As an employee of Amazon the past decade; safety has been ingrained within me. Whether it’s using the freight elevator, a ladder or unclogging jams on a conveyor, each act requires specific training before you are permitted to perform this task. One of the expressions you might here is stand back and let someone who is qualified perform this duty.
But they said, Stand back! And they said, This fellow came in to live here temporarily, and now he presumes to be [our] judge! Now we will deal worse with you than with them. So they rushed at and pressed violently against Lot and came close to breaking down the door, Genesis 19:9.
On the other hand, stand back may be a precursor to an altercation breaking out. The context of the passage above is that Lot is trying to diffuse a potential conflict. Unfortunately doing the right thing as a peacemaker isn’t easy. Once a mob of people make up their mind to act, providing an alternative is tough to sell. When Lot’s plan B is rejected, an angel intervenes.
For those who are according to the flesh and are controlled by its unholy desires set their minds on and [d]pursue those things which gratify the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit and are controlled by the desires of the Spirit set their minds on and [e]seek those things which gratify the [Holy] Spirit. 6 Now the mind of the flesh [which is sense and reason without the Holy Spirit] is death [death that [f]comprises all the miseries arising from sin, both here and hereafter]. But the mind of the [Holy] Spirit is life and [soul] peace [both now and forever]. 7 [That is] because the mind of the flesh [with its carnal thoughts and purposes] is hostile to God, for it does not submit itself to God’s Law; indeed it cannot, Romans 8:5-7.
The last episode of Seinfeld was set up by Jerry’s friends filming a robbery instead of acting like a concerned citizen. This form of stand back by not getting involved is now considered normal with cell phones videotaping crimes daily. As long as human beings continue to feed their sinful nature, this trend will continue. May the passage above serve as a warning to step out in faith by following the convictions of the Holy Spirit.
By Jay Mankus
ExpressYourself4Him 