I need to remind myself from time to time that our primary Wednesday night purpose is prayer and worship. And then there is the fact that some of us have come from work; we are tired and perhaps a little tried. Of course, there are always things we need to hear again, and there are some things we need to yet learn. And I am tempted to dive into them. But rather than an in-depth Bible study, on an evening like this, we need something Biblically tasty and nutritious, while at the same time easily digestible.
In that light I hope to share with you tonight what could be nothing more than the introduction to a message, rather than the message itself. Or perhaps these are the bones on which the Holy Spirit might put some flesh and muscle in His good time. This is certainly not unimportant material. But it might not be something I’d not address unless we were in the midst of a verse by verse study. Thus, all I have is a devotional for you this evening, before we go on to prayer.
Paul tells his friends in Philippi, “Do all things without murmurings and disputings.”
Before getting to the murmuring and disputing, consider the very first word. “DO all things.” Of course, there are a great many things that, as Christians, we should not do. Simply put, we should not sin. We should not sin against God, and we should not sin against our neighbor. But Paul says, “do all things,” so once again, we see that the word “all” doesn’t always mean all in an absolute sense. “All” usually comes within a context. Paul is saying, “Do all the things you are supposed to do without murmurings and disputings.”
And obviously there are things we are supposed to DO. The Christian life is not an escalator lifting us up seven levels until we get to Heaven. We have a walk to walk; we have stairs to climb; we have friends to encourage up those same stairs. In other words, we have work to do – prayer, evangelism, love and charity, hospitality, and so on. It isn’t enough to merely think about, or plan for what we are supposed to do, we are to do them. To hope that someday we might be useful to our Saviour is not a Biblical hope. Yes, our spiritual muscles may be weak, and we may be injured, so that stair-climbing may be difficult. But with exercise we CAN do those things the Lord expects us to do. We should expect to grow and improve, but we are to do things for the Saviour right now in our weaknesses and in our immaturity.
And we are to do those things without MURMURING and DISPUTING.
“Murmuring” and “disputing” are a pair of rebellious and troublesome cousins, but they have different natures. One is bigger and more bold. When he is told to do something he bows his neck and vocally argues against it. Perhaps he thinks that he is smarter than his overseer, or maybe he pictures himself as the man’s equal. So he argues against his orders, because he thinks he knows better. He disputes his orders.
The other cousin, the smaller one, isn’t as bold. He might even fear what will be done to him if he rebels. So, rather disputing his orders, this one mutters his rebelliousness under his breath. Noah Webster offers an interesting comment on the word “murmur.” His first definition is “ to make a low continued noise, like the hum of bees, a stream of water… or like the wind in a forest.” Then in his second he gets to the point and says, “to grumble; to complain; to utter complaints in a low, half articulated voice; to utter sullen discontent…” in a somewhat quiet way. As parents, perhaps you’ve had both these children in your family. Which disturbed you the most? I suppose it doesn’t matter, but to me, the murmurers irritate me more than rebels.
Backslidden Christians might murmur and dispute with the Lord about the orders which He has given them. Or they might murmur about God’s providence – the way He governs things. “If the Lord really wanted me to go into the highways and hedges with the gospel, I think at the very least He could give me better weather.” The complaint may not be so much about what God wants them to do, but about the circumstances in which they have to do them. “How can God expect me to serve Him, when it is apparently His will that I be in such pain.” “The Lord wants me to be hospitable. It would sure be a lot easier if He would make me wealthy.” Remember, we don’t have to actually mutter our disapproval of the Lord for Him to hear it. He hears what me imagine against Him down there in the depths of our hearts.
Of course, there are some Christians who wouldn’t dare murmur or complain to God, or about God. Oh, but they are quick to murmur about their Christian neighbors. They say in a whiny voice, “Why should I do this, when that other Apostle doesn’t have to?” One of the commands which we might murmur against is that we are to love our brethren. Murmur not nor envy of them. We are to rejoice with them in their blessings and victories. And that the Lord is using them for His glory, while He is still developing us, should give us great joy. We should be pleased to see that God paints His landscapes in a variety of colors and with a variety of subjects in the foreground. Even though we all have many of the same responsibilities, it is wonderful to know that John has some special skills, while Peter and Andrew have others. And with those skills come individual “do’s.” “Do all things without murmurings and disputings.”
In contrast to murmurings and disputings are the traits of BLAMELESSNESS and HARMLESSNESS.
Notice that to blame and murmur against others makes us the blameworthy party. The English words “blame” and “blameable” have an interesting pedigree. Webster doesn’t get into etymology very much, so I have to turn to another little book of mine for the history and development of words. Chambers defines “blame” by saying, “to find fault with; to censure.” He says that the word comes from the French “blasmer” which is a derivative of the Greek word “blasphemeo” – obviously referring to blasphemy. If you don’t want to be blasphemed stop your murmuring and disputing.
Two good Biblical illustrations of blamelessness are Joseph and Daniel. Like Joseph, if anyone had good reason to murmur against God or against the providence of God, it was Daniel. But you’ll not find either of these men disputing with the Lord over His providence, His will or their duties. Joseph refused the easy way out of the snare of tempteress, doing the right thing – the godly thing. And when those who hated Daniel wanted to get rid of him, they could think of only one way to blame him. “Then the presidents and princes sought to find occasion against Daniel concerning the kingdom; but they could find none occasion nor fault; forasmuch as he was faithful, neither was there any error or fault found in him. Then said these men, We shall not find any occasion against this Daniel, except we find it against him concerning the law of his God” – Daniel 6:4-5. The only blame or blasphemy any Christian should be willing to receive, should be similar to that which fell upon the Saviour.
“Do all things without murmuring and disputings; that ye may be blameless and harmless.” Harmless? Does that make a lot of sense in this case? With only a little consideration, someone might think that the word is out of place here. Harmless refers to causing no hurt or injury. Paul reminds us that murmuring and complaining, disputing and debating, with God and with our Christian brethren causes injury. How so? Well, in one way, when we murmur we bedim the glory of the Saviour whom we are supposed to represent. Paul gets to this in his next phrase. And then, when we complain we teach others to complain. Haven’t we seen the children of Christians hurt or even destroyed by the negativity of their parents?
Going back to the word itself, I have read and heard, but haven’t found proof as yet, to say that the word “harmless” comes from “hornless.” Some animals, like various African antelope, may not have fangs and claws, but they have deadly horns. But then other creatures have almost no defenses whatsoever. People sometime say, “Harmless as doves.” Obviously, doves don’t have horns. And how about “Harmless as sheep.” Sheep don’t have horns….. Oops, yes they do. But let’s put it this way, they don’t go around goring and killing goats, shepherds or sheep dogs. I don’t know that we are supposed to be hornless, but we are commanded to be blameless and harmless.
And WHY should we “do all things without murmuring and disputings?”
Because we have a commission to shine as lights in the world, holding forth the word of life. We are to “shine,” that is, we are to bring light to a place where it is needed. I shouldn’t need to illustrate the fact that this world is a dark and dismal place. The current tears in Israel, Gaza and Ukraine are proof. The solution to the turmoil in those places and even at the house next door, is the light of Christ.
The Lord has commissioned us to represent His light. We are to “do” things in order to let His light be seen. Matthew 5:14 – “Ye are the light of the world… let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your father which is in heaven.” The purpose of our light is to make the Lord manifest – visible. We are to create a mood – and a thirst – for the Lord. We are to create a cheerful atmosphere. We are to light the pathway to the Lord; lights are used as guides. And lights are used for warning signs as well.
Our unsaved neighbors don’t need to hear our murmurings and disputings. These and other sins just dim our lights or darken them completely. And without light, we are pointless and purposeless. Despite what a great many people think, the Lord did not save us to make us feel good about ourselves and to eventually take us to Heaven. We have been saved in order to cast a beam of light upon the One who is the light of the world. And we do that by “doing all things” in the proper way.