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There are some stark differences in the treatment of widows and orphans between the Law of Moses and the Law of Jesus Christ.
In Ex. 22:22-24,
“Do not take advantage of the widow or the fatherless. If you do and they cry out to me, I will certainly hear their cry. My anger will be aroused, and I will kill you with the sword; your wives will become widows and your children fatherless”.
You can see in this verse that the instruction is based upon actively harming the “widows or orphans” and God’s anger for this sort of behavior and his punishment for it.
Note the contrast in the New Testament.
James 1:27,
“Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world”.
Religion in the Mosaic system was not practicing harm to the helpless. Religion in the Christian system is actively practicing good for the helpless.
One of the problems among God’s people today is living such isolated lives that we limit our knowledge of and association with those who are in need of help. Sometimes that is a deliberate action and sometimes that is a lazy action.
Widows, orphans and other needy exist in our world. Those who are truly religious should look for those who need help and let their lights shine.
“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:14-16).
Deuteronomy 13:1-5
If a prophet or a dreamer of dreams arises among you and gives you a sign or a wonder, and the sign or wonder that he tells you comes to pass, and if he says, ‘Let us go after other gods,’ which you have not known, ‘and let us serve them,’ you shall not listen to the words of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams.
For the Lord your God is testing you,
to know whether you love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul. You shall walk after the Lord your God and fear him and keep his commandments and obey his voice, and you shall serve him and hold fast to him.
I suppose if we witnessed a miracle today we would listen pretty closely to what the fellow who performed it had to say. After all, miracles come from God and are designed to get our attention and to validate prophets.
The miracle gets our attention but then our attention has to shift to what the prophet is telling us because God occasionally tests our knowledge and devotion to his word. He creates a dilemma. Are we going to believe the miracle or are we going to believe what he has commanded us in his written word?
The Deuteronomy text says the written word takes priority over miracles. I wonder why? Probably because Satan (and his agents) can work miracles too and humans through trickery can work pseudo-miracles.
So as Christians we can’t just expect to be spoon fed God’s word. We have to feed ourselves on a regular basis so when God sends a test we won’t fail.
This is a test we need to pass… better start studying for it.
Leviticus 25:23-24 states that the land he gave his people Israel didn’t really belong to them and they couldn’t sell it permanently. The land belonged to God and his people were just “aliens and tenants” they were renting from God.
That’s an important concept and I would suggest that it still holds true for you and I as well. Nothing we have really belongs to us. We are just renters on earth until we reach our final home that really belongs to us.
That is an important concept and until and unless we completely buy into it we’ll never really be ready to leave… forever content to live in a rent house and living like we own what is not really ours.
We find three test cases of hospitality in Genesis 18-19.
The first is when the Lord and two angels disguised as men visit Abraham. Abraham believing that they were mere men rushed from his tent, bowed down and offered to wash their feet. He had his servants slaughter a young calf to feed them and had his wife Sarah make fresh bread for them.
The second case was when the two angels, disguised as men, went to the city of Sodom. Lot was sitting at the gates when they approached. Like Abraham he approached the men and bowed down and offered to wash their feet and invited them into his home. At first the men (angels) said no we’ll just sleep out in the city square but Lot insisted and they accepted his hospitality.
The third case of hospitality was when the men of Sodom found out there were men visiting their city. They surrounded Lot’s home and wanted to greet the men by having gang rape homosexual sex with them.
Christians are supposed to be hospitable too. Will we be like Abraham and Lot who bowed down in humility and offer to feed and house our visiting guests? Will we be like Lot who didn’t accept the declination of the visitors but insisted upon serving them? Or will we be like the men of Sodom who wanted to take advantage of these strangers? Or will we be somewhere in the middle ground… nice to meet you… hope you have a nice visit. Or will we just ignore the strangers and walk right past them?
God’s people are supposed to be known for their hospitality… like Abraham and Lot. Their hospitality cost them something… time and money.
From Les Homan...
My Gary passed away November 17 at Baylor St. Lukes Methodist Hospital in Houston. Everyone worked so hard to save her and could not.
She was my wife and best friend. She made me a better person. She cared so much for her family, friends, her Church and her God.
We were married 49 years and I was so lucky she married me. We have 3 great boys who are heartbroken and 1 grandson who is trying hard to understand it all.
Seven year old grandson Ben said it best “GranGary is with the Angels”.
From Son, Chris...
My Mother was simply the greatest person I have ever known. She showered love on her entire family, her friends, colleagues, clients and total strangers. She never met someone she wouldn’t try to help. She always put the needs of others first and wouldn’t hesitate… not for a second… if she could help. One of her best traits was just listening and providing that much needed encouragement to overcome the biggest challenge that any of us might have faced.
I can’t make much sense of my Mom’s passing but I know that God must have needed her in Heaven for a task only she could accomplish. She was a better person than I could ever be but I will try to live my life based on her example and memory.
You all are here because you loved my Mom and we appreciate you all so very much for being here. I know she is so very happy right now that you all would take time to come here to remember her life and the person she was.
I will take great comfort knowing that my Mom is watching over our entire family especially her beloved Grandson, Benjamin and all of you as we live out the rest of our days.
I love you Mom
Your son,
Chris
In Genesis 18 & 19 we read of events leading to and the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. Abraham had done some negotiating with God and God had agreed not to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah if just 10 righteous people could be found in those cities.
Unfortunately only four could be found; Lot, his wife and their two daughters. It would be a mistake however to equate their righteousness with faultlessness. Lot doubted God’s instruction to leave Sodom and wanted to stay. Lot’s wife violated the angel’s instruction not to look back and was turned into a pillar of salt. The two daughters got their father drunk and got pregnant by him so they could have children.
Lot and his family were righteous and were saved by God from destruction in spite of their weaknesses and that should be very comforting for people like you and me. God isn’t going to rain “fire and brimstone” upon us for the occasional weakness that might sprout up in our lives. Try to be righteous. All God has ever wanted from us is our best effort and the right attitude.
God did two really big things that he set aside days of the week to commemorate. He created the earth and set aside the last day of the week, the Sabbath day, to celebrate that event. He set rules for how to celebrate the Sabbath day and punishment (death) for violating those rules.
The other huge thing God did was to give up his only son as a sacrifice for the sins of mankind and set up the first day of the week, the Lord's Day, to celebrate that event. Like the Sabbath day there are rules and punishments for not believing in Jesus Christ and not celebrating his day.
The Sabbath day commemorates God’s creation of earth and all its peoples. The Lord’s Day commemorates the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Let’s not forget either day.
Hebrew 7:19. (for the law made nothing perfect); but on the other hand, a better hope is introduced, through which we draw near to God.
A concept is stated here that we have the ability to become very close to God. The question arises… why would we want to be close to God. The answer? Because he can do things for us.
That was especially true of primitive people. They had limited food storage abilities (refrigeration, food preservation, etc.) and could quickly run out of food and starve. They had limited ways of having access to water (no reservoirs, water pumps, etc.) for their crops and had to rely upon timely rains. Locusts could strip their fields. Disease could ravage them because they had no vaccines or effective medications. Other nations could attack and exterminate them.
So, not having the ability to help themselves they had a very real need for a God to intervene and worked hard to build a relationship with one. The Israelites could come closer to God than any of the other people because God gave them commands to follow to make them “acceptable”. In addition, he set up a system to repair the damage to the relationship when Israel could not keep the commands perfectly. The offering up of sacrifices, specifically, the blood of animals.
Even pagan peoples recognized the need to seek help from their Gods and offered up the most precious things they had… their children.
As a society we have advanced greatly but we still need God. We still have times of great need.
The above scripture indicates that we can come closer to God than ever before. That’s possible by accepting the free gift of the greatest sacrifice ever… Jesus Christ and by following his example and living sacrificial lives.
All people can claim God as their father and receive a superficial level of blessings, but true Christians are closer to God than anyone else and as a result live lives that are continually blessed by God until the final blessing comes… eternal life in the very presence of God. God takes care of his people.
Under the Mosaic Law God instituted a class of people called Priests. There were lessor priests and one great High Priest. The Priests served to administer the Law that God gave to Moses. They performed this by teaching the people the Law and by administering both the moral and ceremonial components of the Law.
Among these things were the appeasement of God through animal sacrifices to him. The lessor priests administered the ordinary sacrifices for the people but the High Priest administered a special sacrifice for the people once a year. He did this by entering the most holy of holy places in the Jewish Temple once a year with a blood sacrifice.
Fast forward to New Testament times. Jesus is now both our King and High Priest. However his priesthood descended from a character named Melchizedek which was superior to the Priesthood that descended from Moses’ brother Aaron. He too enters the most “Holy of holy places” with a blood sacrifice. However he doesn’t enter into a man made temple with animal blood he enters into Heaven itself to give his own blood directly to Jehovah God. A sacrifice which is so excellent that mankind can come closer to God than they ever have (historically).
In addition, the “lessor priests” who at one time offered a blood sacrifice for the people on a daily basis are now ordinary followers of Christ. There is no longer a spiritual class distinction among God’s people. We, as Christians, are all priests. We no longer offer up blood sacrifices but instead offer up spiritual sacrifices… our own lives (like Jesus) that sacrifice for the benefit of others.
“As you come to him, the living Stone--rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” 1 Peter 2:8-9.
Let’s understand who we are and where we came from that we might serve better.
The Book of Hebrews was written to prevent Hebrew Christians from losing their faith in Jesus Christ by returning to the dead system of faith in the Mosaic Law.
In chapter 5 the author informs them that the reason they are contemplating returning to Moses is because of their own failure to incorporate the basics of the teaching of Christ into their own spiritual DNA and because they had failed to develop spiritually.
In this section we can learn what God expects of us by looking at their failures. Here we go.
- The new Christian should be attentive in learning the basic tenets of Christianity (5:11-12).
- Once the basics have been learned it’s time to move on to other things… like teaching. At some level all Christians should be able to teach… even if it is a parent teaching a child (5:12).
- The developing Christian needs experience in “the word of righteousness”. Professor Experience is a powerful teacher and his lessons are not soon forgotten (5:13).
- A Christians “senses” need to be used and exercised. Otherwise those senses are handicapped when it comes time to differentiate between good and evil (5:14).Developed senses can keep us on the right path to spiritual completeness.
- A Christian, with all his effort and energy, should “press on” to become spiritually complete (6:1).
- And finally the spiritually complete Christian is like seed planted into deep and rich tilled soil that receives regular rain. That seed will not fail but will receive rich blessings from God (6:7-8).
Follow this formula and never look back and all will be well.
The book of Hebrews was written to encourage Jewish Christians not to reject Jesus Christ by returning to Judaism.
There are three “rests” found in the book of Hebrews; the “rest” of the promised-land for the Jews, God’s “rest’ on the seventh day after creating the earth and the eternal “rest” promised for God’s people that lasts for eternity.
The promised-land “rest” was a conditional rest. It was conditioned based upon obedience. A whole generation of Jews could not enter the promised-land due to their disobedience to God. They died in the wilderness and never received their rest (Heb. 3:19)
God worked and rested when he created the earth (Heb. 4:4) and he expects his people to follow his example.
God’s people, and in this case these Jewish Christians, have to maintain their obedient faith in Jesus Christ to enter into eternal rest. Their so called work is similar to the work of faith required of the Jews to enter the promised-land and is similar to God’s work of creating the world and then resting.
The message in the Book of Hebrews written to Jewish Christians is a call of warning to us all… our promise rest is conditioned upon obedient faith.
“Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will perish by following their example of disobedience.
For the word of God (Jesus Christ) is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. 13 Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account”. Hebrews 4:11-12
“For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account.”
Usually these verses are used to describe attributes of the Bible. The Bible is living and active, etc. Let me suggest that the “word of God” described in these verses is Jesus Christ. Note the masculine pronouns “his” and “him” used in describing the “word of God”. These masculine pronouns suggest that the “word of God” is a masculine person.
The progression of these verses climaxes in verse fourteen where Jesus the Son of God is identified as our High Priest.
Let’s try this…
“For Jesus Christ (instead of the word of God) is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account having then a High Priest, Jesus the Son of God…”
The Apostle Paul when going to a new city to teach about Jesus Christ ordinarily started his teaching in the Jewish synagogue. When he came to the city of Thyatira (Acts 16) there apparently was no synagogue. So he inquired about where people went to pray and found out it was down by the river. So that’s where he went.
Social media, like Facebook, is the new river… that’s where the people are.
I write articles which are available on my blog. The interesting thing about a blog is that you can track views. The other day I wrote an article and sent it and the link to it out to my email lists and also published it on the Parkway Facebook page. It garnered about thirty views. Then I put the article and the link to it on my personal Facebook page and it garnered sixty-five views.
Keep in mind that the article can be read without clicking on the link. So these views were of people who not only read the article but clicked on the link. What does that mean? It means that many more people read it than those who clicked on the link.
Some people don’t like Facebook and say things like… “nobody has that many friends”. I have friends on my Facebook page who are clients, family members, volleyball players (my hobby), etc. Why? So they can see a side of me that they would not ordinarily see… the side of me that is devoted to the scriptures and its interpretation.
Don’t be content to just teach in the “synagogue”. Go look for them down by the river or wherever they are so that many, not few, can hear God’s word.
God gave his laws on marriage for a reason…. not to be overly restrictive on humanity but to to give man a great gift. That gift is the experience with a spouse that teaches how God loves mankind. The relationship of sacrificial love between a man and a woman mimics God’s sacrificial love for us and previews for us our relationship with him in eternity.
Sometimes when the road gets a little rough or takes some turns we hadn’t anticipated or we see another road that looks more attractive we bail out on our responsibilities to our spouses and on our responsibilities to God and end up on a road that leads to unhappiness and eternal destruction.
God has prepared us a road that leads to earthly happiness and eternal salvation. Stay on that road even if it gets a little bumpy. Swallow a big helping of patience and righteous living and everything will turn out just fine. And don't forget to trust in God.
Not long after Jesus was “transfigured” on the mountain the Gospel of Luke records three incidents in which Jesus had to correct the behavior of his disciples.
The first incident (Luke 9:46) the disciples were discussing who of the disciples were the greatest. Jesus took a little child and told them that the disciple who cares more about little children than about the noble of the world was the greatest disciple.
The second incident (Luke 9:49) occurred when the John, the beloved disciple, saw a fellow casting out demons and told him not to do it because he was not one of the ones following Jesus. Jesus told John to leave the guy alone.
The third incident (Luke 9:54) occurred when the James and John were insulted by the negligent actions of some Samaritan villagers and wanted to kill them suggesting to Jesus that he send down fire from the sky to do so. Jesus rebuked them for their anger towards the villagers.
Sometimes we are just like these disciples, we focus on personal achievement and fame when we should be focusing on the needs of others… especially the needs of those who can’t help themselves.
Sometimes we’re quick to condemn other religious groups who are doing wonderful things for Christ because they may not understand the Bible just like we do.
And sometimes we are too easily offended and tend to over react against those who have offended us.
Jesus knew the weaknesses in his disciples and worked with them until they overcame those weaknesses. He’s patient and working with us too.
In Luke 22:31, Jesus informed Peter that Satan had asked permission to tempt Peter and Jesus had granted permission. I wonder why Satan chose Peter? I think I know why.
Satan knows all the followers of Jesus including you and I. Satan picked out Peter because he knew Peter was dangerous and important to Jesus.
Satan knew that Peter was the one in Matthew 16 who identified Jesus as the “Christ.. the son of the Living God”.
Satan knew that because of that confession Jesus had granted Peter the honor of opening the doors to the Kingdom of Heaven by preaching the first Gospel message on the day of Pentecost.
Satan knew that Peter was one of three special disciples chosen by Jesus to witness his transfiguration.
Satan likes a challenge and always has. With God’s permission he personally tempted Job, one of God’s best people. He tempted Jesus in the wilderness and finally he tempted one of Jesus’ best soldiers… Peter.
Satan singles out God’s best for temptation because the routine temptations of earthly living aren’t enough to cause God’s best to fail. Prepare yourselves to give your best to God and prepare yourselves to receive Satan’s worst and in so doing prepare yourselves for eternal blessings from God.
- Jesus demonstrated that like in the Old Testament when God fed the people with quail and manna that he could still take care of the physical needs of his people. This time with fish and bread.
- Even though God expects us to work for our own food and provide for ourselves… when that fails he is there for us.
God sometimes uses his people to take care of the physical needs of his people, i.e. the daily ministration in Acts 6.
- Even the disciples doubted Jesus ability to feed the people. They wanted to send them away.
Satan had more faith than the disciples. He knew that Jesus could turn rocks into bread.
- Jesus can provide for all the needs of his people. He can make peace between us and God, he can cure our illnesses, he can feed us and he can protect us from Satan.
The first six chapters of 1 Corinthians identify three cases of rampant sin going on within the congregation; Jealousy and strife in regards to following religious teachers, Sexual impropriety and Christians going to court with each other before Pagan judges.
It’s a big problem because the unity among Christians is the primary evidence to the deity of Jesus Christ (John 17). The church is supposed to be a shining beacon of righteousness to attract the spiritually sick of the world. The Corinthians were failing.
Paul admonishes (1 Cor. 4:14) them for these sins. Let’s look at his method as concerning the sin of their “Jealousy and strife”.
- Paul identifies the sin… “I follow Paul, I follow Apollos, I follow Cephas, I follow Christ”
- He identifies the preposterousness of the sin… “Is Christ divided?”
- He reminds them of their lowly station in life when they were called to be Christians and asks them how they became so smart as to elevate themselves over each other.
- He absolves himself of guilt, recounting how he presented the Gospel message to them.
- He assigns guilt to two groups of people; The Corinthian Christians because they were perpetual spiritual infants, i.e. not growing in the word (3:1-3) and those teachers who he left behind to help them develop (3:12-14).
- He identifies for them the full extent of their sin… they had judged Paul, an Apostle of God, to be inferior to their other teachers. (4:3)
- Finally he charges them not to “boast in men” but to “boast in the Lord”.
The Corinthian Christians had made a horrible mess of things. They thought they were spiritual giants but were instead spiritual infants. Paul was not ready to pull their spiritual lifeline. He knew the proper medicine for their illness was admonishment. Let’s not fail to admonish and do so in an effective manner. Otherwise a spiritual sickness, untreated, may lead to a spiritual death.
Every once in a while when I’m stopped at a traffic light I’ll see a cattle trailer stuffed with cattle headed for Sam Kane’s slaughter plant and it makes me a little sad because…. I know where they’ve been and I know where they’re headed.
Prior to my occupation as a Veterinarian I did part time ranch work. We would put out feed, move cattle around to different pastures, etc. About twice a year we would gather the cattle on horseback and separate out the ones to go back on pasture and crowd the others on to cattle trucks to go to slaughter.
Of course I’ve had the occasion to work in slaughter houses as well and seen these gentle creatures pushed through chutes and a bullet or “captive bolt” put into their brains and seen their processed carcasses end up in deathly quiet freezer lockers. These cattle factories of death are stream lined and efficient.
It sort of reminds me of what happened to Jesus… that kind and gentle soul who walked the countryside of Judea and touched the lives of everyone he interacted with until the Jewish leaders decided his time was up and gathered him out of the Garden of Gethsemane and delivered him to the Roman death factory.
Just like the workers in a cattle slaughter house the Roman soldiers had developed an institutionalized art and method for the killing of people. It started with a process of shaming and physical abuse until the victim was half dead and the driving of iron nails through the hands and feet fixing the poor creature to a timbered cross. All in a day’s work for Roman soldiers. They were stream lined and efficient.
Of course their purpose was not only to administer the death penalty but to do it in such a horrible manner that it would stun the observers into submissiveness.
When I see cattle trucks loaded with cattle I’m saddened because I know what awaits these gentle creatures and when I take the Lord’s Supper I’m reminded of the Roman death factory that brutalized and killed my gentle friend and savior Jesus.
One of the reasons Jesus instituted the Lord’s Supper was so that we (Christians) could collectively remember him. For the last 47 years of my life, with few exceptions, I have done that every Sunday. It’s sad but… it’s good for me. If you have been neglecting the Lord’s Supper or just taking it casually it’s time to correct that. We all need Christ’s sacrifice and we all need to remember it by taking of the Lord’s Supper.
The Apostle Paul had a trump card he could play. He was a Roman citizen by birth and as such could not be arbitrarily bound up or scourged or treated with brutality like those who were not citizens.
What’s interesting to me is that Paul didn’t always play his trump card. Of course he did in Acts 22 when the Roman Tribune, Claudius Lysias, was about to have him “scourged”. But in Acts 16 he didn’t. He allowed himself stripped of his clothes, beaten with rods, thrown into prison and bound in the “stocks”. All he had to do to prevent all of that was to say the simple words… “I’m a Roman citizen”.
So on one occasion he played his trump card and on another occasion he did not. I wonder why?
Let me suggest this, in Acts 16, Paul needed to be beat up and imprisoned so the Philippian Jailor and his family could be saved. He gave up his rights as a Roman citizen and allowed himself to be brutally beaten so he could save a man and his family.
In Acts 22 he had another mission that required him to use his rights as a Roman citizen. His mission was to proclaim the name of Jesus Christ to the Roman Caesar and a simple Jew could not do that. Only a Roman citizen could.
Sometimes it’s good to use our rights but at other times we need to give them up and the determining factor in that decision making process is which choice advances the cause of Christ? Choose wisely.
I don’t know when my mom started getting old but one day I noticed her moving slower and being quieter and just kind of being content being in the back ground and that’s not my mom. Since that time I find myself thinking about her all the time and dreading the day that I won’t have her anymore. I guess that realization has caused some changes in me. I find myself calling her a lot more. I found out she talked on the phone to her sister every day so I decided what’s important to mom is also important to me so now one of my routines is to call aunt Missie on a regular basis and visit with her. I’ve learned a lot about my mom from her sister.
Aunt Missie told me the other day that mom was the smartest of the three siblings. When I told mom that she said no aunt Missie is the smartest… they love each other. I feel sorry for which ever one lives the longest. There is no joy in being the last one alive.
The other day Mom was down visiting and after supper she was in the kitchen helping clean up and my oldest grandchild (5 years old in a month) went in to the kitchen and told her “grandma, come play with us … we hardly ever get to see you”. Then on the way home Victoria asked my son and his wife where my mom lived and could she maybe come to Corpus Christi and live with them. I can’t tell you how much I love my granddaughter for making my mother feel so loved.
I am who I am today because my mother is who she is and I know that fact well. There will be a day when she’s gone and I can’t see her anymore or talk to her or share things with her but until that day comes I’m going to make the rest of her days as special as I can. Thanks Mom for everything.
There’s an old joke I love to tell about what the smallest sin in the Bible is. It falls flat on people with superficial Bible knowledge so I usually like to tell it to those who seem to have an in depth knowledge of the Bible… Preachers and church goers and such-like. Oh yeah, the punch line? “Flea fornication”… that is small, very small.
The reality is that the sin of fornication is huge in the Bible. It is constantly spoken against… much more than murder for instance. The reason? Because it is so prevalent in all generations of people.
Sexual intercourse is, of course, a very pleasurable activity. However, it has its greatest pleasure when it is set aside as a special thing, an intimacy that is reserved for a very special person… a spouse.
For some people sexual intercourse is like shaking hands… they’ll shake hands with anyone and it becomes so common that it loses its true value. It even has different names to make it sound better like “we’re together” and a “trial marriage”. You can call it whatever you want to. God calls it fornication and punishes people for it.
Let fleas fornicate… the rest of us should flee from it.
As Christians we are in a gigantic Chess game playing for the souls of others. When we are trying to help some lost individual who reaches out to us and along the course of the “game” they respond with anger or rejection we are all too ready to give up and think… game over I did my best and they rejected my pearls of wisdom they are pigs and I’m a true son of God.
When the reality is that Satan has blocked our “Pawn” with a “Castle” and the game is still on and we still have numerous plays and still have the most powerful player on the board… the “Queen”.
In the battle for lost souls don’t be defeated by rejection, insults or perceived slights. Those are Satan’s weapons and against a seasoned warrior for Christ are weak… unless we make them bigger than they are. We’re in a big Chess game with Satan. Make a move. Just because Satan takes your pawn doesn’t mean the game is over.
I spend a lot of time thinking about the Parable of The Talents. You know the story. A master entrusts a quantity of money to three men (the amount depending on his assessment of their abilities) and then goes on a trip. When he gets back he finds that the top two employees performed very well but the hapless “one talent man” buried his money so he wouldn’t lose any of it and make his master mad. Of course those familiar with the story know that this hapless individual was severely punished for his ineptitude.
Today I was thinking about the one talent man and realized this, that one of his big problems was laziness. LAZINESS! While the other two were working and planning on how to make more money for their master their fellow worker just buried his and sat around. Perhaps never thinking… I’ll dig up a little bit of this money and buy hammers for $2 each and see if I can get $3 each for them. He was lazy just sitting around and doing nothing.
The Lord doesn’t like lazy people. He didn’t like them when the Bible was written and he doesn’t like them now. The Lord assesses our abilities and makes an investment in us. Everyone has some level of ability. No one gets a free pass. Don’t be lazy. Use your abilities so when you meet up with God he will smile at you and give you a big hug.
As human beings we understand that we have a limited number of days to live upon this earth. As servants (employees) of God we understand that those days should be spent working for God. So at the beginning of a new day an assessment should be made about how we performed for God on the previous day and a plan should be made for the new day.
The previous day’s assessment should include; did I actively violate any of God’s commandments, i.e. did I sin? The assessment should also include some thought about the casual social interaction we have with other people. In my social interaction did I represent my employer (God) in a positive way? Was I kind, helpful, encouraging etc. In addition, how did I do in my planned social interaction? Which brings us to this… planning the new day.
Since we have a finite number of days on earth, each one of them is precious and should be devoted in some form or fashion to the Lord. For example, today I’m going to visit someone who is lonely, a home bound widow, a sick person, etc. Today I’m going to encourage someone who is neglecting their abilities. Today I’m going to repair a broken relationship. Today I’m going to interact and get to know someone at church who I only know on a handshake basis (a handshake friend). Today I’m going to help a poor person.
Things are done by littles and as those little things that we do day by day build up they become a huge monument to God. Plan and assess your days or otherwise you may wake up at the end of your day and realize you’ve only accumulated a bunch of wasted days.
Yesterday I posted a photo on Facebook of my brother Greg and some of his church friends when they were teenagers. Almost immediately one of those friends posted the comment “thanks Rob” and sent me a private message with his phone number and to please call him.
When I called him he said Rob I need your help and encouragement I’m having a hard time going back to church and haven’t been in a few months. He continued, you were the oldest of our group and i know you can help me.
You see David was very close to our family. He named his son after my brother Greg. During the conversation he told me the two greatest men he had ever known was his Dad and my Dad. My parents were like his parents. The photo shows four young people about to start their adult lives but somewhere along the way David had made soon poor choices and suffered the consequences of those choices and now with a broken home, broken life and broken health was looking for some help.
I told David that I believed in him and loved him and that he had a wonderful story he could share with others and so he needed to make a better effort to attend assemblies of Christ not only for his own spiritual health but to also help the spiritual health of others through the story of his life. I told him that we have a great enemy and depression is one of his greatest weapons.
I know this if I know anything you don’t spend a whole lot of time in that vicious cycle of depression if you are more worried about others than yourself.
He also told me that he wants me to call and check on him on a regular basis to call him every Monday morning and hold him accountable. He knows that he can’t do it by himself and I suppose thats one of the reasons Christ died to establish his people the church. So they can help each other.
Shortly after that conversation I texted Greg, Scott and Mark and told them that we need to team up to help our lost brother. I’ve already built a text message group to help with that.
All this started with the simple posting of a photo on Facebook.
As I look at my life I see that God is always listening to my prayers and like paying close attention to me. I need your prayers for our missing brother. We have a powerful God.
It is intellectually dishonest or intellectually lazy to lift a verse out of its context to prove a point. Context is everything.
However, attention must not only be paid to the immediate surrounding verses but also to the chapter and the whole book. A meaning must not be given to a verse that is contrary to the message of the whole book it is surrounded by.
In addition, the next level of context is other books written by the same author and then the context of the New or Old Testament the verse is found in and finally the context of the whole Bible.
This of course means the Bible student must have a comprehensive understanding of the whole Bible before he starts in the business of interpreting a single verse to make a point. As good Bible students let’s be honest and diligent in our studies.
We’re all familiar with the five, two and one talent men but there is an implication in the text that there exists a one and one-half talent man. He is the man who instead of burying his money, like the one talent man, turned his money over to a bank so his master would at least receive interest.
I suppose this might be considered a minimal level of turn acceptability to the master but... probably not. Let’s consider a few things.
- The one and one-half talent man did not have confidence in his own ability so he shifted his responsibility to someone else. He feared his master.
- The five and two talent men doubled their investments, which would be a 100% return. They worked hard to please their master. They loved the opportunity to please him.
- At a bank one would be lucky to get a 3% return. Probably not a return the master would be happy with.
- If the master just wanted a 3% return he could have put the money in the bank himself.
- The one and one-half talent man probably suffered a fate similar to that of the one talent man. They both feared their master.
God has high expectations for his people. He has made a considerable investment in us and blessed us with many blessings and abilities. He expects a high rate of return on his investment. Don’t be afraid of God. Fear can be incapacitating and encumbering. Love God and believe in his love for you and you will be able to do many things.
When I was growing up there was a great emphasis on the New Testament and a de-emphasis on the Old Testament, because as I was taught… we live under the New Testament not the Old. A manifestation of that teaching was that a lot of Christians (including myself) just carried New Testaments.
Here’s what I know now… you cannot have a full and deep understanding of the New Testament without a full and deep understanding of the Old Testament… you just can’t.
Remember this, the early church did most of its study out of the Old Testament. When you see a book like the letter to the Romans it is primarily written to a Roman (non-Jewish) audience and yet it is rich in Old Testament references which the Romans would have been very familiar with. Why? Because the basis of their faith was built upon the Old Testament and its fulfillment in Jesus Christ.
If we want to practice New Testament Christianity then spend much time studying the Old Testament because it will bring you to a fuller deeper understanding of Jesus Christ and the New Testament… and your faith will be stronger.
Eph. 6:10-18.
This section of scripture is an encouragement to Christians to be strong. We have to be strong because we are in a battle with a very strong foe… Satan himself
Our preparation for this battle involves armoring ourselves. We cannot win against Satan without armor. It takes a special kind of armor to fight Satan. He is unaffected by Napalm and Kevlar. The Christian soldier’s armor consists of truth, righteousness, the gospel of peace, faith, salvation and the word of God. The glue that holds all this together is our communication with God in prayer.
With this kind of armor the Christian soldier is always victorious and Satan is always defeated.
Unfortunately many Christians will be killed by Satan because they failed to prepare themselves for battle. Sometimes Christians think… God will take care of me he won’t let Satan kill me. Yes, God will help us. He helps us by identifying an upcoming battle, by identifying who the enemy is and by telling us how to defeat him.
God could easily exterminate Satan but his plan is to have an all-volunteer army of valiant warriors who love God so much that they don't have any room left to fear Satan and can stand strongly against him. Prepare yourself to fight for God and against Satan.
The Gospel of Mark records this about the “Lord’s Supper”….
And as they were eating, he took bread, and when he had blessed, he broke it, and gave to them, and said, Take ye: this is my body. And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave to them: and they all drank of it. And he said unto them, this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many. Verily I say unto you, I shall no more drink of the fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.
Here we find the basis for the Lord’s Supper that we take when we assemble on Sundays. It is marvelous in its simplicity… the bread represents the body of Jesus the cup his blood that establishes his covenant. From other texts we find out about when and where we take it… On Sundays and when the people of Christ are assembled together. The supper is taken weekly to remind us of Jesus Christ. In addition, from 1 Corinthians we learn it can be done properly or improperly.
I was baptized into Christ when I was about 14 years old. Since that time I’ll bet that I haven’t missed but a handful of Sunday morning services and therefore haven’t missed the Lord’s Supper more than about a handful of times. It is deeply ingrained in me to not only take the Lord’s Supper but to remember Jesus while doing so. I have “remembered Jesus” most of my life.
Something else has happened to me over the years. Whenever (not only on Sundays) I eat unleavened bread or drink grape juice I remember Jesus. I don’t know if that is an intended consequence of Jesus’ instruction or an unintended consequence and I guess it doesn’t matter… I find myself remembering Jesus all the time.
Jesus understood this about his people… they could forget about him, and so he set several things in place so that would not happen. One of those things was associating a type of food (bread) for his body and a type of drink (fruit of the vine) for his blood… the Lord’s Supper. Do not neglect this valuable and powerful tool by neglecting to assemble with your fellow Christians.
I was listening to the radio the other day and the host was having a discussion with a Catholic priest who made the comment that all men sin every day. That’s not the first time I’ve heard that sentiment stated.
I guess the problem that I have with that idea is that as Christians we are supposed to be transforming ourselves into Jesus Christ. Jesus never ever sinned… not once and we’re supposed to be just like him.
I would think that a Christian should be able to go one day without sin. In fact, that should be our goal each and every day to live the upcoming day with absolutely no sin. And then we should be able to add another day without sin and then another and another until sin becomes a very minor aspect of our life.
I think I understand why some people say we sin every day. They are expressing a type of meekness and unworthiness before God. For me at the end of the day I want to be able to review my actions and hopefully find that I have not sinned and jump for joy at that achievement and for the joy of finding myself more and more like Jesus Christ. Because when I can do that God is also jumping for joy.
Exodus 13:2 contains an interesting concept… the firstborn male child who is born to a woman who has never had a child before belongs to Jehovah God. Whether the child is animal or human, he belongs to God.
So when God told Abraham to sacrifice Isaac on an altar God was just reclaiming what was already his.
When the barren Hannah prayed to God and vowed if she was given a son that she would dedicate him to God was merely giving to God what was already his (and not buying him back).
The Jews of course were required to buy back their firstborn sons (Numbers 3:45) from their owner… God.
In contrast to this is the custom of Moloch worshippers to kill their own sons.
“The ancients would heat this idol up with fire until it was glowing. Then they would take their newborn babies, place them on the arms of the idol, and watch them burn to death.”
Imagine then a God who owns all the first born sons born into the world to not only give up his ownership but to take his own first born son who was born of a virgin and sacrifice him for the benefit of humanity.
A God who sacrifices the most valuable thing he has for the benefit of humanity demonstrates absolute love and is worthy of our appreciation and reverence. God is our example of sacrifice and as such demonstrates what we must become… a people born of sacrifice who live sacrificial lives.
As shepherds of a flock Elders have responsibility for the care of individual Christians and the collectivity of Christians… the church.
Ephesians 4 clearly states that Elders are to help individual Christians grow to full spiritual maturity… they are to resemble Jesus Christ. That is accomplished by helping individuals to fully understand God, by teaching them to eliminate sin in their lives and by encouraging them to put the needs of others before their own. The purpose of this process is to attract others to Jesus Christ by the power of a transformed life.
John 17 also clearly states that the unified relationship between Christians is the primary evidence to humanity of the deity of Jesus Christ. In fact, the church (the collectivity of Christians) not only testifies to humanity but also to the spirit world (Eph. 3:10) the wisdom of God in sending his son to the world he created.
So Elders work to help Christians not only get along well together but to build relationships that unify them in every sense of the word. They do this by removing members whose purpose seems to be to divide the flock (Acts 20), by addressing sin in members (1 Cor. 5) that damages the image of the church, by mitigating problems between members and by encouraging members to express through deeds their love for each other.
God has given Elders/Shepherds a huge responsibility and in my opinion will hold them accountable for it.
