Being a Keeper

In my Bible reading recently, the Lord has had me doing word studies. Mercy, petition, keeper. And I felt the Lord impressing on me to share about my study on being a keeper.

The first use of keeper is from the mouth of Cain "Am I my brother's keeper?" So to be a keeper I need to know where my children are. Not just physically, but also emotionally and most importantly spiritually.

Next I looked at Psalm 121 where we are told "The LORD is thy keeper." Looking at the surrounding verses I learned more about keeping. Keeping is being on guard, protecting from evil, bringing comfort, watching over comings and goings.

In Ecclesiastes 12:3 it speaks of the keeper of the house. These verses are describing the aged body. The keepers of the house are a picture of the arms and hands. It immediately made me think of Proverbs 31 where the virtuous woman "she gireth her loins with strength, and strengtheneth her arms.....She layeth her hands to the spindle, and her hands hold the distaff. She stretcheth out her hand to the poor; yea, she reacheth forth her hands to the needy." So being a keeper is manual work like dishes and laundry and bandaging knees and changing diapers. But it is also ministering to others like helping a struggling child and sharing a scriptural truth and giving a hug to one who is hurting and sharing my blessings with another family.

In the New Testament, the soldiers guarding Jesus' tomb are called keepers in Matthew 28:4 when they shake with fear and become as dead men. Why were they sent to guard a tomb?? To keep thieves out. As a keeper of my home, I am to guard my home and the hearts of my children from the thief Satan, the father of lies.

And lastly, I studied the famous verse on keepers at home in Titus 2:5. The aged women are instructed to teach the younger to be "keepers at home.......that the word of God be not blasphemed." I understand this to be AT home. Busy at home, working at home. Home is to be my priority. Failure to do this and the other matters mentioned would expose the Word of God to contempt by the world. Blaspheme could be another word study, but I understand it to mean to put myself above God either by what I do or what I say. And when God tells me my place is to be a keeper and I leave my command post, His Word is blashemed.

Well, there you have it. Five little verses with amazing insight as to the significance of being a keeper. And now I must go and turn my attention to keeping:)

Update: I thank my Lord that He loves me and mine enough to expose our sin. Just days after this post, a little Achan was discovered and sin was found in the camp (Joshua 7) . Trust was shattered and deceit was confessed. The Lord lead me to this study because He knew I had let my guard down in some areas. We are working on rebuilding trust and I am trying diligently to apply the above truths about being a keeper. We welcome your prayers.