Tiny Devotional for RED Friday, 5-28-2021

 A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, Remember Everyone Deployed.

The wicked flee when no one is pursuing,
But the righteous are bold as a lion.
Proverbs 28:1, NASB

One of the first Bible puns I learned as a lad:

Q: What’s the scariest animal in the Bible?
A: The wicked flea.
Although cheap humor, it does provide a reference point for memorizing the verse, at least the first half of it. Sad to say, at the time, it was about the only verse I had any familiarity with. 

But let us not focus on that, this morning. Instead, why do the wicked flee when no one is chasing them? And why are the righteous as bold as a lion?

The answer to both questions is, I suppose, the same: 

It’s an inside job, with outside help. 

In the case of the wicked, they have some understanding of their own nature. They know what they would do to others; they assume that others would do the same to them. Since they tend to surround themselves with like-minded individuals, it’s not an unreasonable assumption. Result: they wind up having to look over both shoulders at the same time, and it’s not enough.

The righteous, on the other hand, aren’t really thinking about their own nature, but about God’s nature, and about God’s people.  Lions are not solitary creatures; they live in a pride. God’s people are not solitary, either. They associate with each other; they care for each other; they protect and rescue each other. A righteous life isn’t a “Get-Out-Of-Jail-Free” card; it’s a list of phone numbers of people who will post bail for you.

Peace be on your household.


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