We all have those people in our lives, the ones who blow up, fly off the handle and we're left to clean up after them, apologize to others for them, etc. Don't have that person in your life? Maybe you should thank someone for cleaning up your messes.
In Sunday school, we read about David's dealings with a man named Nabal. 1 Samuel 25 gives the account of David finding sheep shearers near Paran, south of Judah. These men worked for Nabal, who's name, or nickname meant "Foolish" or "Boorish". He was a mean-spirited, selfish and downright stupid man. In exchange for getting his sheep sheared, David sent greetings and blessings to Nabal's household and also a unit of soldiers to protect Nabal's shepherds. David was willing to take whatever compensation Nabal thought was right for this service, rather than demand his own price.
So when David's young men came, they spoke to Nabal according to all these words in the name of David, and waited. Then Nabal answered David's servants, and said, "Who is David, and who is the son of Jesse? There are many servants nowadays who break away each one from his master. Shall I then take my bread and my water and my meat that I have killed for my shearers, and give it to men when I do not know where they are from?"
1 Samuel 25:9-11
David gets his goodwill gesture thrown back in his face, and tells his men to arm themselves in case of trouble. Nabal was the sort to create conflict where there was none and David would strike him down if necessary. The good thing about even a dunce like Nabal was that he had married up. His wife, Abigail, was a wise and levelheaded woman. One of David's men went to her and explained the situation.
Then Abigail made haste and took two hundred loaves of bread, two skins of wine, five sheep already dressed, five seahs of roasted grain, one hundred clusters of raisins, and two hundred cakes of figs, and loaded them on donkeys. And she said to her servants, "Go on before me; see, I am coming after you." But she did not tell her husband Nabal. So it was, as she rode on the donkey, that she went down under cover of the hill; and there were David and his men, coming down toward her, and she met them.
1 Samuel 25:18-20
She hurried to meet David, who was already prepared to rain havoc on Nabal and his household. Abagail begged forgiveness for her husband's foolishness and prayed that as the Lord had blessed David that he would in turn bless Nabal and not take action against him or his men. David relented and blessed Abagail in the name of The Lord.
Abagail then went back and waited to tell her husband (he had prepared a feast for himself and was drunk) that she had pulled his fat out of the fire. When he heard the report, he had a stroke and later died. (See 1 Samuel 25: 25-40)
When an unreasonable person acts against us, we might first want to act in turn to such a person. Our best reaction is forgiveness, even in the absence of an apology. When someone we are responsible for acts foolishly (your kid breaks a window or picks a fight, etc.), we should do everything in our power to set things right if they won't . As much as is your responsibility, be a good neighbor and friend to those around you. We are, after all, representatives of Christ and are called to be peacemakers as well as Truth-bearers.
Avoid the Nabals of the world if you can, but if you have one or two in your life, be prepared to be a bridge builder. If you're insulted by such a person, bless them anyway and do right by them so that you will find favor with God. They may not conveniently drop dead, but they will have shame on their heads.
Sunday, November 10, 2013
Saturday, October 26, 2013
Are you saved? P.S.: Baptism
On baptism...This is in response to a comment from a reader. I must be slipping in my old age. Baptism can be a tricky subject depending on the doctrines you were raised with, so this next bit is going to be my opinion supported by various scriptures.
First, baptism as I read it in the scripture is done by immersion. It's a picture of burial and resurrection. Jesus was baptized by John, his cousin to fulfill scripture and to please the Father.
Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him. And John tried to prevent Him, saying, "I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me?" But Jesus answered and said to him, "Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness." Then he allowed Him. When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him. And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased."
Matthew 3:13-17
Jesus commanded that baptism be performed by His followers for new believers.
And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen.
Matthew 28:18-20
Baptism is a sign of repentance, as indicated in Acts chapter 2 but it is not just water baptism that is spoken of. The water immersion is a symbol of our baptism into the Holy Spirit. We must separate the two, lest we wander into a legalistic view, seeing water immersion as necessary to enter Heaven. When a person experiences salvation, they receive the Spirit. Jesus spoke of this, as did John the Baptizer. Peter said it this way to a crowd in Judea.
John answered, saying to all, "I indeed baptize you with water; but One mightier than I is coming, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather the wheat into His barn; but the chaff He will burn with unquenchable fire."
Luke 3:16,17
And as I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell upon them, as upon us at the beginning. Then I remembered the word of the Lord, how He said, 'John indeed baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit.' If therefore God gave them the same gift as He gave us when we believed on the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could withstand God?"
Acts 11:15-17
These converts had received the Holy Spirit. They had been baptized in the fire of the Spirit. They would be immersed in water later. So, the two things are separate.
Now, that being said, are we then able to ignore the act of water immersion? To paraphrase Paul, Heaven forbid! Baptism is the public symbol of what has happened in the new believer's soul. Jesus set the example and the practice was done as soon as possible for all new converts in the first century church. Immersion is the picture of our death to sin and the resurrection into a new life as a new creature in Christ. It is, I believe, the first most important step of obedience a new Christian takes part of. If a person refuses to be baptized, I would wonder about their will to obey Christ and by extension their claim to be saved. When Philip met the eunuch and witnessed to him, he was converted and as soon as they came to a body of water, he wanted to be baptized.
Now as they went down the road, they came to some water. And the eunuch said, "See, here is water. What hinders me from being baptized?" Then Philip said, "If you believe with all your heart, you may." And he answered and said, "I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God." So he commanded the chariot to stand still. And both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water, and he baptized him.
Acts 8:36-38
So, we get saved, immersed in the Holy Spirit then we follow in obedience and follow the example set by Christ and His disciples by being water immersed before the church body. As I said, you may have different doctrinal teachings and we could get way off into the weeds. Arguments arise from smaller subjects. I'll leave it at this. Keep seeking out the Word of God and keep praying!
Sunday, October 13, 2013
Goodbye, Stranger!
According to some estimates, up to 80% of professed "Christians" are what Jesus called "Workers of Lawlessness"
"Not everyone who says to me, `Lord, Lord!' will enter the Kingdom of Heaven, only those who do what my Father in heaven wants. On that Day, many will say to me, `Lord, Lord! Didn't we prophesy in your name? Didn't we expel demons in your name? Didn't we perform many miracles in your name?' Then I will tell them to their faces, `I never knew you! Get away from me, you workers of lawlessness!" Matthew 7:21-23 CJB
Notice that Jesus didn't say that He previously knew them, then forgot them. He will say to those false believers, "I never knew you." Powerful words, and certainly something we don't want to hear on the other side of this life. So, if you say you're saved, how do you know? Is salvation secure or is it like loose change in a threadbare pocket; subject to slip away if we're not careful? The Bible is clear on two things:
1: Salvation, if we truly experience it, is a once and for all deal.
2: The door to Life is narrow and few find it. Many fake it even without knowing it.
Ok, so if it's such a rare thing to be truly saved, why are there churches filled with people, Bible teachers, Sunday School directors, elders, deacons, preachers? Let's think on this question: Why did Jesus have so many followers? There are many places in the Gospels that tell us that Jesus had to get away from the crowds, and on two occasions He preached into the evening and then fed huge crowds numbering in the thousands. Were these throngs of people all true believers in Messiah? The Gospel of John, chapter six records Jesus' words to the crowds who followed Him around the lake after He fed them.
When Jesus tells the parable of the sower, He illustrates four kinds of people who hear the Gospel. Only one of the four is fruitful and useful to the Kingdom. One hears, but the message doesn't take root at all. One converts quickly but takes no deep root in the Word or in the church. He quickly burns out. One takes root and tries for a while but the everyday worries of life crush his efforts to grow. In many parables, He speaks of true and false converts: sheep and goats; wise virgins and foolish virgins; wheat and tares; good and bad fish.
All these parables speak of people in the same group, but when Judgment day comes, the false hearts and motives are found out and those people are cast away into punishment. They all looked like believers. In the parable of the wheat and tares, the workers ask if the newly planted tares may be pulled before the harvest. They are told to wait, lest the wheat is pulled up too. God's timing will reveal the fakers. It's not for us to try to point them out.
Nowhere in scripture do we see the true convert losing eternal life.
"My sheep listen to my voice, I recognize them, they follow me, and I give them eternal life. They will absolutely never be destroyed, and no one will snatch them from my hands. My Father, who gave them to me, is greater than all; and no one can snatch them from the Father's hands. I and the Father are one." John 10:27-30
We see that they can fall into sin and self-righteous defense of that sin and be cast out of fellowship, handed over to the chastisement of the world. (Matthew 18:15-17) This was spoken of as a last resort to shake up the believer who is spinning his wheels. The parable of the prodigal son was the story of a believer who fell into sin and had to be knocked down to a low place before repentance kicked in and he came back to fellowship. He was never disowned by the father, but his pride led him to lose the joy of being an heir.
A true convert may, for a season, fall into sin but the Spirit is always trying to prick us into repentance. If a person is sinning and they have no sense of conviction at all, then the problem may very well be that they were never truly saved in the first place. Paul spoke of quenching and grieving the Spirit through sin, but we cannot force Him out once He has entered. If we're walking in Light, then we will be full of truth and darkness will be far from us.
1 John, chapter 3 teaches that if we're saved; that is, if we belong to God, we will not keep on sinning, or follow a pattern of sin. Those who claim to be believers and still continue a sinful life were never believers in the first place. They belong to Satan, not God. There aren't people who get saved, start falling away and get unsaved. There are true converts who, when they sin feel the sting of conviction and repent and there are the ones who lie to others and themselves, claiming to belong to God but who still walk in darkness.
These words of John reflect the words of Jesus, that we're either saved or we're strangers to the Lord. Only God can see with certainty, so we can only really examine our own lives. When we sin, does it grieve us or is the grief delayed a bit or muted? If that's the case, we have some confession time ahead of us, a sit down with Jesus to clear away the mess and let Him soften our hearts again. If you are doing what you've learned to be wrong but just keep doing it without any feeling of remorse or conviction, be aware that this is not the mark of a convert. You can continue lying to yourself "I can follow God and still...(enter your pet sin here) but you cannot get past God on Judgment Day. Please, don't be one of the souls who is told "I never knew you" despite your grand claims of service to The Lord.
Sunday, May 12, 2013
Digging a lake by the spoonful
Today was a red letter day in the battle of wits I've been waging with a certain cat. There are several cats living in my garage. I know, if you don't feed them they'll go away and all that, but I'm a sucker.
This one female cat had already birthed a litter of kittens in the last cold week of March and due to her lax mothering skills and poor choice of nesting locations, the kittens froze to death. She dutifully brought in dead kitten after dead kitten to the garage until I had disposed of all five.
I've been trying to trick this cat into a crate or gather up the courage to snatch her up into a crate to take her to the vet. The other day I noticed that she was laying in one of the big crates, so I started giving her space until today I was able to shut the door on a very upset cat and carry the crate to the vet. No more kittens for that little cat. I hope she doesn't jump on my face Wednesday when I fetch her from the vet and loose her in the garage.
As with the cat, it takes a series of small victories and a few near misses, even some abject failures to make progress in our walk with The Lord. He understands this, even expects it and as long as we're looking forward and doing our part to walk with Him, God will not let us fall too hard. I like to look at Peter as an example of a regular guy who had to fall a few times before he became a powerful preacher and church builder.
'
It's not surprising that Jesus' first followers were fishermen by trade. Jesus spent most of His ministry in a place where generations of people had made their living fishing and selling their catch in the nearby towns. The huge lake has it's own sometimes violent storm systems and serves the Galilee area along with the small villages that were called the "Ten Towns". Jesus knew the locals and saw the men who would be best suited to spread His message and turn the world upside-down. The first two He called were Simon and his brother Andrew. Jesus saw something in the rough and often loudmouthed Simon and took to calling him Peter, the "Rock".
At one moment, Peter might proclaim Jesus to be Messiah and the next day, Jesus rebukes him, "Get behind me, Satan!" Matthew 16:13-17; 21-23 When Jesus walked on the water toward the disciples on the boat in the middle of a squall it was ready-shoot-aim Peter who scrambled out of the boat to walk toward Jesus, all full of faith and in the next moments seeing the storm instead of looking to The Lord and sinking like, well, a rock. Jesus plucks him out of the water and helps him into the boat, "Such little trust! Why did you doubt? Matthew 14:28-31
It was Peter who cut the ear off of one of the men sent to arrest Jesus. Peter told Jesus that he was willing to die for Him, and Jesus just looked at Peter and told him of his upcoming denials. Peter and John were the first to reach the empty tomb. Peter picked up the burial clothes of his Lord. It was Peter who was forgiven and reconciled in a very special and personal way. "Feed My Sheep." Jesus told Peter that he would suffer a great deal for his faith and Peter simply turned around and asked what would happen to John.
At Pentecost, this man who had been a roller coaster of emotion and success followed quickly by failure stood and preached, empowered by the Holy Spirit to a crowd of foreigners who heard him in their own native tongues. They even remarked that Peter and the others were not educated men and yet they spoke with authority and recited scripture from memory. See Acts chapter 2.
Church tradition tells us that Peter was martyred, killed for the cause of Christ. He was to be crucified but opted to be hanged upside-down because he felt unworthy to be crucified in the same manner as The Lord. Peter went from being an unstable stick of dynamite to being the man Jesus saw from the beginning, a rock; a firm and stable founding member of the Body of Christ, speaking boldly but acting humbly in his service to Christ.
This one female cat had already birthed a litter of kittens in the last cold week of March and due to her lax mothering skills and poor choice of nesting locations, the kittens froze to death. She dutifully brought in dead kitten after dead kitten to the garage until I had disposed of all five.
I've been trying to trick this cat into a crate or gather up the courage to snatch her up into a crate to take her to the vet. The other day I noticed that she was laying in one of the big crates, so I started giving her space until today I was able to shut the door on a very upset cat and carry the crate to the vet. No more kittens for that little cat. I hope she doesn't jump on my face Wednesday when I fetch her from the vet and loose her in the garage.
As with the cat, it takes a series of small victories and a few near misses, even some abject failures to make progress in our walk with The Lord. He understands this, even expects it and as long as we're looking forward and doing our part to walk with Him, God will not let us fall too hard. I like to look at Peter as an example of a regular guy who had to fall a few times before he became a powerful preacher and church builder.
'
It's not surprising that Jesus' first followers were fishermen by trade. Jesus spent most of His ministry in a place where generations of people had made their living fishing and selling their catch in the nearby towns. The huge lake has it's own sometimes violent storm systems and serves the Galilee area along with the small villages that were called the "Ten Towns". Jesus knew the locals and saw the men who would be best suited to spread His message and turn the world upside-down. The first two He called were Simon and his brother Andrew. Jesus saw something in the rough and often loudmouthed Simon and took to calling him Peter, the "Rock".
At one moment, Peter might proclaim Jesus to be Messiah and the next day, Jesus rebukes him, "Get behind me, Satan!" Matthew 16:13-17; 21-23 When Jesus walked on the water toward the disciples on the boat in the middle of a squall it was ready-shoot-aim Peter who scrambled out of the boat to walk toward Jesus, all full of faith and in the next moments seeing the storm instead of looking to The Lord and sinking like, well, a rock. Jesus plucks him out of the water and helps him into the boat, "Such little trust! Why did you doubt? Matthew 14:28-31
It was Peter who cut the ear off of one of the men sent to arrest Jesus. Peter told Jesus that he was willing to die for Him, and Jesus just looked at Peter and told him of his upcoming denials. Peter and John were the first to reach the empty tomb. Peter picked up the burial clothes of his Lord. It was Peter who was forgiven and reconciled in a very special and personal way. "Feed My Sheep." Jesus told Peter that he would suffer a great deal for his faith and Peter simply turned around and asked what would happen to John.
At Pentecost, this man who had been a roller coaster of emotion and success followed quickly by failure stood and preached, empowered by the Holy Spirit to a crowd of foreigners who heard him in their own native tongues. They even remarked that Peter and the others were not educated men and yet they spoke with authority and recited scripture from memory. See Acts chapter 2.
Church tradition tells us that Peter was martyred, killed for the cause of Christ. He was to be crucified but opted to be hanged upside-down because he felt unworthy to be crucified in the same manner as The Lord. Peter went from being an unstable stick of dynamite to being the man Jesus saw from the beginning, a rock; a firm and stable founding member of the Body of Christ, speaking boldly but acting humbly in his service to Christ.
Plugged in and turned on
Christians have a problem. We're called to be different. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God Romans 12:2. We are also called to spread the Gospel throughout the world.
And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen. Matthew 28:18-20.
We can blend with the world in an attempt to draw people into the Body of Christ. This may grow the number of members on the rolls but it leaves us wide open to the temptation of conformity. The Church has let in much of what is, by Biblical standards idolatry in the attempt to win over people from different cultures. Even in the first century, Paul was dealing with the problem of conformity in the church he planted in Corinth. Having received word that all kinds of problems were occurring, from sexual immorality to confusion over the Lord's Supper and other matters of faith, Paul sent a stern but loving letter to be read to the church there. Corinth was a cultural center in the Roman empire and therefore had many temples to various gods and goddesses. Prostitution was openly practiced as a form of worship. New believers had a hard time shaking off old habits and fellow believers were unknowingly becoming stumbling blocks with their free practice of Christianity.
Paul was clear that we have to be different, not legalistic and pious but different than the people around us while at the same time not turning down courtesies and customs that might allow us to be more powerful witnesses. If you go into a home and they eat crickets and cat meat, don't make a fuss about your pet. Sit down, eat what is presented to you and be Christ to that family. If you can drink wine with a clear conscience and you don't drink in excess but your friend is uncomfortable around alcohol, order tea or water so you don't become a stumbling block.
Some people take the Gospel and their desire to not be tempted to the extreme and they form communities that operate outside the modern world. Amish people dress plain and don't use electric devices. They only marry within the Amish community and a member who leaves the Amish life must either come back and be accepted or be shunned by the community. \The Puritans saw any behavior not conforming to their narrow definition of acceptance as wicked and many innocent people were burned or tortured for witchcraft, usually just because they made medicines or didn't practice Christianity.
In Jesus' time, the Pharisees and Sadducees were sects in the Jewish community that thought that their way of doing Judaism was the only way. If it wasn't approved by these men, who themselves invented ways to break Torah as it suited them, they saw fit to cast judgment on you. Jesus had a habit of walking among and eating with sinners: tax collectors, prostitutes, lepers, the blind and generally poor people written off by the political and religious class of that time.
For Yochanan came, fasting, not drinking -- so they say, `He has a demon.' The Son of Man came, eating freely and drinking wine -- so they say, `Aha! A glutton and a drunkard! A friend of tax-collectors and sinners!' Well, the proof of wisdom is in the actions it produces."
Matthew 11:18,19
He didn't participate in their sinfulness but He didn't just close Himself off with the disciples either. There is a balance to be struck. In John's gospel, there is a story about a crippled man whom Jesus came and healed. The man had been unable to get into the healing pool called Beit-Zata. After the man was healed, Jesus saw him later in the temple.
Afterward Jesus found him in the temple, and said to him, "See, you have been made well. Sin no more, lest a worse thing come upon you."
If we become imitators of Christ, following His example of loving people without tolerating sinful behavior, we can live in a sinful world and still stand tall in The Lord. Remember that if not for the grace of God we would all be partying on the wide road to Hell.
And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen. Matthew 28:18-20.
We can blend with the world in an attempt to draw people into the Body of Christ. This may grow the number of members on the rolls but it leaves us wide open to the temptation of conformity. The Church has let in much of what is, by Biblical standards idolatry in the attempt to win over people from different cultures. Even in the first century, Paul was dealing with the problem of conformity in the church he planted in Corinth. Having received word that all kinds of problems were occurring, from sexual immorality to confusion over the Lord's Supper and other matters of faith, Paul sent a stern but loving letter to be read to the church there. Corinth was a cultural center in the Roman empire and therefore had many temples to various gods and goddesses. Prostitution was openly practiced as a form of worship. New believers had a hard time shaking off old habits and fellow believers were unknowingly becoming stumbling blocks with their free practice of Christianity.
Paul was clear that we have to be different, not legalistic and pious but different than the people around us while at the same time not turning down courtesies and customs that might allow us to be more powerful witnesses. If you go into a home and they eat crickets and cat meat, don't make a fuss about your pet. Sit down, eat what is presented to you and be Christ to that family. If you can drink wine with a clear conscience and you don't drink in excess but your friend is uncomfortable around alcohol, order tea or water so you don't become a stumbling block.
Some people take the Gospel and their desire to not be tempted to the extreme and they form communities that operate outside the modern world. Amish people dress plain and don't use electric devices. They only marry within the Amish community and a member who leaves the Amish life must either come back and be accepted or be shunned by the community. \The Puritans saw any behavior not conforming to their narrow definition of acceptance as wicked and many innocent people were burned or tortured for witchcraft, usually just because they made medicines or didn't practice Christianity.
In Jesus' time, the Pharisees and Sadducees were sects in the Jewish community that thought that their way of doing Judaism was the only way. If it wasn't approved by these men, who themselves invented ways to break Torah as it suited them, they saw fit to cast judgment on you. Jesus had a habit of walking among and eating with sinners: tax collectors, prostitutes, lepers, the blind and generally poor people written off by the political and religious class of that time.
For Yochanan came, fasting, not drinking -- so they say, `He has a demon.' The Son of Man came, eating freely and drinking wine -- so they say, `Aha! A glutton and a drunkard! A friend of tax-collectors and sinners!' Well, the proof of wisdom is in the actions it produces."
Matthew 11:18,19
He didn't participate in their sinfulness but He didn't just close Himself off with the disciples either. There is a balance to be struck. In John's gospel, there is a story about a crippled man whom Jesus came and healed. The man had been unable to get into the healing pool called Beit-Zata. After the man was healed, Jesus saw him later in the temple.
Afterward Jesus found him in the temple, and said to him, "See, you have been made well. Sin no more, lest a worse thing come upon you."
If we become imitators of Christ, following His example of loving people without tolerating sinful behavior, we can live in a sinful world and still stand tall in The Lord. Remember that if not for the grace of God we would all be partying on the wide road to Hell.
Saturday, April 27, 2013
No extra credit
In the course of serving God day by day, we can get distracted by the apparently better or flashier service of others. I teach Sunday School to, usually two people but occasionally as many as four or five. Sometimes when I visit a bigger church, I look at the huge list of Sunday School class offerings, broken down by age, sex, etc. I look down at my feet and think about how nice it would be to actually utilize all the extra things in my teacher's guide built in for larger classes. Does God give grades for the size or impressiveness of a class or a special group? Does the person who cooks the meals for potlucks or brings the snacks for VBS get as much credit as the one who programs the music or performs a special or teaches a senior class?
In Luke 17, we find the answer: no. We're all servants. Since our human efforts to impress God, even our good deeds are counted as dirty rags, (It's not what you do for Him, it's what He did for you) God isn't some teacher whom you can kiss up to and get a better place in the class.
The apostles said to the Lord, "Increase our faith!" The Lord replied, “If you had faith the size of a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,' and it would obey you. "Would any of you say to your servant, who had just come in from the field after plowing or tending sheep, ‘Come! Sit down for dinner'? Wouldn't you say instead, ‘Fix my dinner. Put on the clothes of a table servant and wait on me while I eat and drink. After that, you can eat and drink'? You won't thank the servant because the servant did what you asked, will you? In the same way, when you have done everything required of you, you should say, ‘We servants deserve no special praise. We have only done our duty.'"
Luke 17:5-10
Whatever we do for God, we're doing just what we're supposed to do. Billy Graham is just doing his duty, the church janitor is doing his duty; Paul was doing only his duty. If your heart is in your service and you're serving God and people because you love them and not because you're trying to gain favor, then you're doing the right thing.
In Luke 17, we find the answer: no. We're all servants. Since our human efforts to impress God, even our good deeds are counted as dirty rags, (It's not what you do for Him, it's what He did for you) God isn't some teacher whom you can kiss up to and get a better place in the class.
The apostles said to the Lord, "Increase our faith!" The Lord replied, “If you had faith the size of a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,' and it would obey you. "Would any of you say to your servant, who had just come in from the field after plowing or tending sheep, ‘Come! Sit down for dinner'? Wouldn't you say instead, ‘Fix my dinner. Put on the clothes of a table servant and wait on me while I eat and drink. After that, you can eat and drink'? You won't thank the servant because the servant did what you asked, will you? In the same way, when you have done everything required of you, you should say, ‘We servants deserve no special praise. We have only done our duty.'"
Luke 17:5-10
Whatever we do for God, we're doing just what we're supposed to do. Billy Graham is just doing his duty, the church janitor is doing his duty; Paul was doing only his duty. If your heart is in your service and you're serving God and people because you love them and not because you're trying to gain favor, then you're doing the right thing.
Sunday, April 21, 2013
First things first: Are you saved?
I love that new blog smell... Introductions: Hi, I'm Kristopher and maybe you've read my old blogs or maybe you've just come across this new one. Really it makes no difference since the old ones are gone and this new one is going to be a tour of a Christian's life.
First, as a believer in Christ and one who wants to see others come to know Him, I'm going to walk through the basics. Some call it the plan of salvation, the Roman road, etc. I just call it first things first. A Christian, simply put, is a person who has given his life to imitating or becoming more like Christ in words, thoughts and actions. How do you do that? Glad you asked.
1: Come to understand that they are a sinner, having broken God's law and His heart.
Romans 3:23 says that all of us, no matter who we are, have fallen short of pleasing God. God is perfect, we aren't. Stealing, cursing, lying, hatred, gossip, lust, all are things that in word or deed violate God's holy standard. Once you've done that, you're under judgement. No free passes. No "my good outweighs my bad" nonsense. You can't be good enough for heaven. Aw, bummer. You're pretty much toast, right? Wait a sec.
2: Know that Jesus, God's anointed one and only Son, paid the price for your sin.
Since the fall of man, only blood has been able to redeem sin. Sin is so offensive to God that someone has to pay the price with their life. For thousands of years, God fearing people offered animal sacrifices. As a group, the Hebrew people had a system of temple worship and their high priests would offer up the blood of a spotless perfect lamb to atone for the sins of the nation of Israel. This system was flawed in that animal could only cover but not purify. Only a perfect human being could, by keeping God's Law perfectly, become the final and total sacrifice.
Jesus filled that role.
Romans 6:23 says that what we earn for our sin is death, literal physical death and separation from God's grace and mercy forever. We will face eternity in hell for our sins. But, the verse also says that God's gift to us, the result of His grace and mercy is this: eternal life through Jesus. Jesus said that He was The Way, The Truth and The Life and that to get to God, you had to first know Him. There is no other way to be saved.
John 14:6; Ephesians 2:8,9
3: Believe in Jesus as your savior, accept His sacrifice on your behalf and His resurrection so that you may one day live forever with Him.
John 3:16; 1 Corinthians 15:3-9; Philippians 2:5-11; Revelation 3:20
That's it. The simple version is: Know that you're a sinner, believe that Jesus is who He says He is and accept Jesus as the Lamb of God, your Lord and Savior.
I wanted to get this down as the first entry. For fellow believers, it bears repeating. For anyone else, I hope you will heed the words of God written here, that you will at least consider that He is right and that you are wrong because that is the first step on the road to salvation.
First, as a believer in Christ and one who wants to see others come to know Him, I'm going to walk through the basics. Some call it the plan of salvation, the Roman road, etc. I just call it first things first. A Christian, simply put, is a person who has given his life to imitating or becoming more like Christ in words, thoughts and actions. How do you do that? Glad you asked.
1: Come to understand that they are a sinner, having broken God's law and His heart.
Romans 3:23 says that all of us, no matter who we are, have fallen short of pleasing God. God is perfect, we aren't. Stealing, cursing, lying, hatred, gossip, lust, all are things that in word or deed violate God's holy standard. Once you've done that, you're under judgement. No free passes. No "my good outweighs my bad" nonsense. You can't be good enough for heaven. Aw, bummer. You're pretty much toast, right? Wait a sec.
2: Know that Jesus, God's anointed one and only Son, paid the price for your sin.
Since the fall of man, only blood has been able to redeem sin. Sin is so offensive to God that someone has to pay the price with their life. For thousands of years, God fearing people offered animal sacrifices. As a group, the Hebrew people had a system of temple worship and their high priests would offer up the blood of a spotless perfect lamb to atone for the sins of the nation of Israel. This system was flawed in that animal could only cover but not purify. Only a perfect human being could, by keeping God's Law perfectly, become the final and total sacrifice.
Jesus filled that role.
Romans 6:23 says that what we earn for our sin is death, literal physical death and separation from God's grace and mercy forever. We will face eternity in hell for our sins. But, the verse also says that God's gift to us, the result of His grace and mercy is this: eternal life through Jesus. Jesus said that He was The Way, The Truth and The Life and that to get to God, you had to first know Him. There is no other way to be saved.
John 14:6; Ephesians 2:8,9
3: Believe in Jesus as your savior, accept His sacrifice on your behalf and His resurrection so that you may one day live forever with Him.
John 3:16; 1 Corinthians 15:3-9; Philippians 2:5-11; Revelation 3:20
That's it. The simple version is: Know that you're a sinner, believe that Jesus is who He says He is and accept Jesus as the Lamb of God, your Lord and Savior.
I wanted to get this down as the first entry. For fellow believers, it bears repeating. For anyone else, I hope you will heed the words of God written here, that you will at least consider that He is right and that you are wrong because that is the first step on the road to salvation.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)