Real food

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

REAL FOOD

Prov 26:15

15 The sluggard buries his hand in the dish; he is too lazy to bring it back to his mouth.

NIV

This is as close as the same words as possible to proverb 19:24 which we dealt with in some detail. Not sure what more can be said. The one difference between the two is in the Hebrew. In 19:24 the word translated lazy is not there. It is translated in the interlinear as grieve. So then the sluggard, the slothful person actually grieves over then idea of working for his sustenance. This translation uses that word to mean too lazy. But we are wondering if this person actually grieves over the idea of labor. Would he rather someone spoon feed him? Although we stayed the course in 19:24 regarding labor, and dependence upon others and how some would rather create a whole social group of dependent people in order to have power over them, there is now another thought which comes to us. If we were to approach this from a spiritual point of view we might see this sluggard is so lazy, it actually grieves him to study the scriptures for himself. He would rather be hand feed the truth by someone, like the pastor, or a Sunday school teacher, or bible study leader. He might say, it is too difficult to understand, give me the meaning. If we were to see it in light of Jesus being the bread of life, this sluggard cannot even find it within himself to reach out to accept Jesus. He might remain grieving over the fact he thinks his sins are too great to be forgiven. So he just keeps his hands, his heart hidden in his dish, or bosom, as the Hebrew can also imply. In either case laziness is just not an acceptable excuse. We are to both labor diligently to provide for our food, although God is the source, and labor diligently studying the word of God, seeking his truth for and in our lives. To be a sluggard is also disrespectful of others, not being a part of the greater unit. This applies to the body of Christ. Each person has a function in the body, all working together for the benefit of the whole, Jesus being the head of course. When one member fails to do its part the body suffers in some way. Just as when the heart fails the whole fails. We might also think of other parts which are needed in order to function as God intended. The body of Christ has no place for the sluggard, he is not only useless, but he drags the rest down. Just as a pair of oxen is only as strong as the weakest member, so is the body of Christ. If there is a sluggard among the body, it might be possible we are so busy trying to feed him, we are not doing our part. Let us make sure we are not that sluggard and be about what it is the Lord has called us to be, to do within the body. That does not imply we stay in the body as in church and only serve each other. Some members, many members, we might even say all members in addition to their individual functions are still all one body which is called to share the message of hope to a world full of hopelessness. The sluggard just not only refuses to feed himself, he surely refuses to feed anyone else with the bread of life. Let us be about feeding the poor who have not yet tasted the bread of life, the real food.