“And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9. And, lo, the angel of the Lord shone round about them, and they were sore afraid. 10. And the angel of the Lord said unto them, Fear not, for behold I bring you good tidings of great joy which shall be for all people. 11. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord.”
Why shepherds? I have asked this question many times, and I know that I have either written, or preached about it before, but it is a question that still intrigues me. Allow me to try to answer this question for my own edification and for your's.. When the angel came to earth to tell the good news about the birth of Jesus, he did not appear to Herod, Caesar or any other notable person, but he appeared to lowly shepherds. The first reason is seen in what happened when the Magi told King Herod about the star that they were following, he proceeded to kill all babies in that area who were two years of age..This was not good news to Herod, for he felt threatened about the birth of a king. God knew that the shepherds would do what they did: They went and told people about Jesus’ birth, and went to see for themselves and to further spread the word. The contrast between the reaction of Herod and the shepherds reveals why the angel announced it to shepherds. God knew the hearts of the shepherds and that they were ready for the birth of the Messiah. We .learn about their reaction in Luke 2:15: “And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us.” They actually felt honored that they had received this good news. God knew that they were ready for this announcement in their hearts and that they would be grateful enough to go and see the Messiah for themselves. God knew that the shepherds would go beyond going to see the Messiah for themselves, for we are told in verse 17: “And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child.” They did not keep this good news to themselves, and they were not threatened by the birth of Jesus, but they received it and shared it as good news from heaven. We can say that this changed the shepherd’s lives in a positive way. We are not told anything about them from this point, but we can believe that they were changed by the experience. Furthermore, in verse 18 we learn that those who heard their message were affected by it as well: “And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds.” This has been my feeble attempt to answer the question “Why Shepherds?" I pray that their positive experience will encourage us to spread the good news about Jesus. Bro. Joe
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"Reprove not a scorner, lest he hate thee: rebuke a wise man, and he will love thee. 9.Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be yet wiser: teach a just man and he will increase in learning."
Can you take criticism? This is what Proverbs 9:8-9 is about. I am not going to lie to you and tell you that I love criticism. There is something about us that really hates it when someone doesn't see that we are doing a good job or maybe even that we are not perfect. But I have learned to take it in a good spirit. Why? Because as I look back over fifty-seven years in the ministry, I have to admit that I have learned more through criticism than I have through casual praise. If any of my earlier church members reads this, they will probably say, "Well, he did learn after all." We don't garner wisdom in this life by protecting our fragile egos from criticism that is meant for our good. We have to learn the difference between malicious and loving criticism. Malicious criticism is usually not valuable - but it can be. Don't reject it out of hand. Even a malicious person can hit on the truth occasionally. Loving criticism can seem malicious when we first hear it, but when we think about it - and we will - the critic was trying to tell us something that we needed to hear. Criticism is a time for some good old-fashioned soul-searching. Proverbs 9:9a tells us: "Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be yet wiser." We do not increase in wisdom by making ourselves immune to criticism. Not all criticism is justified, but if we will listen by faith, and hear what Jesus is telling us, we can learn the difference between wise and foolish criticism. No one in this world is above criticism - that includes you and me. Bro. Joe “Sing to the Lord, you saints of His, praise His holy name. 5. For His anger lasts only a moment, but His favor lasts a lifetime; weeping may remain for a night but rejoicing comes in the morning."
These verses remind us of what our response should be to God no matter how trying life has become. When things are not going well for us, we have a tendency to blame God. We might not consciously admit this, but in the back of our minds we think that God owes us more than we are getting. We live in a fallen world and that is the way life is in a fallen world. Trials and tribulations are part of living, and they can be tests of our faith. The question is what is our response to God when things are tough? These two verses from Psalm 30 will tell us what our response should be – regardless. “Sing to the Lord, you saints of His, praise His holy name.” When God wants from us at all times is to praise Him. Praise was not always easy for David and other psalmists. The psalms are full of complaints to the Lord because of what life was handing them at the time. But yet the psalmists also remind us time after time that we are to praise God. In Psalm 35:28 David wrote: “And my tongue shall speak of your righteousness and of your praise all the day long.” If we praise God “all the daylong” we will surely, at some point, praise Him in the midst of trouble. Asaph wrote in psalm 50:15: “And call upon me in the day of trouble; and I will deliver you, and you shall glorify (praise) me.” The Bible is full of the praises of God. I know that life can be hard, and that some things that happen to us are awfully hard to overcome, but it does us no good to give in to self-pity or grumbling and complaining. What we need to do during these times is to “sing to the Lord…praise His holy name.” “His anger lasts only for a moment, but His favor lasts a lifetime.” This is a good reminder for us that God is not against us. He might be against the way we are living at a given time, as we are told: “His anger lasts only a moment,” which does mean that He gets angry with us. That anger comes because He knows that we can do better. When you feel God-forsaken, and think that God is not doing anything in your life, remember that you have His favor. We need to be careful with this word “favor.” We can get the idea that when things are not going our way, we have lost God’s favor. Read it again: “But His favor lasts a lifetime…” There are times when we feel God’s favor more than at other times, but God always wants the best for us, and when we forget that we stray from what the Lord Jesus wants of us. We do well to remember His favor, especially when we are going through difficult times. “Weeping may endure for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning.” There are four words that have come to mean a lot to me over the years, and they are: “this, too, shall pass.” That is what David meant when he wrote: “Weeping may endure for a night…” We need to remember that nothing lasts forever. Whatever you are going through right now will come to an end, and at the end of it there will be joy and rejoicing. Sometimes it seems that woes will never end, but they do. What we need to focus on is not the weeping but the joy and rejoicing. The choice as to how we will respond to the “weeping” is really up to us. We can pout and simmer, but that will only prolong the weeping. We just need to remember that when “morning” comes there will be joy and rejoicing. Grab a hold of this truth, and make it a way of life. The right response to the Lord is to praise Him, remember His favor and accept the joy that He sends “in the morning.” Bro. Joe “Now concerning brotherly love you have no need for anyone to write you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another. 10. For that indeed is what you are doing to all the brothers throughout Macedonia. But we urge you, brothers, to do this more and more. 11. And to aspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we instructed you."
First Thessalonians is filled with good advice. Our text verses are an example of what I mean. In verse 9, gave the first bit of advice as to how they should live: He reminded them to love one another as they had been taught by God. (Isn’t it amazing how often we have this reminder in the Bible?) To love one another is foundational to our faith. Indeed, Jesus commanded us to love one another in John 13:34-35: “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. 35. By this all people shall know that you are my disciples, if you have love one to another.” In verse he reminded to “walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one.” In verse 11 of the text printed above, he showed them what it would mean for them to live in a community and be good witnesses. Following is the advice that Paul gave the Thessalonians, and us,as to how we can live effectively in community with other people and also be good witnesses for Jesus. Paul’s first advice is that they live “live quietly.” When I read this I wondered what Paul meant. Here is my assessment: to “live quietly” means to not make trouble with other people. This means that we are not to be argumentative with our neighbors. We never win anyone to Jesus by arguing with them. Our first line of offense in our witness is to quietly live for Jesus and be good neighbors. If we do not “walk the walk” we should not “talk the talk.” Paul’s second advice is to “mind your own affairs.” The way we would put this is: “mind your own business.” This means that we are not to be busybodies and spread gossip about other people’s lives. This does not mean that we should not speak with our neighbors. It means that we are to live peaceably with them and to not pry into their business. Being a community busybody is not a good witness for Jesus! Paul’s third advice is to: “Work with your hands, as we instructed you.” Part of our witness is to be industrious and not to be lazy. The aim is that we should love other people, treat them well and to live independently. Some of the Thessalonians had quit working because they were looking for Jesus at any time. This led Paul to give them this advice in 2 Thessalonians 3:10-12: “For even when we were with you, we would give you this command: If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat. 11.For we hear that some among you walk in idleness, not busy at work but busybodies. 12. Now such persons we command and encourage in the Lord Jesus Christ to do their work quietly and to earn their own living.” I think that you will agree that these verses contain very good advice - advice worth following. Bro. Joe “But when the fullness of time was come, God sent forth His son, made of a woman, made under the law, 5. To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.”
The birth of Jesus into this world was not an accident of history. The Bible is filled with promises that the Messiah would come to save His people. For example: “Now all of this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, ‘Behold a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son and they shall call His name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.” Matthew 1:22-23 I want to share some of the scriptures which mention the birth of Christ, and the reason why we celebrate Christ’s birth. The first text is Galatians 4:4, which is the text printed above. According to this text Christ was born just at the right time, the time that God established for Him to come. Because of the various prophecies of Christ’s coming, the Jews had looked with hopeful anticipation for the birth of their Messiah. They had wondered when this would take place, and Paul wrote that He was born “when the fullness of time had come.” (This is Paul’s mention of what we call “Christmas” today.) He was born that we might receive the adoption of sons (and daughters.)” This is a good reason for us to celebrate the coming of the Son of God into the world. The second text is John 3:16: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” (This is John’s mention of what we call “Christmas.”) The wonderful reality here is that it was because of the great love that God has for us that He sent His Son into the world” in order to give us “everlasting life.” This is the world’s greatest love story. A look into the history of the world, and a look into the history of the Bible, we can see that it had to be love that sent Jesus into the world to save us. Our celebration of the birth of Christ is the ultimate celebration of the world. We do not need to forget, or ignore, this aspect of our celebration of Christ’s birth. The third text, 2 Corinthians 5:18-19, is another reminder of a great reason for us to celebrate Christmas: “And all things are of God, Who has reconciled us to Himself, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation: 19. To wit, that God was in Christ reconciling the world unto Himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them: and has given us the ministry of reconciliation.” It is amazing that our holy God took the initiative to reconcile us to Him, but it is more amazing that He has also given us the “ministry of reconciliation.” God saves us, and we in turn tell others about what He did for us in order for them to be reconciled to God. Think about these texts as you celebrate Christmas. Bro. Joe (From the archives: 2014: This means that the article is carried over from its original printing without any changes or rewrites.)
“Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus and stood in the midst, and said unto them, Peace be unto you. 20. And when He had so said, He showed unto them His hands and His side. Then were the disciples glad when they saw the Lord.” I can only imagine what the disciples felt as they huddled in a closed room, quaking in fear because of what the Jewish leaders might do to them. Then like a burst of light from heaven, Jesus appears in the room and gives them the usual Jewish greeting: “Peace be unto you.” When Jesus showed them His hands and His side, the disciples were glad (overjoyed) when they saw the Lord.”At that moment, the reality of who Jesus really is came home to them and they were overjoyed. It makes all the difference when Jesus is real to you. When I was a youngster of about nineteen years of age, I was filled with doubts about the reality of all that I had been taught in Sunday School, etc. I remember that I was alone in the sleeping area of the USS Hornet when I had what I will call an epiphany. I was about at rock bottom in my doubts as I lay there on my bunk, when His reality hit me right in my heart. I don’t know what He did. To this day, I can’t really describe what the Lord did to my mind and heart that day, but He made Himself real to me at that moment, and like the disciples, I was overjoyed when that reality hit me. I knocked the dust off of my Bible and began to listen to His call on my heart. Notice what happened when the reality of Jesus hit His disciples. First, I think that they were no longer afraid. They had gathered in that room and shut door in the first place because they were afraid of what the Jews were going to do to them. They were hiding out, afraid to be seen. When Jesus becomes real to a person, one of the first things that happens is that fear is banished. This doesn’t mean that we will never be afraid again. It means that we will no longer fear that Jesus has forsaken us, for He is real every moment of our lives. Second, they experienced overwhelming joy: “Then were the disciples glad (overjoyed) when they saw the Lord.” In John 16:20, Jesus had predicted that this would happen: “Verily, verily, I say unto you, that you shall weep and lament, but the world shall rejoice: and you shall be sorrowful, but your sorrow shall be turned to joy.” Can you imagine the relief that these men felt when they were confronted with the fact that all that Jesus said to them about Himself was true? They heard what he said then, but it didn’t really register until this moment. All of them had forsaken their livelihoods to follow Jesus. If He was dead, it meant that they had lost everything. But now that they knew He was alive they gained more than they would have lost. When Jesus is real to us, we experience joy as well. When we go through the troubles and trials of life, it is great to know that we are not alone, but that Jesus is real and that He has not forsaken us. Third, in verse 21 they were given a challenge and a new task: “Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father has sent me, even so send I you.” They were to go into the world and share the reality of Jesus with other people – which they did. We believe in Jesus today, and He is real to us today, because these disciples obeyed Jesus and went out and spread the word of His reality until the word spread all over the world. Jesus has given us the challenge and task to tell others as well. Let’s go in great joy and do it. Bro. Joe “Be careful for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.”
“Pray without ceasing.” Both of these texts from Paul’s writings remind us of our need to stay in touch with Jesus. Prayer is our means of communication with Jesus, but it is also our means of having daily fellowship with Him. God created us in His image so that we would remember that He wants to be part of our lives. We can stay in touch with Him or drift into worldly living. Why do we need to stay in touch with Jesus? We need to say in touch with Jesus because He is the source of our strength. The Bible teaches us that we are not strong enough to face Satan and the world on our own. We need the strength that is far above our own. Prayer is a means of exercising our spiritual muscles. Physical exercise is important, because it gives our body strength that we would not have without it. Prayer is what I will call “spiritual exercise.” The more we pray and depend on the Lord for our strength, the stronger our faith becomes. We should be as concerned about our spiritual fitness as we are about our physical fitness. Paul dealt with this in 1 Timothy 4:7-8: “But refuse profane and old wives’ fables, and exercise yourself rather unto godliness. 8. For bodily exercise profits little: but godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come.” Paul did not say that we shouldn’t exercise our bodies, but that we should be more interested in exercising our faith. I personally think that both are important, but the spiritual exercise of prayer is the most important. In fact, I have discovered that I can pray and exercise my spiritual muscles while I am exercising my physical muscles. We need to stay in touch with Jesus because He loves us and wants the best for us. I don’t think a lot of people realize the depth of love that Jesus has for them. I don’t think that most people realize that Jesus wants the best for them. They have a negative view of Jesus, and think that He is working against them instead of for them. I would hate to have this view of Jesus. I am reminded that He loves me in spite of myself – we call it grace. We can take everything to Jesus in prayer. You probably have thoughts that you don’t want anyone to know that you have. I’ve got news for you; Jesus already knows those thoughts and is waiting to help you with them. What He wants us to do is to confess our sins to Him and repent of them. When we take our worst thoughts and deeds to Jesus, He is ready and willing to forgive. Perhaps you think that your sins can’t be forgiven. If Jesus could forgive the thief on the cross, He can forgive you. The old hymn is really true: “Jesus loves me this I know, for the Bible tells me so.” Take it to the Lord in prayer, whatever “it” is. Bro. Joe “And (Jesus) arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.”
Jesus and His disciples were in the midst of the Sea of Galilee in Peter’s little fishing boat. A storm came up and the disciples feared for their lives. Jesus was asleep on the stern of the boat when the disciples woke Him up and asked: “Carest thou not that we perish.” Of course Jesus cared; He just knew that this was yet another test of their faith, for He said to them: “Why are you so afraid? How is it that you have no faith?” It’s interesting that Jesus made the statement about their fear and faith after He had stilled the storm. As we go through the storms of our lives, we need for Jesus to say “peace is still,” and He will when we call on Him. When does Jesus say “peace be still”? Jesus says “peace be still” when we are in a seemingly helpless and hopeless situation. (I used the word “seemingly” here, because when Jesus is in our lives we are never hopeless or helpless.) I have been on a ship in the middle of the South China Sea in a typhoon, or hurricane. It was an exciting ride for several days, but it was certain that we were helpless to do anything about it, but ride it out until it was over. We come across times like this in our lives. It could be some kind sickness, a divorce, a church problem, a family problem, or whatever, but in the middle of these storms, we can’t find a way out. When Jesus is involved, He will be with us while we ride it out, or He will say “peace be still.” Jesus is there with His peace no matter how He chooses to give us the calm that we need. We just need to understand that Jesus cares and that He is at work in our lives to help us. Our problem is that sometimes we don’t hear Jesus say “peace be still,” and we think that we are still in the storm. Call on Jesus today and listen for His “peace be still.” You are not helpless. Jesus says “peace be still” when we are in a sea of trouble. The first thing that we need to do when we are going through troubles is to ask ourselves if we did something to get ourselves into this situation. If we did, the first thing that we need to do is to repent and ask for forgiveness. It is a step of faith to recognize our own responsibilities and call on Jesus for forgiveness before we ask Him to bring calm into our lives. Otherwise, we need to realize that Jesus is stronger than the strongest storms, and He is stronger than our largest troubles. I know that this is difficult to ascertain when we are in the middle of a storm of trouble, but it is Christian reality that Jesus is in the “boat” with us while we are riding out the storm. We just need to listen with our hearts and minds for His “peace be still.” Bro. Joe “For by grace are you saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God. 9. Not of works, lest any man should boast. 10. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good work, which God has before ordained that we should walk in them.”
There are texts in the Bible that, in my opinion, can stand on their own. John 3:16; Psalm 23; Galatians 2:20; Philippians 4:8 & 13 come to mind. Ephesians 2:8-10 is another, and this article will be based on this text. It tells us that salvation is made possible by God’s grace and that it becomes effective in our lives by faith. It tells us that salvation is a gift of God, not of works, meaning that we can’t earn salvation, we simply have to accept it in Jesus. But verse 10 is where I want to dwell at this time. It tells us that when we are saved, we become the workmanship of Christ in order for us to do the good works that God has foreordained that all of His people do. Jesus goes to work in us through His Holy Spirit, and He works in our lives to help us grow and progress in the way that He would have us grow. Paul explains this process to us in Philippians 3:12-13: “Wherefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence of only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. 13. For it is God Who works in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure.” This doesn’t mean, as some suggest, that you can work out your own way to be saved. Jesus took care of that on the cross. What it means is to literally work out what God has put in. Read verse 13. It tells us that we are work out what God has put in so that we can do His will and serve at His pleasure and not our own. The Christian faith is not worked in; rather, it is worked out from within us as we serve Christ under the leadership of the Holy Spirit. Jesus works in us through the Holy Spirit to do the works that God has “before ordained that we should walk in them.” Basically, this means that He called us to do the works that are common to all Christians. But I also think that it means that God has plans for our lives and that when we become Christians, God has plans for what we do with our lives. For some that means to enter the ministry and serve as pastors. For some that means that they are to use their gift of teaching to teach in Sunday School. For some this means that God wants them to serve as missionaries in far- away places. For all, however, it means to simply live the Christian life and serve Him in ways that reflect His care, love and mercy. It is important for all Christians to understand that God has plans for their lives. Verse 10 plainly expresses this, and we should believe it of ourselves. Remember Christian, that you are the “workmanship” of Christ Jesus. Rejoice in that fact and live it out before the world. Bro. Joe “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God…”
The Bible is plain and simple about one thing: “All have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” The Bible also declares that there is no one who can say that he or she is good in every sense of the word. Jesus even told the rich young man not to call Him good. If anyone could have been called “good” on this earth, Jesus could have been. I think that Jesus reprimanded the young man because He did not want anyone to use that word “good” loosely. We should all strive to be good people, but when we think that we have reached a satisfying level of goodness, we are only fooling ourselves. We can really become complacent in our “goodness.” So we all need to realize that we “have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” There are different ways that we try to excuse our sinful behavior, and that is what this article is about. There are what I will call “excusers.” These people know that what they do is wrong, but they excuse it on the basis of causes for their sins. One common excuse is that their parents are to blame. If their parents had been better role models, they would not give in to certain sins. Another excuse is that other people prodded them to do wrong. This reminds me of Adam and Eve after they sinned. When confronted with his sin Adam said “It was the woman’s fault. She gave me the fruit and I ate it.” Eve, in turn, blamed the serpent. What both of them said was true, Eve did give Adam the fruit, but she didn’t make him chew it and swallow it. The serpent did beguile Eve, but he did not pluck the fruit and put it in her mouth. They stood without excuse. There are other things that provoke excuses, but these two illustrate the point for us that we should not make excuses for our sins. There are what I will call “deniers.” These people deny that there is such a thing as sin. Anything that we do is alright, because there is no God that we have to answer to. There are some things that they see as wrong, like mistreating other people, but that is not called sin. To the “deniers” we don’t have to answer for anything that we do to a higher power. I guess that these are the people who say that anything goes as long as we don’t feel bad about it. Whole industries are built around that supposition. “Deniers” do not believe that Bible has any authority in the lives of people and that we can just ignore it. Finally, there is what I will call “the truly repentant.” These people are truly sorry for their sins, and they seek the forgiveness of God regardless of the causes of their sins. They don’t make excuses or deny, but they go to God for forgiveness and are forgiven for their sins. It is just a simple matter of forgetting our pride, confessing that we have sinned, and getting God’s forgiveness. Let this last person be characteristic of us. Bro. Joe |
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