“For the LORD your God detests anyone who does these things, anyone who deals dishonestly.”
~ Deuteronomy 25:16
Hi James and Ellen,
What are your thoughts about rules? Are you for or against rules? Rules teach obedience. A rule identifies and defines the line that is between what is right to do and what is wrong to do. Does your dad and ma have a home rule about eating the food that your ma has put on your plate for you to eat? Does your dad and ma have a home rule about the time when you are to go to bed? Does your dad and ma have a home rule about not fighting with each other? Does your dad and ma have a home rule about the amount of time that you may spend playing games on the computer? What if your dad and ma had no home rules in your house for you to obey, what would be different in your home? What if there were no school rules for you to obey at your school, what would be different in your school? What if there were no church rules for you to obey at your church, what would be different in your church? Do you think that there would be chaos, disorder and confusion in your house if your dad and ma did not have home rules for you to obey? Do you think that there would be chaos, disorder and confusion in your school if your teacher did not have rules for you and your classmates to obey? Do you think that there would be chaos, disorder and confusion in your church if the church leaders did not have rules for the guys, gals and kids who attend the church to obey? Rules define standards. Rules are made to be obeyed; rules are not made to be broken. Rules are made for a reason. God made rules for His specially chosen guys and gals to obey. God expected His specially chosen guys and gals to obey His rules – or else. A rule needs to have a punishment attached to it. A punishment reinforces the reason for why a rule exists.
When your grandmaa and grandpaa twenty-two years ago (which is almost forty years ago now at the time of this editing) started up the rural resident Bible training center in Concepción, Ñuflo de Chávez, Bolivia, your grandpaa made up a list of rules that he expected the Centro de Capacitación (center of learning) students and the Centro de Capacitación students’ wives and kids to obey. Your grandpaa gave a reason for why each one of the rules was on the list that your grandpaa made and posted where all the guys and gals at the Centro de Capacitación could see them. One of the rules that your grandpaa made was that no guy, gal or kid was to leave open the small gate where they had to go through to leave or to enter the Centro de Capacitación property. Your grandpaa’s reason for always keeping the small gate closed was to keep street dogs from coming unto the Centro de Capacitación property and possibly biting one of the kids. Another rule that your grandpaa made was that no kid was to ever go into any of the flower gardens or vegetable plots that had been planted on the quarter square block that made up the Centro de Capacitación property. Your grandpaa’s reason for not wanting a kid to go into any of the flower gardens or vegetable plots – even though the kid’s dad might be weeding one of the flower gardens or vegetable plots, was because a small kid might accidentally step on a flower or vegetable plant and damage it. When your grandpaa caught a guy, gal or kid leaving the small gate open – no matter if he or she was one of the Centro de Capacitación students, his wife or one of his kids, your grandpaa would have that Centro de Capacitación student chop kindling for the open wood fire where food was prepared for the different meals. If one of the fifteen or so rules that your grandpaa made was not adhered to by one of the Centro de Capacitación students, his wife or one of his kids, the Centro de Capacitación student would be who would be punished. The designated punishment was to have to chop kindling. Your grandpaa after the morning chapel would annouce who the Centro de Capacitación student was who would chop kindling during that afternoon’s work hours. Your grandmaa would explain to all the guys why their fellow Centro de Capacitación student was being punished. Because all the Centro de Capacitación students and the Centro de Capacitación’s students’ wives and their kids knew the rules that your grandpaa had listed on a sheet of paper for all the guys, gals and kids to obey or . . . your grandpaa rarely needed to punish a Centro de Capacitación student dad because of something that one of his kids did that disobeyed one of your grandpaa’s rules. Would you ever do something that you knew that if you did it that your dad would be who would be punished for what you did?
Deuteronomy 25 lists some of God’s rules that He expected His specially chosen guys and gals to obey. God wanted legal disputes to be settled in a court that had a judge who had the ability to figure out who the innocent guy was and acquit him and who the guilty guy was and convict him. God wanted a guy who had been found guilty of something to be given no more than forty lashes because if the guy was given more than forty lashes, the guy would be degraded and dishonored. God wanted oxen – as their owners were using them to tread or walk on grain to loosen up the seeds, to be able to eat some of the grain because of the effort and energy that they were using to do what they were doing. God wanted guys and gals to only use one set of accurate weights instead of using for the purpose of cheating customers sets of heavier or lighter weights and an accurate measurer to be used instead of using longer or shorter measurers. Verse 16 says, “For the LORD your God detests anyone who does these things, anyone who deals dishonestly.” God established rules for His specially chosen guys and gals so that they would know why they were to do what He was expecting them to do. Your dad and ma, teacher and church leaders have established rules so that you will know what they are expecting you to do. Rules help guys, gals and kids establish life parameters.
Deuteronomy 25 (456)