Posted by David on July 12, 2007 under Bulletin Articles
You may or may not agree with the characteristics I place in my emphasis on Christians having and maintaining holy manners. There may be things you would add or delete. If you would add, subtract, or both, fine (as long as we stay within scripture’s emphasis). The important things are (1) we stay within God’s emphasis, (2) we concern ourselves with the complete godly character, and (3) we are committed daily to exemplifying God’s teachings. We want to be God’s people. We also want to act like God’s people.
Note three things in Paul’s statement in Ephesians 4:1-3. (1) The way we behave must be worthy of our calling in Christ. Obviously, there are ways to behave that misrepresent Christ. The Christian’s commitment must be (a) to understand the behaviors worthy of our calling (behaviors consistent with who our Savior is and what he is about) and (b) to practice those behaviors daily. (2) The worthy behaviors are based on love’s tolerance (forbearance of love-KJV, RSV, NEB; helpfulness of love-TEV; bearing with each other-NIV, JB). In our southern Christian culture, we put up with each others’ flaws because we love Jesus Christ. We do not confront, declare war, or have a blood-letting. Instead, we lovingly tolerate. It is not, as many say, “the principle of the matter.” It is the fact that we allow Jesus Christ to teach us how to love others. The only way to reflect well on a Savior who died for us and a Father who forgives us is to love others despite their imperfections. (3) Worthy behavior and tolerant love preserve the Spirit’s unity in peace.
Note that Christians preserve unity. They do not create unity. God brought unity into existence through Jesus Christ. We merely preserve what God made possible. See Acts 2:36, 38 combined with Galatians 3:26-28. God does the adding-Jew, gentile, men, women, slave, free, educated, uneducated, successful, failure, prosperous, poor (an unlikely group!). All of us are in Christ by God’s act. We preserve what He made possible. It takes tolerant love to preserve unity in this unlikely group!
Only by learning holy manners can we preserve! God placed each of us in His family. We must treat each other as one in Christ or as one who has potential of being in Christ.
We must never forget that God did not ask our permission to put someone in Christ! We are one because of what God did-not because we made ourselves one! Since it is God’s ambition to save all (see 2 Peter 3:9; 1 Timothy 2:4; John 3:16-18), the church always has been and will be an unusual group.
May we preserve what God does!
Posted by David on July 5, 2007 under Bulletin Articles
Paul to Timothy: “Let no one look down on your youthfulness, but rather in speech, conduct, love, faith and purity, show yourself an example of those who believe.” (1 Timothy 4:12)
Paul to Titus: “Likewise urge the young men to be sensible; in all things show yourself to be an example of good deeds, with purity in doctrine, dignified, sound in speech which is beyond reproach, so that the opponent will be put to shame, having nothing bad to say about us.” (Titus 2:6-8)
If we are committed to Jesus Christ, let us show others Jesus Christ in our lives by the way we act. If we are committed to godliness, let us show others godliness in the way we behave. If we are committed to being God’s people, let us show others what it means to be God’s people in the ways we talk and act.
Are we perfect? Never! Yet, may our love for each other be greater than the flaws we see in each other (Ephesians 4:32). That is the incredible love God has for each of us. Though He accurately knows the flaws in each of us, He loves enough to forgive. How can we be God’s children and do less than love each other-even if we disagree?
I was recently reminded of how incredibly easy it is to be misunderstood. All any of us can do is be sincere, honest, kind, and as consistent as humanly possible. None of us will ever know how often brothers and sisters are compelled to explain something we did or said. How can we repay such unknown but necessary kindness? By being kind enough to explain when others misunderstand someone in Christ. May we not doubt another’s Christian commitment to Christ because we disagree with his or her convictions! May he or she not reject us!
Every religious group I have known understands how to squabble! Most can squabble with genuine expertise! Rare is the group that has more expertise in kindness and forgiveness than it has in squabbling. The secret in eliminating squabbling is not found in controlling others-it is found in controlling yourself!
May we be a people wherever we are who know how to be kind and encouraging, but who refuse to squabble. If you wish to be a striking example who cannot be ignored, have the courage to be a kind person rather than a contentious person. Such will never be easy, but it will consistently represent God well by exhibiting godly manners!
When you deeply believe something, be consistent in your life with your faith, but act like a believer in your interaction with others. In the first century, Jewish and gentile Christians did that with gaps bigger than anything we face. May we learn to be as patient as God and as gentle as Jesus. May our patience and gentleness be reflected in our holy manners! May people consider what we say because they are impressed with our lives of consideration! Being in Christ results in our becoming a people of holy manners!
Posted by David on June 28, 2007 under Bulletin Articles
One of the most difficult yet one of the most essential Holy Manners to develop is humility. We hear much about boldness and courage. We hear little about humility. To us it seems that boldness and courage go well together, but humility goes with neither. Perhaps the human concepts of boldness and courage easily become self-centered expressions (we like self-dependence) and humility becomes a selfless expression (we are wary of dependence on anything other than self).
It takes enormous boldness and courage to yield to God so completely that you allow God to defend you and determine your behavior. On numerous occasions, Jesus tried to teach the twelve God’s admiration of humility (see Luke 9:46-48; 18:15-17; 22:24-30; Matthew 18:1-6; 20:20-28; Mark 9:33-37). Not until Jesus’ death and resurrection did they learn that lesson. Do not be deceived! The lesson is NOT learned easily! To think and behave righteously in the middle of an unrighteous onslaught is hard!
Even those who profess godliness mistake humility for cowardice! Yet, in a parable in Luke 18:9-14, the humble sinner was forgiven, not the man who “dotted the i’s and crossed the t’s.”
That is hard for even us Christians to swallow! The person who gave God 10% of everything, who was honest in his dealings with others, who was not controlled by sexual desires, and who fasted insulted God! The penitent man who unquestionably did wicked things was forgiven! Why? Because sinful behavior was unimportant? No! Because God exalts human humility and debases human arrogance!
Paul said if everything you believe about righteousness is true, make me completely happy. How? Do not be self-centered! Be ?others’ centered! Who was the example of that? None other than Jesus himself!
If I am your brother or sister in Christ because God placed us both there when we were baptized into Christ, Holy Manners demand I consider you and your needs as more important than mine. To arrogantly banish you is just plain rude!
How many problems would be instantly solved in our brotherhood and our congregations if humility reigned and arrogance vanished. Understanding the importance God attaches to humility certainly makes this statement sobering: “Now concerning things sacrificed to idols, we know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge makes arrogant, but love edifies” (1 Corinthians 8:1).
Posted by David on June 21, 2007 under Bulletin Articles
Our sincerity is a window that reveals our motives. In this culture, there are few things that irritate any of us more than having a person ?fake’ sincerity. Why are we offended so much by ?fake’ sincerity? One significant reason is this: When a person ?fakes’ his or her sincerity, he or she hides his or her motives.
Successful con-artists are masters at ?faking’ sincerity. Their primary motive is to scam you and thereby bring you harm. However, they are effective in making you feel that they care infinitely about your hurt and dilemma. Their real motive is to gain your money or your valuables. They make you think their real motive is compassion. Their ?fake’ sincerity hides their real motive.
Because we grasp the nature and importance of sincerity, Christians understand the need to be ?transparent.’ Because we are family in Christ, we want each other to know, “I am trustworthy. I neither seek to hurt you nor use you. Because my sincerity is real, you can see my motive. I do not seek to deceive you, but to encourage you.”
Sincerity requires compassion. One of the reasons for Christians being easy to deceive is found in their compassion. Christians are compassionate because they care about people. Their caring is genuine.
Sincerity within the Christian family can be difficult. Are we all the same? No! While we differ in personalities, we are all in Christ. I do not have to be “ditto marks” of you, and you do not have to be “ditto marks” of me for us to care about each other. Our sincerity with each other always declares, “We may differ, but you never have reason to fear me. I have your back, and I will never stab it!”
If people who refuse to turn to God do not learn good spiritual manners from the Christian family, can they learn good spiritual manners elsewhere? If they cannot see in us a sincerity that is trustworthy and caring, where will they observe it? Never forget that the way you treat others speaks more eloquently about your attitudes and motives than just about how you feel about that person.
Just as Jesus Christ is to us in our weaknesses and flaws, we are to others in Christ in what we regard to be their weaknesses and flaws. Physically, I love my family, flaws and all, and my family loves me, flaws and all. I do not love only those in my family who are just like me, and they do not love me because I am just like them. Is that not the way it is in your family? That is the way it needs to be in God’s family!
“We will know by this that we are of the truth, and will assure our heart before Him in whatever our heart condemns us; for God is greater than our heart and knows all things.” (1 John 3:19, 20)
Posted by David on June 20, 2007 under Sermons
I want to focus our thinking today by using a familiar scripture in Luke 18:1-8. I encourage you to read with me.
Now He was telling them a parable to show that at all times they ought to pray and not to lose heart, saying, “In a certain city there was a judge who did not fear God and did not respect man. There was a widow in that city, and she kept coming to him, saying, ?Give me legal protection from my opponent.’ For a while he was unwilling; but afterward he said to himself, ?Even though I do not fear God nor respect man, yet because this widow bothers me, I will give her legal protection, otherwise by continually coming she will wear me out.’ ” And the Lord said, “Hear what the unrighteous judge *said; now, will not God bring about justice for His elect who cry to Him day and night, and will He delay long over them? I tell you that He will bring about justice for them quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth?”
A fairly common conversation these days focuses on how much things have changed. Depending on our age or our background or both, many of the changes really irritate us. There is not longer a sense of community and neighborliness as there use to be. Prices continue to go up. It is not uncommon to go to public places and hear several languages that sound strange. The world is getting smaller and smaller all the time–someone important can "hiccup" in a nation thousands of miles from us and cause an earthquake in our nation. Living in national isolation is no longer possible–the world has just become too dependent on what is occurring in all nations.
As much as we might dislike change in our world, we typically dislike change in the church even more. We have a family member who dropped out of the church for years, and then came back. She asked, "What happened while I was gone? When I left we sang about the old rugged cross, and when I came back we were singing about thirsty deer."
Whether in life or in the church, some find change filled with the invigoration of challenge, and some find change going from bad to worse.
- The parable we just read involves two characters: the weakest of the weak, and a powerful difference maker.
- The powerful difference maker was a local Jewish judge.
- His rulings mattered.
- As the saying goes, "He could make you or break you."
- He was an unprincipled man.
- His primary concern was his own best interest.
- Though he was a judge in a religious society, his concern for God was at best superficial–the only time he was concerned about God’s interest was when God’s values served his purposes.
- He was not a compassion man–he did not care about the plight of a person unless his concern served his selfish purposes.
- The powerless person was the widow.
- A first century Jewish widow lived in a man’s world.
- Ideally, she would have her father, her brother, or some interested male speak for her to a judge.
- The worst person to plead her case was herself–a woman was typically ignored in that situation.
- If ever there was apparently a hopeless situation, that was it.
- The woman had a real need for protection from someone who was making her life miserable.
- The judge simply did not care about her need, and she had no power to improve the situation.
- From every human perspective, the situation looked hopeless.
- However, the widow persisted, and the judge decided she would make him miserable because she did not have enough sense to know when to give up.
- So the judge acted out of self-interest just to get rid of the woman.
- The result: the powerless woman received her protection.
- Let’s immediately make one thing quite clear: the message of the parable is NOT "hang in there until you wear God down and get what you want."
- The parable used a Jewish literary device that used a comparison: "If an disinterested, ungodly, uncompassionate judge would act in the behalf of the powerless, how much more would an interested, compassionate God act in our behalf?"
- The point is NOT we can wear God down.
- The point is NOT we can get what we want materially.
- The point IS a caring God is constantly concerned about our best interest.
- We can always count on God to act in our best interest.
- The situation seems to be set by verse one: we ought to pray and not lose heart (give up).
- As we stated at the beginning, sometimes we moan about how bad things are getting.
- That is not a new phenomena –verse one indicates that is the way some felt in the first century.
- For some, things seemed to be going from bad to worse–they just wanted Jesus to come back and end an awful situation.
- The government, the idolatrous institutions, and society in general misunderstood Christians and made their lives miserable.
- The Jewish opposition increased their misery and questioned their faith.
- Some died, some lost jobs, and some lived as outcasts just because they believed Jesus was the Christ and was raised from the dead.
- The more time passed, the better organized the opposition against them was.
- In short, for many Christians the situation was miserable and getting more miserable.
- It was easy to conclude that God did not care about them and just give up.
- The solution: trust in God, pray, and do not give up. (We prefer an immediate fix approach.)
- God cared, and existing problems did not prove He did not.
- God had options they did not even consider, and they included working through those who did not care!
- We likely have more in common with the Christians in the first century than we care to admit.
- Many of us do not like the way things are heading–we would change many things if we could!
- Our lifestyle and favoritism is threatened in ways we would not have believed 25 years ago.
- To us, the unthinkable happens too frequently.
- We are beginning to wonder where the silver lining is to our clouds.
- May I point out some things to you.
- The issue is not, "Does God care?"
- The issue is not, "Is God out of options?"
- The issue is not, "Is the situation too bad for God to do anything about it?"
- The issue is this, "Do we have confidence in God?"
- Do we really believe God has our best interest at heart?
- What if our best interest is not found in our desires? What if having what we want would spiritually destroy us?
- When things do not go as we want or wish, is that evidence that God does not care?
- Is the only way things can improve to leave them to our plans and imagination?
- Sometimes we are so focused on ourselves, our lifestyle, our desires, and what we want to happen that we do not see the "big picture."
- God has been fighting the evil that humans invited into His creation since Genesis three.
- He has been at war with Satan in the physical world since humanity yielded to temptation.
- He delays the end until people have the maximum opportunity to escape evil (2 Peter 3:9).
- We matter as individuals, but the eternal conquest of Satan also matters.
- There is much more involved than our immediate desires.
- There must be the awareness, as in any war, that our struggles can be a part of helping achieve God’s objectives.
- Struggles are not proof that God abandons us, but prove the reality of the conflict.
- An essential part of trusting God is our conviction that God always acts in our best interest.
- Most of us are either in the process of rearing children or have reared children.
- There are numerous times when a parent must act in the child’s best interest in spite of the child’s ignorant protest.
- Children want what they want, and they want it now–immediate gratification.
- Being a parent involves saying no, or giving a child a medical treatment, or refusing a child something he or she really wants.
- Most of the time the child has no idea the parent is acting in his or her best interest–the child thinks the parent just does not care.
- It is often the same in our relationship with God.
- We want what we want right now, and we do not understand why we cannot have things just as we want them.
- When God refuses to do things as we want them done in our time frame, we hastily conclude God does not care.
- Too often, we have little or no confidence that God is functioning in our best interest.
- Too often, we blame God for acts of Satan.
- To me, one of the most fascinating statements made in our text is the question, “When Christ returns, will he find faith on the earth?”
- The question is asked by Jesus before he dies and is resurrected, and is not focused on the church.
- The church has not been established, and the question is much deeper than a willingness to be part of the called out.
- May I paraphrase my understanding of Jesus’ question?
- When things get rough in your life, do you place your confidence in God?
- Does your confidence in God depend on things going the way you want them to go?
- Do you limit God to:
- Your imagination of what can happen?
- To your time frame (do you realize how many thousand years were required for God to send the Christ in a moment that could achieve His objectives in human salvation?)
- Too often we substitute our concerns for trusting God, and trust the wrong things.
- We trust the church instead of trusting God.
- We trust our acts of obedience in our confidence "that God owes us."
- We trust human imagination and solutions rather than divine actions which we do not understand.
- We think solutions are found in human discoveries.
- The truth is that we are just uncomfortable in this society in trusting anything that is not basically human in origin.
- We are so impressed with what humans can do that we are very skeptical of any good thing happening that is not human.
- We much prefer "faith in us" to "faith in God."
- Thus the issue: Will there be any place for faith in God when Jesus returns?
You are not a Christian because you believe in faith in us, or the existence of good, or the church is right, or the Bible is superior to all other writings. You are a Christian because you believe in God. Your faith is vested in Him, not in us.
You and I are quite likely as Christians to take Jesus Christ for granted as one who makes perfect sense in the pursuit of salvation. Jesus Christ did not make sense to the Jewish society in the first century. He did not make sense to the first century world. He would not make sense in our world of today. We would not have provided the world salvation though Jesus Christ if that had been "our call."
Place your confidence in God’s acts in Jesus’ death and resurrection. Do not place your confidence in human achievements. Live your life in trust of God–even when your life is difficult. Pray for strength and be persistent, but never quit!
Posted by David on June 14, 2007 under Bulletin Articles
“Let your speech always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt, so that you will know how you should respond to each person.” (Colossians 4:6)
The first noticeable change in the man or woman converted to Christ is seen in his or her speech. (Consider James 3:2-12.). The person who belongs to God does not use words, tones, or expressions as people who do not belong to God.
Years ago, I listened to a man explain why for years he never attended nor gave serious consideration to anyone who attended a congregation of the Church of Christ. He said a leader in the local congregation came into a place of business obviously upset. He expressed his displeasure with language and tones a godly person does not use. The man talking to me heard him, knew who he was, knew where he worshipped, and decided immediately he would never attend where a “member” spoke as the upset Christian did.
In the early 70’s in West Africa, I used an old story as I encouraged a group of local preachers. The story: a dying man called his sons to his bedside. He requested that they bring a small board, a nail, and a hammer. He told his oldest son to drive the nail into the board. He asked another son to pull the nail out of the board. He asked another son to pull out the hole. When the hole could not be removed, he gave this simple admonition: “Pay careful attention to your words. You will never remove the holes they leave.” Years later a man who heard the story that day said he never forgot the lesson.
All of us say things that cause us to shake our heads later (sometimes years later). We can (if fortunate) ask for forgiveness, but we know we can never remove the hole.
God uses words carefully. He speaks truth, but thankfully he always speaks with grace. God’s grace seasons the words God’s children use. God seeks our good even when we fail. God’s children seek the good of others. They let God’s patience teach them how to be patient. God’s patience affects what they say to anyone and how they say it. Holy manners demand we watch what we say everywhere. God always listens!
Jesus once said, “You brood of vipers, how can you, being evil, speak what is good? For the mouth speaks out of that which fills the heart. The good man brings out of his good treasure what is good; and the evil man brings out of his evil treasure what is evil. But I tell you that every careless word that people speak, they shall give an accounting for it in the day of judgment. For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.” (Matthew 12:34-37)
Godly hearts speak godly words. Give attention to a godly heart! Speak godly words! We owe that to each other as fellow Christians-and to everyone else as we represent God. May what we say give people a good impression of God and His people!
Posted by David on June 7, 2007 under Bulletin Articles
Spiritually, an honest heart is critical to a fruitful life. An honest heart grasps, receives, understands, and lives on the basis of God’s teaching.
One of Jesus’ earliest teachings according to Matthew was Jesus’ sermon on the mount. The people who heard Jesus were quite religious, but they missed the point of belonging to God. Their failure hinged on their confidence that God could be pleased and people be deceived at the same time. Their spiritual problem was dishonesty. Consider Matthew 5:21-48. May we let their problems make us shudder as we consider our lives!
(1) They would not dare take a physical life, but they would destroy with their words. In anger they would speak with contempt. They said things that would make them liable in their courts or liable before God eternally.
(2) They would not dare commit adultery, but they would lust without restraint.
(3) They deliberately deceived through their vows by declaring their vow was not binding. Thus they lied while appearing to tell the truth.
(4) They sought vengeance by excusing themselves from being compassionate.
(5) By tweaking their religious rules, they behaved like people who did not even know God. Jesus said God and God only was their standard.
These people were very religious by being consistent with what they heard. They believed how one did something was more important than what he or she did. They thought doing things the right way was what was important to God. Jesus told them the outcome of what they did was as important as the way they did it.
If we follow Jesus Christ, we need to be trustworthy. I need to know I can depend on you, and you need to know you can depend on me. We cherish each other and our relationship because we both understand something bigger than us is involved-people’s view of Jesus Christ and God.
Posted by David on May 31, 2007 under Bulletin Articles
“Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.” (Ephesians 4:32)
“So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience; bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you.” (Colossians 3:12, 13)
“The Lord’s bond-servant must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged, with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will.” (2 Timothy 2:24-26)
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.” (Galatians 5:22-24)
“Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge, and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness, and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (2 Peter 1:5-8)
The New Testament includes so much emphasis on the spiritual importance of kindness, it is overwhelming. Kindness (1) is a characteristic of God (Romans 2:4); (2) a characteristic of Christian love (1 Corinthians 13:4); (3) a characteristic of a servant (2 Timothy 2:24); in the Spirit’s fruit (Galatians 5:22); a part of the Christian graces (2 Peter 1:7); and a part of Christian behavior (Ephesians 4:32; Colossians 3:12, 13). Many in the first century were not kind prior to conversion. Jesus Christ taught them to be kind after conversion. Their kindness toward people and each other made them distinctive.
The American Restoration movement began as a unity movement crying, “Not the only Christians, but Christians only.” In time, it confronted those not in the movement. In more time, it confronted those in the movement. In still more time, it decided faith should be affirmed by attacking baptized believers. It declared that unity should be preserved by division.
In this migration, kindness was abandoned, rarely taught, and regarded by some to be a spiritual weakness rather than a godly strength. Why do Christians abandon gossip, hypocrisy, mean spirits, judgmental attitudes, hurtful motives, etc.? If we say because of commands, something is lacking. What is lacking? The Holy Manner of kindness. Kindness is not what others show us, but what we show others.
Posted by David on May 24, 2007 under Bulletin Articles
So when He had washed their feet, and taken His garments and reclined at the table again, He said to them, “Do you know what I have done to you? You call Me Teacher and Lord; and you are right, for so I am. If I then, the Lord and the Teacher, washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. For I gave you an example that you also should do as I did to you. Truly, truly, I say to you, a slave is not greater than his master, nor is one who is sent greater than the one who sent him. If you know these things, you are blessed if you do them. (John 13:12-17)
If I belong to God, I should respect you. Why? God created me in His image, and God created you in His image (Genesis 1:27). If I respect God, I must respect you.
If you are in Christ, I have two reasons to respect you. Not only did God create us in His image, but God also recreated us in Christ (Ephesians 4:20-24; Colossians 3:9-11). Everything we are physically and spiritually we owe to God.
What does it mean for a person in Christ to respect another person in Christ? (1) It means I will never give you reason to distrust me. I will always hold you in honor. I will value your reputation as much as I value my own. I will be as sensitive about your person as I am about mine. I will be as devoted to your spiritual success as I am devoted to my own spiritual success. I look at you as a trust given to me by God. Because we belong to Christ, we belong to the same family. That means family relationship in Christ is bigger than any sibling rivalry or dispute.
(2) It means I do not deceive you. I will be honest with you and about you. What I say to you will be consistent with what I say to others about you. Your integrity is important to me. I will handle your integrity as carefully as I would want you to handle my integrity.
Being a Christian no more gives me the right to seek your destruction than it gives me the right to ask God to destroy you. Being a Christian no more gives me the right to seek to harm you than it gives me the right to ask God to harm you. By God’s act, we were both forgiven. By God’s act, we both continue among the saved. By God’s act, we are part of His family. Neither of us have what we have in Christ by our own goodness. Both of us are what we are in Christ because of God’s goodness.
So I honor you as a brother or sister. My honor is genuine, not pretended (Romans 12:10-16). I honor you because we are together in Christ. When we disagree, I still honor you. When you succeed, I honor you. When you fall, I pick you up. I do for you what God does for me. You do for me what God does for you.
My honor for you causes others to honor the Christ who made you and me. We expose all to Christ’s kindness by showing holy manners to each other. When people fail to see holy manners in society, we Christians show them such manners by the way we treat each other.
Posted by David on May 23, 2007 under Sermons
A common concept among Christians is this: "It is physically profitable to live a godly life." Thus, if a person wants a guarantee of ‘the good life,’ he or she needs to be a godly person. If a person wants protection against disease, he or she needs to be a godly person. If a person wishes to be delivered from accidents, he or she needs to be a godly person. If a person wants the guarantee of deliverance from an early death, he or she needs to be a godly person.
Then Christians observe godly people live in poverty, lose fortunes, or struggle in their older years. They witness godly people die of cancer, die in car wrecks caused by someone high on drugs or alcohol, or die when they are young. If they expected some form of physical deliverance from undesirable physical happenings, incidents such as these deeply shake their faith in Jesus Christ. They cry out, "How could God let that happen to him (or her)?" "Why did that happen to him (or her)?"
Two questions. (1) Is it only now that bad physical things happen to godly people? (2) Is our confidence in good things happening to godly people based on an American concept or a promise from God?
It may be effective to tell Americans in a prosperous country physically to expect good things to happen if they are godly. However, never suggest that on mission fields where the country is poor, positive changes come slowly, and physical hardship is the common existence for the majority of people. The core of the gospel when first presented was not, "Belong to God and receive good physical rewards."
This does not suggest that God does not bless us when we seek His ways. His ways lead us to existence with him. It was the apostle Paul who wrote to suffering Christians:
"For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us." (Romans 8:18)
Shortly after those words, he wrote: "And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose." (Romans 8:28)
The blessings he wrote of were about the certainty of salvation in Jesus Christ. He wrote of the intercession of God’s Spirit on our behalf, justification, God’s devotion to us, freedom from condemnation, and the fact that nothing can deprive us of God’s love–not even suffering or death.
Our confident hope is base on God’s gifts after death, not on Satan’s harassment in this life.
- Christian existence from the first was based on physical privation and suffering caused by belonging to God.
- Have you considered these facts?
- We exist because we place our confidence in a crucified, resurrected Savior.
- Tradition tells us all of the twelve but one (John) were killed for their faith.
- The twelve were jailed and beaten by the order of religious leaders because they dared endorse Jesus as the Christ (Acts 5:17, 18, 40-42)
- Stephen was killed by religious people who disagreed with him (Acts 7:58-60).
- The apostle James was executed by sword (Acts 12:1) and the same ruler intended to kill Peter.
- The only reason a mob stopped stoning Paul was due to the fact they thought Paul was dead (Acts 14:19).
- Paul and Silas were publicly beaten and jailed for healing a possessed girl (Acts 16:19-23).
- Have you recently read these scriptures?
- Hebrews 11:32-40, And what more shall I say? For time will fail me if I tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets, who by faith conquered kingdoms, performed acts of righteousness, obtained promises, shut the mouths of lions, quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, from weakness were made strong, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight. Women received back their dead by resurrection; and others were tortured, not accepting their release, so that they might obtain a better resurrection; and others experienced mockings and scourgings, yes, also chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were tempted, they were put to death with the sword; they went about in sheepskins, in goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, ill-treated (men of whom the world was not worthy), wandering in deserts and mountains and caves and holes in the ground. And all these, having gained approval through their faith, did not receive what was promised, because God had provided something better for us, so that apart from us they would not be made perfect.
- 2 Corinthians 11:22-33, Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they descendants of Abraham? So am I. Are they servants of Christ?-I speak as if insane-I more so; in far more labors, in far more imprisonments, beaten times without number, often in danger of death. Five times I received from the Jews thirty-nine lashes. Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, a night and a day I have spent in the deep. I have been on frequent journeys, in dangers from rivers, dangers from robbers, dangers from my countrymen, dangers from the Gentiles, dangers in the city, dangers in the wilderness, dangers on the sea, dangers among false brethren; I have been in labor and hardship, through many sleepless nights, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. Apart from such external things, there is the daily pressure on me of concern for all the churches. Who is weak without my being weak? Who is led into sin without my intense concern? If I have to boast, I will boast of what pertains to my weakness. The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, He who is blessed forever, knows that I am not lying. In Damascus the ethnarch under Aretas the king was guarding the city of the Damascenes in order to seize me, and I was let down in a basket through a window in the wall, and so escaped his hands.
- I do not think most of us have given serious thought to the enormous difficulties Jesus endured in his ministry.
- Consider some things we do not talk about much regarding Jesus’ life during his ministry.
- Though he was surrounded by people much of the time, he was a very lonely man.
- Great loneliness is created when the people closest to you do not understand you.
- Not even his twelve understood him!
- Consider two occasions of the many:
Matthew 8:26,27, He said to them, “Why are you afraid, you men of little faith?” Then He got up and rebuked the winds and the sea, and it became perfectly calm. The men were amazed, and said, “What kind of a man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey Him?”
- Of the many things they saw Jesus do, they were astounded that the winds and Sea of Galilee obeyed his commands.
- They were so surprised they asked, "What kind of man is this?"
John 16:29-33, His disciples said, “Lo, now You are speaking plainly and are not using a figure of speech. Now we know that You know all things, and have no need for anyone to question You; by this we believe that You came from God.” Jesus answered them, “Do you now believe? (Emphasis mine.) Behold, an hour is coming, and has already come, for you to be scattered, each to his own home, and to leave Me alone; and yet I am not alone, because the Father is with Me. These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.”
- This occurred the last night of Jesus’ earthly life as he was with his disciples.
- Before his words confused them, but now they understood.
- Sure, they did!
- Jesus knew they just thought they understood.
- What a lonely night that was for him!
- His own relatives thought he was crazy.
Mark 3:21, When His own people heard of this, they went out to take custody of Him; for they were saying, “He has lost His senses.”
- That must have been discouraging!
- They did not take any sense of pleasure in what he did, but they were ashamed of his actions.
- His brothers urged him to dangerously expose himself to a crowd that could have easily become a mob.
John 7:1-5, After these things Jesus was walking in Galilee, for He was unwilling to walk in Judea because the Jews were seeking to kill Him. Now the feast of the Jews, the Feast of Booths, was near. Therefore His brothers said to Him, “Leave here and go into Judea, so that Your disciples also may see Your works which You are doing. For no one does anything in secret when he himself seeks to be known publicly. If You do these things, show Yourself to the world.” For not even His brothers were believing in Him.
- I submit if Jesus knew his life was in danger in Judea, his brothers knew Jesus would be in danger in Judea.
- If that is true, his brothers were encouraging Jesus to do something they knew could get him killed.
- To have your own brothers unconcerned about your physical well being had to be powerfully discouraging!
- Publicly he was said to have a demon by the religious leaders.
Matthew 12:22-24, Then a demon-possessed man who was blind and mute was brought to Jesus, and He healed him, so that the mute man spoke and saw. All the crowds were amazed, and were saying, “This man cannot be the Son of David, can he?” But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, “This man casts out demons only by Beelzebul the ruler of the demons.”
- The people who easily should have known his actions were God’s work publicly said his actions were the result of evil forces.
- These leaders accused him of being an evil man because he did things on the Sabbath they did not approve of.
John 9:16, Therefore some of the Pharisees were saying, “This man is not from God, because He does not keep the Sabbath.” But others were saying, “How can a man who is a sinner perform such signs?” And there was a division among them.
- Again, those who should have confirmed the good he did tried to discredit it.
- Because Jesus did not do what they expected in the Messiah, they declared him evil.
- People accused him of eating and drinking too much to be God’s spokesman.
Matthew 11:18,19, For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ?He has a demon!’ The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ?Behold, a gluttonous man and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ Yet wisdom is vindicated by her deeds.”
- He was accused publicly of misrepresenting himself.
John 8:52,53, The Jews said to Him, “Now we know that You have a demon. Abraham died, and the prophets also; and You say, ?If anyone keeps My word, he will never taste of death.’ Surely You are not greater than our father Abraham, who died? The prophets died too; whom do You make Yourself out to be?”
- He was accused of associating with the wrong kind of people.
Matthew 9:10-12, Then it happened that as Jesus was reclining at the table in the house, behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and were dining with Jesus and His disciples. When the Pharisees saw this, they said to His disciples, “Why is your Teacher eating with the tax collectors and sinners?” But when Jesus heard this, He said, “It is not those who are healthy who need a physician, but those who are sick."
- People in Mark 5 asked Jesus to leave their country when he restored an uncontrollable man to his right mind at the price of a herd of pigs.
- They saw no potential in his deed.
- They saw only unacceptable cost.
- He found more faith in a non-Israelite than he found in any Jew.
Matthew 8:10, Now when Jesus heard this, He marveled and said to those who were following, “Truly I say to you, I have not found such great faith with anyone in Israel."
- The religious leaders of Israel said the Jewish nation would be better off if Jesus was dead.
John 11:47-50, Therefore the chief priests and the Pharisees convened a council, and were saying, “What are we doing? For this man is performing many signs. If we let Him go on like this, all men will believe in Him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation.” But one of them, Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, said to them, “You know nothing at all, nor do you take into account that it is expedient for you that one man die for the people, and that the whole nation not perish.”
Jesus endured the opposition of family members, of the Jewish people, and of the religious leaders to be loyal to God. Do not think you do something special when your godly behavior results in opposition from people that you least expected opposition? Jesus already has been there.
Godly behavior can produce opposition and suffering! Christians are not good because they expect only good to happen to them!
