Receive with Meekness

Receive with Meekness

James describes the kind of heart we need in order to profit from studying the Bible. Read His words carefully. “Receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls. But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves” (Jas. 1:21-22).

Every time we read the Bible, listen to Bible teaching or are studying the word, we must receive it with meekness. Sometimes there are individuals who have great knowledge about the Bible and can readily quote it, but it does not seem to change them. Why? Because they do not receive it with humility. Knowledge of the Bible involves the “head,” but meekness involves the “heart.” When Samuel heard the message of God in the middle of the night, he said, “Speak, Lord, for Your servant hears.”

There is more than meekness involved in Bible study which will change our souls. James uses the expression, “the implanted word.” Jesus’ parable about the sower described what happened to the seed which fell on good soil. Unlike the seed which fell on stony ground which began but “had no root” (Luke 8:13), the roots of the seed on the good soil had depth and produced much fruit. James is not talking about just hearing the words but adds the word “implanted,” showing that the “seed” is far more than knowing the Bible. This seed sinks deep into our hearts. This is why the KJV translates this as “the engrafted word.” Bible study in this passage describes four actions: (1) the hearing of the word; (2) an openness to receive the word; (3) a heart which humbly listens to God—he is humble enough to accept the truth, even when it hurts and condemns; and (4) letting the words sink deeply into us.

Look again at this paragraph in James. It begins with the word “therefore.” This indicates that divine truths had just been uttered and based upon that truth a heavenly conclusion is stated. What had James just said?

James had described a man who so readily charged God with tempting him. James showed this violated the nature of God. Look at verse 19. “So then my brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath.” Is it possible that these words which can apply to dealings with others have a primary application to not hastily charge God, but to be swift to hear God, slow to speak before Him and become angry at what He says?

The next time you study the Bible, do not begin your study with a preconceived conclusion you want to use the Bible to prove what you believe. Remember that Solomon said that when we come before Him, “let your words be few” (Ecc. 5:2). Always be swift to hear God.  Think about it.

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A Soft Answer – Proverbs 15:1

A Soft Answer – Proverbs 15:1

“A soft answer turneth away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger.” (Proverbs 15:1 KJV)

“I’m so angry with right now that I could just scream!” he said with a loud, belligerent voice. She looked up at him and whispered, “I’m sorry you feel that way and I apologize.” He looked at her for a moment with a bewildered expression and said in a quiet voice, “I can barely hear you, but did you just apologize?” “Yes,” she said, “Will you forgive me?” “Of course, I forgive you,” he rejoined. Her answer to his anger was soft in two ways: audibly and the words themselves were tender. The softy spoken apology did two things there. First, it caused him to stop and think about what she had said and second, it brought his anger level down several notches. Her soft answer turned away his wrath. An otherwise good man may be swift to anger, but when his anger is given a moment to cool, his anger will dissipate as fast as it came one.

“I’m so angry with you that I could just scream!” she said with a loud belligerent, voice. He looked back at her and shouted, “Go ahead! It is your fault anyway! You distracted me as we were heading out after I ate my bowl of ice cream!” “What did you say?” she yelled back. “How is it my fault? You are the moron who put the ice cream in the pantry. You’re the idiot who left the freezer door open!” “Well fine!” he yelled. “I’m going out for more ice cream! And I might not come back!” he hollered as he wrathfully slammed the front door. She had a right to be upset with him for putting the ice cream in the pantry to melt and to leaving the freezer open ruining a lot of food. She did not have the right to use injurious words in her anger. Her grievous words stirred his anger to greater wrath. An angry rejoinder, while tempting, especially when you are also angry, will only lead to more strife.

Christians are called upon to be peacemakers, not strife engenderers! When some lashes out at you angrily, follow God’s advice and give a soft answer. In many cases, this will halt the anger and lead to reconciliation.

Read James 1:19-20; 3:1-12; Romans 12:18-19

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They Shared the Practice

They Shared the Practice

It was a very special family until the death of the most important member of the family. The circumstance surrounding his death was something that the family would never forget. They had shared a meal with him just hours before he died. They decided that they would continue a family practice which been part of their lives for so many years. They decided that once a week they would get together and share his favorite choice for dinner and talk about him. As they grew older, they even taught their children about him. That weekly meal together seemed to be the catalyst that kept them together.

After a while, circumstances began to change that meal together. Some could no longer come to the meal, so they decided that that would use their laptops and virtually the family could still come together. While they could not be at the meal, they would make his special meal and they could “sorta” be there. Their work situations changed often, so when the family came together, they would eat his dinner but would record the meeting so that those who worked could still be part of the gathering, even though they were not there physically. Those who could not come even prepared that special dinner and ate it as they watched others eat. That plan seemed to work for a while, but you can guess what happened.

Over a period of several months, the lives of those who were watching the family eat began to change. It was just not the same as sitting around the family table and talking about him. It did not happen all at once but the interest of those who could not come began to diminish. It was just not the same. They were doing what they once all did together, but it was just not the same. There was something about sharing together the memory of the family member who died that could not be duplicated using a laptop. The idea seemed good, but it was just different. The family was not as close as it once had been.

In a similar way, there once was a spiritual family of God who came together and shared a common meal remembering the One family member who died. They sang songs together about His life and every week remembered Him together. The hearts of all of them were stirred as they learned by experience what actually happened as they all spoke together to each other in songs about Jesus. They really felt a closeness of fellowship and sharing as this happened. It was the same feeling they had as they gave or shared the joy of seeing someone baptized.

Then covid hit. That family tried to use the internet but there is such a difference in sharing in worship and watching others worship. Think about it. Is there something you need to change in how you worship because of covid?

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Recovering from Spiritual Narcissism 2

Recovering from Spiritual Narcissism 2

A spiritual narcissist uses religion and spirituality to justify his sinful desires instead of using it to take ownership of his life as God intended. One technique he uses to accomplish this is applying the scriptures mainly to others instead of self. When listening to a sermon, he will not think about making changes in his life. Instead, he mentally lists people that he desires to change: family, friends, neighbors, church members. He will not talk directly to them because that would risk exposing his hypocrisy as they can see his life much clearer than he can. He cannot see clearly his own life since he is blinded by desires to justify his behavior. So, he makes a passive-aggressive plan to “correct” them. He may ask the preacher to teach on a specific topic, talk to the elders, inform some “authority,” or gossip about their behavior. This only serves to reinforce his narcissism because he has “done something” about the perceived problem, and now feels self-justified.

Why does he do this? This behavior permits him to focus on others’ lives instead of his own. His judgmental attitude is “justified” because he is allegedly doing God’s work. He reasons: God wants us to tell other people what the scriptures say, right? It is true that God wants us to talk to others about the scriptures, but we must be “poor in spirit” in our attitude (Matthew 5:3). The spiritual narcissist does not have this attitude, and so he twists the scriptures to his own destruction (2 Peter 3:16), as he applies the scriptures to others while seeking to justify his own sinful behavior. To change, he must first recognize his own spiritual poverty. This will cause him to focus on his own sin instead of others.

Everyone knows that person who wallows in self-pity. Ask them how they are doing, and their response is “I’m OK, I guess.” That “I guess,” is their telling you that they really aren’t OK. When you ask what is wrong, they say, “Oh, nothing.” They don’t want to talk about it because they might end their self-pity, a lifestyle that if given up would mean having to take ownership of their life and not have an excuse to feel sorry for themselves. Self-pity is a victim mentality.

These justify their behavior by saying, “We all have our own crosses to bear,” or “Jesus was a suffering servant.” They think that they must pay for the sins of the world, or, at least, their own sins, through the pain and suffering that they endure. “No one understands,” they say, because they don’t want anyone to understand since that would unmask their behavior. This is narcissism because their thoughts are centered on the self, and the self’s perceived terrible burdens. Their life is valued and validated by problems!

To recover from this thinking, we must 1) understand that Jesus paid for all sins, and that we pay for none. Life is not punishment for our sins! 2) We must shift from a “have to” mentality to a “want to” mentality. When we feel like everything is being forced on us, we feel sorry for ourselves, but when we want to act, it is our choice. 3) We must count our blessings every day. Focusing on blessings will take the mind away from thoughts of self-pity. 4) We must understand that life is great! “This is the day the Lord has made; We will rejoice and be glad in it” (Psalm 118:24). Let go of self-pity and live for Jesus!

A narcissist, who is also passive aggressive, will rarely ever confront someone directly because he does not want to change and take ownership of his problems; it is much easier to blame others. He likely learned this behavior from his parents who also wouldn’t take ownership and blamed others. When he tried to talk about a problem, they deflected it. So, he learned not to communicate his desires directly. Instead, he pouted or used the “silent treatment” until his parents gave him what he wanted. However, if he talked to dad about mom and vice versa, he got sympathy. He played the two against each other. He was rewarded for his passive-aggressive behavior. This practice of not taking responsibility, blaming others, and manipulating them into giving him what he wanted continued into adulthood.

A narcissistic passive-aggressive Christian will use these techniques to get his way in the church. He won’t talk directly to those with whom he has conflict; he will talk to everyone else and stir up a “fuss.” He may complain to the preacher, deacons, or elders who may enable him by shielding him from confrontation because they are narcissistic and passive-aggressive too. This behavior never resolves real issues, and it stifles church growth. The narcissist gets what he wants without having to take ownership of his problems. This is sinful behavior and ignores Jesus’ clear teaching in Matthew 18:15: “Moreover if your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he hears you, you have gained your brother.” The narcissist doesn’t want to follow Jesus’ instructions because he may not get what he wants, and he may have to take ownership of his problems, but Jesus is right, and he is wrong.

Part 1 – https://churchofchristarticles.com/administrator/notes-from-a-recovering-narcissist/

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Playing by the Rules

Playing by the Rules

A friend of mine, who is a member of the church in another town, talked me into signing up to be an official (“referee”) for high school football. So, I signed up and am having a lot of fun with it. There are many rules to the game of football. (I have a whole book to prove it.) Those rules are what make the game worth watching. When the teams play according to the rules, everyone has an enjoyable experience – the fans, the players, the coaches, the officials. It’s when the players don’t play by the rules that the game becomes taxing. Think back to your childhood for a minute when you or one of your friends decided to make the rules instead of having an objective standard of play for everyone. Basically what happens is that your “game” devolves into a shouting match and free-for-all. No one knows what is happening anymore, and people stop playing because it is too confusing.Football Rules

The same thing can happen with religion. The Bible gives us a set of “rules,” if you will, (they are really commandments) that we should follow so that we may have unity. When we don’t follow the Lord’s “rules” then we create disunity, we have shouting matches, and people stop “playing” because of the confusion. So many today want to do whatever they want in religion, and this is what creates the difficulties. Instead of seeking to please ourselves, we ought to be seeking to please God. The apostle Paul wrote, “Finally then, brethren, we urge and exhort in the Lord Jesus that you should abound more and more, just as you received from us how you ought to walk and to please God” (1 Thessalonians 4:1). This ought to be our aim while playing the “game of life.”

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