“In the beginning God….”
From the very first words in the Bible God is an undeniable fact. The Bible doesn’t try to explain God to us, nor does it leave any room for doubt – there is a God and He is our creator. How should we relate to this all-powerful, all-knowing, all-present, all-seeing God? Surely, He is too far above us for us to relate to Him. Well, the Bible goes on to tell us that He wants to relate to us and He wants us to relate to Him. Jesus is His ultimate message to us that He wants a relationship with us. I think that the Bible gives us some specific ways that we can relate to God as we know Him in Jesus. Matthew 22:37-38: “Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. 38. This is the first and great commandment.” This is Jesus’ answer to the lawyer who wanted to know what the greatest commandment was. Jesus said that we are to love God with our total being. According to 1 John 4:9: “We love (God) because He first loved us.” Our love for God is borne of our knowledge that He loves us so much that He sent His Son Jesus to save us. We need to constantly ask ourselves whether or not we really love God. Do we really love and appreciate Him, or do we just say that we love Him because we know that we are supposed to? Take this test: Do you love Him more than your most treasured possession? What would you be willing to sacrifice because of your love for God? In the book of Acts, many of those early Christians sold all that they had in order for the gospel to go forth and for the people of God to have sustenance. To do this, they really had to love God. Read Matthew 22:37-38 again and ask yourself if this is how you love God. Proverbs 1:7: “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.”We can look at this in two ways: (1) We can be afraid of Him because of His immense power. (2) We can hold Him in deep reverence and awe for the great God that He is and for all that He has done for us. Both of these are applicable, but neither of them stands alone. It is not enough to just be scared of God. Those who ignore Him and shun His great love for them should be afraid, but we who believe in Him through Jesus should hold Him in such reverence and awe that we would not disobey Him or demean Him in any way. We know that even when He disciplines us, He does it because He loves us. Paul gave the reason for moral laxity in His day, and it applies to our day as well in Romans 3:18: “There is no fear of God before their eyes.” Don’t be one of them! Psalm 100:2a: “Serve the Lord with gladness…” How do we show our love and reverential awe for God? We do it by serving Him. Serving God can mean any number of things, in fact there is no end to all that it can mean. It can mean we have to leave everything behind and go somewhere else in the world, or it can mean to simply do acts of kindness in the name of Jesus to people who need that kindness. Serving the Lord is not complicated. We do not have to have special training to do it. We can just do what we think that Jesus would do as we go through life. There are areas of service that need special training, but that should not keep us from serving God daily. Every Christian is a servant of God; therefore, you are a servant of God. Seek ways to serve Him in your daily life and through your church. You will find ample ways to do that. Of course, there are other elements that we could discuss about how we are to relate to God, such as worship, but these three things: love, fear and service, are things that the Bible clearly tells us are of utmost importance in our lives. Therefore make up your mind and heart that you will love, fear and serve the Lord. Bro. Joe
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"For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us who are saved it is the power of God."
Why is the preaching of the cross foolishness to "them that perish"? In New Testament times the cross was merely a tool for capital punishment. It would be like the hangman's noose, the electric chair, or even a syringe used to carry out punishment. What they overlook is that the important thing is not the cross, but the One who died on the cross. It was Jesus who made the cross a blessed instrument. Before Christ hung on that cross, the veil of the temple was still in place and people had no real access to God. Since Christ's death on the cross, the veil has been torn away and we have access to God. His death on the cross made Hebrews 4:16 possible:"Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of Grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need." Through Christ's death on the cross we were welcomed into the "Holy of Holies." No one could go into the "Holy of Holies" but the high priest, and that only once a year on the day of atonement. Christ opened it up for us by dying on the cross. Those who are perishing cannot see the power of the cross because they do not know Jesus. They do not know the difference that He makes in everday life, and, indeed, the difference that He has made in the history of the world. The preaching of the cross is to us the power of God because we know Jesus and what He has done in our lives and what He can do in the lives of other people. The preaching of the cross is the power of God to us, because we fellowship everyday with Him through prayer. He is our personal Savior. He is close to us and to be close to Jesus is to love Him. If you are among the perishing, wake up and discover the real power of the cross - Jesus Christ. Bro. Joe “If the world hate you, you know that it hated me before it hated you.” John 15:18
“Marvel not, my brethren, if the world hate you.” 1 John 3:13 I began thinking about this subject while reading the book of Ezra. I suggest that you read this book and see what I mean. The Jews who returned from captivity to rebuild the temple had a lot of opposition from their enemies. Then I thought of the two texts that I have printed above. Jesus promised that if we follow Him, we will have opposition; therefore, it should not surprise us that those who do not know Christ as Savior oppose us. A cursory reading of Christian history will verify that. The question is what should our reaction to this opposition be? First, we should not allow opposition to rob us of our commitment to our faith. Satan loves to use opposition to intimidate us. He tried to use this ploy in Jerusalem in the days of Ezra. He used this ploy in the earthly life of Jesus. He used this ploy against the disciples, who were under mandate to spread the word about Christ in spite of opposition. Jesus never covered up the fact that His followers would have opposition, but He also reminded them, and us, to stay faithful to Him regardless of what the world says. I will admit that opposition to the gospel has grown more adamant over the years. Things are different now than they were when I entered the ministry in 1960. So the temptation is to accommodate the world and turn our backs on the gospel. At all costs, we should not let the world intimidate us with polls of the acceptance of sin, or opinions by people who are famous who disagree adamantly with the gospel. The best advice is to endure, endure, and endure. Second, we should not allow opposition to rob us of the love that we are to have for all people. I have to admit that when I read some of the things that increasingly bold atheists say and write about the gospel, I grit my teeth and really want to “get at’em.” But it would be bad for me to allow opposition to cause me to hate. Take a look at what John wrote about the matter in 1 John 3:14-15: “We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loves not the brethren abides in death. 15. Whosoever hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life dwelling in him.” The word “brother”could be interpreted as meaning “brothers in Christ.” However, if we will look at what Jesus tells us to do, it will not matter how we interpret “brother” here: “You have heard that it has been said, You shall love your neighbor, and hate your enemy. 43. But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you and persecute you.” (Matthew 5:43-44) To give in to hatred is to compromise the gospel. We need to remember that. Third, we should not allow opposition to rob us of the facility to forgive. We need to remember what Jesus’ reaction was to those who crucified Him: “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do.” (Luke 23:34) Furthermore, in the Lord’s Model Prayer, Jesus taught: “And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.” (Matthew 6:12) In verses 14-15, Jesus added: “For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15. But if you forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive you.” It is not a compromise to forgive people who oppose your faith from your heart. It is compromise if we do not. There is no way to escape opposition to the gospel in this world. This is seen in the life of Jesus and the early Christians. It is also a reality today. The main thing for us to do is maintain the integrity of our faith, not succumb to the world through compromise of our faith or of our love and forgiveness. Bro. Joe “Finally, all of you be of one mind, having compassion for one another; love as brothers, be tenderhearted, be courteous.”
Peter called on the Christians to whom he wrote to be “of one mind.” Does being of one mind mean that we have to agree about everything? This is a misunderstanding of what being of one mind means. Being of one mind does not mean that we walk in lockstep with each other, and that we Christians cannot think as individuals. Usually, if people are all of one mind in that way, it means that someone of great influence is in control of the group’s thinking. In a group of people, Christians included, individuals will have various opinions on any given subject. For Christians to be of one mind means that these ideas have been discussed and some consensus has been reached – hopefully brought about by the will of God. Any time a group of human beings meets, there will be differences of opinion on some subjects. Admit it, we will even sometimes disagree with ourselves. What does it mean for Christians to “be of one mind”? It means that for Christians to really be of one mind, we have to learn to disagree like Christians. How can we disagree like Christians? For one thing we have to have respect for our fellow Christians. It is difficult to have what we perceive to be the “right idea” supplanted by someone else, but a Christian is supposed to be able to humbly admit that another’s idea might be just as good or better than his or her own unless the idea is unchristian. Another thing is that if Christians have prayed as a group in order to come to God’s consensus, the Holy Spirit will reveal what the right idea, or the right course of action, should be. The “one mind” that we are to come to is the mind of Christ. The question that we need to ask, and seldom do, is what does Christ want us to do? We can be of one mind, because we can discuss different approaches and accept the right course, hopefully, without getting our egos involved in the decision. This is where the problem comes in. Many times we are not of one mind because someone has to have his or her own way all of the time. Many churches have what we call “matriarchs” and “patriarchs” who will tell you without hesitation that they have always run the church, meaning that they will do so until they die. The “one mind” becomes the one mind of which human being is running the church. Thus, church problems arise. Jesus said, “I will build my church.” This means that your church and mine belongs to Christ, not to a powerful group within the church. Paul wrote that Christ is the “head of the church.” This means that, after all is said and done, decisions for any particular church of any denomination will be determined by what Christ wants. This demands prayer, respect and humility on the part of Christians. What can help us “be of one mind”? In 1 Peter 3:8 Peter actually revealed the things that can help us to be of one mind. The first thing that he wrote about was that we should have compassion for each other. This means that we will be aware of the feelings of other people. If we have compassion for each other, we will not run roughshod over each other. The second thing that he wrote about is that we should “love as brothers.” If we love as brothers, we might disagree, but we will not “fall out” with each other. We might not accept our brother, or sister’s, idea, but we do accept and respect them. The third thing that he wrote was to be tenderhearted. This is the opposite of “hardhearted.” It is the same as being compassionate. It means that we are aware that our brother or sister in Christ has feelings and that we do not want to be offensive to him or her. The fourth thing that he wrote about was to “be courteous.” This should certainly be a virtue that Christians show for each other. Courtesy should extend to every area of the Christian’s life, wherever we are, especially in the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ. Think about these things in your own Christian relationships. Bro. Joe What would it have been like to be in Noah's shoes? God issued a challenge to him to build a great big boat (ark) in order to survive the flood that was coming. He began to build the big boat, which was 150 yards long. You know that people began to question what he was doing. "Noah, why do you need that boat?" "Because a big flood is coming. It is going to rain forty days and forty nights." "What is rain?" It had never rained, and people did not know what he was talking about. I can imagine that he became the joke of the town. But he continued to build until the task was completed. I can just hear the people saying something like: "Noah has a big boat and nowhere to launch it. Ha Ha Ha!" When the rain started, however, and the water began to come up from the ground, I imagine that the taunting and the laughter stopped. Noah had tried to warn the people, but they just ignored what he said. (I know how he felt.) As the waters rose and rose until it covered everything and everybody, Noah had the last laugh - if that is the way to put it.
What is the moral of Noah's story? Simply this: God gave Noah a task to do and he did it, regardless of what other people thought and regardless of what they said. We need to pay heed to that kind of dedication. If there is anything that people today hate, it is to be singled out and ridiculed. If we obey the Lord, regardless, we might have to take ridicule from a society that knows little about obeying God. Jesus, Himself, had to face ridicule when He was on trial and when He was on the cross, but He went through with it. Paul faced persecution and ridicule many times because of his obedience to the Lord's commands. Just think of it this way, it would be tough being Noah while the ark was being built, but it would have been tough being those who ridiculed him as the waters rose above their heads. It is better to obey and please God than to cave in and please people. You have to agree! Bro, Joe “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith. 8. Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love His appearing.”
When Paul wrote 2 timothy, he was coming to the end of his life. He knew that he would shortly be martyred for his faith in Jesus. He was not afraid as he faced the possibility of his own death. He had written to the Philippians that “to die is gain.” Paul knew that when he left this earth he would go to a better place and he would be with the Lord. What we have in these two verses is not Paul’s regret about his ensuing death, but an estimate of his life. He described his life as a “good fight.” It was not a fight using men’s weapons, rather it was a fight for what is right, for the Lord and for the church of the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul fought to help people find true liberty in Christ. He fought the devil. He warned in Ephesians 4:12 from his own experience what this fight would entail for us: “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” The weapons that Paul used in this “good fight” were prayer and the word of God. We cannot take on the fight against the “principalities and powers” in our own strength for we need Jesus to fend for us. Paul wrote that he had “kept the faith.” Paul’s fight had been a good fight because he had faced it with faith in Jesus Christ. He had kept it in faith in the work of the Holy Spirit in his life, in the power of the gospel and in the final victory of Christ’s kingdom. He had kept It in the faith in the rightness of his cause to take the gospel to Gentiles primarily, but also to Jews. We need to ask ourselves if this is our cause as well. Paul meant that he had remained true to the faith to the end. Many times Paul was threatened, and on at least one occasion was left for dead, but he did not quit. He could have easily said, “I didn’t sign up for this mess. I’m going back to my old life.” Romans, Jews and Greeks argued against what Paul believed, but he did not quit. Because of his great faith, Paul could not quit. This same faith is available to us. Before you give up on living for Jesus in this present time, reevaluate your faith. Is your faith genuine? Before you give up on your church, ask yourself if your faith is genuine or have you just been playing church? These are important questions as we review our own lives. Keeping the faith does not mean that we have to hold onto it. It means that we should remain true to it, no matter what happens and no matter what people are saying. Just as it was in Paul’s day, there is great hostility towards our faith today. If we are greatly concerned about what people are saying about our faith, we will not remain true to it. It means that we will remain true to it no matter what is happening in our lives at any given time. There is a gospel song that says, “The God on the mountain is still God in the valley.” This is forever true and we need to remember it. This was the kind of faith that Paul had and it is the kind of faith that we need to live for Jesus in our generation. When we feel like quitting church, or giving up during hard times, we need to remember all that Paul endured for his faith and in the end could write: “I have kept the faith.” At the end of his life Paul could write: “I have finished my course.” He had done well with the work that the Lord had assigned him on the Damascus Road. His life was finished through hardships, trials, temptations and struggles. But it was finished through great victories for Christ and he could write: “There is henceforth laid up for me a crown of righteousness…” Let it be so for us. Bro. Joe "For Thou desirest not sacrifice; else would I give it: Thou delightest not in burnt offering. 17. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and contrite heart, O God Thou wilt not despise."
The story, probably the joke, is told about an airplane that was in serious trouble. The plane was diving fast, when someone screamed: "Quick somebody do something religious." One of the passengers was a Baptist preacher and he took up a collection. He did something religious, but I doubt very seriously that it did any good. This is what David is saying here in his prayer of repentance after his adultery with Bathsheba. Burnt offerings were a fact of life for the Israelites. A lot of the Pentateuch (first five books of the Bible) is taken up with how to do burnt offerings. They were offerings, among other things, to atone for Israel's sins. But the mere act of doing a burnt offering was not sufficient; one's heart had be right when he offered the burnt offering. God is not mainly concerned with religious practices, if they are not done from the heart. For example, it is not enough just to go to church, take up space on a pew, and just endure the worship service. Just being at church is a religious exercise, but it does not, necessarily, please God. What pleases God is for our hearts to be broken and for us to come to Him in repentance with a "contrite heart." The meaning of contrite is to feel guilty about sins that have been committed. David was certainly feeling contrite at the time he wrote these verses. He knew that he had sinned, and he was not going "to do something religous," rather he was going to genuinely repent with a contrite heart. Today we see guilt as something bad, and it is if it is unnecessary, but if we have something to feel guilty about, we should be driven to repentance. Indeed, our hearts should be touched and changed. Faith begins in our hearts and we should keep close watch on what we have in our hearts. Just going through the motions and doing religious things is not enough. God calls us to joy, but we cannot be joyful if our hearts are filled with sin. That is why David told us: "The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit and contrite heart..." Remember that! Bro. Joe “Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, 13. I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.”
When Paul wrote that he had not “apprehended,” he did not mean that he was not already saved. His conversion obviously took place on the Damascus Road, and other statements in his writings let us know that he did not doubt his salvation. What he meant was that he had more growing to do in Christ, and that he was not already what he would be. Neither Paul, nor anyone else, can claim to be at a point where more growth is not needed. Paul shared here what could help us grow in Christ. He wrote that he would forget “those things which are behind.” If we are going to go forward in our growth, forgetting the past will be absolutely necessary. Satan is adept at reminding us of all of the times that we have not lived up to our Christian calling. This is how he keeps us down in the dumps. We need to forget those things which we regret. I’m certain that most of us have some regrets. We have probably spoken words that we wish we had not spoken. Unfortunately, we cannot reel words back into our mouths. When words are uttered they are out to stay. But we can be forgiven for this and it does not mean that we have to let regretted words stunt our growth in Christ. We have all probably done some things that we wish we had not done. Like words, once a deed is done we cannot recall it, but we can be forgiven for it. We cannot let those deeds stunt our growth in Christ. We cannot undo the past, but we can learn from it. If the Lord makes us recall our past failures, it is to teach us to do better, to learn from them and go forward. Haven’t you had things that you have done or said that made you vow that you would never do or say them again? This is where Jesus would have us be, while Satan will rub our noses in these past failures. We need to let the Lord teach us to do better. I recall that in Matthew 26:75, after Peter denied Jesus that he “remembered the word of Jesus, which said unto him, before the cock crows, thou shalt deny me thrice (three times). And he went out and wept bitterly.” This was a bitter pill for Peter to swallow, but Peter did not let his denial keep him from serving Jesus. Somewhere along the line, he repented, got right with the Lord, and preached that great sermon on the Day of Pentecost when 3,000 people were saved. It might do us good to “weep bitterly” over our sins and failures, repent and go forward from there. We can’t undo anything from the past, but we can certainly do better in the future. Further, Paul wrote that he would not only forget what was behind, but that he would reach “forth unto those things which are before.” In other words, Paul would not give up because of the things that were behind. We have a tendency to feel defeated by our sins and failures. To do this is to fall into the hands of the devil. He wants us defeated and deflated so that he can have his way with us. Like Paul, we need to reach “forth unto those things which are before.” We do that by living each day, each present moment, being careful to trust the Lord. Let’s take Paul’s words to heart and “forget those things which are behind,” and reach “forth to those things which are before.” We can do it by the power of the Holy Spirit. Let’s do it!!! Bro. Joe “Owe no man anything, but to love one another: for he that loves another has fulfilled the law.”
Love is an important word in the New Testament. Paul evidently thought it was important because he wrote that what we mainly owe other people is to love them. The ensuing verses in Romans 8 explain that he meant that if we love God and people, we have fulfilled all of the Ten Commandments. If we keep the first four, which pertain to God, we love God and if we keep the last six, which pertain to people, we love people. This made me think about what the components of our love look like. What can we do to show love for God and people? An acrostic on love came to mind and I will share it here. Listen We can show our love for people by listening to them. People need to have someone who will listen to their concerns. People have a need to be able to share their joys and sorrows with someone who will listen. People spend millions of dollars every year paying people to listen to them. What we say to people is not as important as the fact that we listen to what they have to say. Job’s three friends went to visit with him when they heard about his problems. For seven days they sat with Job and did not say a word – probably listening. It was only when they started talking they really messed up. We need to remember that when we are relating to people. Overlook One might argue with this point because it might seem to be a compromise with sin, and it might be at times, but I have a scripture that tells us this: “Above all maintain an intense love for each other, since love covers a multitude of sins.” (1 Peter 4:8 HCSB) Peter quoted from Proverbs 10:12 and it means that love repeatedly forgives others. If God doesn’t hold our sins against us, we can’t hold the sins of others against them when they have repented ( to God, not to us). We might be able to overlook more if we will take a long look in the mirror and think about some of our faults. I’ll quote Jesus here: “Let he who is without sin cast the first stone.” Value Every person born into this world is of value, because we were all created in the image of God. We should value people because God values them. I’m not intimating that God values everything that people do. If I meant that I would be calling the Bible a lie, for the Bible tells us that “all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” God will not just judge sin; He has already judged it. But this does not mean that every person is not of value to God, because Jesus died for everyone in the world. After all, the Bible teaches in 2 Peter 3:9 that God is “not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance." All people are of value to God and should be to us – as difficult as that might be. Encourage There is not a person in this world that does not need encouragement. I know that I do, and you also need it. We will be encouragers or discouragers Which are you? What do you say to people when they come to you? Even if you have negative things to say, you can still offer encouragement in some form. Which had you rather be around– an encourager or a discourager? Be an encourager. I realize that these components are not the only components of love, and that you might have a different list of components. But I think that you will agree if we adopt this acrostic in our relationships with people they will know that we love them. Bro. Joe “And Jesus said, “Who touched me?”
In the context of the verse quoted above, Jesus was on His way to heal the daughter of Jairus, and to subsequently raise her from the dead, when a woman who had been bleeding for twelve years, came close to Him, touched the border of His garment and was healed. It is a miracle within a miracle. Notice that she did not touch his physical body; rather, she touched the “border of His garment.” (It might have been the tassels on the border of His garment.) Jesus felt the woman’s touch and asked, “Who touched me?” According to the text, Jesus felt virtue, or power, leave Him. When the woman revealed herself, Jesus told her that her faith had healed her. What I want to write about in this article is the fact that Jesus is aware of our touch as well. We need to spiritually reach out and touch Him every day. I want you to notice the following realities about touching Jesus. Jesus is sensitive to our touch. The remarkable thing about this incident is that with a big crowd of people around Him, no doubt, bumping into Him, Jesus was sensitive to the touch of one person(WoW!) Peter, and others with him, were amazed at this. In the remainder of the text verse, Peter said: “Master, the multitude throng you and press you, and you say “Who touched me?”She was just one desolate, desperately ill person, and with all of the people pressing against Him, Jesus felt her particular touch. Just so, you are one person in the vast number of people in the world, millions of whom are reaching out to Jesus, but He feels your touch. Jesus felt the woman’s touch because it was a touch of faith. He told her that it was her faith that healed her. Jesus is always sensitive to the touch, or the plea, of faith. If you will reach out to Him in faith today, no matter where you are, or what you are going through, Jesus will be sensitive to your touch. Touch Him now!!!! Jesus wants us to touch Him. When Jesus asked the question, people seemed to think that Jesus was upset because someone had touched Him. All of them denied that they had touched Him. What they were unaware of and perhaps we are too, was that Jesus was glad that someone had touched Him and that power had gone from Him. Power going from Him did not diminish the power of Jesus. He has enough power to go around to everybody on earth if they will reach out and touch Him. Jesus was not angry with the woman but had good news for her: “Your faith has made you well.” The woman who came trembling to Jesus when she realized that she was discovered, left with her illness gone and her faith strengthened. Jesus wants you to touch Him. I’ve heard people say that they needed to work out their problems, then they would go to Jesus. That is backwards!!! Come to Jesus in faith first, and you will find His power is available to you. Well, reach out and touch Him now. How? Just ask Him in faith. You will not find Him reluctant. We need to touch Jesus. No matter whether things are going well for you or bad for you, you need to reach out to Jesus today. We always stand in the need of touching Jesus. We never know what is awaiting around the corner on a given day. We need to know that Jesus is aware of what is around the corner and is awaiting your touch, your prayer and your surrender. There is no time like the present!!!! Bro. Joe |
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