Between knowing and dead silence

Wherever there is a carcass, there the vultures will gather. – Matthew 24: 28 (NIV)

With its eyes set on the dull green plastic garbage bag placed near the edge of the driveway of my son’s home in Melbourne, Florida, an approximate 2 foot tall solitary bird paced up and down in a stalking mode- being sure that there was no movement. Without fear of being intimidated or discouraged, it was decked out in dull black heightened with wrinkles covering its face and head. With the tip of its grayish bill sticking out and the long wiry white legs attached to funny looking feet, the 5 (pound?) vulture was a sight to see.

I viewed the whole scene from the seat of my automobile during the mid-morning hours. The sunlight was unusually brilliant on that Friday and I hoped that no one would disturb my view. But the garbage truck started at the far end of the street making all kinds of noises. The “black crow” or “black buzzard” took to flight and landed atop a lightpost nearby. Peering in the distance, it rested there for a bit.

I looked and looked at that marvelous creature. My mind went back to my childhood days when a yelling [to cry loudly as in pain] sound came from the green corn field adjacent to my grandmother’s house in the Crab Point vicinity of Morehead City, North Carolina. A larger animal had somehow attacked a little puppy that had been left alone, snatched it up, and headed for the open field. However, the puppy’s cries must have been heard and before it could be consumed, the larger predator got scarred off. I had visited my friend’s house down the road and was returning home when I heard the weak sounds. Mercy! When I got near the scene, several large black birds took off and the poor thing was just about gone with its flesh strung open. Mama told me later that those kinds of birds served useful purposes of keeping rotten and dead things under control for the farmers. Well, those horrible looking creatures looked bigger than life; I knew they were close by, so I left the scene as quick as I could. The weak cries were gone – the puppy died. The buzzards returned.

My eyes were opened to two spiritual lessons. The first one is from the Old Testament. When it comes to identifying special animals like the vulture, here is what God said in Leviticus 11: 13-17; 24, These are the birds that are detestable to you. You must never eat them: the griffon vulture, the bearded vulture, the black vulture, the kite, the falcons of all kinds, ravens of all kinds, the eagle owl, the short-eared owl, the seagull, hawks of all kinds. The following creatures will make you ceremonially unclean. If any of you touch their carcasses, you will be defiled until evening.

During the time of Israel’s wanderings in the wilderness, God gave special instructions to Moses and Aaron to pass on. He had strictly forbidden eating the meat of certain “unclean” animals and to make sure, he forbade even touching them. God wanted the people to be totally separate from those things he had forbidden. Today, we flirt with temptation, rationalizing that at least we are technically keeping the commandment not to commit the sin. But God wants us to separate ourselves completely from all sin and tempting situations. We are to be more aware of areas in our lives where we have “technical innocence” but in which we have actually been involved in sin. It’s time to cross back over the line and stay there.

The second lesson comes from 1 Peter 5: 8 in the New Testament: Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. The Lion attacks sick, young, or straggling animals; it chooses victims that are alone or not alert. Peter wants us to watch out for Satan when we are suffering or being persecuted. If you are feeling alone, weak, helpless, and cut off from other believers, or if you are so focused on your troubles that you forget to watch out for danger, those are the times when you are especially vulnerable to Satan’s attacks. During your times of suffering, seek other Christians for support. Keep your eyes on Christ, and resist the devil. Then says James, “he will flee from you.” (James 4:7) Resistance demands constant reliance, dependence, and guidance of the Holy Spirit. Finally, observe what Jesus said in Matthew 24: 28: Wherever there is a carcass, there the vultures will gather. In other words, since the gathering of vultures indicates the presence of carrion then the end of the age {the signal of Jesus’second return} will be very obvious to all. Selah