Who Do You Borrow From?

Who Do You Borrow From?

11/16/18

Credit is always a good thing as long as we do not get into debt over our heads so that we no longer have the ability to repay what we have borrowed.  It is the responsibility of those seeking credit to research the lender and understands what they and their company stand for before the deal is settled.  It is evident that many of us do not display this practice and take what is offered without any questions.  It is this principle that costs us our place from economic freedom and on the spiritual aspect, it deprives us of spiritual freedom and eternal placement as well.  For it has become common practice to grab whatever looks good and is the easiest to achieve and most of the time it is the natural presence of the world that is dangling.  God warns us about such participles that cross our eyesight and He wants us to know that it is time we ignore the bad loans and accept His gift of life instead or our debts shall catch up to us one day and we shall not have any protection over our hearts.

I remember when I was approved for my first credit card and how my father sat me down and told me about how great it was to have this opportunity and at the same time told of the grave dangers of getting over my head with debt.  Economic freedom is one of the greatest financial gifts the free world has to offer and it is given out so in good faith that requires your participation in repaying such gifts when used.  But it is an area that is widely tempting in the fact that it is so easy for us to acquire things that have no lasting value with this credit and then end up with nothing to show for it except a large bill to pay at the end of the month.  I wish I had listened to Pop when he sat me down all those years ago for if I would have really heeded his advice I would have been saved from many problems in the few years to come; however, being the “smart” person I was did my own thing and ended up owing way more than what I used the card for and as the old saying goes had nothing to show for it at the end of the day.  My dad was doing the correct thing for he was following the previous verse in Proverbs when he was doing his best to train me to do and stay on the right path, but if I failed then I would have a stable way to return.

As stated in the opening paragraph this type of borrowing does not necessarily have to be on the monetary side of things, it also represents the spiritual aspect of our lives as well ad while monetary debt is a pain to grasp a hold of and to control the spiritual has a much longer period of living if we fall into the same trap. Ironically, both sides of this topic have the exact same compounding debt truths and when I hear people ending their lives over a physical quality of life I cannot imagine what their spiritual lives are like as well because in almost every situation the gravity of such weight is present on both aisles.  I have to include myself in this issue because I have to admit that when I was heavily in debt because of stupid spending and taking from lenders my heart was not with God and had no intentions of living a life with Him either.  I was safe and secure in my own ways and as long as I kept that Prodigal Son aspect intact, I was a happy person or so I thought.  After a while, my life came crashing down and my world changed completely but after the dust was settled I still had the debt present and it weighed heavy, heavier than it ever had before.  I am proud to say that I never did anything ridiculous like going to a loan shark or any other shady place that would bail me out, for that would have been a complete disaster and cost me more debt.  Never ever deal with any type of loan shark or business loaners for they require much in return and their payment plans can get physical.

Proverbs 22:7 gives us a great detailed message about this subject and not to fall into hands that will harm you or provide bad information to you.  “The rich ruleth over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender.”  The main focus of this message is going to be placed on the second half of this verse and we will deal with the first portion at a later date, but there is a huge lesson that we need to understand here and it lies within the origins of where we are asking for help.  All of us need help from time to time in a number of ways, but we need to be very aware of who we ask for help because many times those who we ask demand something in return later if we are not able to pay what they deem is necessary.  Also, there are on occasions that the lenders change the rules of the agreement and want even further amounts of repayment and it is this time where many things go wrong and further indebtedness occurs.  Once again God is showing us that this small verse is a huge Kingdom verse and one that we need to put into practice every day of our lives.

The settings cannot become clearer here but just as humans do on routine instances we miss or ignore what God is trying to tell us.  Remember when Jesus told those around Him that no one can serve two masters?  Well, this verse is a precursor to that truth because it deals with two kingdoms, the two kingdoms that are vying for our lives, our eternal lives.  God uses this portion of a verse to ask ourselves about which kingdom are we asking to borrow from for there is a great deal of difference when it comes to what is handed out depending upon the kingdom requested.  God has shown us many things about His Kingdom and the kingdom of Satan and how different they are when it comes to what both can provide and through this verse God demonstrates how important it is for us to choose the correct kingdom when asking for things.  First off, we must remember that we cannot ask both kingdoms for things for God shall not work with anyone who wishes to live by worldly standards.  It is this concept that we like to bypass and just take what is right in front of us instead of making sure that the product that we are presented with is what we actually need.

When we borrow money or acquire any item on credit, at any price, and on any level, we automatically become subject to that lender, or we can say that we are now their servant until the debt is repaid.  There is a word that this portion of Scripture uses here and it is the word “servant”.  The Hebrew word used here is “weebed” and comes this Hebrew word comes from the root word “ebed” or “abad” which means to serve or to be a slave to someone or something.  When used in this context there is not much controversy because it eases our minds about the picture we have drawn about someone being a slave to something but we cannot ignore the other side of the kingdom issue in that it also refers to God and His Kingdom as well.  This word alone places the importance of knowing which kingdom you are asking for help from and when it is dealing with the spiritual aspect of your life, it becomes immediately relevant on an eternal platform.

Every day the world places things or bling in front of our lives and screams to us that we need this item and that it really does not cost too much.  Most of the time we know that what is being offered we do not need but look at the product and take it to heart and purchase it without remorse and then go to our place of residence and put it in a drawer or cabinet until we use it in about five years or so.  But while we do not use this product on a regular basis the repayment structure is not based on usage but the purchasing detail.  The lender expects payment in full as soon as possible and while they want their money or restitution they will continue to offer you other items of interest in order to increase your debt with them.  This process while being promoted as a great opportunity serves as a trap and will consume us if not figured out quickly or understood beforehand.  It is never a good thing to have creditors calling your phones in order to receive payment but it is a process that occurs when lenders want their money. 

It is this physical aspect of this verse that I could stop and say that God’s message is complete but He wants us to understand the more important aspect of this verse and how it deals with the spiritual aspect of our lives.  See, Satan is an eternal and spiritual loan shark and when we accept the rules and ways of the world there is a debt we must pay to the one who lent those things to us.  Satan will dangle items of the world in front of you and offer you to take them and while we may know that they are not good for our lives he will continue his pursuit of the sale just as a street vendor would do in a foreign country to a passing tourist.  It is this process that God refers to as kingdom banking and one that needs to be known before anything is purchased on the spiritual level.  It does not matter which worldly item Satan dangles in front of you whether it be lust, fornication, lying, stealing, idols, and any other sinful activity or thought that he can convince us is normal and okay to perform.  It is these items that we take into our lives that represent debt to the world and its ruler and when we accept such items we are then servants to the lender.  This means that we are now subject to what the lender wants us to go through according to his kingdom rules, which by the way are directly opened to us by this acceptance policy.  The most famous and popular way to obtain these worldly things is to use the wonderful phrase “it is my right to have _______.”  The ruler of the world will give you what you ask for but it shall come with a price and a slave’s wage with a master’s will over your head.  We cannot forget that when we do such an act that we are increasing our debt to this ruler for we are already paying a high price when it comes to our existence, so why add to this sentence?

It is this additional item list that Satan gains his foothold on our lives and when we haphazardly accept things without knowing what we are obtaining this hold on our lives becomes deeper and stronger.  As this subtle itemized buying process continues Satan is able to weave his way into our hearts and begins to show us that what he has to offer is much better than the items that his enemy has to offer.  It will pull your heart away from the things that God stands for and what He wants out of your life, this is a truth that Satan’s kingdom shall do in your life, you can even still attend church and be spiritually dead it is all fine and dandy in Satan’s eyes.  It makes sense that those who have accepted the world as their source for living go to church for the more your mind believes that you “require” to survive and it is your spirit that calls out to hear from its Creator but is masked by all of the world’s goods that you have obtained.

Now comes the fun part of your payment plan, the time when Satan wants what is owed him due to your purchases through his kingdom.  Satan shall never give you something without an agreement, known or unknown to you the buyer.  He does not care about your spiritual financial situation all he knows is that he has the legal avenues to reclaim what he has given to you and in his case since he is the father of all lies he does not care how much he takes back in return for his payment.  When we open our hearts to the world this is what we are allowing Satan to do in our future.  This setting can come tomorrow or it could present itself ten years down the road.  What matters is that at some point in time Satan and his cronies will want back what they have given to you and while they are taking back these items they will attack and take whatever else they wish because of the access you voluntarily gave them. 

This brings into light the Kingdom of God and what He has to offer us and how His gifts are completely different than what the world offers.  Satan wants you to have nothing to do with God and what His Word states because when known shall provide you with the capability to combat and to reject those binding issues that the world offers.  God hands out gifts and resources that we NEED not want.  It is easy to become caught up in the spectrum of the so-called “necessities” that the world has to offer and to be honest many of them are exciting to seek and to obtain, but anything from the world has a large and eternal price tag on it and shall eventually cost you everything.  The gifts from God cost you nothing in the spiritual sense but it costs you everything in the worldly sense because just as God goes against the world so does the gifts that He has and then gives to His children.  Both kingdoms desire your heart but the only one can offer you eternal life and eternal peace and rest and that is the Kingdom of God.

God and the gifts that He provides are eternal in nature and directly and sharply speak directly to the spirit that dwells within our lives.  It is the heart that represents the ultimate goal for the heart is the organ that controls how we think, eat, sleep, pray, desire, and everything else that we consider as life and living.  Both God and Satan understand that where the heart lies so does the rest of your existence, both also understand what is good for you but only one ruler wants us to live in such spiritual and eternal freedom the other wants you to experience eternal death and agony away from any presence of God.  We were created in such a manner that our spirit within our lives urns to communicate with its Creator just as any child would for its mother or father.  It is this presence together that the world seeks to separate and to destroy but God’s gifts for our lives serves the opposite by strengthening and solidifying these ties with Him.  His Word provides us with the knowledge and wisdom to combat the turmoil that the world offers and dim the bling that Satan places in front of our eyes.  It is these eternal gifts that allow our hearts to shine brightly to the darkened and dead world and is the objects of the subject that defeat the word servant or slave to the kingdom that seeks our destruction.  God’s gifts as stated above are free all we have to do is ask Him for them and this means that we are not bound to His subjectivity or demands but are allowed to use them as freely as we wish.

Whichever kingdom we seek our gifts from shall become an enemy of the other.  I ask you, for those who attend church and consider yourselves to be Christians but take hold to worldly principles do you become agitated at those who question your position on such items?  SO you ignore their reasonable pleas when it comes to these subjects?  Do you proceed to have arguments or shouting games at each other because of such differences?  Who is correct in these mannerisms and events?  God says to you on both dies, neither of you is correct for the delivery method of those who know the truth represents a worldly gift of division and those who harbor willingly the ways of the world are blinded by the bling of opportunity that Satan has within your life.  This is why it is so important that we understand the Kingdom concept of God and how everlasting Kingdom differences and truth is.  If we do not know how to interject the Gospel to those who are lost in a proper manner and way, we are just as bad they are and it actually places us in a category of elitism that is talked about in the book of James.  It has been, it is now, and it always shall be our responsibility to understand Kingdom principles AND know how to deliver them to those who are drowning and dying in worldly spiritual debt.

Church, do I have to ask which spiritual gifts you are presenting to your congregation and to the world?  It is obvious that what you are teaching comes from the world and not from God.  We need to grasp this verse and place it into our hearts so that we live by its rules every single day.  For when we ask this world to borrow its gifts there shall be an ugly price to pay in our future and how can we stand when we then turn around and offer such death gifts to those who are hurting or do not know God?  God is asking us, along with the rest of the world, which kingdom (bank) are seeking help and items to borrow from?  The answer that we give comes in the form of what we present to the world and when we present such items demonstrating to God exactly what lies within our hearts and which kingdom we follow.  God suggests that we turn our hearts around and allow Him to get rid of the worldly gifts that we have in our lives and to replace them with eternal ones that shall give us the necessary strength to defeat the world instead of joining its death rows.

DLB