The Book of Job is puzzling to me on so many levels. Every time I read it, I learn new things about suffering and God’s part in it. One thing that puzzles me exceedingly is the reaction of Job’s friends to his suffering. When Eliphaz, Bildad and Zophar heard of Job’s suffering they went to him. We are told in Job 2:13 that they “sat down with him upon the ground seven days and seven nights, and none spoke a word unto him: for they saw that his grief was very great.” If these friends had left it at that, they would have been of some help to Job. The problem was that they began to open their mouths and give their assumptions about Job’s suffering. One of the first lessons I learned in pastoral care was that we never take our assumptions into a counseling session. Why? Because our assumptions might be true to us but not necessarily true in the life of the other person.
This was certainly the case with Job’s friends. It’s almost as if they were not at all concerned about Job at that point, but were intent on proving their own points to him. Bildad was really callous when he said: “When your children sinned against Him, He gave them over to the penalty of their sins.” You remember that all of Job’s offspring were killed when Satan unleashed his ugly power on Job and his family. How could that help Job? These three friends can remind us that when we want to minister to our friends who are suffering, they do not need our assumptions. We need to keep our mouths shut unless we have something constructive to say. Our assumption might be that God is punishing them, but that is not necessarily true, and we have no way of determining that this is true. The best thing to say to a suffering friend is something like: “I am sorry for your problem. I have come to pray with you that God will be with you through what you are presently suffering” It could very well be that the friend is being disciplined by God, but we have no way of knowing that this is true. I am grateful that in my times of suffering my friends have not given me their assumptions about why I was suffering. They have mainly prayed for me, and told me that they would continue to pray for me. I actually had no assumptions about why I was suffering. The only assumption I had was that God was with me in my time of suffering, and that I was under His care. The thing for us to remember, when ministering to suffering friends, is that the best thing to do is to say nothing until God, in His infinite wisdom, gives us something to say. We need to consider the possibility that God does not want us to say anything, and just let our presence in their time of suffering tell them that we care. I learned the truth of this several years ago when my father died. When his pastor came into the house, his being there was really all that I needed from him. He was wise enough to carefully measure his words, and was a real comfort to us. These are just some things that we need to remember when we want to be a comfort to our suffering friends. Bro. Joe
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(The old Couch Potato is on vacation in Nashville, Tenn., visiting with my Grandson Chad and His wife Erika. Have a happy Thanksgiving, and I will be back on with a new article next Friday.)
“But thanks be to God, who gives us victory through our Lord Jesus Christ…” Our text reminds us that we need to be thankful for all that Jesus has done for us. Following are some things that I thought of that we should thank God during this season of Thanksgiving, and all other times. We need to be thankful about the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus spoke to his death in John 10:17-18: “Therefore, doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again. 18. No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of the Father.” Jesus voluntarily laid down His life on the cross as the substitute for us. He took our sins upon Himself on the cross, and He took the wrath that should be ours upon Himself. When we trust Him as Savior, this is true for us. We should be thankful for it. We need to be thankful about the empty tomb. Jesus said about His death that he laid down His life “that I might take it again.” Further He said: “I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again.” Three days after Jesus died, He arose from the grave. We have not accepted a dead Jesus, nor do we serve a dead savior. He is alive! Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 15:19: “If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable.” No truer words were never written. The old hymn reminds us: “He lives, He lives, Christ Jesus lives today. He walks with me and talks with along the narrow way….You ask me how I know He lives, He lives within my heart.” He either is, or can be, alive in your life. We need to be thankful about the mercy of Jesus. The point is that Jesus did not have to do all of this for us. He died and rose for us because of His mercy. He knew that every person is subject to God’s wrath. The Bible reminds us that “all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” Out of His love and mercy for us, Christ gave Himself in order for us to be saved from our sins. Romans 8:34 reminds us of this: “Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us…” His mercy is for you! We need to be thankful for the leadership that Jesus has given us through the leadership of the Holy Spirit. John 16:12-13: “I have yet many things to say to you, but you cannot not bear them now. 13. Howbeit when He, the Spirit of truth, is come, He will guide you into all truth…” The leadership of the Holy Spirit is available to all who have faith in Jesus Christ. Be thankful for it, or claim it! I think you will agree that these are four things for which we should be eternally thankful. Bro. Joe "Put them in mind to be subject to principalities and powers, to obey magistrates, to be ready to every good work. 2. To speak evil of no man, to be no brawlers, but gentle, showing meekness to all men."
In these verses Paul was encouraging the people to lead good lives. He gives us a good outline of what it means to live a good life. First, it means to have respect for the law: "Put them in mind to be subject to principalities and powers." We call people who have no respect for the law "outlaws." It is our laws that make us civilized. Our laws keep us from living "the law of the jungle." I am tempted to explain what I mean by respecting the law, but I do not want to insult your intelligence, for I think you know what it means. Second it means to obey the law: "obey magistrates." For example, it is a good idea to drive the speed limits, but if we exceed the speed limits, we would not be wise to try to outrun the "magistrates." They frown on that sort of thing. (lol) To not obey the law is a poor witness for the Lord. The Lord has ordained laws and lawmen to enable us to live in an orderly society. (I know if you are wondering if I ever break the speed limit? Of course. None of us are perfect. lol or "oh me.") When we shop, we do not pick up items and leave the store without paying. (I never do this one.) I could go on with this, but you get the idea. Third it means to live peaceably with fellow citizens: "To speak evil of no man, to be no brawlers, but gentle showing meekness unto all men." Churches should set the example for the world in this matter. As Christians, we should not "bad mouth" each other. It is certain that we will have disagreements, but the difference is that we will not allow disagreements to break our Christian fellowship. I look back with joy for the fellowship and friendship that I have been able to experience with God's people. Meditate on your own experience in your church, and thank God the fellowship that you have been able to experience, and for the people that the Lord has brought into your life. The text printed above gives us the key to living a good life, and to being a good witness for Christ. It reminds us to respect and obey the Law, and live in peaceable fellowship with our fellowmen. Bro. Joe “Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise; be thankful unto Him and bless His name.”
Thankfulness is an underrated, and often unused, power in our lives. Many of our personal, family and church problems could be instantly solved by a healthy dose of thankfulness. Thankfulness can be a powerful asset in our lives and can make a lot of difference in the quality of our lives. As you read this post, ask yourself if you are a thankful person? Thankfulness has the power to affect our attitudes. For one thing, thankful people are not embittered by life. Thankful people are able to meet life’s hard and bitter moments without bitterness overtaking their lives. Bitter people are not happy people and they are not fun to be around. I read about a “taste berry” in Africa that coats the taste buds, causing everything eaten afterward to taste sweet. Thankfulness is to our souls what the “taste berry” would be to our taste buds. In the same vein, thankful people are not mean-spirited. All of us know people who are difficult to love, and who are always ready for an argument over anything. What these people need is a good dose of thankfulness to calm their souls and sweeten their spirits. Thankfulness has the power to instigate real worship. As a general rule, thankful people really want to worship God, because He is the source of their thankfulness. Thankful people have the spirit of David, who wrote: “I was glad when they said unto me, let us go into the house of the Lord.” (Psalm 122:1) Thankless people begrudge time spent in worship. A worshipful spirit does not dwell in thankless people. Worship is not easy for them because they do not realize the depth of God’s love for them, nor do they know the difference that God can make in their lives. I think that worship comes naturally to thankful people. They do not have to force themselves to praise and worship God, for the worship of God just bubbles up within them. This is true of private and public worship. This spirit is characterized in Ephesians 5:19-20: “Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making merry in your heart to the Lord. 20. Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Thankfulness has the power to make us want to serve God. Psalm 100:2 encourages us to “serve the Lord with gladness.” Thankful people serve the Lord gladly. A thankful heart frees one to serve freely. Can you imagine an unthankful person serving the Lord with a glad heart? It is difficult to imagine an unthankful person being glad to do anything that does not ultimately serve his, or her, own purpose. Thankful people willingly serve and do not begrudge the time that they spend serving the Lord. It is also true that thankful people serve the Lord effectively. Effective Christian service does not depend on mood swings. To effectively serve the Lord, we must serve Him regardless of how we feel. Thankfulness is the catalyst for this kind of service. Again, can you imagine an unthankful person serving God regardless of feelings and circumstances? Are you a thankful person based on the topics discussed above? I hope and trust that you are a thankful person and that you personally realize its power in your life. If not, pray and ask Jesus to give you a thankful spirit and see what a difference it will make in your life. Bro. Joe “Thy word have I hid in my heart, that I might not sin against thee.”
The word of God is important in our lives and for our lives. The word of God, as we know it, is the Bible. There might be a word that comes from God apart from the Bible, but if it is a word from God it will surely agree with the Bible. I’m never impressed with visions that people have that do not have their essence in the Bible. Psalm 119 is a tribute to the Law of Moses. The Law of Moses was the scripture that they had at the time this psalm was written. Psalm 119:11 is a reminder to us that we need to read and study the word of God, but more than that it tells us to make it part of ourselves. Notice that the psalmist wrote, “Thy word have I hid in my heart…” This means that when we read the Bible, we are to internalize it. I think that means that we are to digest it in our minds, hearts and souls, as the the food that we eat is digested in our bodies. The food that we eat is absorbed into our bodies, providing nutrition to help our bodies grow stronger and healthier. That is why we need to be careful what we put into our bodies, because if we eat too much “junk food” it will be absorbed into our bodies and will not give us the nutrition that we need. We need to be careful also that we do not put too much “junk food” into our hearts, minds and souls. What we digest makes a difference in the quality of our lives both physically and spiritually. There is a lot of “junk food” out there waiting for us to take it in to damage our minds, hearts and souls. This makes it all the more important for us to spend time in the word of God and to digest it into our minds, hearts and souls. This means that we should not just give the Bible a cursory read, but we are to read it carefully and prayerfully, meditating and reflecting on it. In this way we will hide God’s word in our hearts, minds and souls: “that we might not sin against (God).” This principle is powerfully illustrated in Hebrews 4:12: “For the word of God is quick (alive), and powerful, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and it is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” When we read and study the word of God it becomes part of us much as the food that we eat becomes a part of us. Hebrews 4:12 tells us that the word of God goes to work in us, giving us new spiritual insight and that it adds to our spiritual growth. The word of God challenges us to live better lives and to be better people. Digesting the word of God does not make us judgmental and self-righteous, but it does make us more aware of our need for God’s righteousness. My belief is that we need to digest the word of God in order to love people as Jesus has commanded us. We need to digest the word of God in order to meet the temptations that we are bound to face. It is important for us to note that when Jesus was tempted by Satan in Matthew 4, that He defended Himself with the word of God. For example, when Satan tempted Jesus to turn stone into bread in order to satisfy His hunger, Jesus quoted Deuteronomy 8:3: “It is written, ‘man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God." If Jesus defended Himself with God’s word, it is certainly important that we do the same. One more point that needs to be made in our study of the word of God is that we need to learn to love it and delight in it. In Psalm 119:47, the psalmist wrote: “And I will delight in thy commandments, which I have loved.” Some parts of the Bible are more “delightful” than others, but it is all God’s word. We need to learn to delight in it, not because it is always entertaining, but because it is good for us to read it, and simply because it is God’s message to us. We are never told that we should be entertained by the Bible, but that we are to be influenced by it. We love the word of God because it is, after all, the word of God. There is no greater resource on this earth that can help us in our relationship with God. Bro. Joe "Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and mind and soul, and with all thy mind. 38. This is this is the first and great commandment. 39. And the second is like unto it, thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. 40. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets."
Jesus said these two commandments are the most important commandments. We need to reflect and meditate on these two commandments and see if we are sincerely living by them. First, Jesus said that we are to love God. He did not say just love God, but we are go deeper in our love for Him. Do you love God with all your heart? Does He have first place in your heart above all else? Do you love God with all of your mind? What do you think about during your waking hours? Are your thoughts about loving God and pleasing Him in all you do during the day? I've got to tell you that these two questions made me stop and think. How many of our thoughts are about God and what He wants of us? How many of our thoughts are about our love for God? What part does God play in our plans for the day. Give these questions some thought today. Second, Jesus said that we are to love our neighbors as we love ourselves. This made me think about my love for people. Do I really love people? Do I love people who do not love me? Do I love people with whom I disagree? (And there are a lot of them!) Do I love people who have chosen to live only for the world, and do not care about God and His church? Or do I just love church people? These questions seem silly, but they are not, because there a lot of those above mentioned people in the world. I have to tell you that these questions rang like a bell in my mind. You would do well to consider this question for your own life. Run these two commandments through your heart and mind today. Perhaps we all have a lot of work to do on these two commandments, which Jesus referred to as the commandments on which all of the other commandments hang. Spend a few minutes today thinking about how you are doing on these two commandments. Bro. Joe "Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need."
The implication is that we will find God at the throne of grace. Getting through to the Almighty is obviously our reason for praying. Throughout the Bible we find that God is waiting for us to come to Him. I hesitate to think about the times that I have gone through problems in my life and did not go immediately to God. I discovered this truth in my last year in the Navy at the ripe old age of twenty. I was alone on my bunk on the USS Hornet, which was unusual since we seldom found ourselves alone on a ship. It was there that God "got ahold" of me," and made my life's mission in Christian ministry real to me. (Mainly the call to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ.) When we go to the throne of grace we find mercy. It is obvious to me that a lot of people do not think of mercy when they think of God. We need to finally realize that God loves us! He knows of our foibles, yet He loves us in spite of them. When I went to Him on my bunk on the USS Hornet, God knew what a "stinker" I was, yet when I went to Him I found that He was offering me mercy. I knew that what I needed was a "whipping," but instead I got mercy. You will find the same thing if you honestly approach Him in faith, knowing that He loves you - in spite of you. When we go to the throne of grace we find "grace to help in time of need." You probably know that grace is God's unmerited favor. We find what we do not deserve at the throne of grace. I think that many people do not go to God because they do not believe that He loves them and wants the best for them. Please do not look to God as your enemy. He loves you. I have found this to be consistently true in spite of my own sins and errors. I know what it means to be chastened by Him, and it ain't fun, but I also know what it means to be forgiven in His grace and love. If you want "grace to help in time of need," go hurriedly to the Throne of Grace, and you will find "grace to help in time of need." It is true that God is waiting for you to come to Him. It is true that He loves you in spite of yourself. It is true that you will find Him to ultimately be the God of grace. Hurry, hurry, hurry to the Throne of Grace. Bro. Joe "For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and, find grace to help in time of need."
When I was preaching this morning, the idea of access to God found a place in my heart. I think that we forget about this access as we struggle with the troubles and cares of our lives. The great news is that we have access to Almighty God at all times. This is true for you if you have received Christ into your life by faith. Don't forget that He has given us the Holy Spirit to guide and lead us. We are never without access to Him in everything, I mean, everything that we encounter. I thought about the places on this earth to which we do not have access. For example, drive to Washington to the White House. When you get there knock on the door and say that you want to talk to the president.. Not only would you find that you did not have access, but they would probably arrest you and throw you in jail. Those who protect the president and his family, do no know who you are and what your intentions might be. .The point I'm trying to make is that when you go the throne of grace, the Lord knows you and welcomes you. (It is called grace.) There are many places that you do not have access to, but the great news is that you always have access to "the throne of grace." The author of Hebrews shared this great news. We can always come to "the throne of grace that we might obtain mercy, and find grace to help in the time of need." I will admit that I have read this many times, and just went on reading and did not notice the truth of those words. Please meditate and pray over these words, and let the reality that they share with you sink deeply into your heart. No matter what you are facing in your life today, Almighty God is waiting to give you "grace to help in the time of need." Do not read this and let it go over your head. Through your faith in Christ you have access to Almighty God. Bro. Joe Ephesians 2:10: “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto Good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.” Philippians 2:13: “For it is God who works in you both to will and to do of His good works.”
We say that the Christian faith is not religion, because in religion you serve a god who is aloof from people, and good works are done to appease him. Religion begins on the outside and somehow works in. In the Christian faith it is exactly the opposite. God begins His work in us and we work it out as a witness to the world. We are not saved by works, but we are saved to work. In Ephesians 2:8-9, Paul wrote, “For by grace are you saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God. Not of works, lest any man should boast." Verse 10 printed above, tells us the place of good works in our Christian lives. The great thing about being a Christian is that God is at work in our lives. It is a work that begins with the entrance of the Holy Spirit in our lives. Jesus promised His disciples before He ascended to the Father that when He departed He would send the “Comforter” (the Holy Spirit) to them and that He would guide them into all truth. The entrance of Christ and His Spirit into our lives is illustrated in Revelation 3:20, where Jesus said, “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him and he with Me.” To reiterate, salvation does not begin on the outside and work in; rather, it begins within and works out. Paul wrote in Philippians 2:12a-13, “Wherefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God who works in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure." A lot of people read verse 12 and do not go to verse 13. That is an incomplete picture of God’s work in our lives. We work out what has been put within, and we do that by the power of the Holy Spirit. Notice that we have been called to “good works.” These works can take many different forms. In fact, they can take as many different forms as there are works to be done in the church and in the community. We should always be open to the leadership of the Holy Spirit in our lives, for He will reveal to us what we must do. We do not serve from our own whims, but from the acts of God in our lives. The Lord is at work in our lives leading us to do what needs to be done to promote His kingdom on this earth. He works in some to be preachers and teachers. He works in some to lead in music, or to participate in music. He works in some to do any task that needs to be done to reach the world. We normally think of this work as being “church work.” It is not “church work.” It is God’s work, no matter what form it takes and no one work is superior to the other for it is, after all, the work of God. Philippians 2:13 gives us a general picture of what the workmanship of God in our lives will entail. It tells us that God is at work in our lives for us to do His will: “For it is God who works in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure.” We do not serve at our own pleasure. We serve at God’s pleasure, which means that He allows us to work for Him. We are not doing the Lord a favor by serving Him; He is doing us a favor by letting us work for Him. For example, I did not become a preacher because I thought it would be a good way to make a living. I became a preacher because God called me to it. It is a great privilege that He has given me. Whatever service He has called you into, it is a great privilege given to you by God. Thank Him! You might think that your job as an usher, for example, is not important. One of God’s great gifts is the gift of hospitality. In verse 14, we are reminded how we are to go about this work: “Do all things without murmurings and disputings.” We are to do God’s work in His will and do it with a good attitude. Just think what a great privilege it is that the God of the universe is at work in your life. What a blessing! Bro. Joe "If we confess our sins, He (Jesus) is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." 1John 1:9 ---- "And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors." Matthew 6:12
Forgiveness is a major theme in living the Christian life. I want to consider two aspects of forgiveness that are involved in living the Christian life. First, if you are a Christian you have been forgiven by Jesus Christ. The Christian life begins when we ask Jesus to forgive us for our sins. John assures us that when we have asked Him to forgive us, Jesus is "faithful and just to "forgive us our sins." This is actually the good news of the gospel. It is because of Jesus' forgiveness that we become Christians and become His saved followers. The first words of Jesus from the cross were "Father, forgive them for they know not what they do." If you sincerely asked Jesus to forgive you, the promise of the Bible is that He has forgiven you. Believe it! Accept it! Live it! Jesus' forgiveness does not end with the salvation experience. His forgiveness is offered to us on a daily basis. Many times we are depressed because we have failed in some way in our Christian lives. The Lord who saves us is the Lord who will forgive us. You can be sure that Lord will discipline us when we stray, but this does not put us beyond His forgiveness. The promise given in 1John 1:9 is that when we confess our sins, He is "faithful and just to forgive us." He will forgive you if you sincerely confess, repent and ask for His forgiveness. There is another aspect of forgiveness that we need to consider. As we have been forgiven, we should also forgive. In the Lord's Prayer in Matthew 6:12, Jesus instructed us to pray: "Forgive us debts, as we forgive our debtors." It is understood that Christians will be forgiving people. When someone hurts us in some way we should forgive them. After all, this is what Jesus did from His cross. We who have been forgiven should also be forgiving. I know that this is not always easy, but I also know that an unforgiving spirit can rob us of the victory that we have in Jesus. Whoever it is that you need to forgive, you will be a more effective witness if you will forgive. Ask the Lord to give you a forgiving heart. Forgiving others will give you a spirit of victory in your Christian life. God expects His people to have forgiving hearts. Whoever it is that you need to forgive, forgive them and claim the victory in Jesus. This is a difficult subject to cover in a short article, but I think that I have covered enough to let you understand that as you have been forgiven, you also need to forgive. Bro. Joe |
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