Humility

Our Savior was born in humble surroundings, among the cattle. He was wrapped in swaddling clothes, and laid in a manger because there was no room for them in the inn (Lk. 2:7). But, He was the Savior of the world, and now the world must hear Him and obey Him who once lay in a stable (Psa. 18:44).

Truly, the Bible teaches us to humble ourselves under the mighty hand of God, and He will exalt us (1 Pet. 5:6). And, I hope the day will come when we can possess the spirit of humility that every child of God must have in order to be a successful worker in the kingdom of our God. But first, meekness mixed with humility are the elements needed to fertilize our hearts with so the Word of God can grow in our hearts.

We need it to bring forth fruit to the glory and honor of our Lord. Consider Moses, who was reared in the kings palace, humbled himself. And desiring to please God, rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season (Heb. 11:25). By being humble, he was permitted to lead the Children of Israel out of Egyptian bondage (Acts 7:36). And as long as he remained humble he was successful and blessed. And as long as he was humble and meek, God was pleased and blessed with all of his work. But when he became exalted, he trusted in himself and struck the rock. The Scriptures state, “ Moses lifted up his hand, and with his rod he smote the rock twice: and the water came out abundantly, and the congregation drank, and their beasts also. And the LORD spake unto Moses and Aaron, Because ye believed me not, to sanctify me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore ye shall not bring this congregation into the land which I have given them” (Num. 20:11–‐12). This happened because he lost control of himself and lost that meek and humble spirit. And for this cause he missed the Promised Land.

Many Christians are failing in this area today and are hindering the cause of Christ because they don’t have the spirit of humility and meekness. We need to call to remembrance that our precious Lord remained meek and humble until He finished His work on earth. And we must remain meek and humble until we complete our labors on earth. We should hunger and thirst after the spirit of humility, so we will be a living example to the world and be able to lead many to Christ. May the church spread and may Jesus be lifted up until all praise, honor and glory be sang to Him!

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Taking a Vacation: Vacating the Premises

Vacations are important times in all of our lives. They allow us to get away from the daily grind of our busy lives and spend some much needed time in rest, relaxation, and recreation. Whether it is time spent with family, enjoying some new adventure or activity, or just staying home and recuperating from life’s toil and tear; it is an absolute necessity. Even Jesus took time off to rest and reenergize.

That being said, a vacation from the weekly wrangling of life doesn’t justify a vacation from daily Christian service and devotion. Many clock out of work to leave for vacation   and also vacate the household of Christ. After a long winter and spring in which I completed five full-time college classes in addition to all the other responsibilities I have, and a week at camp with fifty-eight teenagers, I need to get away. However, I want to share with you some of the things in which I will not be taking a vacation from:

I will not be taking a vacation from daily Bible study. I will be spending time each day searching the scriptures (Acts 17:11). I will be studying the Word of the Lord in order to better understand His will for me in my life.

I will not be taking a vacation from daily prayer. Jesus spent most all of His restful time in prayer with the Father. Daniel and David made it a habit (Daniel 6:10; Psalm 55:17). I need to remember that praying without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17) includes while I am on vacation.

I will not be taking a vacation from assembling with the saints. I want to worship God and deem it a great privilege to do so. I will be in Bible Study and worship with fellow Christians Sunday and Wednesday because I need to be with my spiritual family for edification through fellowship.

I will not be taking a vacation from creating opportunities to share the gospel of Christ with others. As Christians we are to be seeking to share the gospel with all that will listen, both with our words and our actions (Matthew 28:19; 1 Timothy 4:16).

I will not be taking a vacation from encouraging others (1 Thessalonians 5:11, 14).

I will not be taking a vacation from helping someone in need (Galatians 6:10).

I will not be taking a vacation from the physical, mental, and spiritual responsibility I have toward my family.

In short, I will not be taking a vacation from loving my God. I will put Him first in my life every day (Matthew 6:33). I will not be vacating the premises of the household of Christ.

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Three Areas of Concern Today

1.         CONCERN FOR THE SINNER:

There are many people today that reside in the world of sin. One of the kindest things that one could do for one of these that are living in sin, having never believed and obeyed the gospel, is to show them  that without becoming a Christian they will ultimately be lost.

James 5:20, “let him know, that he who converteth a sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall cover a multitude of sins” (ASV).

Peter 4:18, “And if the righteous is scarcely saved, where shall the ungodly and sinner appear” (ASV)? Today we see occasional  opportunities to discuss with one of the unconverted their condition before God and we ought to take advantage of those occasions. Remember this, God has no voice but our voice to speak the Holy Words of Truth today to these lost ones. Let us be, as Jesus says; “about our Father’s business.” cf., Luke 2:49, “And He said to them, “Why did you seek me? Did you not know that I must be about My Father’s business” (NKJV)?

CONSIDER THIS: Indeed, those of us that are Christians need to busy ourselves in the area of personal evangelism. Unless Christians today shoulder the responsibility to teach the lost they will never be taught, let us go, and teach. We will never be sorry that we tried to teach another.

2.         CONCERN FOR THE BACKSLIDER:

Not only must we be concerned about the alien sinners in our world today, we must also be concerned about those that we know that no longer serve God faithfully. There are many people in the community here in Hilliard that at one time attended services faithfully but they have drifted away and into sin. We need to reach out to these and encourage them to return to the faith that they have abandoned.

Galatians 6:1-2, ” >1 Brethren, even if a man be overtaken in any trespass, ye who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness; looking to thyself, lest thou also be tempted. Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. ASV

CONSIDER THIS: Yes, we need to extend our outreach to the lost including our backsliding brethren, too. Many time once a Christian leaves the church we do not seek them out and try to get them back, this ought not to be. As we can see  from the passage here in Galatians 6, we ought to try to restore them to Christ.

James 5:20, let him know, that he who converteth a sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall cover a multitude of sins. ASV

3.         CONCERN FOR THE FAITHFUL:

Yes, we ought to be continually concerned about our brethren who are faithful. Yes, we ought to encourage them to continue in the good works that they are pursuing. We must constantly be prepared to join in every worthy effort that the faithful are pursuing. We ought to pray for the faithful ones and seek out their companionship so that we might interact with them and so strengthen our ties as brethren together.

1 John 3:11, For this is the message which ye heard from the beginning, that we should love one another:

1 John 3:18, (My) Little children, let us not love in word, neither with the tongue; but in deed and truth.

Romans 12:9-11, Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good. In love of the brethren be tenderly affectionate one to another; in honor preferring one another; in diligence not slothful; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord; ASV

BE CONCERNED ABOUT OTHERS!

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Greater Than Greatest Born of Woman

Think of all the individuals who lived before Jesus died and how amazing they were. If you had to pick the greatest one who would it be? Obviously, to think about this, you would have to exclude sinless Jesus, but who would you pick?

What about Abraham, the father of all of those who walk by faith? It is in his life, above all others, where we see faith defined by his actions. Perhaps you might think of Joseph and his devotion to doing right in his teens while living in a foreign country. Then, there is Moses the amazing servant who delivered the Ten Commandments to the Jews and gave to us the first five books of the Bible.  Joshua would have to be in that listing somewhere for his unwavering obedience to God from the time the Jews left Egypt until they possessed the Promised Land.

Who could surpass the greatness of David, the great king of Israel? Only one man in the entire Bible is described as a man after God’s own heart. Then, to read the lives of other men of old also brings them into this picture—Hezekiah, Jehoshaphat, Josiah, Nehemiah and Ezra.

Think of the greatness of the prophets. What about the first prophet, Enoch, who walked with God and his faith was rewarded by escaping death? Would you not at least have to give great consideration to Elijah and Elisha who served God during the time of Ahab and Jezebel and their evil influences? What about Isaiah who volunteered his service to God saying, “Here am I, Lord, send me”? The steadfastness of Jeremiah and Ezekiel who encouraged the righteous remnant and rebuked the ungodly as Babylon carried Israel into captivity? Would you think that Daniel might be that person, who, as a faithful youth, was taken to Babylon and refused to eat the king’s food? What about his faith years later when at 80+ years of age he was in the lions’ den?

So have you picked one as the greatest individual, with the exception of Jesus, who lived before the death of Jesus? As strange as it might seem, none of those listed above would be the right answer. Hear the words of Jesus, “Assuredly, I say to you, among those born of women there has not risen one greater than John the Baptist” (Matt. 11:11). If you struggle to understand this, just consider the unique work he did as the forerunner of Jesus.

However, there is someone greater than John. Hear the rest of Jesus’ words. “But he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.” Who is greater than the greatest? It is you!  What a blessing it is to be a Christian!

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Absolute Truth, Absolutely Exists, According to Christ!

Absolute Truth. Black-and-white, “it’s wrong or it’s right,” eternal, exclusive, and unending truth (Psalm 119). The sin-warped world in which we live seeks to seduce us into accepting that such absolute truth simply does not exist today. Or, if it does, they claim we cannot know it. But we who know Christ, know better! Jesus Christ clearly and consistently told us the truth about the truth. To deny it, is to deny Him (Jn. 12:48)! He defined truth for us in John 17:17 when He said that God’s word is truth. To reject it as such, doesn’t change it from such (Jn. 6:60-69).

Many today want to tell us that “truth” is relative; that is, that whatever you believe to be true is true for you, and whatever I believe to be true is true for me, and even if our two so-called “truths” are both diametrically opposed to each other and God’s standard, we’re both still somehow okay with God, and our completely opposite views are both still somehow “true.” They call that “relativism;” I call it “ridiculousism.”

For example: The authorities have determined that the speed limit on your home-town Main Street is 25 MPH. If your “truth” states that it ought to be 50 MPH, and your teenagers’ “truth” states it ought to be 75 MPH, that isn’t going to avail either of you one whit when the blue lights of authority start flashing behind you. The all-authoritative and exclusive standard of well-established truth is what you’ll be judged by. The same is true in Christianity (Jn. 12:48; Acts 13:46). Although some well-educated religious peoples’ so-called “truth” says, “salvation is by ‘faith only,’” “once saved, always saved,” and “baptism doesn’t save you,” God’s all-authoritative and exclusive truth says just exactly the opposite (Jms. 2:19-24; Gal. 5:4; 2 Ptr. 2:20-22; 1 Ptr. 3:21; Acts 2:38).

Jesus told us that we were truly His disciples only if we would abide in His word, which is the truth. He also said that we could know the truth (which millions of misled minions of Satan today constantly claim we cannot), and that knowing His truth was the only thing which could set us free (Jn. 8:31-32; 1 Jn. 5:10-13).

Jesus also said that we must worship God in spirit and truth if we truly expected our worship to be accepted by God (Jn. 4:23-24; Matt. 15:7-9; 1 Tim. 3:15). For those who say that absolute truth either does not exist or cannot be known, I say, how could we worship God in spirit and truth if truth were not knowable?

Christ additionally told us that it would be the truth of His Word which would ultimately judge us all on the last day (Jn. 12:48-50). Psalm 119:89 is still true too: God’s truth has no expiration date, and needs no expediency mandate, or politically-correct update. God fully meant every single word of truth He ever conveyed to His creation (Matt. 4:4; Rom. 3:4); always has, always will.

We who comprise faithful congregations of the church of Christ (Romans 16:16) today, still absolutely believe that. We take God completely “at His word.” That word is what our weekly Bible Classes, Worship Services, and very life’s practices had better all be about exclusively: God’s truth. “Book, chapter, and verse” answers from that which will ultimately judge us all on the last day, because God’s word also makes it abundantly apparent that some are in for quite a surprise come that day (Matt. 7:21-27). We who comprise faithful churches of Christ certainly don’t want to be amongst the thus surprised, nor do we want any of our friends and neighbors to be. Therefore, our plea is quite simple. We know that many people around us every day in our own social circles have salvation questions which might not have ever been thoroughly, scripturally addressed. We would love the privilege to seek to do so, straight out of God’s book, the bible, with “book, chapter, and verse” answers. Doesn’t that sound refreshing? And if you, like us, believe that the Bible is the exclusive truth of Almighty God, then we invite you to please join us in person this coming Sunday for Bible study and Worship “in spirit and truth.” “…And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free” (Jn. 8:32).

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