evil.
When someone strikes you on your right cheek,
turn the other one to him as well. . .
Give to the one who asks of you, and do not turn your back
on one who wants to borrow.”  Mt 5:38-42

So was Naboth wrong in holding to his belief?
Sometimes, maybe it’s more a matter of ‘worth’.
Was it worth stubbornly hanging on to that vineyard,
or could Naboth have ever imagined that the evil Jezebel
would eventually get her justice, her blood licked up by the dogs?
And in that end he might have even gotten his property back.
Tough call.

Jesus’ philosophy is –
instead of acting out of revenge (an eye for an eye)
we need to respond to evil with good.
CONQUER evil with GOOD!

 Don’t let them hit you again, but instead of running away or hitting back,
turn the other cheek so they CAN’T hit you again!
If they want your possessions (be it material or philosophical) so badly,
they just don’t understand that the reason these look so good to them,
is because it’s YOU that makes them look so good.
Give them away and they’ll discover that now
they don’t look nearly as appealing,
because now they’re not YOURS.
And guess what, you won’t even miss them.
And more likely than not, they will be replaced
from somewhere else, with something 100 times better.
A job, a car, a home, a life!

Remember the story of Job.

And Hang On, beloved – ONLY – to God!

Read more Mass Quotes from “Whispers to the Wind” →