The Power of Your Hand

The Power of Your Hand

Withhold not good from them to whom it is due, when it is in the power of thine hand to do it. Say not unto thy neighbour, Go, and come again, and to morrow I will give; when thou hast it by thee. (Proverbs 3:27-28 KJV)hand love

To whom is “good” due? The New Testament tells Christians that they are to do good unto all men, especially their fellow Christians. What is meant by doing “good”? In the context here, it is something that we have a limited opportunity to share. The “good” could be showing benevolent love in providing some physical sustenance. Or more importantly it could be by showing love for their eternal welfare and speaking to them about spiritual matters.

The focus here is on the urgency of the matter at hand. This might be your or their only opportunity to give or receive. Life promises us nothing beyond this very moment. Who knows when the Lord will return or when we or our neighbor might come the end of life’s journey?

Read Galatians 6:10; James 4:13-17

Posted in Jack McNiel | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on The Power of Your Hand

The Divine Vaccine for Disease

The Divine Vaccine for Disease

For the past year, we have dealt with the onslaught of a powerful sickness which has infected the entire world. Every newscast has given us the number of new infections and the daily total of those who have died. The life of every Christian has been changed because of its presence. However, we may have lost sight of another “disease” which has rapidly spread all over the world and threatens every person in every home on the earth. That “disease” is sin. It has killed far more every day than Covid-19 has in a year. Sin brings death to all who are infected by it, but we should be ever thankful that there is a Divine vaccine to deal with it.

That vaccine is a life built on faithful obedience and service to the Lord. Sin has captured billions of individuals on this earth, but a life of faith removes its power from our lives. In both the Old Testament and the New Testament we find this simple truth, “The just shall live by faith” (Hab. 2:4; Rom. 1:17; Gal. 3:11; Heb. 10:38). Sin brings death but a life which is built around trusting God and doing His will “vaccinates” us against the power of sin and Satan.

Look at how the Divine vaccine empowers us and assures us that we will not become slaves to the bondage that sin always brings.

The life of faithful service removes from us the consequences of past sin. When Christians look at the mistakes of their past lives, they see it different. There is no need in the heart of His children for them to carry the heavy burden of the guilt of sin. While we can never remove the knowledge of our sinful past, we must always remember that day when God forgot about them. That person who is raised from the waters of baptism is a new creation. That sinful man with all of the horrendous, stupid mistakes has been crucified and has been buried in the waters of baptism (Rom. 6:3-6). When he walks out of the baptistry, he is a new sinless person! There is no need for guilt because God does not even remember our past!

The life of faithful service removes sin and its guilt from our lives after we are baptized. Do we do wrong? Yes, to deny this is to make God a liar, but hear these words about every wrong we have done after we became a Christian. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). The blood that dealt with past sins deals with our daily sins for “…if we walk in the light…the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:7). Sin has taken up residence in the lives of all mankind, but it does not reside in His children. The blood of Jesus, the Divine vaccine, always protects us. Is there any wonder He said, “Be faithful until death and I will give you a crown of life”?

Posted in Dan Jenkins | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on The Divine Vaccine for Disease

True Grit

True Grit

In 1969, John Wayne starred in a movie title “True Grit,” and in 2010 the movie was remade with Jeff Bridges as the star. The movie was based on a book written by Arkansas author Charles Portis and first published in the Saturday Evening Post as a series of stories in 1968. Set in the late 1870s, the story tells of a Deputy U.S. Marshall and a Texas Ranger who help a young girl pursue her father’s murderer into Indian territory to exact “justice.” The name of the movie comes from the girl’s evaluation of the Marshall’s gritty qualities.

john wayne grit

There is only one John Wayne.

The word “grit” as used here means one who has a tough character or imperturbable spirit. It describes a quality that many lamentably do not possess today. This is the ability to stick to something even when things are difficult. There used to be a saying, “When the going gets tough, the tough get going.” It’s not in vogue these days because most simply give up instead. Such an attitude has invaded the Lord’s church to some degree. The notion of sticking with something through thick or thin has gone out of style. What prevents us from ending the good works of the church? True grit. We need faithful men and women who will step up and continue what others have begun. Paul wrote, “Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord” (1 Corinthians 15:58). The Lord’s church has a great work to do. Let’s not give up on it just because times are hard. Let’s find that true grit that we need to carry on.

Posted in Kevin Cauley | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on True Grit

God Challenges Us to Think

God Challenges Us to Think

God gave you a brain—use it! Our world has been changed in so many ways simply because we have used the intelligence we have to look around and see things as they are and then to make changes to improve our circumstances. We have the ability to think, to understand, to comprehend and to change. We are far more than animals, and we are so far above beasts. We have a brain, and God expects us to us it.

Faith is not blind faith. To simply define faith as some emotional feeling which has been passed down from our forefathers and as something we have because it is part of the culture into which we were born is to fail to understand faith in its truest sense. Faith is not based on feelings. Faith is not a leap into the dark. If that is all there is to faith, then faith is foolishness, and our intelligence demands it must be rejected. Faith is built on historical events recorded by those who heard the voice of God give the first written words of an ancient book and recorded not just the words, but the manifestation of the power of the One who spoke those Ten Commandments.

The true God challenges us to not have a blind faith.  The God of that ancient book has challenged men to think. He gave mankind reasoning ability and throughout the years has pleaded with them to think. When mankind ignored Him and began to make gods of wood, stone and precious metal He challenged them. In one paragraph, He rebukes those who failed to think. “Idols are silver and gold, the works of men’s hands. They have mouths, but they do not speak; eyes they have but they do not see; they have ears, but they do not hear; noses they have, but they do not smell; they have hands, but they do not handle; feet they have, but they do not walk; nor do they mutter through their throat” (Psa. 115:4-7). What is God saying? I gave you a brain, use it and I will help you find the living God who speaks, sees, hears, smells, handles and walks among you!

He challenges you to use your brain. We are no longer having to deal with inanimate statues of a god. However, there is still that ancient book which challenges us to think. It claims that God has come in human form and walked among us. Yet, our world has ignored the claim, without ever looking at the evidence. They have not read the one book which gives evidence of the fact that Jesus lived and died and gave proof of His Deity. Faith in Him is not a leap into the dark. It is not an emotional conclusion reached based of feelings. There is the evidence! There are His miracles. There are His eternal words. There is the empty tomb. Look at the evidence. Use the brain He gave us. If Christianity is not reasonable it should be immediately rejected. He challenges you to examine the evidence.

Posted in Dan Jenkins | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on God Challenges Us to Think

Affirming the Faith

Affirming the Faith

There is no way that I can adequately describe the strength, power, hope, and scope, of the spiritual feast of encouragement recently served up – and then so voraciously gobbled up – by all of those blessed enough to be a part of this year’s phenomenal Affirming The Faith seminar in Oklahoma City. It was entitled “Surviving The Tough Stuff” – and it was every inch of that and more. Although Satan has used covid to cause unimaginable damage over the past couple of years (including the cancellation of last year’s ATF seminar), in this case at least, it may have backfired on him; as we seemed to have received a well-concentrated double dose of desperately-needed blessing at this year’s event.

Since our arrival in Oklahoma in 2009, and our subsequently attending our first ATF seminar in the spring of 2010, we have not missed a one – with the exception of last year’s covid-cancelled event. They have all been very good, Biblical, faith-building and spiritually-encouraging events. However, I believe that I can safely say that this year’s event was the best one of all – at least for me personally.The reason for this was the theme (the speakers are always exceptional). It is absolutely impossible to put into words, the immeasurable damage that the last couple of years have produced in our lives in terms of: physical lives lost, spiritual lives lost, and families – both spiritual and biological – ravaged, damaged,and in some cases, nearly destroyed as a direct consequence of covid’s deadly dynamics.

But this year’s event was designed to help promote, provide, and produce sustained spiritual health, healing, well-being and protection,despite covid’s (as well as many other life-problems’) unimaginable devastation. It was meant to be a modern-day balm of Gilead for the lonely, wounded, devastated, isolated, overwhelmed,and heavily burdened and hurting children of the living God (Jer. 8:22, 46:11).

If you have suffered as a result of covid – or anything else whatsoever – over the course of the past couple of years, or even over the course of your entire life; or, if you are perhaps even at this moment laboring, weak and heavy laden, under a burden that is crushing and overwhelming, there is indeed, a balm in Gilead… and this seminar will help not only to point you to it, but will also help you to apply it.

Here’s more great news: You didn’t have to be there to get the medicine! But you will have to listen to get the prescription! Do yourself a favor; listen to the keynotes first. Take notes. Open your Bible. Get the message. Let the healing begin. God bless! www.affirmingthefaithok.com/schedule2022.php.

 

Posted in Doug Dingley | Tagged , | Comments Off on Affirming the Faith