"Well, Yes... Per Say"

2nd Corinthians 1.17-20 NASU

“Therefore, I was not vacillating when I intended to do this, was I? Or what I purpose, do I purpose according to the flesh, so that with me there will be yes, yes and no, no at the same time?

“But as God is faithful, our word to you is not yes and no. For the Son of God, Christ Jesus,… was not yes and no, but is yes in Him. For as many as are the promises of God, in Him they are yes;...”

Jesus is not always the easy, neutral, accepting sort of personality I wish to envision. He is not nice, warm, and fuzzy. The man is strong and decisive. Jesus has opinions and is unafraid to express them. Christ offers no support for those who wish to play it safe in the gray zone between right and wrong, black and white, yes and no. An ambivalent attitude or undeclared position on matters of life and death, makes Jesus sick to His stomach, forcing an involuntary, visceral reaction...

“I know you inside and out, and find little to my liking.

You’re not cold, you’re not hot — far better to be either cold or hot!

You’re stale. You’re stagnant. You make me want to vomit.”
Revelation 3.15 The Message

I once knew a man who had a job to perform and he knew it. I asked him if he had completed the task after the deadline. He replied, “Well, yes,... per say,” which was code for “I thought about it; I have good intentions; I think I will; but in fact... no I haven’t.” He just couldn’t bring himself to say the "N" word. How unlike Jesus.

“Simply let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your 'No,' 'No';

anything beyond this comes from the evil one.”
Jesus, Matthew 5.37 NIV (see also James 5.12)

There is a clear mandate toward singleness of purpose in the Scripture. This purpose must remain uncluttered by the uncertainties of vacillating opinions. Leaders in the body of Christ are required by virtue of their calling to hear from God and then produce a straight-forward and clarion call…

“For if the bugle produces an indistinct sound,

who will prepare himself for battle?”
1st Corinthians 14.8 NASU

Lord, I repent of any remnants of indecision rooted in my soul. Deliver me from the evil practice of exchanging my “yes” or “no” with complex qualifying explanations which betray my unwillingness to self-declare. There can be no middle ground on the crucial issues of life. I must say “yes” or “no” to Jesus. 

“Well, yes... per say” is no answer at all.

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"Yes No Maybe" is by photographer Johnny Grim whose creative work you can view at http://www.flickr.com/photos/grimages/.