Busy Bodies or Busybodies?
Still attached to an upper story of a
house on Elfreths’ Alley in Philadelphia is
a busybody. That’s right, a mechanical busybody made by Benjamin
Franklin. Mirrors make up this busybody which reflects to the real
busybody what is happening in the alley without them having to put their
head out of the window. Isn’t it sad that every society has had
busybodies? God has always urged busybodies to become busy bodies.
Leviticus 19:16-18 instructs Israel not to be a talebearer, hater of
brethren, vengeful, or bear grudges. These thoughts are concluded with
the word, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord.”
Busybodies need to become busy bodies of love. Whether it is a
friend, stranger or enemy, why would a Christian hurt them with sinful
busybody ways? We ought to be busy bodies serving them through love.
How does one
become a busybody? Perhaps there are several ways. A few things
associated with busybodies are mentioned in 1
Timothy 5:3-15. Those who live in sensual pleasure (vr
11). Those who do not keep the vows they make (vr
12). They learn to be idle. They wander about from house to house.
They gossip and are busybodies (vr 13).
Once someone
has started the habitual life of being a busybody, is there any hope for
them?
2 Thessalonians
3:6-15 instructs the church to take action by marking the disorderly
busybody. It isn’t right to not work, beg from others for daily
provision, and use idle moments to talk. The church must stand against
this. The church must command them to work, be quiet and provide their
own bread. To reinforce this teaching he adds not to grow weary in
doing good. In others
words, God wants us to be busy bodies working to provide, not
busybodies in wandering about gossiping and begging! C. S. Lewis wrote
about busybodies who constantly picked at others to live a moral life.
“Those who torment us for our own good will torment us without end,
for they do so with the approval of their own conscience.” Do you
love juicy gossip? If a couple were experiencing a divorce because of
fornication, would you regret that you hadn’t heard which was unfaithful
and with whom? Would you ask others and seek details? Why? Would you
go to them, pray with them, and encourage them to work through it? Why
do you want to know? Either to be a busybody or a busy body. Those who
want to know so they can gossip and use the information as a weapon of
knowledge, torment people, instead of love them.
One of the
greatest Athenian generals was Alcibiade.
He set sail to war against the city of Syracuse. A busybody made false
accusations against him. He was accused of breaking body parts from the
statue of the god Hermes. He was commanded to return home and another
general was sent in his place. The other general was incompetent
causing Athens to lose the war. This wasn’t the first or last battle
lost due to busybodies.
Spiritual
battles are always lost by busybodies. When God lists seven things He
hates in Proverbs 6, several of them describe busy bodies: Pride, lying,
wicked hearts with wicked plans, feet that are swift to do wrong, and
one who sows discord among brethren. On the other hand, when God gives
the great commission to spread the Gospel to the whole world, the second
greatest commandment to love your neighbor, the commands to take care of
orphans, widows, the poor, visit the sick, and those in jail, study,
pray, meditate, instruct our children, work, pay taxes, give, worship,
and on and on are commands that require our time every day! If we are
busy serving our Lord, we simply won’t make the time to be busybodies.
Lay down the phone, stop the e-mails, get out of the coffee houses,
narrow down the hobbies and do more kingdom work!
David Shannon
Mt. Juliet Messenger
