Fellowship: A whole lot of “monkey business”
Good and pleasant Christian fellowship should include a whole lot of “monkey business!”
No, not the silly acts sort… not the dishonest trickery type… not by immoral or deceitful conduct, nor anything illegal, tinkering, or rambunctious. The sort of “monkey business” I have in mind is the “see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil” kind portrayed in the accompanying photo.
I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but it seems to me that this sort of subspecies might be growing extinct! Nonetheless, I maintain: Good and pleasant Christian fellowship should include a whole lot of “monkey business!”
Consider how a “see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil” troop of monkeys might behave. Evil of any kind would be “eschewed” (that’s an old King James word I rather like; it means to habitually avoid a thing, to shun it, or give it up entirely. But to me it kinda sounds like to spit something out, maybe like a mouthful of bad meat, or that time I measured four times the soda into my biscuits!)
To eschew a thing means you don’t want to see it, hear it, or say it. Sin oughta be a thing like that. “It is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret,” writes Paul ( Eph. 3:12). If you want to love life and see good days “eschew evil, and do good,” adds Peter (1 Pet. 3:11). Long ago the shepherd-psalmist-king David observed, “How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity!” (Ps. 133:1). When evil is out of the picture, harmony and unity (as I mentioned yesterday) are possible… and fellowship is made most pleasant.
Good “monkey business” catches on too. “Eschew evil” yourself, and you become an example. Soon the whole troop will be doing it. After all, you know what they say… “Monkey see, monkey do.”
“Monkey business ” Christian fellowship. Indeed — More fun than a barrel of…” Well, you know.
Press on…
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