Tammuz 17
Bribery
“And has not taken a bribe against the
innocent.” (Ps 15:5 ISR)
While there are laws
in place that will not allow members
of our government – at all levels – from receiving financial donations or gifts,
there are those politicians who have figured out how to circumvent this
ruling. Through my adult years, there has
been a roll-call of those who have accepted bribes, in one form or
another. I am relatively sure that most
of us are aware of the rumors and headlines linking Hilary Clinton, Russia and
uranium that flew fast and furious in 2017.
Add to the powder keg the innuendo that the Clinton Foundation was the
recipient of millions from a Russian
business concern dealing with uranium.
While nothing has been proven in black and white, just the allegations
alone make us wonder where the integrity of our government is.
Noah Webster defines ‘bribe’
as “A price, reward, gift or favor bestowed or promised with a view to pervert the judgment, or corrupt the conduct of a
judge, witness or other person. A bribe is a consideration given or promised to
a person, to induce him to decide a cause, give testimony, or perform some act
contrary to what he knows to be truth, justice or rectitude. It is not used in
a good sense, unless in familiar language.
That which seduces.”[1] While this definition is somewhat long and
wordy, it is the last three words that very much got my attention.
“That which seduces.” If we are willing to turn our backs on our
commitment to walking the Torah walk, then we have been seduced away, and our
commitment didn’t amount to a hill of beans.
And truthfully, bribery comes in many different forms. For example, I have a wonderful friend who
claims to be Torah observant, but has a weakness called bacon. If someone was to offer her a BLT, she would
grab it, and devour it, having now been successfully seduced away from the laws
of kashrut (dietary laws, see Lev 11 [2]). Fill in the blanks, folks. If you have an area that is a weakness to
you, look closely at what is offered in temptation, at what is used to seduce
you away from the Living Torah. As I write this, I am closely looking at
myself, and I see several areas in my own life where I need to ‘shore up the
walls’. My focus must remain on my Creator, on His Word, and my commitment must stand strong against all the forces
that would seduce me away.
Amein.
“Examine
and test and evaluate your own selves to see whether you are holding to your
faith and showing the proper fruits of it. Test and prove yourselves …” (2Cor
13:5 AMPC)
“But let each one
examine his own work …” (Gal 6:4 ISR)
©2018
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