TOPSY-TURVY

I Was Just Thinking About – TOPSY-TURVY.

Topsy-Turvy is an expression that indicates things are upside down. This definition is expanded in a Blog by H.B. London - Having A Heart For Peace (January 15, 2017) – in which he commented: “Violence is an attitude that permeates our society: grown men fighting one another at their sons’ Little League games, a father assaulting a teenage referee in a soccer game, one gang in a poor area of a city conducting a “turf” war with another gang, an unborn baby having his or her life terminated for the sake of convenience, a deacon threatening a pastoral staff member, and, lately, voters whose candidate did not win attacking voters whose candidate won in shameful and reproachable ways. There’s a kind of “get even” mentality that finds its way into every corner of our relationships — even in the church. One of my most embarrassing moments as a pastor was my involvement in a church league basketball game brawl. It was terrible!” In other words, Topsy-Turvy at its worst.

As has been discussed in recent Blogs on the subject of the heart, this is a further extension of inner conflict and turmoil. The prophet Jeremiah wrote about the heart in this way (Jeremiah 17:1, 9-10 – NASB): “The sin of Judah is written down with an iron stylus; With a diamond point it is engraved upon the tablet of their heart and on the horns of their altars…The heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately sick; Who can understand it? I, the Lord, search the heart, I test the mind, even to give to each man according to his ways, According to the results of his deeds.”

The Apostle Paul draws the distinction between one who walks in the flesh versus one who walks in the Spirit. Galatians 5:19-21 describes the potential and propensity of the flesh that is known by: “enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying …  those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” The alternative is for one to be in Christ where there can be the crucifying of the flesh with all of its intricacies and manifestations. Galatians 5:24-25 summarizes: “Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.” The idea expressed for “walk” in the Greek NT finds that it is in the Dative case and conveys: “Walk by the enablement of the Spirit." It is actually stating that no person is capable of mastering the flesh in one’s own strength or discipline. It requires Spiritual Strength and Enablement for one to not only Walk in the Spirit but to also bear and manifest the Fruit of the Spirit in one’s life (“The Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control”). 

Prayerfully – consider these things with me.

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