The Dilemma
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.”
~ Proverbs 3:5-6 NKJV
There once was a young man who was faced with a dilemma, which caused a debate of sorts.
Just a few years out of college and a relatively “new” Believer, while at work one day he became aware that the Rolling Stones along with Living Color were going to come to town and play a concert at the legendary Legion Field. So, as many young men in their early 20’s might do, without really thinking he quickly got on the phone and ordered 4 tickets: 1 for him, one for each of his two young cousins (early High School and Middles School), and one for a potential date (whoever she might be when the concert rolled into town) - after all, it was the Rolling Stones.
The Dilemma:
As the concert approached, some of his friends were supportive of him going to the show and thought it would be a fun night of great music and memories. Some of his friends were disappointed in his choice to attend, much less take a nice girl and two impressionable kids with him.
He felt a bit disappointed, even angry with those friends who questioned him and his choice. After all, they didn’t know his heart or what his thoughts were to attend the show.
His original thought/plan was that he would take the date and his two young cousins to the concert and thus show the impressionable youngsters that they could actually go to a concert (even of that magnitude), enjoy the show and the music without partaking or even feeling the pressure or the need to take part in all the other junk that can go on in/at a concert setting such as that.
Now, suddenly he was being ridiculed and questioned by people, some of whom he respected and thought well of. “How could he even think about taking a nice girl and two impressionable kids to a concert. Especially THAT concert?”
Yet, he had an opportunity to see a show of a lifetime and show his young cousins that you can actually be in the world and not of it... even at a rock concert.
His heart hurt. His faith questioned.
Should he go to the concert in spite of those “fundamentalist Pharisees” views?
Were they making valid points?
If he attended the concert, was he supporting the Stones’ world view by his non-verbal actions?
Should he stick to his plan?
After all God knew his heart?
Were his intentions truly pure?
All in all, was too much being made of all of it?
What should he do?
What decision should he make, when the Bible doesn’t specifically say?
Keep the Faith... Carpe Diem
“Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.”
- 1 John 2:15-17 ESV
“So don’t let anyone condemn you for what you eat or drink, or for not celebrating certain holy days or new moon ceremonies or Sabbaths. For these rules are only shadows of the reality yet to come. And Christ himself is that reality. Don’t let anyone condemn you by insisting on pious self-denial or the worship of angels, saying they have had visions about these things. Their sinful minds have made them proud, and they are not connected to Christ, the head of the body. For he holds the whole body together with its joints and ligaments, and it grows as God nourishes it.
You have died with Christ, and he has set you free from the spiritual powers of this world. So why do you keep on following the rules of the world, such as, “Don’t handle! Don’t taste! Don’t touch!”? Such rules are mere human teachings about things that deteriorate as we use them. These rules may seem wise because they require strong devotion, pious self-denial, and severe bodily discipline. But they provide no help in conquering a person’s evil desires.”
~ Colossians 2:16-23 NLT
