150 times in Scripture
Isa. 66:5-6: Hear the word of the L-RD, ye that tremble at his word; your brethren that hated you, that cast you out for my name's sake, said, Let the LORD be glorified: but he shall appear to your joy, and they shall be ashamed.
V.6 A voice of noise from the city, a voice from the temple, a voice of the L-RD that rendered recompense to his enemies.
Not only may foreigners join Yahweh’s community, it appears that they will be welcomed into the priesthood in Isa. 66:21!
Who placed their trust in the Temple and its ritual and forgot the character of Him to whom the Temple Witness (Jer. 7:1-15).
Religion become so programmed by ritual, doctrine, and administrative procedure that it loses the enthusiasm of its beginning. In an attempt to capture G-d, it ends up with the worship of an idol and becomes oppressive.
Almost every religious community knows the tension of exclusion and inclusion. On the one hand, to include people without distinction is dangerous because the very core of the community’s life may be undercut by allowing people to enter who do not care about the basic beliefs or actions of the community. On the other hand, exclusion is also dangerous. Communities given to exclusion frequently become harsh, pinched groups who continue to live long after they are dead.
In spite of certain dangers, occasions do arise when a community may be forced to emphasize separation and restriction; when it does purse such a policy, even for good reasons, however, it frequently suffers severe criticism.
Psalm 1 is very offensive to some people because of its sharp, firm refusal to approve association with the wicked, the sinners, and the scoffers. But the community that does not say no to damaging people, who set themselves against that which gives life to the group cannot hope to exist for long. For all of us, yes is a more pleasant word that no. But the person or group that is unable to say no may also be the one whose yes has but little value.
Some individuals and communities tend to say no before they even consider the possibility of yes.
Pro 22:10 Cast out the scorner, and contention shall go out; yea, strife and reproach shall cease.
Eze 16:5 None eye pitied thee, to do any of these unto thee, to have compassion upon thee; but thou wast cast out in the open field, to the lothing of thy person, in the day that thou wast born.
Matt 7:5 Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye.
In the tunnel of conflict is the passageway to intimacy in any relationship, we grow closer to each other by facing and resolving our differences. Frankness is not a license to say anything you want, wherever and whenever you want. Thoughtless words leave lasting wounds.
Humility is the oil that smoothes and soothes relationships. Humility is not thinking less of yourself; it is thinking of yourself less.
Some people are EGR people - “Extra Grace Required.” One key to courtesy is to understand where people are coming from. Discover their history. When you know what they’ve been through, you will be more understanding, and will think about how far they have come in spite of their hurts. You make it safe enough to share their doubts and fears without being judged.
We can walk arm-in-arm without seeing eye-to-eye on every issue.
You may need to continue discussing and even debating - but you do it in a spirit of harmony. Reconciliation means you bury the hatchet, not necessarily the issue.
If you choose to cast out someone, Scripture says to go back to them to restore them less the adversary gets them. People tend to forget that and just erase them out of their lives.
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