Steadfast Loyalty

"Let not steadfast love and faithfulness forsake you; bind them around your neck; write them on the 
 tablet of your heart."
                                                                                                                                       Proverbs 3:3




In our society, true loyalty is a virtue that seems to have all but been vanquished.  We are inundated with misguided loyalties and allegiances which, at their core, are rooted in little more than self-interests and self-preservation.  We have become a "me" generation that has little tolerance or grace for anyone who deviates from our preset notion of values and norms.

We are divided and are becoming increasingly intolerant.  We clamor for the respect and deference
we refuse to give to others.  We somehow believe we can debate or bully people into viewing things the way we do.  If this is ineffective then we rise up to violently protest, despite the consequences to others.  Characteristics of our nation include: faithlessness, lawlessness, godlessness, mercilessness, and aimlessness.

The more empty we become, the easier it is to bow before every false idol that appeases our selfish desires.  And all the while, we turn our backs and harden our hearts to the Only One who can restore, reconcile, and redeem our broken nation.  Surely, it is our God that genuinely deserves our steadfast loyalty in this present age.

Intentionality is required.  In a biblical sense, loyalty is a spiritual strength that is linked to faith.  Actually, it is faithfulness in action.  When we can combine faith with loyalty, the yield is fidelty.  And our God is a God who requires fidelity from His people.

If we are going to fulfill God's call on our lives to be a loyal people, we have to first understand the One to whom we owe our allegiance and faithfulness.  This comes from reading and understanding His Word, knowing that it is His Word that is infallible and unchanging.  It also comes from trusting who God is and what God says He will do.

When we first accepted Christ as our personal Savior, we had to do more than merely assent to His invitation.  We had to learn to personally trust Him.  A relationship without trust is no relationship at all.  It is trust that will always be a prerequisite to steadfast loyalty.

There is an anonymous author that says that "Trusting means drawing on the inexhaustible resources of God."  His Word promises us that He will supply our needs and that He knows before we do what those needs even are.  He is sovereign and in control (Philippians 2:9-11); He is worthy of our trust (Psalm 33:4); He can do more than all we ask or think (Ephesians 3:20); and He will never leave us or forsake us (Hebrews 13:5).  Daily, we ought to affirm, "In God I trust" (Psalm 56:11).

There is a story in the fifth chapter of 2 Kings that juxtaposes the loyalty of Namaan's servant girl and Elisha's servant named Gehazi.  Despite the fact that Namaan's servant girl was a Jewish slave stolen from her family and homeland, she was loyal to Namaan's family with her whole heart.  She was the one who instructed the leprous Namaan to go to her native land (where surely she longed to be) to find Elisha and be healed of his leprosy.

Namaan agreed.  After Elisha healed Namaan, he was profoundly grateful.  He wanted to repay Elisha by lavishing him with luxurious gifts, but Elisha refused the gifts.  Despite Elisha's refusal, Gehazi went behind his back and accepted the gifts from Namaan.  When Elisha learned of Gehazi's deception and betrayal, he pronounced leprosy upon Gehazi and his descendants forever.

The actions from the servant girls' loyalty resulted in miraculous healing and blessings.  The actions from Gehazi's disloyalty resulted in scandal, disease, and death.  Loyalty eminates from a position of spiritual strength, whereas disloyalty is viewed as a character flaw.

In addition to pledging our allegiance and faithfulness to God, our actions must then be faithful and true to Him and His purposes in the earth.  Each one of us are entrusted with resources and gifts to be used for the extension of God's kingdom.  Each one of us are uniquely equipped to benefit others.  When we rely on God to accomplish more through our lives than we could accomplish on our own, this is what brings God glory.

Daily God asks us, "What will you do with what you have been given?"  He promises to add power to lives of His children through their talents, skills, and gifts.  He also provides us with an abundance of creativity that is displayed in a myriad of forms.  This becomes the ongoing test in our lives... Will we steward them well?

It is through spiritual discipline that we will be able to effectively serve others.  These disciplines include: prayer (Matthew 6:9), meditation (Philippians 4:8), fasting (Luke 5:35), and study (Luke 2:46).  We stretch, strain, and press to fully apprehend everything that God calls for us to obtain.

When resistance rears its ugly head to our loyalty and steadfastness (and be assured that it will), we are called to push back.  We war over the powers of darkness with the authority of God's Word and the power of the Holy Spirit.  As Christ's ambassador's on earth (2 Corinthians 5:20), we allow God to make His appeal through us.

Steadfast loyalty will bring victory in our lives.  It will also bring victory to our loved ones.  It will in like manner bring victory in a society that is broken.  We are created to be fiercely and passionately loyal to our God.  We are created to be one in Him.  And we know that in Him we already have the victory.

Brother Andrew (born in 1928), who is a Christian missionary that smuggles bibles into hostile nations, says this: "God is never defeated.  Though He may be opposed, attacked, resisted, still the ultimate outcome can never be doubted."  From my perspective, I want to be on the winning side and in the end be found in Him.  This is the One and Only God that forever deserves our steadfast loyalty!


                                          "Victory belongs to the Lord."
                                                   Proverbs 21:31