The Company You Keep

Oh, the joys of those who do not
      follow the advice of the wicked,
      or stand around with sinners,
      or join in with mockers.
But they delight in the law of the LORD,
      meditating on it day and night.
They are like trees planted along the riverbank,
      bearing fruit each season.
   Their leaves never wither,
      and they prosper in all they do.
But not the wicked!
      They are like worthless chaff, scattered by the wind.
They will be condemned at the time of judgment.
      Sinners will have no place among the godly.
For the LORD watches over the path of the godly,
      but the path of the wicked leads to destruction. 
                                                         ~Psalm 1


I have decided to start reading one Psalm a day. It's one of my favorite books in the Bible. It carries tears, joy, pain, sorrow, defeat, and victory out of all 150 chapters there are in the book. I started today, so it's kind of too soon to tell if I'll stick with it, but today's Psalm, chapter one, made me stop and think about the company we keep.

In this world, it's hard to tell who you can trust and who you need to keep ten yards away from you. Lucky for us Christians, we can look to the Lord and see if the same reflection of Him resembles other Christians in our lives. Do they have the same mindset that Jesus talks about in Matthew 6:33? That is to seek first the kingdom of God?

I don't find it a coincidence that I have been running into a lot of passages concerning the company we keep. 1 Corinthians 5:9-13 says,

"When I wrote to you before, I told you not to associate with people who indulge in sexual sin. But I wasn’t talking about unbelievers who indulge in sexual sin, or are greedy, or cheat people, or worship idols. You would have to leave this world to avoid people like that. I meant that you are not to associate with anyone who claims to be a believer yet indulges in sexual sin, or is greedy, or worships idols, or is abusive, or is a drunkard, or cheats people. Don’t even eat with such people.It isn’t my responsibility to judge outsiders, but it certainly is your responsibility to judge those inside the church who are sinning. God will judge those on the outside; but as the Scriptures say, “You must remove the evil person from among you.”



Then now Psalm 1. This is what I think. I had a job interview two weeks ago for a receptionist position at an clinic. Long story short, the doctor there is known to be crooked, but I didn't know. I had excepted the interview already, so I went even though deep down I knew that wasn't where the Lord wanted me. I wasn't afraid to ruin the interview by saying I would be leaving town soon or, in the middle of it, just stating I was don't think I was who they were looking for. I knew there was a possibility of not only supporting a doctor like that by working for him, but coming off as looking crooked as well. The point I am trying to make is even the reputation of a person you might be associated with can come off onto you, and we don't want that as believers. We are to have a blameless reputation (Philippians 2:15).

Now back to Psalm 1. I read this chapter this morning and the line, "...or stand around with sinners..." poked out at me. Why? Because remember how Jesus associated himself with sinners? In his ministry he was ridiculed by the Pharisees for dining with sinners, anyone from tax collectors to prostitutes. So this sounded like one of those contradictions that the Bible so infamously is suppose to have (side note: it doesn't ;). This is the thing. What I believe the difference between standing around with sinners and what Jesus did is quite simple. In fact, I think if you are confused like I was, you will have the same reaction when I thought about a little harder. That is "Oooooooooooooh"....

What is the difference between standing and walking? Humor me and think just think about it metaphorically. When Jesus started his ministry, he called twelve men to follow him. These men dropped what they were doing and followed him, going from town to town spreading the news of salvation in Christ. They dined with people who were considered to be unholy, unclean, and did not have good reputation amongst religious folks. So why would Jesus jeopardize his reputation, let alone his ministry, to be associated with sinners? Couldn't he have lost respect for his name by doing so, and therefore closed the door for others to hear the gospel? I don't think so because the simple fact is Jesus stopped, he associated with these people, and then he got back up and left town to continue on the work he knew he had to do. He didn't "stand" with these sinners. He walked into their lives, shared the good news, and kept walking (or running if you want to refer to 1 Corinthians 9:24-27). He was not partaking in their practices nor mirroring their character. He was in their lives long enough to share the good news, but short enough that he was not going to be like them. It was then in their hands whether or not they were going to follow Jesus (maybe not physically walking with him, but a relationship). He was living his life for God; they could live their lives for him too. They had that choice once they knew the good news. Point is, there is a difference between standing and walking with those who are sinners. Standing with sinners is participating in their acts; walking with them, like Jesus did, is walking in and out of their lives long enough to share the good news and not be taken as one of them. Also, not forgetting he surrounded himself with men who were believers in the good news, just like we are suppose to surround ourselves with other believers. I also want to note what Jesus said in Matthew 9:13 concerning his reasoning behind meeting with these sinners, "...Now go and learn the meaning of this Scripture: 'I want you to show mercy, not offer sacrifices.' For I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners."

I want to mention I have nothing against being friends with non-Christians. In fact, I think it gives us more opportunities to share the faith. The line that I tend to draw with at least two thing-- that is dating and taking counsel from them. This is because we have different worldviews, different faiths, and different morals. To invest in lives in such personal ways with different values is not only hard, but impossible for the both of us. Also, the idea of not associating with so-called Christians, as a previous describes, is also I'm cautious about because if one "Christian" is doing these activities, then me being another "Christian" could be mistaken to be doing the same activities, and like I said before, I don't want that because it ruins my testimony as a believer as being blameless.

This is my overall thought for today. The company I keep is going to reflect who you think I am. The company you keep is going to give me an idea of who you are. Therefore, we need to watch who we are around in our lives. We need to be careful what we do as Christians. We need to consider every aspect of our lives and consider how it affects our reputations as Christians as well as representing Christ. Think about this today: What does the company I keep say about me? What does it say about Christ?