In the physical realm, orderliness is usually appreciated by all. For instance, who will choose a messy room when an orderly room is available? Or, who will chill out in cluttered undergrowth when an appealing garden is accessible? Hardly anyone! It is so because our being proceeds from an orderly Mind. This inception has inoculated in us a sense of harmony and concinnity, a sense that has been blunted—to a certain degree—by a decaying and unkempt world. Yet, in spite of it, we naturally long for balance and coherence in all expressions of life, outer and inner.
The Scriptures
God’s word teaches us the value of orderliness in multiple ways. We read in the Psalms:
Whoever offers praise glorifies Me; and to him who orders his conduct aright I will show the salvation of God.” (Psalm 50:23)
These words clearly infer that the conduct of an individual can be morally muddled or well groomed.
The apostle Paul affirms the same thing when he writes: “But if anyone is hungry, let him eat at home, lest you come together for judgment. And the rest I will set in order when I come” (1 Cor. 11:34). Here again we see that a Christian community can be jumbled and therefore little attractive. And again: “Let all things be done decently and in order” (1 Cor. 14:20), not only decently but also in order.
In what follows, we will look to two areas in which God expresses orderliness, namely, within Himself and outside of Himself.
Within Himself
God shows orderliness in the way He interacts within Himself, i.e., each Person forming the triune God acts orderly with the two other Persons constituting the unity. In other words, there is harmony and coherence in the Godhead. The 1913 Webster defines harmony this way: “The just adaptation of parts to each other, in any system or combination of things, or in things intended to form a connected whole; such an agreement between the different parts of a design or composition as to produce unity of effect; as, the harmony of the universe.” As we all understand, without this sort of orderly interactions God would not be God.
Now if God is so, His children must have the possibility to experience the same thing, that is, our spirit, together with our soul and body, should interact with a high degree of orderliness, but unfortunately it is often not the case, there is recurrent discordance between our inner and outer man (Rom. 7:22,23). This schism creates confusion and disorder within our being. But gladsomely, the person who pursues orderliness will experience God’s help and guidance and see the constituents forming his being harmonizing with each other at the point of beauty.
Another area in which God retains orderliness within Himself is in the way He thinks. There is consonance in His mind and therefore in His thoughts. His reasoning exhibits unity. This orderliness, in the realm of thoughts, is called “logic”. The word is derived from the Greek word “logos”, which includes both “ratio” and “oratio”, i.e., not only the spoken word but also the word in the realm of thinking. In other words, God is perfectly rational and desires to teach His children the art of rational reasoning, which is nothing else than to think orderly.
God is also morally orderly. This orderliness is called holiness. It can be observed outwardly but subsists inwardly. Here again, God wants to teach His children the importance of moral orderliness, for He knows that only within its perimeter can emerge real rest.
… but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, “Be holy, for I am holy.” (1 Peter 1:15,16)
Another area in which God displays orderliness within Himself is related to His emotions. We can say: God is emotionally balanced. He is not confused, befuddled or depressed. His emotions are in harmony with each other and in mutual equilibrium. This orderliness, in the realm of inward emotions, is called “inner peace”, that is, peace within oneself.
Outside of Himself
Now let’s have a look to the orderliness God experiences outwardly.
We have seen that He interacts with great orderliness within Himself, but He does the same outside of Himself, that is, His interactions with others are orderly. This sort of orderliness is called kindness.
“We have thought, O God, on Your lovingkindness, in the midst of Your temple.” (Psalms 48:9)
But we must notice that His kindness coexists with other divine attributes, such as justice. Actually justice is nothing else than the manifestation of orderliness in the realm of retribution. Therefore we Christians should welcome justice with gratefulness.
Let the righteous strike me; it shall be a kindness. And let him rebuke me; it shall be as excellent oil; let my head not refuse it. For still my prayer is against the deeds of the wicked.” (Psalms 141:5)
The first phrase in this verse states clearly that the expression of justice is simultaneously an expression of kindness. Or to put it differently one could say: injustice is, and always will be, far removed from kindness.
Then we have the orderliness in which God expresses His emotions externally. This orderliness is called “outer peace”. It is the effluence of God’s inner equilibrium, the outflow of a benevolent Mind.
Likewise, God is orderly in the way He externalizes the logos, for as we have seen, the logos is ratio and oratio. Consequently, God utterance is always logical, i.e., orderly. This sort of orderliness is mentioned in the Book of Job:
If you can answer me, set your words in order before me; take your stand.” (Job 33:5)
Obviously, God wants to teach His children the importance of orderly communication and guide us on the path of logical utterances.
Another sphere in which God manifests orderliness is in the real of creation. That sort of orderliness is called art.
In brief, orderliness is beautiful in all of its manifestations. So let us pursue it with diligence, thus experiencing harmony and beauty externally and internally.
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