Are You Running Out of Ergs?

Maybe you need to know the following. “An erg is the unit of energy and mechanical work in the centimeter-gram-second (CGS) system of units, symbol ‘erg.’ Its name is derived from the Greek ergon, meaning ‘work’. . . .An erg is the amount of work done by a force of one dyne exerted for a distance of one centimeter. In the CGS base units, it is equal to one gram centimeter-squared per second squared (g·cm2/s2). It is thus equal to 1 × 10−7 joules or 100 nanojoules (nJ) in SI units.”

What? Sometimes the scientific description of matters really complicates matters. Another way of looking at the information above is to simply affirm that you only have enough energy (measured in ergs) to accomplish what you need to do. We do not have an infinite supply of energy, so we must make conscious choices as to how to use the “ergs” we have.

Take any period of your life. You only have so much energy to devote to the time being considered. You can only accomplish so much in a month, a week, a day or an hour. After a while you either have no more time or no more “ergs” to keep going. Understanding this is part of what Jesus had in mind when He said, “Take no thought for the morrow . . .”

Figuring out how to expend our energies is the problem we all face. How much time is devoted to work, to the family, to the church, to recreation or to private time? We begin every day with the fact that we only have so many minutes and so many “ergs” to use.

The problem is priority. We are limited. We cannot do all that society, family, employers, friends and others want us to do. We make this choice every day. Some things must be neglected each day! Even when we think we are not choosing to make a decision and just take life as it comes, we have decided to let others make that decision for us. We all have made choices as to the prioritization of the use of our “ergs.”

So what’s the point? Jesus described the conflict between the use of our energies in spiritual and secular matters. The word that was sown in the thorny ground is soon choked out “with cares, riches and pleasures of life and bring no fruit to maturity” (Luke 8:14). The gravest danger members at Palm Beach Lakes face is their over commitment to others and to activities in their lives in the use of their limited supply of “ergs.”

Will you take a serious look at the priorities you have placed in the use of the limited supply of time and energy you have? “Ergs” for God must be the top priority!

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A Sermon Everyone Should Hear

This past Sunday I was able to hear the most outstanding sermon I ever hope to hear on one of the most difficult topics which can be addressed. The world has rejected purity, godliness and holiness. Because of the world’s influence many Christians have lost sight of how clearly God has revealed His will regarding sexual immorality, lasciviousness, lust, dancing, inappropriate touching, co-habitation, immodesty and pornography. How blessed this church is to have David Sproule who addressed these matters. He did not just “knock it out of the park,” he “knocked it out of the parking lot.”

There is a need for this sermon. The need is worldwide. What congregation has not been impacted by the dress of those in our worship assemblies? What congregation has not had to deal with illegitimate children and promiscuity? What congregation has not seen a drastic swing in perversion of sex in all forms?

There is a need for this sermon with the right attitude. The content of David’s sermon was a call to the sanctification God wants us to manifest. I have never heard a finer use of the Scriptures. However, another vital factor of this sermon was David’s compassionate attitude and fervent appeals for purity. He touched our hearts because God had touched his!

There is a need for this sermon with a fresh approach. How many lessons have been preached about this over the years and how many Christians have “tuned out” and “switched channels” when they saw the direction of the sermon. There was no “switching channels” as David pointed out how we, like the ancient Greeks, still worship at pagan temples—we have just changed the names of those gods. You may not remember the four modern Greek “gods,” but you will never forget how those “gods” are now worshiped.

There is a need for this sermon to change lives. The closing moments of the sermon were the best. The beginning of the sermon, “This is the will of God, even your sanctification” (1 Thess. 4:3), and how it was used at the conclusion was masterful. It spoke to the heart of those who are serious about their personal relationship with God.

There is a need for this sermon in the lives of those who read these words. If you missed it, that sermon is on our website with the accompanying slides. If you know of others who need this lesson, contact the church and we have both CDs and DVDs of the lesson. How I wish that every Christian would listen to this lesson, prayerfully. How I wish that families would listen to it and talk about it together. How I wish that this same lesson could be practiced by Christians around the world. His will is for us to be sanctified!

[ http://www.pblcoc.org/media/text/93 – Sermon Link added by Admin]

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If It is from Heaven, Why Have You Not Done It?

In the last week of Jesus’ life, He was confronted by the religious leaders of the Jews asking by what authority He was doing the things He was doing. Before Jesus answered their query, He told them that they should first respond to His question. He asked them about the baptism of John and by what authority John had baptized the multitude. There were only two options. Either it was from heaven, ordained by God, or it had its origin in the wisdom of man. What an amazing approach to dealing with religious questions. Every spiritual event in our lives can be measured in the same way. Is it from heaven or is it from man?

Those opponents of Jesus knew immediately the dilemma they faced. If they admitted that the baptism of John was from heaven, there would be the obvious implication of their responsibility to obey the teachings of heaven. The other choice was to turn their back on teaching that everyone knew was from heaven. There are some questions which we should consider in this manner.

Having the Lord’s supper every week—is it from heaven or from men? Before the church was begun, no man had ever partaken of the Lord’s Supper. With the establishment of the church there was a weekly assembly of the church to eat of the bread and drink of the fruit of the vine. What was the origin of this sacred act of worship? Those who advocate a daily, monthly, quarterly partaking of this feast should think carefully about these matters. If the origin of a weekly observance is from heaven, the obvious question which follows is why have you not obeyed heaven?

Having elders to shepherd the church and deacons to serve—is it from heaven or from men? There is no question that this arrangement is the one found in the Bible. Today we find men who think they are reverend, who dominate the churches which have no elders. Then there are those other churches dominated by edicts from church councils and boards. Those who follow these newer practices should think carefully about the question we are addressing. The practice of having shepherds and deacons, is it from heaven? If it is, then there is that question which follows—why have you not obeyed heaven?

Apply this principle to all of life—is it from heaven or from men? Every principle can be measured—congregational singing, baptism by immersion for the remission of sins, sexual purity, modesty in the way we dress, marital faithfulness, the language we use. Before you make a decision in your life, there is one important question to be asked. Is the course of action you are considering in keeping with that which has been revealed from heaven or is it from the dictates of man’s heart?

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So, What’s First This Week?

Who is there who does not struggle with setting priorities for their lives? Every day has its chores and it is likely that not all of them will be accomplished. The beginning of every new week, month or year can cause us to think of what needs to be done in that time frame. What we actually do will be determined by the goals we set. Even the failure to select priorities determines destiny.

Now think of how this applies to our spiritual lives. If what we accomplish in a day or week is shaped by our priorities, then how much truer is this of our entire spiritual lives. What does the Bible say about this matter. Look at the following verses where God has talked about first things.

Paul described the faithfulness of the Christians in Macedonia. “And not only as we had hoped, but they first gave themselves to the Lord and then to us by the will of God” (2 Cor. 8:5). When Paul received the vision of the man from Macedonia who begged him saying, “Come over to Macedonia and help us” (Acts 16:9), he departed immediately. The result of this action was the establishing of the great New Testament church in Philippi. Why was this church so great? Look at the text, “They first gave themselves to the Lord.”

Think about priorities in the home. What should be first in our homes? God leaves no doubt and mentions two distinct virtues which should be found there. Paul described the faith of Timothy in these words. “I call to remembrance the genuine faith that is in you, which dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice, and I am persuaded is in you” (2 Tim. 1:5). What was the priority in the lives of Lois and Eunice? What was the emphasis in those homes? It was the faith which first was in Lois and then in the succeeding generations.

A second virtue to be found in the home is mentioned in 1 Tim. 5. “Let them first learn to show piety at home . . .” This is where it begins. Godliness in the home is a first priority!

Consider also the place of prayer in the lives of Christians. Before we take any action, the Bible highlights the importance of us seeking God’s wisdom and help. “Therefore I exhort first of all that supplication, prayers, intercessions and giving of thanks be made for all men” (1 Tim. 2:1). Look at the text. “Therefore I exhort first. . .” Yet how often do we see the importance of this? Before all else, there is the matter of prayer. If David and Daniel began each day with prayer, shouldn’t we?

So as you plan each day, don’t forget the Divine priorities set by heaven. It will make an eternal difference!

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Making it Personal

One of the problems every Christian faces is to read the Bible and then feel a sense of personal obligation to take those words and make them part of life. It’s the same problem faced by a school teacher who tells her students, “Some time today we need to make sure that we clean this room and get all the scraps of paper off the floor.” The students look around, they see the trash and while they know what the teacher wants to be done, they simply get lost in the crowd. Perhaps unconsciously they think it will just happen.

How many sermons have you heard about specific actions the Lord wants to happen and you acknowledge that changes need to be made, but the urgency of feeling a personal obligation is lost because we think of the teaching in a much broader scope? Let me suggest something which might help change all of this.

When the apostles heard Jesus’ words about taking the gospel into all the world, think of how some might have reacted. Since Peter, James and John were closer to the Lord than Bartholomew or Thaddeus, these “lesser-know apostles” could have stepped back into the shadows of the “greater” apostles. They could have thought that those other men were far more talented and that they had heard Jesus say things to them when the other apostles were not around. The work needed to be done and it would have been so easy just to let those more qualified do the work. The truth is that the Great Commission was not just given to Peter, James and John!

How could 21st-century “Bartholomews” make this commission a personal one if we had lived in the first century? Here’s one way. Just imagine that all of the other apostles were not there and Jesus had said these words only to you, a Bartholomew. Do you think you would have felt a personal responsibility? The obligation would have been overwhelming. Had he/you ignored the Great Commission, the coming of Jesus would have been for naught! But if Bartholomew had the right to ignore it as part of the group, so did all the rest. Jesus’ final words were intended to be personal! The lack of talent or self-esteem of any individual did not remove that individual’s personal obligation.

So take time today to think about yourself and your personal responsibility to honor His last words. By the way, both of these apostles evidently took His words personally. Tradition tells us that Bartholomew preached in India, Arabia and Armenia. He died after being beaten with rods, scourged and beheaded. Thaddeus preached in Syria, Iran and Egypt and died by crucifixion. They took that commission personally. How seriously do you feel a personal obligation to tell others?

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