Avoiding Extremes

AVOIDING EXTREMES

If a little bit of something is good for you, a lot must be even better--right? Not necessarily. The wise person knows this, as Solomon, famous for his wisdom, clearly warns:

"The man who fears God will avoid all extremes" (Eccl. 7:18),

All extremes, even extremes of something good, can be bad. The story is told of a man whose wife had a good habit of keeping their house clean, and her husband appreciated this. But she did tend to take this to extremes. One night, for instance, he got up out of bed for a few moments, and when he got back--the bed was made!

Or consider children, as famous for being messy as Solomon is for being wise. Messiness is considered not good, but still, as Solomon himself has said, there is a time and place for everything (Eccl. 3:1). Thus there is a time when even messiness must be tolerated. Or, as once again it is Solomon who said:

"An empty stable stays clean, but there is no income from an empty stable" (Prov. 14:4).

Using children again for illustration, I once witnessed a humorous instance of the truth of this proverb. I saw a little one following her brother across the lawn when he stopped to pick up a dandelion and blow away the seeds. That looked like fun, so she copy-catted him and blew away her own seed head. The problem was, she had been eating a cupcake loaded with frosting and most of that sticky frosting was now around her mouth, which proved to be like a magnet for the airy seeds now floating around. No doubt you can easily picture her face. But if you think that is funny, you should have seen her mother's face when she saw her. I well remember the puzzled look on that face and her words: "Is that . . . dandelion seeds around your mouth?" There was a sigh as she picked up her child and proceeded towards the nearest faucet.

Yes, children can be messy, but it's the wise parent who knows that this must be accepted at times--and when it needs to be dealt with. This particular child's face was promptly cleaned to prevent the sticky frosting-dandelion seed concoction from spreading to other less suitable places.

These have been humorous illustrations of the principle stated in the Bible of avoiding extremes, even extremes of good things. But the same principle applies to more serious areas of life as well. It can and should be applied, for instance, to the matter of money and wealth. Jesus frequently warned against extremes in the pursuit of money. Solomon likewise warned against this extreme--and he should know: His wealth was as world-renowned as his wisdom. Therefore, when he cautions us against extremes in this area, we would be wise to listen. Here is one such warning he gives:

"Do not wear yourself out to get rich; have the wisdom to show restraint" (Prov. 23:4).

Here is another:

"Better a little with the fear of the Lord than great wealth with turmoil" (Prov. 15:16).

In his proverbs, Solomon frequently contrast two opposites to show the contrasting results of following one or the other. Here he contrasts the opposite states of having little with the extreme of having too much, which does indeed often result in turmoil. There is nothing necessarily wrong with being wealthy, but most of us do not really need to be wealthy to do the work God has prepared for us to do in his kingdom (Eph. 2:10). Rather, we should agree with both Solomon and Paul that it really takes little for us to be supplied with all we need:

"I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength" (Eph. 4:11-13).

"The house of the righteous contains great treasure, but the income of the wicked brings them trouble" (Prov. 15:6).

Just what kind of trouble can extreme income bring, whether to the one who acquired it through wickedness or through legitimate means? Well, for one thing, when one is wealthy, others take notice and jealousy and greed and lust and envy and all sorts of wicked desires spring up in some of those who see the wealth of others. These wicked desires sometimes lead to wicked deeds against those with wealth--attacks that the poor do not need to worry about.

"A man's riches may ransom his life, but a poor man hears no threat" (Prov. 13:8).

So a rich man may have the money to ransom his life or the life of a loved one who was kidnapped, and that is good. But it is far better never having to worry about such a fate at all because one has no excess wealth that is noticed by others. Some people want wealth for this very reason, to be seen by others as rich. But sometimes that very desire can be their undoing.

Nevertheless, being poor is not usually the best situation either. If we would follow Solomon's advice, it is better to have neither extreme. The man of God avoids all extremes.

"Give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread. Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you and say, `Who is the Lord?' Or I may become poor and steal, and so dishonor the name of my God" (Prov. 3:8,9).

This area in between, then, is what we normally should aim for: having enough to provide for ourselves and our families and the work of the kingdom of God, but not so much that we are in danger of having to spend our time protecting our wealth and wasting that time that could be better spent in other ways for God's purposes and his kingdom.

This passage raises a further question with more serious consequences than our concern for money. In Proverbs 3:8,9, our actions and attitudes regarding money are linked to a higher issue, that of our relationship with God: Too much wealth may tempt one to rely upon self and say, "Who is the Lord?" and at the other end, too little money may tempt one to "steal and so dishonor the name of my God". Thus both extremes have their temptations and are thus to be avoided. The man of God avoids all extremes.

This passage also mentions honor, that it is possible to dishonor God by one's going to extremes regarding pursuing wealth. Another verse also mentions honor, saying that it is not honorable to seek one's own honor (Prov. 25:27). This harks back to the proud desire some have to obtain wealth so as to be seen and honored in the community. But Scripture, in the same verse, says that although wealth, like honey, is good, "if you find honey, eat just enough--too much of it, and you will vomit" (Prov. 25:16).

But, again, just to be clear on this issue, there is nothing wrong with being wealthy, just that few really need this blessing from God to perform their divine tasks in his kingdom as his children. So, if God has blessed you with this blessing, enjoy it but enjoy even more using it for his purposes.

"Eat honey, my son, for it is good; honey from the comb is sweet to your taste" (Prov. 24:13).

But there is yet a higher dimension to all of this. It is important to live out the principle of avoiding extremes in life regarding money, but an even deeper application of this principle is found in the area of the spiritual well being of one's soul. It is to this matter that we now turn our attention.

There a somewhat odd passage in Proverbs regarding all of this. In Proverbs, chapter seven, we find these strange words:

"Do not be overrighteous, neither be overwise--why destroy yourself?" (Eccl. 7:16).

Hmmph. What can that mean? That doesn't sound quite right. How could one be overly righteous or overly wise?

Jesus once told a parable that may help explain this:

"To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everybody else, Jesus told this parable: Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself: 'God, I thank you that I am not like other men--robbers, evildoers, adulterers--or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.' But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, 'God, have mercy on me, a sinner.' I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted" (Lk. 18:9-14).

The Pharisee no doubt really was extremely compliant with the demands of the Jewish law. Pharisees were known to require all kinds of further additions to that law--additions that God himself never required of his people. They were overrighteous and overwise in attempting to obey religious rules. Apparently they failed to heed the warning of Ecclesiastes 7:16 not to put themselves in jeopardy by so doing, for Jesus pronounced the verdict of guilty upon them in his parable, which means that they were thus subject to God's anger for failing to do as he said. Yes, by their extreme devotion, they were in danger of destroying themselves.

Too bad they also apparently did not pay attention to another Scripture that warns against this as well. I find it interesting that our modern-day translations of the Bible translate this particular passage in three very different ways. The passage is found in Zephaniah 2:5. The RSV translates it this way:

"I will destroy you," thus making God the one who destroys them.

But the KJV has it this way:

"Thou hast destroyed thyself," thus making the people themselves responsible for their own destruction.

So which is it? I like the way God has arranged things. Some people might complain that there are too many versions or translations of the Bible around and that we have lost some of the impact of God's Word in this way. I say that we have not lost but gained--as long as we are aware of the restrictions and failings of all translations. None is perfect compared to the original words God gave to his biblical authors. My intention here is not to get sidetracked on this issue but simply to point out that we definitely gain here by having more than one version. For The RSV points to God as the one who destroys, while the KJV, as mentioned, points the finger at the people themselves. Rather than argue over the cause, why not simply just accept the end result, which is the same in both cases, which is that the people are destroyed? And that, in fact, is what the NIV simply states: that they are, in fact, destroyed:

"You are destroyed, O Israel, because you are against me, against your helper."

What difference does it make if it is God or self that cause one to be destroyed? That person or that people still ends up being destroyed--and justly so. Jesus made use of similar reasoning in another parable when he depicts God speaking to an unworthy servant, "I will judge you by your own words, you wicked servant!" (Lk. 19:22). And elsewhere, in speaking of the Great Judgment, he used similar reasoning:

"But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned" (Mt. 12:37).

Now we are getting into serious territory, the eternal destiny of human souls. Thus the words of Proverbs chapter seven become all the more sobering, as the message proceeds from warning about being overly righteous to overly wicked:

"Do not be overwicked, and do not be a fool--why die before your time?" (Eccl. 7:17).

We know from experience of living in this world that God does tolerate, for a time, the wickedness of people in rebellion against him. There is no use denying that; evil does exist in our world. But though he may tolerate such evil for a time, those who press this graciousness of God (gracious in that he does not immediately destroy them but gives them time to repent) into a license to do even more evil--they risk God cutting off that time given to them to repent. Their misuse of God's grace into an opportunity to do more and more evil can reach a stopping point, and God will indeed cut them off earlier than he might otherwise have. Thus they become fools for defying God.

That is just one way they could die before their time. Another is the fact that wickedness, by itself, shortens the lives of those who live by it. Few are the violent, wicked souls who live as long as the righteous. Gang members are known for killing off each other; drug users frequently shorten their lives by their dangerous habits; and many other examples could be given. But they are all summed up in the warning of Ecclesiastes 7:17: "Do not be overwicked, and do not be a fool--why die before your time?" Extremes can bring punishment and death before they would otherwise have come.

Demons are an extreme example of beings taking things to extreme. Once when Jesus confronted some of these evil spirits, they said to him, "What have you to do with us, O Son of God? Have you come here to torment us before the time?" (Mt. 8:29).

"Before the time . . ." Those who go to extremes shorten the period between their extreme actions and the judgment of those extreme actions. Therefore, for the preservation of his soul, "the man of God avoids all extremes."

The  man  of  God  avoids  all  extremes.