Boundaries

Back Up Your Boundaries

2 Thessalonians 3:6,11-13 - In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, we command you, brothers and sisters, to keep away from every believer who is idle and disruptive and does not live according to the teaching you received from us. We hear that some among you are idle and disruptive. They are not busy; they are busybodies. Such people we command and urge in the Lord Jesus Christ to settle down and earn the food they eat. And as for you, brothers and sisters, never tire of doing what is good.

Trespassing on other people’s property carries consequences. “No Trespassing” signs usually carry a threat of prosecution if someone steps over the boundaries. This analogy can be applied to our relational and spiritual boundaries as well. The Bible repeatedly affirms this principle, saying that there are consequences to “trespassing.” It tells us that “if we walk one way, this will happen, and if we walk another way, something else will happen.”

Just as the Bible sets consequences for certain behaviors, we need to back up our boundaries with consequences. It’s likely many marriages could have been saved if one spouse had followed through with the threat: “If you don’t stop drinking (or hitting me or yelling at the kids), I will leave until you get some treatment!” Think of the many lives of young adults who would have been turned around if their parents had followed through with their threat: “No more money if you quit another job without having other employment” or “You can’t stay here if you continue to smoke marijuana in my house.”

Paul applied this principle to the Thessalonians when he said, “The one who is unwilling to work shall not eat” (see 2 Thessalonians 3:10). God does not enable irresponsible behavior. Hunger is a consequence of laziness (see Proverbs 19:15).

Consequences give some good “barbs” to fences. They let people know the seriousness of the trespass and the seriousness of our standards. Consequences teach others that our commitment to living according to helpful values is something we hold dear and will guard and fight to protect. Consequences happen as a result of people ignoring those values. God created the idea of boundaries to help make our lives better.

This devotional is drawn from Boundaries, by John Townsend and Henry Cloud.