"Laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrises, and envies, and all evil speakings, 2. As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that you may grow thereby." 1Peter 2:1-2
"But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be glory both now and forever." 2Peter 3:18 Our text verses point out that we should grow as Christians. What does it mean to "grow"? I want to share a few things that Christian growth means. First, it is growth in faith. We are saved by faith in Jesus Christ, and He sends the Holy Spirit into our lives to "guide us into all truth." (John 16:13) We grow in faith as we digest the truth of scripture. There is no growth in faith without reading and studying the Bible. When dust grows on our Bibles our faith is stunted. As we feed on the word of God we grow in our faith, and as a result we are more likely to take steps of faith. We do things that we would not do without a growing faith in Jesus Christ. Second, it is growth in behavior. In 1Peter 2:1, Peter pointed out some things that will change as we grow in faith. We "lay aside all malice" as we grow in Christ. Malice is anger that has matured in our hearts and has kept us from growing in love for God and for people. We "lay aside....guile." Guile is anger that has taken root in our hearts and lives and has become a part of our lifestyles. We "lay aside....hypocrisy." This means that we grow spiritually to the point that we are sincere in our lives, and in our relationships with other people. We "lay aside...envies." This means as we grow in our faith, we do not envy the successes of other people. We "lay aside evil speakings." We think immediately that it means that we stop swearing. That is true, but it also means that as we grow in our relationship with Christ, we become careful in what we say to and about other people. Third, we "grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ." We grow in grace, and Christian knowledge, as we actually live and practice our Christian lives on a daily basis. As we grow "in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ," we tend to become more like Him. This does not mean that we become judgmental and mean-spirited in our relationships with other people. It means that as we grow in Christ we will tend to love people like Jesus did. There is so much more that Christian growth means than what I have covered in this article, but what I have covered is a good start. I know that I need to grow toward the things listed above, and I imagine that you will say the same about yourself. Let's go on to greater growth in Jesus Christ and see the difference that it will make in our lives. Bro. Joe
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(The old Couch Potato is taking a hiatus of a few days to attend the Georgia Baptist Convention annual meeting. I should be back on line Wednesday evening.)
"Let a man so account of us, as of the ministers of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God. 2. Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful." In this text Paul is writing about his faithfulness to His call from Christ. Then he points out that if a person is considered a steward of the ministry of Christ, he should be found faithful. If we call ourselves Christians, we must be faithful. I want to deal with some of what this faithfulness consists of. We should be faithful to Christ Himself, Who made our salvation, and our ministries, possible. We should never forget that we owe it to Christ to be faithful to Him. After Paul met Christ on the Damascus Road, he dropped all of his education as a Pharisee. He dropped all of the protests that he made against the Christian movement, and joined the movement. He wrote a lot of the New Testament through his letters to churches and to individuals such as Timothy. Paul was indeed found faithful in his relationship to Christ and to his ministry for Him. We should be faithful to Christ through prayer. Prayer is the means of carrying out our intimacy with Christ. If people stop speaking to each other, we consider that their relationship is broken. If you do not spend time in your day encountering Christ through prayer, you are not taking advantage of the intimacy that you have with Him. Prayer should be an automatic reflex in our daily lives. We need to spend devotional time in prayer to Him, but we also need to call out to Him in prayer in the course of our day. We also need to remember that we can pray to Him through our thoughts. If you want to be found faithful to Christ, you need to spend time in prayer, We should be faithful to Christ through scripture. I am not insinuating here that you do not read the scriptures on a daily basis. What I am doing is reminding you that Christ is in every book in the Bible through types. Christ came in fulfillment of the Old Testament, the authors of which looked forward to His coming. We have the Book of Hebrews in our New Testament reminding us of the relationship that Christ has with the Old Testament. We need to be faithful to pay attention to the scriptures that can feed our souls, and invigorate our work for Christ. We should be faithful to Christ through His Church. Jesus told Peter that he would build his church upon the faith that Peter expressed in Matthew 16:18: "Upon this rock I will build my church..." He did not build His church upon Peter, but upon the faith of Peter and the other disciples who surrendered their lives to Him. Christ continues to build His church upon His people - the ekklesia, the congregation of Christ's people. Why would we consider ourselves to be faithful to Christ, if we ignore the churches that Christ gave His life to institute? I think you will agree that there is much more that could be written about this subject of faithfulness to Christ and His work on earth, but I am only writing an article on it. Take a look at your own faithfulness to Christ. Take note of your prayer life. Take note of your faithfulness to read and study the Bible. Take note of your faithfulness to Christ's Church. Be faithful! Bro. Joe "I will rejoice and be glad and rejoice in thy mercy: for thou hast considered my trouble; thou has known my soul in adversities."
This verse in Psalm 31 expresses the reality of the gladness that we have in our Lord. If you are not glad today, you need to reconsider and let this verse guide you. If you are glad today, read the verse and praise God. David declared that he would "be glad and rejoice in (God's) mercy." I want you to think for a moment, and consider what life on this earth be like if God was not a God of mercy, and only a God of wrath. I will assure you that if that were the case, we would not be here today, for the world could not withstand His wrath. But the fact is that God is the God of mercy. If you will think about it, you would be in misery, except for the mercy of God. Make up your mind and heart today that you will rejoice in God's real mercy. Thank Him for His mercy in your life - I just did! David pointed out that when he was in trouble, God knew about his trouble and had acted in mercy. Whatever you are encountering today, God knows about what is occurring in your life. No matter whether what is happening is good or bad, God knows about it and will act on it in your life. David spent a lot of time in battles, where his life was in danger every moment. In spite of his troubles, David knew that God was with him. You can be assured, Christian friend, that God knows what you are dealing with in your life, and will act on your behalf. That is one reason that we should pray without ceasing. The NIV translates the latter part of this verse like this: "You have known the distresses of my soul." The lesson here is that God knows about the "distresses" in your life. Nothing happens in our lives beyond God's notice. He knows what is occurring in the lives of people because He is God, and He is all knowing. There is not an occurrence in your life that is out of the sight, and love and concern, of God. When what is happening is sinful, He is waiting for us to realize it and ask for His forgiveness. He will discipline us and teach us during these time. When what is happening is distressing, God knows about it, and is present to help you through it. You can know today that God knows the "distresses of (your) soul," and will act on your behalf, Hey, take it to the Lord in prayer. Well go ahead and do it! Bro. Joe Bro. Joe "These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full."
One of the main things that Christ brings into our lives is joy. Joy and happiness are not always the same. Happiness is something that might come and go with circumstances. The joy that Jesus gives will certainly bring moments of happiness, but happiness is often fleeting, which the the joy that Christ gives is held fast in our hearts. I want to call your attention that Jesus referred to the joy that He gives us is his joy, for he said that "my joy might remain in you." This is not the kind of joy that comes and goes with the seasons, it is joy that Christ has put into our lives as a possession, or a gift. It is important that we call attention to the words "my joy." Christ puts His joy in us when we are saved. Consequently, we have Christs joy at all times, even when the circumstances are not happy, or joyful. I want to illustrate this point in the deaths of my wife and parents. I had joy because they are in a better place because of their faith in Jesus. We have the promise that if one puts his or faith in Jesus, they are with Him heaven. Both of my parents, and my late wife died trusting Jesus. I expect to see them in heaven one day. We will be together with Jesus in eternity because they died trusting Jesus. I am trusting Jesus for my eternity, not because I deserve it, but because Jesus gave His life on the cross, arose the third day and ascended to heaven. My trust is in Jesus, not in myself. The joy of the expectation of heaven, through Jesus, is real! If you do not have that joy, you can have it by trusting Jesus as your Savior. (Don't argue about it, just do it.) Bro. Joe "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world gives, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." Hundreds of books have been written about how to achieve peace of mind. I do not necessarily disagree with these books, but I have recorded one verse that tells us where peace of mind, and all other peace in our lives derives from, and that is through Jesus Christ.
Jesus promised His peace: "My peace I give unto you." Jesus is called the "Prince of Peace" for good reason, for He is the source of our peace. If we really want peace in our lives, we need to find it by a faith relationship with the source of peace Himself - Jesus Christ. That is not a promise from me, it is a biblical promise. Jesus differentiated the peace that He gives from the peace given by the world. He said "not as the world gives," but as He gives. The peace of Jesus is also referred to as "rest." In Matthew 11:28, Jesus invited us to come to Him and find rest. Again, this is the not rest given by the world, but the rest given by Jesus. In essence, this means to find rest and peace in Jesus. I am not teaching that the world can never give you rest and peace. That is why we have beds, and, for that matter, vacations. All of us need to spend times of relaxation. (Hey, I'm retired and have many moments of relaxation.) These moments of relaxation, and peace, do not necessarily bring peace and rest into our hearts and lives. If we want the peace that the world cannot give us, we must find it in Jesus Christ, for It is in Jesus Christ that we will find lasting peace - here and hereafter. How? Confess that you have "sinned and come short of the glory of God." By faith, ask Jesus into your life. He has promised that He will come into your life, and that He will give you His peace. Invite Jesus into whatever causes of unrest you have in your life, and He will give you His peace. Hear Jesus again on peace: "These thing I have spoken unto you, that in Me you might have peace. In the world you shall have tribulation (trouble),but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world." (John 16:33) Bro. Joe "But you shall receive power, after that the Holy Spirit is come upon you; and you shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.'
Our text is the final word that Jesus gave to His disciples before He ascended to heaven. It is a word that we need to take seriously, because the text would not be in the Bible if it was not a serious word that came heaven. It was given by Father, Son and Holy Spirit. (No, I do not have the time, space, nor the knowledge to explain the Trinity for you. I just know that Bible reveals a Triune God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.) The command to go into all of the world is given in all four gospels in several ways. In Matthew 28:18-20a, Jesus gave what we call "The Great Commission": "And Jesus came and spoke to them (His disciples) saying, 'All power has been given unto me in heaven and in earth. 19. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. 20. Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you...." If Jesus intended this for His immediate disciples alone, the Holy Spirit would not have inspired Matthew to put it in the Bible. It is a command for us, and the command is given in various ways in all four gospels, then it is given in Acts 1:8. If this particular command was given only to Jesus' immediate disciples, it would not be in the Bible. It is a command to all Christians, not just preachers and missionaries. It is a command to every Christian, and we need to share with the world around us. We have been given the power of the Holy Spirit to witness to people wherever we are. It is real power and we need to use it in our world. Jesus' final words in the Great Commission were: "Lo, I am with you alway(s), even unto the end of the world - (or to the end of the ages)." Bro. Joe "As it is written, there is none righteous, no not one. 11.
There is none that understands, there is none that seeks God. 12. They have all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable, there is none that does good, no, not one." The text verses are part of Paul's explanation to the Romans as to why they needed to hear about and accept Christ. Paul pointed out what we need to know and share with the world. Following is how I see, and interpret this dilemma. First, there is a real need: "They have all gone astray out of the way, they are together become unprofitable, there is none that does good, no, not one." The real need in Paul's day remains the real need today - "For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God." (Romans 3:23) We all have to deal with sin. People who deny the reality of sin have fallen into a satanic trap, that can hold them for eternity. The real need today cannot be met by Republicans and Democrats. The real need to day cannot be solved by a government program. The real need is still sin. Second, there is a real solution: "For God so loved the world, He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." God saw the need and only He had the solution to overcome the problem of sin. Jesus came into the world, lived a perfect life, and died as a perfect sacrifice for our sins. Jesus Christ offered Himself as a sacrifice for our sins, that we might believe in Him and be saved. The solution is really that simple, but we have managed to complicate it. No one can live the Christian life without the Christ, Who gave Himself for our sins. He is the real solution. Third, there is real victory, for three days after He died on that cruel cross, Jesus rose from that cruel grave. There is a song that says "Christ is the victory that overcomes the world." Jesus is the author, and founder, of the real victory over sin. He died as the sacrifice for our sins, in order for us to put our faith in Him and be saved. Jesus is the real solution for our real need, which is sin. It is by the blood of Christ, shed on Calvary, that we are saved, and it is through Him that we have real victory. We can all have it through faith in Christ, if we will just trust Him to forgive and save us. This takes me back to the title: "The Real Solution." There is a problem called sin, and God has given us victory over this problem through His Son Jesus...PRAISE HIM! Bro. Joe “He that diligently seeks good procures favor: but he that seeks mischief, it shall come to him.” KJV
“He who seeks good finds goodwill, but evil comes to him who searches for it.” NIV Proverbs can break down a significant theme in a few words. Proverbs 11:27 is a good example. It is telling us that if we seek the good and the right, we will find them and that if we seek mischief, or evil, we will find that too. I want to share my thoughts on this text. If we are seeking to do good, we are seeking the will of God for our lives. It is for sure that if we are seeking to do God’s will for us that we will do good. I know that no one perfectly follows the will of God, but that doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t seek to do it. If we are going to do good in this life, we must find out what it is that God wants us to do and do it. Sometimes it seems that God’s will leads us into trouble. I think that Paul would say that this is certainly true. Paul did God’s will and he found a lot of opposition, but he kept on doing it. A lot of good came to Paul when He found God’s will and did it. He lived a victorious Christian life, wrote about one-third of the New Testament, founded several churches and, though he had hardships, he had the reward of knowing that God was pleased with his life. At the end of his life, Paul wrote: “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith…” If we want to seek the good in our lives, we will love people and seek to do good to and for them. Jesus threw out a challenge to His disciples in Matthew 5:16 to do just this: “Let your light so shine before (people) that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.” How do we let our lights shine? We do it by how we treat people and whether or not we seek to do good to them. In Matthew 5:44, Jesus expanded on this idea: “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.” Are you seeking to do good to and for others, even those with whom you disagree, or even those who hate you? If you want to seek to do good, follow the example of Jesus. I know that we are not saved by following Jesus’ example, but by faith in Him, but if we want to live lives that honor Christ, we will follow His example. Jesus did good for all who came across His path. He did good for the rich man Zacchaeus, and He did good for the poor woman who merely touched the hem of his garment and was healed. In John 4 Jesus witnessed to the woman at the well, even though her life was in shambles because of wrecked marriages and an illicit relationship with another man. Read the Gospels and you will see that Jesus always went about doing good for all who came across His path. If we follow the example of Jesus, we will not fail to love people and do good to them. The promise of the text is that if we seek to do good, good will come back to us, and if we seek to do evil that will also come back to us. Those who live genuine Christian lives, seek to do good – period. Bro. Joe |
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