Acts 17:29 Forasmuch then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and man's device. 30 And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent.
This passage of scripture teaches us the forbearance of God in times of ignorance, when a clear knowledge of right and wrong has not been established in our consciences. God does not only take the availability of truth into consideration, for there are many instances in the Bible where the truth was readily available, yet because of the strong currents of established custom and culture, The Lord permitted certain activities in His people which were never ever His ideal will. One such custom was the wearing of jewelry and face painting, which was burrowed from certain pagan religions and somehow came to be the established order of the day amongst many of the Hebrews. Let's read:
Genesis 41:41 And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, See, I have set thee over all the land of Egypt. 42 And Pharaoh took off his ring from his hand, and put it upon Joseph's hand, and arrayed him in vestures of fine linen, and put a gold chain about his neck.
Genesis 24:52 And it came to pass, that, when Abraham's servant heard their words, he worshipped the Lord, bowing himself to the earth. 53 And the servant brought forth jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment, and gave them to Rebekah: he gave also to her brother and to her mother precious things.
Exodus 35:22 And they came, both men and women, as many as were willing hearted, and brought bracelets, and earrings, and rings, and tablets, all jewels of gold: and every man that offered offered an offering of gold unto the Lord.
Numbers 31:49 And they said unto Moses, Thy servants have taken the sum of the men of war which are under our charge, and there lacketh not one man of us. 50 We have therefore brought an oblation for the Lord, what every man hath gotten, of jewels of gold, chains, and bracelets, rings, earrings, and tablets, to make an atonement for our souls before the Lord.
Although all of these instances show that God had borne long with the practice of outwardly adorning one's self with chains, jewelry, and earrings, yet it was never the ideal will of God that His people should indulge the habit, for as the scriptures later show, His utter displeasure with it was manifested in several instances, thus revealing to us His real ideal in the matter. Let's read:
Exodus 33:4 And when the people heard these evil tidings, they mourned: and no man did put on him his ornaments. 5 For the Lord had said unto Moses, Say unto the children of Israel, Ye are a stiffnecked people: I will come up into the midst of thee in a moment, and consume thee: therefore now put off thy ornaments from thee, that I may know what to do unto thee. 6 And the children of Israel stripped themselves of their ornaments by the mount Horeb.
Genesis 35:2 Then Jacob said unto his household, and to all that were with him, Put away the strange gods that are among you, and be clean, and change your garments: 4 And they gave unto Jacob all the strange gods which were in their hand, and all their earrings which were in their ears; and Jacob hid them under the oak which was by Shechem.
Isaiah 3:16 Moreover the Lord saith, Because the daughters of Zion are haughty, and walk with stretched forth necks and wanton eyes, walking and mincing as they go, and making a tinkling with their feet: 17 Therefore the Lord will smite with a scab the crown of the head of the daughters of Zion, and the Lord will discover their secret parts. 18 In that day the Lord will take away the bravery of their tinkling ornaments about their feet, and their cauls, and their round tires like the moon, 19 The chains, and the bracelets, and the mufflers, 20 The bonnets, and the ornaments of the legs, and the headbands, and the tablets, and the earrings, 21 The rings, and nose jewels.
One of the more common arguments that are made in favor of wearing jewelry is that the people of God in ancient times did it and were accepted of God, but this reasoning brings us back to our topic for today, for in the times of ignorance God winks, but when a flood of light and knowledge from God has been shed on our pathway about a certain issue, then we are obligated to follow on to know and practice the truth, because the path of the just is as a shining light that shines brighter and brighter until the perfect day. Just because the people of God in ancient times did something that was wrong, does it mean to say that we should follow in their footsteps. Solomon had a thousand wives, and that was certainly not God's ideal will as clearly demonstrated by Christ in His discourse with the Jews on the topic of marriage and divorce. Let's read:
Matthew 19:4 And he answered and said unto them, Have ye not read, that he which made them at the beginning made them male and female, 5 And said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they twain shall be one flesh? 6 Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder.
In our day, and in our own experiences, we need to be very careful about the many different voices we listen to, pertaining to the will of God, for there are many false prophets that have arisen from the ranks of Christians, who dare to teach doctrines and practices that are directly opposite to the clearly revealed will of God. When pastors, elders, bishops, and televangelists say with conviction "Thus saith The Lord", it is then our sacred duty to find out for ourselves whether The Lord indeed said such and such, or whether it was a private interpretation of scripture that was masked under the banner of "The word of The Lord". We therefore end with a passage of scripture which points us to the written and Living Word, that as Christians we are all to live by. Let's read:
2nd Timothy 3:13 But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived" ..... 14 But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned" .... 16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: 17 That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.
May The Lord add His blessing to the study and practice of His every word. God bless!