True Love

There they stood. Hand in hand; heart to heart. He was seventeen; she was sixteen. They had known each other since kindergarten, but had never really taken notice of one another. One day, however, she gave him a flirting glance that prompted him to return the flirt in kind. He asked her out and she, as a cordial young lady should, replied that she would be pleased to accompany him on a date. A week passed, and there they were, together. He stood, looking into her deep blue eyes as if he were exploring the depths of the vast blue ocean. She, somewhat less in height, stood as well; her arms draped across his broad shoulders. She gazed contently. Closer they drew, and their lips met. It was “true love.”

From the way some brethren talk, you would think that the kind of emotions engendered as the couple described above, is the kind of love that we should have for God. If a man preaches in a rich, smooth voice, putting a slight quiver in his speech when speaking of something sad, that person is compassionate, kind, loving; how dare any one question whether he loves God! The problem here is that we put our standard of what we deem to be “true love” in the place of what true love really is. Compassion becomes how a preacher makes me feel about him instead of what God’s word considers compassionate. For a moment then, let’s notice how God’s word exemplifies true love.

We have all read passages like 1 Corinthians 13, Romans 8:31-39, and 1 John 4:7-12 that have much to say about love. These passages are God’s word. I exhort you to read them and think carefully. Sadly, however, we sometimes read these passages and get so caught up in their beauty and good feelings, that this is all we get–good feelings. We ignore the application. It is good, therefore, that we should look at examples of Love in the Bible that we may follow these examples to the practicing of love in our lives. For John says, “My little children, let us not love in word, neither with the tongue; but in deed and truth” (1 John 4:18).

The Prophet Jeremiah

Jeremiah stands out in my mind as an exemplary figure of true love. We see in the book of Jeremiah the loving stand of a man who will not cease to preach the truth. “For since I spake, I cried out, I cried violence and spoil; because the word of the LORD was made a reproach unto me, and a derision, daily. Then I said, I will not make mention of him, nor speak any more in his name. But his word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with forbearing, and I could not stay” (Jeremiah 20:8,9). In Jeremiah we see a man that knows what is best for the people, and is willing to preach it despite the fact that the people think it is for their own hurt. “Therefore the princes said unto the king, We beseech thee, let this man (Jeremiah) be put to death: for thus he weakeneth the hands of the men of war that remain in this city, and the hands of all the people, in speaking such words unto them: for this man seeketh not the welfare of this people, but the hurt” (Jeremiah 38:4). True love means that we will speak what is good for the people even when they think it is bad for them.

Too, showing compassion at the proper time is a sign of true love. Jeremiah moans, “Mine eyes do fail with tears, my bowels are troubled, my liver is poured upon the earth, for the destruction of the daughter of my people . . .” (Lamentations 2:11). However, our human emotions never override the will of God and even though we may lament the tragic consequences of God’s vengeance on human sin, true love will continue to uphold God’s truth. Jeremiah writes, “The LORD hath done that which he had devised; he hath fulfilled his word that he had commanded in the days of old: he hath thrown down, and hath not pitied: and he hath caused thine enemy to rejoice over thee, he hath set up the horn of thine adversaries” (Jeremiah 2:17). True love then calls for repentance on the part of the sinner. Jeremiah pleads, “. . . O wall of the daughter of Zion, let tears run down like a river day and night: give thyself no rest; let not the apple of thine eye cease. Arise, cry out in the night: in the beginning of the watches pour out thine heart like water before the face of the Lord: lift up thy hands toward him for the life of thy young children, that faint for hunger in the top of every street” (Lamentations 2:19). Truly Jeremiah knew what it was to love.

The Martyr Stephen

Although there is only a very small portion of the Bible given to the evangelist Stephen (Acts 6, 7), it is a portion that is powerfully full of love. After the apostles had laid their hands on Stephen and other men with whom the gospel was to progress, Stephen set about preaching to the proselyte nations the message of the Christ. The text says that these men could not resist his wisdom and Spirit. So they suborned false witnesses against him and tried him for blasphemy. All the while the text says that Stephen’s appearance was like that of an angel. Even though they railed on him Stephen loved. Stephen is then asked to defend himself. He starts by refuting the charge that he does not believe Moses in the Old Testament. In this he also sets forth the divine promises made unto Israel. His message is that Jesus of Nazareth fulfilled these promises and that as the patriarchs were disobedient to the message of the prophets of their time, so also are ye disobedient. With love he recounts how Abraham journeyed into a far country and how God promised to him that all the nations of the earth would be blessed through his seed. He recounts how Joseph was treated ill by his brethren when he would (with divine authority) interpret dreams. He recounts how the people of God were in bondage unto the Pharaoh who abused them and how Moses lead them out of captivity. He does not skip over the fact that Moses prophesied of one who would come, to whom obedience would be required. Stephen tells of how the children of Israel did not obey Moses, but their hearts turned back to Egypt. He emphasizes that the children of Israel gave themselves over to idolatry and did not hearken unto the voice of the prophets. Then, even though Stephen knew that these men sought his hurt, he had the love enough to tell them they were no better than their disobedient fathers. “Ye stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye. Which of the prophets have not your fathers persecuted? And they have slain them which showed before of the coming of the Just One; of whom ye have been now the betrayers and murderers: Who have received the law by the disposition of angels, and have not kept it” (Acts 7:51-53). The mob was cut to their heart and they carried Stephen out to stone him. And as he looked steadfastly into heaven, he saw Jesus standing on the right hand of the Father. Then, they stoned him to death. His last words were, “Lord, lay not this sin to their charge.” What great love! What true love!

Isaiah the Prophet

Isaiah’s message was not a popular message. He often spoke of only a remnant being left of the people of God. To a very proud and nationalistic people such as the Jews such verbiage was nigh unto heresy. Isaiah writes, “Except the LORD of hosts had left unto us a very small remnant, we should have been as Sodom, and we should have been like unto Gomorrah. Hear the word of the LORD, ye rulers of Sodom; give ear unto the law of our God, ye people of Gomorrah” (Isaiah 1:9, 10). Isaiah was not uncertain in his words; he was very clear about what kind of people the Israelites were, but would any one doubt that Isaiah loved the ones to whom he preached? He loved them; he wanted them to come to repentance; thus God inspired him to write, “Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool” (Isaiah 1:18). Isaiah’s message emphasized what was best for the people, yet the people refused to hear it thinking God’s word was monotonous and trivial. “To whom he said, This is the rest wherewith ye may cause the weary to rest; and this is the refreshing: yet they would not hear. But the word of the LORD was unto them precept upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little; that they might go, and fall backward, and be broken, and snared, and taken” (Isaiah 28:12, 13). Isaiah’s love for God and for the people to whom he prophesied was great because he had a love that spoke and acted for the people’s greatest good. This is true love.

Our Savior Christ Jesus

Jesus had true love. He had a love that was uncompromising. Remember Jesus’ own anxiousness when He prayed about His death in the garden of Gethsemane. Luke says, “And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground” (Luke 22:44). Jesus said, “My soul is exceeding sorrowful unto death . . .” (Mark 14:34). Jesus prayed, “O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me . . .” (Matt.26:39). Jesus did not look forward to what he was about to suffer. He dreaded it. When Jesus told his apostles that he would have to suffer these things and be killed at the hands of the Jews, Peter began to rebuke him saying, “Be it far from thee, Lord: this shall not be unto thee” (Matt.16:22). Now, Peter was one of Jesus’ best friends. Jesus could have compromised and said, “Maybe you are right, I have been having doubts about these things” but he did not say that. Jesus knew the pain; He knew the suffering and agony; He prayed “let this cup pass from me,” and in spite of the grief He would endure He said to Peter, “Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art an offense unto me: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men” (Matt.16:23). Jesus loved Peter, but He refused to compromise. He said to the Father, “. . . nevertheless, not as I will, but as thou wilt.” This is true love.

Jesus’ love rebuked error forcefully. One of the most powerfully speeches recorded in the Bible was when Jesus confronted the Jews about their own hypocrisy in Matthew 23:30-33. “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchres of the righteous, And say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets. Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets. Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers. Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell?” Were these words the most loving words that Jesus could have said to the Jews? Yes! True love demands that we say what is best for those who hear us, and many times that requires stern and hard rebuke.

Jesus’ love involved the ultimate sacrifice. “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom.5:8). “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13). It was not easy for Him to go to the cross. His choice was not driven by an emotional love. Had it been, he would not have gone. His choice was driven by an obedient love, for “though he was a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered” (Heb.5:8). So He rationally chose and freely went for our sake and for the sake of His enemies saying, “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.” (Luke 23:34). He did this so we could follow in his steps. He implores, “If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it” (Luke 9:23, 24). True love demands that we follow Him.

From these examples and many others, we EMPHATICALLY DECLARE that every inspired prophet, every inspired writer, every inspired teacher and preacher, and the Lord Jesus Christ himself always spoke the words that were filled with the greatest possible love that could possibly be shown to those who were listening to their message. From this we must conclude that the love that God expects us to have for Him, and for one another is not an emotional love. It is a rational love that is made by decision. Loving emotions may follow as a consequence of this love, but having these emotions does not ensure that we have true love. True love is the love that we find taught to us in the Bible. The world may say follow your feelings; trust your heart and let us all hold hands and love our neighbors. Jesus’ love says, “Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you” (Matt.5:44).

Let us decide to love as Christ loved. “My little children, let us not love in word, neither with the tongue; but in deed and truth” (1 John 3:18).

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True Brotherhood

Many people have asked me in the past few weeks, “What do you do on your mission trips, Kevin?” Most of the time I respond by saying that I teach, but I could also say that I ask a lot of questions and do a lot of listening as well. I try to understand, in the short period of time that I usually have, what is the current situation in respect to the Lord’s church and the consequences of our efforts. This inevitably leads to other discussions about the Lord’s church in other places besides the one’s where we are directly involved.

It was during such a conversation that brother Moises told me that we would have to take a vacation together sometime and visit all of the places in Costa Rica where the church is located and see all the various tourist attractions that are in each place respectively. I responded that I would definitely love to do that sometime, but that it would cost quite a bit of money. He replied that we could take the bus and it would be very cheap and that it wouldn’t cost much at all. We argued about it briefly and then I realized he wasn’t taking into account where I lived. So I asked him, “Moises, where do I live?” A puzzled expression came over his face and suddenly he realized that in order for me and my family to travel it is very expensive. He explained that he was thinking that I was just another Tico living in Costa Rica.

While this was slightly embarrassing for him, I took it as a great compliment on our relationship. I have known brother Moises since my first trip to Costa Rica in 2002. But in actual time, I have only spent about a month with him and his family over the course of those years. Yet, those have been some of the most cherished moments of my life. This is because of the great bond that we have in Christ. Galatians 3:28 states, “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.” Because we are Christians there are no geopolitical boundaries between us; there are no racial barriers; there are no cultural obstacles. Why? We have the bond of brotherhood in Christ, a bond that is stronger than any other. In that moment when we were talking, my identity was his identity and that made us one.

David wrote, “Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!” (Psalm 133:1). Indeed, how pleasant and good it is to know someone so deeply, to have the same concerns, triumphs, struggles, and sorrows, to share in the great work that our Lord has given us to do in His name, and to rejoice together in the beautiful consequences that flow from a life of service to Him. The Christian knows such a relationship because he knows Christ and longs to see Christ living in those around him and rejoices when he so finds a soul eager to share in that state. Brotherhood is truly a beautiful thing.

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That Little Voice in Your Head

“Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain” is the famous line from the Wizard of Oz wherein the “wizard” doesn’t want Dorothy and the others to know what is actually going on. Once his “magic” is revealed for what it really is, Dorothy and the others are no longer intimidated by the “wizard” and he is free to give them what they have actually had all along.

It seems to me that many people view the inner workings of their mind in just this way. God has created man with unique mental faculties. We have a reasoning mind; we have a conscience; we have a will; we have emotions. Each of these aspects of the human psyche operate together to make us what we are, namely, a functioning human being.

There are times when we hear the proverbial voice of reason. We need to hear that voice when we are studying for an exam or trying to get certification for a particular job. God appeals to our reason (Isaiah 1:8) when trying to convince us of our need for repentance and salvation.

There are other times when our conscience speaks to us. When we have done something wrong and that “little voice” in our head condemns us for what we have done. The conscience is part of God’s design and it is there to either approve our actions or accuse us of wrong (Romans 2:15). The conscience is a powerful part of our psyche. Well meaning individuals may confuse their conscience for the direct operation of the Holy Spirit.

Another part of the psyche is the will. When we need to do something and it must be done, people will talk about willing themselves to do it. That “small voice” may be saying, “Let’s do this; get going!” The human will is a powerful force that moves us to action. John 7:17 says that we have to will to do God’s will.

We then have our emotions. They are numerous and powerful. Emotions can take us to dizzying heights and they can also bring us down to the depths of despair. Emotions play their role in the human psyche as well. Good emotions may be experienced when we’ve done well. Bad emotions are experienced when we do otherwise. Emotions also move us one way or the other to take action. Happiness, sadness, love, hate, anxiety, contentment: these are all emotions that we may experience and there are many more. Emotions also are often confused as the act of God in one’s life.

Perhaps most importantly, when all four of these parts of our psyche work together, we can experience strong urges and have powerful experiences. We may get confused and believe that we are experiencing something that we are not actually experiencing, like Dorothy and her friends. We may also attribute our experiences to something other than ourselves, when we have it with us all along.

God can certainly be credited with creating us with such wonderful mental faculties; we also can credit the Holy Spirit for inspiring the source of information upon which our psyche can base its decisions. In that way, God/the Holy Spirit is indirectly responsible for what happens in the Christians life when the Christian bases his decisions upon God’s word. However, let’s not conclude that “little voice” is the Holy Spirit when God has created us with such tremendous faculties of mind.

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Family and Friends – What Are They?

Today is our fifth annual Family and Friends day at the Berryville church of Christ. We’re glad you’re here, whether you be family or friend! The Bible tells us both what is a family and what is a friend. I hope that you will take the time to study some of these things this week and consider God’s revelation regarding these roles.

What is a family? In the beginning God defined for us what constitutes a family. We read in Genesis 2:21-24, “And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof; And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man. And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man. Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.” At the minimum, a family is a husband and a wife. Into such a union children may then be born or adopted and extend the family. Eventually, however, the children will grow up and move out creating their own families. This then becomes the extended family. However it all ought to begin with one man and one woman.

There is an ongoing effort in our world today to redefine what we know as the family. We are told that a family can be anyone or anything that one loves. There are efforts to have same sex families. There are efforts to have families composed of man and beast. There are efforts to have families composed of multiple wives or husbands, or both! All of these efforts to redefine what God has defined as a family fail to meet God’s standard. God created the family to be composed of one man and one woman and that is God’s ideal. We ought not then apologize to the many who do not meet this standard if we are to speak as the oracles of God (1 Peter 4:11). Instead, let us glorify God for His great wisdom that He has given regarding the family and live according to His will in that regard. God’s way is always the best way.

What is a friend? Proverbs 17:17 declares, “A friend loves at all times….” A friend is someone who is there through thick and thin. He is someone who never gives up. He is someone upon whom you can always depend. A friend loves you whether you love him or not. There is not going to be a circumstance in which he will stop loving. That’s a true friend. Jesus said in John 15:13, “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” This is the ultimate sacrifice that a friend will make for another friend to show the greatness of his love.

The world has also sought to redefine the term friend. Today, many define a friend as someone who always encourages me to do what I want regardless of the consequences. Many consider someone their friend only if he supports all of their choices and decisions whether right or wrong. The Bible, however, tells us a different story regarding friendship. Proverbs 27:6 says, “Faithful are the wounds of a friend; but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful.” Those who would encourage us regardless of our choices are no true friends.

Some may also define friendship in terms of what another can purchase. In other words, one will be another’s friend so long as the gravy train doesn’t run out. Such “friendship” isn’t based upon loyalty or love, but upon selfishness and covetousness. The Bible says, “….every man is a friend to him that giveth gifts” (Proverbs 19:6). If every man is our friend, then we’ve really made no true friends at all. Our society today needs true friends, not the fickle favor of feckless frolickers. We need friends like are discussed in Proverbs 27:17 “Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend.” Friends ought to love us when we truly need to be loved, question us when we need to be questioned, and correct us when we need to be corrected whether we want them to or not.

Family or friend, God has given us instruction on what he expects out of these roles in our lives. Let us learn what God wants us to know and believe and make the appropriate application. Jesus said, “Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you” (John 15:14). May God bless you as you seek to know and do His will.

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Why Have Some Called Us a “Cult?”

This past Wednesday night in the high school class, one of our astute and observant high school students asked me why some are calling us a cult. After the death of Matthew Winkler, there were several in the media who were seeking to “analyze” the situation. One Nancy Grace on CNN invited a Baptist “pastor” to come and answer some questions. During this interview, the “pastor” said that the church of Christ was a cult like religion. While he didn’t come out and call us an outright cult, there are others who do. Why do some refer to the churches of Christ as a cult?

First, there has been some confusion between the churches of Christ and the International Churches of Christ which is the former Boston Movement, a.k.a. Crossroads Movement. While the ICOC had its origins among churches of Christ, their practices were not consistent with what we practice and they rapidly became identified as a separate religions group. Some of their practices included a one man leader type system in a hierarchical pyramid style organization. They also held to the practice of “prayer partners” where one would confess sins to a “higher” Christian. These confessions would then be used to manipulate the “lower” Christian into the “correct” behavior. With such mind manipulation techniques and a single charismatic leader many correctly identified them as a cult. Unfortunately, the distinction between the ICOC and the “mainline” churches of Christ was not so clear in the minds of observers. One government document in the 90s identified the “Church of Christ” as the most rapidly growing cult in the United States. In that same document there was a footnote that identified “churches of Christ” as the ICOC or Boston Movement, but this was not commonly understood. This failure to understand the difference between these two bodies has contributed largely to the confusion that many today have.

Second, many in the denominational world consider us a cult because of our teaching regarding the one nature of the church. The Bible clearly teaches that there is one body (Ephesians 4:4) and that that one body is the church (Ephesians 1:22-23). The denominational world identifies this body as all of the denominations. However, this is not how the Bible identifies Christ’s body. The Bible teaches that the one body of Christ isn’t divided into denominations (1 Corinthians 1:10-13), but united under a single doctrine (Ephesians 4:1-6) and that Christ expects his church to have unity based upon this doctrine (John 17:20-23). That’s not the picture of the church that we find in the denominational world today. Denominationalism teaches that one may believe any of various different doctrines so long as one doesn’t condemn any other denomination. Such a picture of the church is foreign to the teaching of scripture which demands like-mindedness in doctrinal matters (Philippians 2:2). Thus, because churches of Christ teach that denominationalism is sinful, divisive, and aberrant to the New Testament’s teaching regarding the nature of the church, denominationalists can only respond with the accusation that we must be a cult regardless of what our practices are. In essence, what they have done is defined the word “cult” to mean anything other than acceptance of the denominational world, a definition of convenience at best.

Finally, because the churches of Christ teach the necessity of baptism prior to salvation, denominationalists level the accusation of “cult” against us. It doesn’t matter to them that the Bible itself teaches the necessity of baptism prior to salvation in such passages as Mark 16:15, Acts 2:38, Acts 22:16, Romans 6:1-11, Galatians 3:27-29, Colossians 2:11-13 and 1 Peter 3:21. So in essence, this is the classical logical fallacy of argumentum ad hominem (attack the man or in this case, the church). In essence the argument is, “Don’t believe that baptism is necessary for salvation because they are a cult and cults can’t be believed!” There is no effort to deal with the actual issue of what the Bible plainly teaches. In essence, they label us a cult because they can’t refute what is plainly taught in the scriptures and what we believe.

It is sad that denominational leaders and people outside of the church will blindly accept such accusations and criticisms without investigation, but that is exactly what occurs. The Lord’s church has experienced such criticism since its inception (Acts 24:5, 28:22). Even Jesus was accused unjustly (Matthew 9:34). We, however, as the church, ought not to let such unwarranted criticisms move us away from the truth of the scriptures; we have truth and it sets us free from the shackles of denominational teaching and practices, which practices are rapidly leading the denominations into the acceptance of immorality in our day and age. The church of Christ is not a cult regardless what others say. Let us continue to hold fast to the truths of scripture regarding the nature of the church, the plan of salvation, and religious practices that are pleasing to God and not man (Galatians 1:10).

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