"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."
The longer I live the more that I realize that I have a lot to learn about love. Sometimes I think that I have it nailed down in my mind and heart, then when that love is tested, I realize that I have a lot to learn about love. You would think that after having after living eighty years, I would have mastered "love thy neighbor." Let's just say that, for the most part, I do love my neighbor, but there are those people who severely test my "love quotient." Join me in answering the following questions. Do I love people who disagree with me? Not everybody agrees with my "Southern Baptist way." (duh) The question is not whether or not people will disagree with me, but it is certain that they will. I will not deal with a specific problem, but simply need to ask myself if I love people who disagree with me religiously, politically, socially, etc., etc. etc.? Let's just say that I need to work on it, and you probably do too. If not, God bless you! Do I love people who obviously do not love me? Now there is a real problem. We all like to be loved, and, actually expect to be loved. But folks, let me tell you, there are people who genuinely do not love us. This is based on religion, politics, personality, social engagements, etc., etc. etc. I have a real test of my "love quotient" on Facebook. But this "love quotient" is really tested in the church of Jesus Christ. Come on, you know what I mean. I have sensed that I am a "love problem" for some people - "lovable little old me." But do I love them? I have to be honest and confess that I have to trust Jesus to love some people, just as some have to trust Jesus to love me. But love them - I must! Do I love people who obviously do not love Jesus? I mean there are some people in this world who have rejected the love of Jesus, have rejected Jesus, and have rejected those of us who love Jesus. What is our reaction to them? According to Jesus we have to love them anyway, because He reminds us that He died, arose, ascended and sent His Holy Spirit for them. We can certainly disagree with them, but we need to disagree in love. You can accuse me of being "love sick" if you will, but I had rather we "love sick" than "loveless." Check your "love quotient." Bro. Joe
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"And she (Mary) shall bring forth a Son, and thou shalt call His name Jesus: for He shall save His people from their sins."
Jesus is the name above every name. No matter how many people have denied, and continue to deny Him, Jesus is still the name above every name. I want to share an acrostic of His name that shares who and what Jesus is. J - Justifier - No one who comes to Jesus to be saved deserves salvation. We cannot be good enough to earn eternal salvation from Jesus. We come to Him as sinners who need to be forgiven. Romans 5:1 reminds us: "Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." E - Eternal - Jesus has always been and will always be eternal. He came to earth from eternity and returned to eternity when He ascended. Jesus came to save us for all eternity. S - Savior - Jesus said that He came to "seek and to save that which was lost." (John 19:10) Whatever other means people have sought to be saved, they miss the mark until they are saved by belief in Jesus Christ. We cannot save ourselves by our works, or by any other means, other than through faith in Jesus Christ. U - Upholder - Jesus upholds His servants through all of life. Those of us who have faced serious illness can attest that Jesus upholds us. What a relief, and what a joy it is, to know that Jesus will uphold us in all circumstances of life. S - Servanthood - In Luke 22:27, Jesus said "I am among you as He who serves..." The Son of God proclaimed that He came to earth to serve - and He did. In His service Jesus served the needs of people. He met physical needs by healing the sick. He fed the hungry multitude with all of the food that was available to them - five loaves of bread and 2 fish. His greatest service was dying on the cross and rising again in order for us to be saved. There is no article that could contain everything about who and what Jesus is to the world, but what I have shared here describes what Jesus did and what He did for us. Bro. Joe "He must increase, but I must decrease."
The text written above is the statement of John the Baptist to explain that he was not the Messiah. It seemed to me when I read this, that it is a good lesson for us. There are some things in our Christian lives that must increase, and some that must also decrease. I want us to consider two of the things in which we must increase. We must increase in the love of Christ. Jesus has us here to love as He did. I must confess that I have not mastered this discipline after all these years of Christian ministry, but I am trying. Jesus even loved the people who wanted to crucify Him, for He died for them. I have never had anyone who wanted to crucify me, that I know of anyway, but I have had some who have really wanted to challenge me, so to speak. The hardest thing to deal with is that they are often right. It is often difficult to love some people, but if we would love as Jesus did/does we will endeavor to love them. We must remember that we are not Jesus, but we are His representatives in the world. He will help us to love as He did if we will pray for that kind of love. Of course, no human being has mastered this discipline, but we must practice His love anyway. Pray for your love to increase. We must increase in the caring of Christ. Christ cared for the rich and the poor, the lovable and unlovable. We must ask ourselves if we really care? Do we really care for the homeless people who ask for our help? Do we really care for the people who are suffering for some reason or other? Would we, like the good Samaritan, stop and help someone, or are we so busy doing our own things that we do not have time for people who are suffering? Goodness, I'm not accusing you of being uncaring, but it is something for you to consider as you to endeavor to live the Christian life. Do we really care? If we would be like Christ, we must consider this question. There are many other things that we need to consider if we would be like Christ. The two that I have written are two of the things that I continually deal with in my life. Of course, there are many other things that I have to deal with in my life, but the two that I have written about are uppermost in my mind at the moment. I imagine that you also have to deal with them. Give some thought to your own love and care, and try to increase in them. Bro. Joe statement of John the Baptist to explain that he was not the Messiah. It seemed to me when I read this, that it is a good lesson for us. There are some things in our Christian lives that must increase, and some that must also decrease. I want us to consider two of the things in which we must increase. We must increase in the love of Christ. Jesus has us here to love as He did. I must confess that I have not mastered this discipline after all these years of Christian ministry, but I am trying. Jesus even loved the people who wanted to crucify Him, for He died for them. I have never had anyone who wanted to crucify me, that I know of anyway, but I have had some who have really wanted to challenge me, so to speak. The hardest thing to deal with is that they are often right. It is often difficult to love some people, but if we would love as Jesus did/does we will endeavor to love them. We must remember that we are not Jesus, but we are His representatives in the world. He will help us to love as He did if we will pray for that kind of love. Of course, no human being has mastered this discipline, but we must practice His love anyway. Pray for your love to increase. We must increase in the caring of Christ. Christ cared for the rich and the poor, the lovable and unlovable. We must ask ourselves if we really care? Do we really care for the homeless people who ask for our help? Do we really care for the people who are suffering for some reason or other? Would we, like the good Samaritan, stop and help someone, or are we so busy doing our own things that we do not have time for people who are suffering? Goodness, I'm not accusing you of being uncaring, but it is something for you to consider as you to endeavor to live the Christian life. Do we really care? If we would be like Christ, we must consider this question. There are many other things that we need to consider if we would be like Christ. The two that I have written are two of the things that I deal with in my life. Of course, there are many other things that I have to deal with in my life, but the two that I have written about are uppermost in my mind at the moment. I imagine that you also have to deal with them. Give some thought to your own love and care, and try to increase in them. Bro. Joe "Now Faith is the evidence of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen."
What is a "step of faith"? It means to step out in obedience to the Lord, not knowing what lies ahead, but knowing that God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, will go with you, and when you arrive at God's destination for you, He will be there. He was with you in the journey, and He will greet you when you arrive. Hey, He is God, He can do things like that. If you don't believe that, you are not likely to take a "step of faith." The original followers of Jesus, who became His disciples, had to take a step of faith to follow Jesus. Each of them gave up their livelihood and followed Jesus. If you will think about it, this will real faith. They did not see down the road what following Jesus would mean, but they did it anyway. Aren't we glad they did! The angry, rebellious, Saul of Tarsus, had to take a step of faith. He had arisen to the heights of leadership in Judaism. In fact, when we meet Saul, he was trying to destroy the church of Jesus Christ. He found this impossible, for Jesus said that nothing could destroy His church. When Saul met Jesus on the Damascus Road he was changed and became an obedient servant of Jesus Christ. (You can read about his change in Acts 9ff.) We now know him as "the apostle Paul." He had to give up all of his progress in Judaism, and obey the Holy Spirit. (Why not read the Book of Acts, to find out about Paul's faith, and the faith of all his compatriots in the faith.) I do not want to put myself in the category with Paul, and early followers of Jesus Christ, but I know what it means to take a step of faith. Most of the decisions that I have made in Christ's ministry have been made sight unseen. (Please don't accuse me of bragging, unless you see me bragging on Jesus and what He has done in my life.) I have a lot of tales about the adventures of Mary, Faith and Hope and myself, but I want to tell you about accepting my first church. I went to Beulah Baptist Church in November of 1960. I just went to preach for them, for they didn't have a pastor. I had no idea that they would call me as their pastor. (I really didn't.) To make a long story short, when I returned to "fill in" for them until they could find a pastor, after the service that morning, Mrs. Jean Radford approached me and said that they had called me as their pastor. I literally had to sit down, because I was astonished. Taking Beulah Baptist Church was a step of faith, and it was also a step of faith for them. Over the years, I have had to make many steps of faith, and I have also made many missteps, and paid the price for them. Enough about me! When is the last time you took a real step of faith based in the text printed above? I'm not "playing gotcha" with this question, I just want you to think about your own life in light of Hebrews 11:1. You know the answer to that question. Think about it! Selah Bro. Joe "Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift."
In Second Corinthians 9, Paul wrote about giving. I am aware that giving is probably the least favored subject that we can preach, or write about. But the giving that our text points is about God's giving. We are reminded that in order to save us, God gave the "indescribable gift" of His "only begotten Son." I want to share two of the facets of this indescribable gift of God. Jesus revealed, and gave, indescribable love. It was from the love of God that Jesus came to the earth; therefore, Jesus lived out the indescribable love of God. In His daily life, Jesus revealed this indescribable love. He ministered to the lowest elements of society and He ministered to the highest elements of society. There was no one that Jesus would have denied His love and concern. You need to consider that Jesus loves you indescribably. Why would Jesus love you? Because He is Jesus, and in Him is the love of God. Jesus loves you because you need His love. Take heart! Jesus loves you. Jesus lived, and gave, indescribable sacrifice. You have to remember that Jesus could have lived a sumptuous life, but He definitely did not. In Luke 9:58, Jesus told a man who said to Him, I will follow You wherever you go: "Foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests. But the Son of Man has no place to lay His head." What Jesus was telling the man was if he followed Him, he would have to be prepared to make sacrifices. Jesus ultimately sacrificed His life on the cross, in order for us to be saved. He did this for you. We need to pause here, bow our heads, and thank God for the sacrifices that His Son made in His life and in His death on the cross. Thank God that His Son loves you and died for you. Thank God that death could not hold Jesus for He was raised from the dead, and He lives now to call you to a better life. Thank God for His "indescribable gift." Bro. Joe “I can do all things through He who is strengthening me.”
I will explain the translation, or interpretation, of this text later in the article. This is a verse that we quote frequently, and for good reason. While Serving as the chaplain of the Westwood football team for approximately eight years, we quoted this verse at almost every practice and before all games. What I want to do is to break this verse down and see what it says to “me.” (Meaning me and everyone else.) “I” – “I” is one of our most favorite words. We use it rather frequently, and think it even more often. It is “I” that God is dealing with. You are uniquely you, and Jesus loves you as uniquely you, and He wants to use you as uniquely you. He will grow you into a better you, but He will take you where you are and lead you to where He wants you to be. “Can”- The next word in our translation is another important word in our vocabulary. We need to learn to say “I can.” I remember that little story about the little train engine that my elementary teachers told us about. It was about a little train that could not climb the hill because he didn’t think he could. When he learned to say “I think I can, I think I can, I think I can” that he actually made it up the hill. We need to learn the word “can” in the place of “can’t.” “Do” – This is another important word in our vocabulary. When we “do” things, as a general rule we are headed in the right direction. Of course that depends on what we are doing, but in the context of this verse it is talking about uplifting, loving, ministering things. We need to be careful about what we do, which is the purpose of this text. So let’s move on. “All things” – It is at this point that we must consider what we are going to do. We probably will not do this perfectly, but we need to make sure that the “all things” that we do are in line with what Christ would have us do, and would move us beyond “I” to “them” or “us.” “Through He” or “through the one” The “One” or “He” who Paul is writing about here is Christ. If Christ is the One who helps us do “all things” we can be sure that we are on the right track. We are made out of human flesh, so we will slip at times, but that is when we pick up and go again, because the “One” that we are trusting will enable us to do better. “Who Is Strengthening me.” The Greek text actually reads like this: "I can do all things through the one, or the person, who is strengthening me." Paul does not specifically use the name “Jesus” or “Christ” but we know from the context that it is Christ about whom he is writing. In other words, I can’t “ do all things” that I want to do on my own strength, but “I can do all things through Christ who is strengthening me to do His will.” Jesus is in the process of strengthening us day by day.. This verse is easy to memorize, so memorize it and pray it every day! Take it into your heart. Bro. Joe "Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is thy neighbors."
I learned a lesson about coveting early in my life. When I was about ten years old, my neighbor got a new cap pistol. It was a great cap pistol. You have to understand that in 1949 a cap pistol to a ten year old boy was like a computer game to a ten year old today. It was "love at first sight." I had to have that cap pistol. When my neighbor wasn't looking, I absconded with the cap pistol, took it across the street to my house and hid it in my underwear drawer. At last, it was mine. But I discovered that it did not belong to me, rather, I belonged to it. I did not enjoy that cap pistol one bit, because I couldn't take it out of the drawer to play with it. If mama and daddy saw it, they would want to know where I got it. That would bring a difficult situation. If I played with it outside, my neighbor would see it and know that I had stolen it. (It didn't occur to me at the time that I had broken two commandments - coveting and stealing.) So about a week later, I stealthily went to my neighbor's house and laid it down on his front porch and quietly sneaked back home. At last, I was free from that blooming cap pistol. At ten years old, I did not know what coveting meant, but I knew the effects of it. The fact that I remember this incident so clearly all of these years later, means that it made a profound impression on my mind. I wish that I could say that I never coveted again, but I can't. (However I did not steal another cap pistol, or anything else for that matter.) To live one's life wishing that one had what his neighbor has is a miserable way to live. I think you know what I'm writing about. You could probably confess to coveting. Don't be like one fellow who said, "But at least I have never coveted my neighbor's donkey." The fact that his neighbor did not have a donkey must not have occurred to him. The key to overcoming covetousness is to put "things" in their proper perspective and in their proper place. There is nothing that our neighbor owns that we have to have to make our lives complete. "Things" do not complete us. We need to have Paul's attitude as written in Philippians 4:11-13 after he had received a monetary gift from the Philippian Church: "Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. 12. I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound: everywhere and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. 13. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." There is the answer to overcoming covetousness. Selah Bro. Joe "And (Christ) is before all things, and in Him all things consist. 18. He is the head of the body, the church: Who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things He might have the preeminence."
I recently came across some notes from an ordination sermon that I used for a preacher's ordination. I gave him some pointers that he would need to be a good pastor. I looked at it this morning and thought that this would be some good advice for all who are involved in a church of Jesus Christ. First, Christ is the head of the church. The pastor is not the head of the church, the deacons, or stewards, or whatever you call your lay leadership, are not the head of the church. I could go on, but I'm sure you get the point. Colossians 1:18 tells us Who is the head: "He (Christ) Is the head of the body the church..." As a body, we should seek His will in decisions that we make. We should pray for the churches which we attend. This is actually our means of communicating with the head of the church. We should pray individually and we should pray together. It is amazing what we can learn from Jesus, and accomplish for Him, if we will stay in contact with Him. We should love the people who attend the churches we attend. Pray for the loving people, the cantankerous people, the people who do not attend regularly, etc. It would be a good idea to get a list of the names of the members of the church you attend, and pray for them often and ask Jesus to help you love the people who are difficult to love. (Don't pretend that you don't know what I'm writing here.) We should encourage the people who attend the churches we attend. Encouragement can be positive or negative, but it should always be done with love. In my first church, I received a lot of both kinds of encouragement, though I didn't think I needed it at the time. (After all, I was the ripe old age of 21.)Thank God for honest and loving people. You can be an encourager or you can be a discourager - aim for encourager. We should affirm the people in the churches we attend. Tell the workers in the church that you appreciate them, and that you appreciate the work that they do. Tell the pastor of the church that you appreciate him. We should really appreciate the work of our fellow Christians, and we should tell them that we appreciate them. There is much more that could be written on this subject, but we will see a difference in our churches if we will pray for each other, love each other, encourage each other and affirm each other. Give prayerful thought to these things, and do them. Bro. Joe "For which cause we faint not: but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day. 17. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, works for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory. 18. While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are see, are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal."
Jesus, through the Holy Spirit, is always at work in our lives. We need to know that because of the above fact, we are being renewed daily (hourly) by the presence of the Lord in our hearts. The Holy Spirit has given unseen things in our hearts that can only be seen by the way we conduct our lives. I want to share with you three "unseen things" that can only be seen by the way we conduct our lives. The Holy Spirit has given us the gift of love. If you are a believer, the Holy Spirit has placed love in your heart and mind. Love is not an object that we can display as a trophy on a shelf, but we display love by the way we live our lives. For example, does the cashier at Walmart see the love of Christ in your life. Do the waitresses/waiters at the places where you eat see the love of Christ by the you react to her/him. The point is that we display Christ's love by the way we treat people. Do people see Christ's love by your conduct at home, at work and places where you conduct business? The Holy Spirit has given us the gift of joy. Joy is not an object that we can display on a trophy shelf, but it is seen by the way we conduct our lives. We encounter, what I will call, "joy killers." I don't know what "joy killers" you have to encounter, but I do know mine. We need to strive daily to overcome those "joy killers." The effectiveness of our Christian witness depends on how we overcome our "joy killers." We need to display this God-given joy by the way we react to people. We need to remember this at work, at play, and in all other areas of our lives. We particularly need to remember this in our churches. Do people see joy in our fellowship, or do they see a group of unhappy people, grudgingly doing the Lord's work? We need to keep constant check on our "joy quotient." The joy of the Lord is unseen until they see it in our lives. The Holy Spirit has given us the gift of faith. We cannot display our faith on a trophy case, we can only display this by the way we conduct our lives. We need to display our faith in God by the way we conduct our lives. We do not need to act on impulse, but we do need to act in faith. Sometimes the Lord will give us challenges that will try our faith. Frankly, any trial that gets in our way can be overcome by our faith in God. I must admit that this is difficult for me sometimes, but when I act on faith God will show me what He can do. Think of Israel the when they were leaving Egypt when God divided the Red Sea for them. The same God that did that, can still make a way for us. The way we react to these trials will make our faith in Christ visible for other people. Where does one stop on a subject like this? I will stop now, hoping that you will read it and realize that the Lord has gifted you with love, joy and faith. Make them visible to the world. "Therefore thou turn to thy God: keep mercy and judgment and wait on thy Lord continually."
Hosea's message and purpose was to call Israel and Judah to repentance. His message was primarily to Israel, but in this verse it is a call for Judah to make the changes that would restore a positive relationship with God. First, he called on Judah to turn to God. Judah, like Israel, had turned to worshipping idols and ignoring the God who loved them and saved them. It is also a call to us to turn to God. We need to turn to the Bible, the word of God, read it, and gain the wisdom of God in it. We need to turn to prayer, which is our means of staying personally involved with God. We need to be in positive relationship with our fellow Christians in our church relationships. (We also need to be in positive relationships with people in general.) Hosea meant more than I have shared, but what I have shared is a good start for us to "turn to (our) God." Second, he called on Judah to make a great change in their lives by practicing mercy and in making fair judgments. (I will deal primarily with mercy.) This pertains to how we treat people. Do we act in mercy in our relationships with people, or do we treat them with disdain? Think of your daily actions toward the people with whom you worship, work, or those with whom you have daily contact. Are you merciful with them or are you judgmental towards them? We need to set the example for the world for what it means to be merciful instead of judgmental and selfish. Third, he called on Judah to "wait on thy God continually." It appears to me that what he meant was to not run ahead of God, or behind him in making the decisions that we make in our lives. It means that we need to seek God's guidance in the decisions that we make. I have learned the meaning of this in my life. When I have waited on God's guidance, my life has been more satisfying, and more productive. Do you "wait" on God, or do you simply depend on your own judgment? It would be wise if we would consider these three disciplines in our own lives. How are you doing with them? We sincerely need to make these changes in our lives. |
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