The In Series #4

This month our theme has been the “in’ series.

The “In” series is about…...belonging.

We started the month off with interdependence out of inner dependance: in short to be a part of heaven, we need to have a heart for crowds, because heaven is a big ‘ole’ crowd!

Then we were briefed on in formation with the information: the church is the formation we are supposed to be in, the Army of God, and we need to analyze the ‘information’ in the correct manner

Last week had Intuition for the in tuition: having our hearts right before God. Go check out those previous briefings at www.megamorphic.church/bereannotes

Our topic today is in discretion for indiscretion.

As I mentioned, the theme is The “in” series. So what crowd are we wanting to be a part of, the ‘in’ crowd, in the crowd or the ‘I’ crowd? Discretion is making relationship choices either intentionally/or not of being part of the “in crowd” or I crowd. As previously discussed, we want to engage and be a part of ‘in the crowd’. So we need to use discretion to be a part of the crowd rather than the ‘in’ crowd or ‘I’ crowd.

That’s what sin is, the choices we make that can separate us from God and being ‘in the crowd’. We can miss the mark and miss out on our relationship with God (and other’s) when we aren’t using discretion appropriately to deal with any indiscretion.

Discretion and indiscretion are opposing words, discretion can be defined as using good judgment while indiscretion is lack of good judgement.

What I believe God wants us to recognize today regarding this topic is what is Biblical discretion and how do we deal with indiscretion?

Biblical discretion

First, it’s good for us to know what discretion means, a traditional meaning is to use/have good moral judgment, looking through blue letter bible you can include having understanding, using wisdom, having prudence. So Biblical discretion is to act in wisdom, understanding, grace, prudence, etc in a situation.

A good Biblical representation of discretion is in the book of Proverbs. It is known for its wise words, showing us how to live each day, not according to our own standards but those of God.

Proverbs 2:11: Discretion will preserve you; Understanding will keep you, (Discretion serves to guard the person who exercises it.)

Proverbs 3:21-26 (Discretion will provide safety, and prevent disaster or ruin.)

Proverbs 5:2: That thou mayest regard discretion, and that thy lips may keep knowledge. (Discretion keeps a man from being caught up in adultery.)

Proverbs 8:12 (Exercising discretion indicates wisdom.)

Proverbs 11:22 (Lack of discretion can nullify physical beauty.) like a gold ring in a pigs snout, is a woman without discretion

Proverbs 19:11 (Discretion allows a person to be patient and keep his temper.)

Proverbs 22:3 (Discretion lets a person see danger and avoid it.)

Psalm 112:5 (Good will result from acting with discretion.)

We can see from Proverbs, how God is encouraging us to use discretion, showing us how using discretion benefits our lives(which we will get to later), benefits our relationships!

“At your discretion” leads to indiscretion.
Another definition of discretion is “the power or right to decide or act according to one's own judgment; freedom of judgment or choice”. The culture today is focused on “my truth” “at my discretion” when we should be focused and use “Godly” discretion, the new creation (Romans 12), the new mind operating in the discretion of Christ where the old mind works in the carnal/worldly mind set.

John 14:15: if you love me, you will obey my commands.

While a ‘wordly’ meaning is “what’s right to you” or “what feels good to you”. There is a reason why I differentiated between biblical discretion and “wordly’ discretion. As born again believers, we want to act in and use biblical discretion not worldly discretion.

How then do we use and engage in discretion? Last week, Esther touched on Intuition, and that intuition can be seen as supernatural knowledge that comes from the spirit of God. For Godly intuition, that’s the result of training your subconscious to align with God. Discernment can be seen as conscious reason. Godly discernment comes as a gift of the Spirit which I believe is tied to the transformed mind in Christ. Your mind gets transformed to be able to discern with Godly discernment.

We want to engage in intuition and discernment in order to properly act in discretion. While pregnant with my first child, Jude, we were told he would be a big boy, and we might want to consider doing a C-section for delivery as there could be complications. He being our first child, we were a little nervous about that, never having experienced that possible decision before and uncertainties regarding what would happen. So we were in prayer, as a couple, with our families and church and then on March 2, 2019, just weeks before his due date, I had a dream. I was running, running, running and ran 22 miles. I stopped running, realizing I had run 22 miles, 22!!! In the dream I had this awareness that my legs didn’t hurt, that my body was handling the 22 miles like it was nothing, my legs didn’t hurt, I was breathing fine, my body succeeded. When I woke up, I instantly remembered the dream. Having the intuition that that dream was different from other dreams I’d had, using discernment to analyze the dream, I instantly was given that the 22 represented the day Jude would be born, March 22, and the miles I ran, and the feeling of being ok, of feeling successful was that I would deliver Jude with no issue, we would not need a C-section. Come March 21, I had an OB/GYN appointment March 22, Caleb and I talking about “well maybe you’ll get to the doctor tomorrow and she’ll tell you you have to deliver”, then 9:30pm, March 21, my water broke (like in the movies) and Jude was born March 22. That dream was a result of the outpouring of my relationship with God.

We have this representation of using biblical discretion, with intuition and discernment, the ability to use wisdom, knowledge understanding to address a relationship, a situation.

So how then do we deal with indiscretion?

Dealing with indiscretion

The first indiscretion that we see in scripture, right smack dab at the beginning was when Adam and Eve ate the fruit from the tree of knowledge, when told not to eat of the fruit. I think it is fair to say that that decision from Adam and Eve to eat the fruit lacked discretion. Right after this decision from Eve and Adam to eat the fruit, they realize they are naked and they hide. God then ‘looks’ for them (He knew where they were), and He then killed an animal for its hide and clothed them, covering them (hint, hint). God used discretion to deal with the situation, they ate of the fruit, they hid from their indiscretion, so God clothed/covered them.

To deal with indiscretion you need to use biblical discretion. Which God demonstrated discretion by sending His son to die on the cross for sin, our indiscretion.

Nothing gets better than that, God demonstrating His discretion to send His Son, Jesus to die for our indiscretion, for our sin so that we could be covered, covered by the blood of Jesus, forgiven and made whole. So that we could be ‘in the crowd’, seen and loved, free to praise Him with no guilt!

Isaiah 1:18 NLT

“Come now, let’s settle this,”
says the Lord.
“Though your sins are like scarlet,
I will make them as white as snow.
Though they are red like crimson,
I will make them as white as wool.”

The only productive way to deal with indiscretion is by using biblical discretion!

As I mentioned, our theme this month is The “In” series and we’ve talked about the “in crowd” “in the crowd” & “I crowd” and the reality that, as Bible-believing Christians, we should be excited about crowds! Heaven is going to be a crowd. For me personally, I have to use biblical discretion to deal with the indiscretion of not liking crowds. Using the discretion to know that God’s heart is for all of His children, ALL! That’s a crowd, and my discomfort and even ‘my own discretion’ would be to step aside and get away from the crowd, but that is not God’s heart, so using biblical discretion to grow in wanting to enjoy crowds, in wanting to engage in crowds and repentance: seeking forgiveness of the fear, and self-consciousness.

Judges 11:29-40. This is the story of Jephthah, he is described as a man of valor, he is the 9th judge over Israel. There is war and battle, and scripture describes that the Spirit of the Lord comes over him, showing him these lands and his enemy. He then vows unto God that if he were allowed to beat the Amorites and return home, whoever greets him he will sacrifice as a burnt offering unto the Lord.

I know for me, I know who is likely to greet me when I return home during the day…….my husband or my children. So, when he returns home, his daughter greets him, singing and dancing, V35 “And it came to pass, when he saw her, that he tore his clothes, and said, “Alas, my daughter! You have brought me very low! You are among those who trouble me! For I have given my word to the LORD, and I cannot go back on it.”

You have a man, who has made a vow in haste, in seeing the war and battle ahead of him, wanted victory at any cost. He did not use discretion! He used poor judgement, likely his own wants and needs to guide his vow and his daughter paid the price for his indiscretion.

Let’s look at 1 Sam 26: We see David, on the run from King Saul. David and his men come across King Saul’s camp and David and one of his men go at night to where Saul is sleeping. The man with David wants to kill Saul saying “God has delivered your enemy into your hand this day. Now therefore, please, let me strike him at once with the spear, right to the earth; and I will not have to strike him a second time”. David’s response is then “Do not destroy him; for who can stretch out his hand against the LORD’s anointed, and be guiltless?”. David used discretion in the situation, he knew that God did not want him to kill Saul, he knew the standards by which God worked and says “The LORD forbid that I should stretch out my hand against the LORD’s anointed. But please, take now the spear and the jug of water that are by his head, and let us go”. It is because of his relationship with God that he knew to use discretion, to use wisdom overreaction.

When we come across relationships where there has been indiscretion, we have to take the space and time to consider, what is The Spirit telling us, what does scripture tell us, again using our intuition and discernment, and discretion to deal with indiscretion.

What grudges may we be holding against someone for their indiscretion? Are we trying to apply discretion to those relationships, situations?

As the church, it is so important for us to use biblical discretion to deal with indiscretion, in our relationships, in our own hearts, being honest with ourselves, do we have a heart for crowds, for relationships?!

Are we too often trying to use our own discretion? Jesus says if you love me, you will obey. Does your discretion line up with Christ’s or does it lead to indiscretion?

We have a beautiful example of discretion when God sent his son to die for our indiscretion! Are we applying that new creation discretion to our lives, when we experience indiscretion are we dealing with it using discretion? God wants us to enjoy crowds, He wants us to relate to others!!

BID

What areas are you not applying discretion to?

Who would like to be ‘in the crowd’?

Who wants a new heart for heaven?

Who would like to grow in their discretion to be a part of the crowd, grow in their heart for Heaven?

Let us be excited to be ‘in the crowd’, to have a heart for relationship with God and other’s, to be willing to grow in those areas, that to be ‘in the crowd’ is to be excited and joyful for heaven!