Dying

I See You Dying, But What More Can I Do?

I stand beside his bed and know he is dying. His doctor has told his family to come to the hospital for the end is near. The disease that ravaged his body has won, and it is too late for any medication to help. The family has just discovered that for weeks and months he had not been taking the medication that would have destroyed the disease, and now, it is too late. I am watching him die. There is nothing which can now be done. Then he is gone; the grim reaper has taken him away. His parents, his wife, his children and other loved ones have a void in their lives that even time will not fill.

In retrospect, the family can recall several times when they should have known that he was getting worse. They tend to blame themselves for not saying something, but the reality is that their loved one just failed to do what he needed to do to deal with his sickness. He had the medication, but he chose not to take it. In the next few days before he is buried, every member of the family has to deal with their loss and try to make sense of all that has happened.

The question “Why?” is asked again and again. There is no answer. He is gone, and never again will he be in their lives to help as he once did.

I stand in the pulpit and know that some in the audience are dying. Not a physical death, but something far greater—they are dying spiritually. They once were involved in actively worshiping and serving the Lord. Then, slowly their faith and its ability to overcome the ravaging “disease” of sin has weakened. Once, they studied the Bible. Once, they came to all the services of the church. Once, they truly were changed by worshiping Him. Those are such wonderful memories.

Then it happened. Gradually, the “medicine” to strengthen their faith and overcome sin was gradually removed from their lives. They became so involved in their work, their recreation and their secular life that even when they came to worship it was not the same. They were dying; the disease was overtaking them, and they hardly realized it.

If there is no change the tentacles of worldliness and secular living will spread around their hearts, and there will be little room for their faith. They are dying and soon that death will leave their family in grief. Unfortunately, that same disease is already being spread in the hearts of those around them.

Will you reread this and understand that I may have you in mind as you read this? As I write this, I am thinking of specific members of this church. I am watching you die. There is hope, but not unless you change the way you are living!

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Pure in Heart

Blessed are the Pure in Heart

In 2 Corinthians 6:1-10 we read some of the most beautiful words ever written about the unity and purpose of the church. Paul says in verse four, “But in all things we commend ourselves as ministers of God…” He then presents a beautiful juxtaposition between circumstances and attitudes of the Christian walk. One of the things he specifically states here is the purity of the Christian life (v 6). In chapter eleven he then warns the brethren about the real possibility of their being led astray from the “simplicity and the purity that is toward Christ” (v 3; ASV) just as Eve had been.

When writing to Timothy the Apostle used the same word he used in the Corinthian letter to instruct Timothy how he should live. He penned, “Let no one despise your youth, but be an example to the believers in word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity” (1 Timothy 4:12). Additionally he instructed Timothy to treat “older women as mothers, younger women as sisters, with all purity” (1 Timothy 5:2).

Interestingly Paul is writing this letter so that Timothy might know how he should “behave” himself in the church (1 Timothy 3:15). So when considered in association with the instructions to the Corinthians we see that there is an unequivocal connection between the individuals personal purity and the churches purity. In other words, we have heard it said, “A chain is only as strong as its weakest link,” well the church is only as pure as the individual purity of its members.

How then do we maintain purity in our lives? Let us look to Jesus’ statement about the greatest command to answer this question. In Mark 12:30 Jesus said, “And you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. This is the first commandment.” You maintain purity when you love God…

With all your heart: “For as he thinks in his heart, so is he…” (Proverbs 23:7). We must keep our hearts pure!

With all your soul: “For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s” (1 Corinthians 6:20). We must keep our souls pure (1 John 1:7)!

With all your mind: “Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things” (Philippians 4:8). We must keep our minds pure!

With all your strength: “Flee fornication…” (1 Corinthians 6:18). “Flee also youthful lusts: but follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart” (2 Timothy 2:22). With every fiber of our being we must keep ourselves pure! “I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes: I hate the work of them that turn aside; it shall not cleave to me” (Psalm 101:3).

But also note with me that there is a connection between purity and cleansing. In Titus 1:15 Paul writes, “To the pure all things are pure, but to those who are defiled and unbelieving nothing is pure; but even their mind and conscience are defiled.” The Greek word here translated “pure” means clean, unsoiled, clean from guilt, guiltless, innocent, sincere, upright, virtuous, void of evil, clean ceremonially and morally.

One cannot walk in the light and be continually cleansed (purified) by the blood of Christ until he is first washed in the blood of the Lamb! If you have never come to Jesus for the cleansing power of His blood, you must if you hope to be with Him in eternity. This is why Paul used the same word Jesus used in Matthew 5:8 when He said, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.”

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The Beautiful Expression of the Family

The Hebrew language beautifully expresses the concept of the family. The Hebrew word for “son” is ben. Notice two examples of passages using this term:

Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee. [Gen. 3:16]

And the child grew, and she brought him unto Pharaoh’s daughter, and he became her son. And she called his name Moses: and she said, “Because I drew him out of the water.” [Exod. 2:10]

This word comes from the Hebrew root word banah, which means, “to build.” Notice a few examples referring to this word:

And all the people that were in the gate, and the elders, said, “We are witnesses. The Lord make the woman that is come into thine house like Rachel and like Leah, which two did build the house of Israel: and do thou worthily in Ephratah, and be famous in Bethlehem.” [Ruth 4:11]

And I will raise me up a faithful priest that shall do according to that which is in mine heart and in mine mind: and I will build him a sure house; and he shall walk before mine anointed forever. [1 Sam. 2:35]

Therefore, if ben, a “son,” comes from banah, “to build,” then it makes perfect sense that the Hebrew word eben means “a stone.” In First Samuel 7:12, Samuel named a stone Eben-ezer, meaning, “stone of help.” Why is this of any significance?

Just as a house is built of stones, a family is built of children. This is probably the idea David had in mind when he penned the words,

Lo, children are a heritage of the Lord: and the fruit of the womb is his reward. As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man; so are children of the youth. Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of them: they shall not be ashamed, but they shall speak with the enemies in the gate. [Ps. 127:3-5]

Moral earthquakes are shattering families today. Therefore, we should be concerned about the construction and maintenance of our families.

Children are gifts from God. He has given them to build the home. Therefore, parents need to be able to direct them in the proper way. David also describes them as arrows. Parents are responsible for pulling the strings in the proper direction. Parents are to be active in teaching and training their children (Deut. 6:2-9; Prov. 22:6; Eph. 6:4). Thank God for godly mothers and fathers! May God bless our homes!

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Counting the Cost

Do you count the cost before you invest your time, money, and effort into long term commitment? Perhaps one of the great failings of man is the failure to learn the lesson that Jesus taught during his earthly sojourn. Do you remember the passage in Luke where Jesus uses the concept of counting the cost before a person undertakes a project; cf. Luke 14:28-32 – 28 For which of you, desiring to build a tower, doth not first sit down and count the cost, whether he have (wherewith) to complete it? 29 Lest haply, when he hath laid a foundation, and is not able to finish, all that behold begin to mock him, 30 saying, This man began to build, and was not able to finish. 31 Or what king, as he goeth to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and take counsel whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him that cometh against him with twenty thousand? 32 Or else, while the other is yet a great way off, he sendeth an ambassage, and asketh conditions of peace. (ASV)

There is a great lesson in the passage referred to (previous paragraph – Luke 14:28-32) that many people overlook in the process of life. The greatest and perhaps most important event that is overlooked as a person lives their life is – “How do I know that I will be successful in life? How will I know whether I have selected the right person for my mate? How can I be assured that I am rearing my children correctly? How will I know whether my life will really count for anything worthwhile?” Indeed, I suspect many people ask themselves these questions as they leave childhood and began to understand the realities of living in the world. Yet, these questions and considerations of living life may be answered simply by listening to Jesus Christ in the passage cited – cf.  Luke 14:28-32.

Whenever we leave childhood we ought to “count the cost” of building a life with or without God in our lives. We will be wise to consider all of the facts that a healthy, prosperous, peaceful, and reverent life will benefit us if we commit our lives to serve the “one true God”. Some of the promises offered by God for faithful Christian living is found in the Bible, please note the following:

1. Without God’s Instruction we cannot direct our own steps – Jer. 10:23 – 23 O LORD, I know that the way of man is not in himself: it is not in man that walketh to direct his steps. (KJV)

2. Christ will help us and share our problems and our joys – Matt. 11:28-30 – 28 Come unto me , all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. (KJV)

3. Jesus  will mediate our prayer requests(i.e. act as our advocate to the Father) – 1 Tim. 2:5-6 – 5 For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; 6 Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time. (KJV)

4. Finally after a lifetime of faithful service (Rev. 2:10) Christ will welcome us into that eternal Heaven prepared for the Righteous – Heb. 9:27-28 – And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment: So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.

1 Peter 1:4-9 – To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations: That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:  Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory:  Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls. (KJV)

WILL YOU CHOOSE TO LIVE YOUR LIFE FOR GOD? IF YOU WILL YOU WILL BE ASSURED OF A BEARABLE AND ENJOYABLE LIFE HERE AND AN ETERNAL HOME WITH GOD IN THE FUTURE.

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Shepherd of the Flock

Jesus is the “Good Shepherd…” (John 10:10-15). “I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep. But he that is an hireling, and not the shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf coming, and leaveth the sheep, and fleeth: and the wolf catcheth them, and scattereth the sheep. The hireling fleeth, because he is an hireling, and careth not for the sheep. I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine. As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep….”

Jesus is the “Chief Shepherd…”  (1 Peter 5:4) “And when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away…”

A shepherd is one who tends, protects and feeds a flock of sheep.  He spends his time and energy ensuring that the sheep of his flock will not stray into danger, that they will find adequate food and water and that they will be protected from predators and thieves. A good shepherd knows sheep and he understands that they can be very unwary at times and are prone to getting themselves lost or trapped someplace, from which they can’t extract themselves without help.

A good shepherd knows his own sheep and can identify the individuals that belong in his flock. A shepherd also knows how many sheep are in his flock and when he notices one missing, he goes looking for it immediately. He knows that if he waits and hopes that the sheep might come back of its own accord, that there’s a chance, however slight, that it won’t because it will get lost, trapped or killed by a predator away from the safety of the flock.  He also knows there is a good chance it is doing just fine. That perhaps it lingered a few minutes longer in the meadow while eating or drinking and it will catch up. A conscientious shepherd, though, will take the time to look for the sheep as soon as he realizes it is not present, just to verify that it is safe. If the sheep has wandered far away he will go and look for it and bring it safely back to the flock if he is able.

A good shepherd will also ensure that the sheep are provided for with regard to food and water. Sheep need to be fed constantly; they need to be led to fresh grass every day. They will not grow, thrive and reproduce when there is not enough food for them to eat. In times of drought, the sheep do no give birth to as many lambs as they do in good years. Without adequate food, enabling the ewes to produce milk, the lambs which are dependent upon that milk for food will starve to death. That is what a shepherd does.

What is a chief Shepherd?

Sometimes, a shepherd will have so many sheep that they will be divided into separate flocks so that they can have room to multiply and find new pastures. The chief shepherd will then appoint other shepherds to oversee the different flocks that comprise the greater flock.  That chief shepherd will only select men to oversee his flocks that he knows are qualified; that he knows are conscientious men, able to protect, feed and tend his flock as if it were their very own.

When the chief shepherd assigns men to watch over a particular flock, he does so with full knowledge that some of the sheep will not be returned to him. If he assigned shepherds to oversee a flock of 100 sheep and only 90 of the sheep are returned to the fold, he is going to want to know what happened to the other 10. The under-shepherds are going to have to give an accounting as to what happened to those sheep. If they lost 5 to predators, while vigorously attempting to defend their sheep – the chief shepherd will understand and commend them for their efforts. If they lost 4 more who wandered off and fell into trouble, but they diligently made every effort to find and recover these lost sheep, again the chief shepherd will understand.  But if they lost 1 sheep to theft when they were not keeping watch and made no effort to recover that sheep – the chief shepherd would be angry, would hold them accountable and would mete out punishment.

The figure of the “Chief Shepherd” applies to Jesus as the “head of the church…” (Ephesians 1:21-22) As Chief Shepherd, Jesus is the head over the entire flock of God (the church universal) made up of numerous smaller flocks (local congregations of the church of Christ.)  Just as a chief shepherd would appoint other shepherds to oversee, protect and feed each individual flock, Jesus has appointed elders (bishops, pastors, shepherds – all synonymous terms) over each individual congregation of His church.  As Paul confirmed to the elders from the church at Ephesus, “Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood…” (Acts 20:28) And just as the chief shepherd would hold his under-shepherds accountable for any lost sheep, Jesus will hold elders accountable for any lost souls. “Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy, and not with grief: for that is unprofitable for you…” (Hebrews 13:17)

But do not forget, as Hebrews 13:17 implies, that it is the responsibility of each Christian to submit to Christ by obeying the shepherds that He has appointed to oversee His flock.

 

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