(August 8, 1990)
How does evolution explain a skunk?
The theory says: simple, one-celled organisms developed into complex creatures. Therefore, this defenseless little critter must have “evolved” its complex spray gun; yet in the battle of survival, what kept larger, “more evolved” creatures from killing it? Was It coincidence? Did wolves and coyotes just fail to notice this harmless black and white kitty? How did the skunk survive several eons without odor until its glands could develop this distinctive form of protection...?
I used to believe evolution was a valid theory. I remember arguing with my mother about it. She had all the biblical answers but nothing she could say convinced me. Finally, it was science that ran out of answers.
I was in my early 20's when a scientific statement caught my attention. It was: “energy is neither created or destroyed, only changed to a different form.” I wondered about a particular from of energy -- my life. If that scientific statement was true, then where did my life come from before I had it, and where would it go when I died? Heavy questions, but I only could conclude that, scientifically, my life would never end. I wasn’t sure if it began somewhere else or, if it did, where that might have been, but I knew the energy of my life must go somewhere after my body was done with it.
While trying to find answers to my questions, I read a book about reincarnation. Oddly, there was a verse of Scripture in that book, used out of context to support what I now know is an unbiblical belief. God had a purpose in it being there though. Psalms 119:130 says: “The entrance of thy words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple.”
Ever walk out of darkness into a brightly lit room? You can’t see anything but light for quite a while. That is what happened to me. As I read that verse of Scripture with an open and questioning mind, the room seemed filled with the light of what God revealed to me.
The first truth He gave me was not about evolution or about where the energy of my life came from before I was born. I didn’t find out then where life would go after I died either. Instead, God showed me something far more important; He revealed the mystery of the identity of Jesus Christ. I suddenly knew, beyond any doubt, that He is God Almighty who came in human flesh.
I put the book aside and began reading God’s Book. He unfolded truth after truth. I saw my need as a sinner and asked Him to forgive me and come into my life. Only then was the whole question of my eternal destiny settled.
I saw other things in Scripture that amazed me. One was that God knew all about me before I was even born, because He made me. The Psalmist expressed the delight I felt: “I will give thanks to Thee, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made...” (Psalm 139).
The Bible also showed me something science didn’t know back then, that each creature has it’s own kind of cell structure. A skunk could never have been a snake, they are not made of the same kind of cells. Science now says each creature has skin cells, heart tissue cells, brain cells, all interdependent but none like the other. Such design demands a Designer.
Another thing I learned was, “by faith we understand... that what is seen was not made out of things which are visible.” Christians understand creation by faith. Faith is not a subjective wish that makes something true only in our own mind; it is a gift from God that enables us to see realities that sin otherwise blinds us to... thus I couldn’t accept my mother’s arguments until God dealt with my sin.
I don’t like the smell of a skunk, but I am glad they have their distinctive odor. It reminds me that God wisely planned every feature of every living thing. It also reminds me of His grace; He opened my eyes to spiritual realities – far more than the mystery of how a skunk got its weapon!
Friday, January 30, 2015
Wednesday, January 28, 2015
Death – the conquered enemy ................. Parables 228
(August 1, 1990)
A coffin holds the attention of mourners. A mother sobs for her dead. A wife is now a widow, children fatherless. Entire families grieve. Death, the final enemy, wins again.
Even aside from the obituaries, death serves as a main ingredient in the news of the day. Violent death, accidental death, death as a result of a battle with disease -- the only joyful accounts are when someone “cheats death” and even then, it is a temporary victory.
Some refuse to think about it, as if neglect will make it go away; but the saddest grief is for those who pretend it will never happen and find themselves face to face with reality -- death has snatched someone they love. Others are so preoccupied with death they spend their entire lives trying to beat it -- with everything from anti-aging cream to youth elixirs, only to find themselves a victim of the prey they could not capture and cage.
We hear of heroes who “bravely face death” and cowards who run from it; but regardless of the attitude, death always wins; well, almost always...
The most exciting thing that ever happened to humanity involves the one person who met death on death’s terms, allowed death to win, and then turned the score and rose a winner, conquering the unconquerable enemy and changing forever the hopes of it’s victims. Jesus Christ defeated the last enemy.
There are many people who don’t believe that. They say He didn’t really die, or He didn’t really rise; His disciples imagined or invented it. Scripture answers, “...if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ is not risen: And if Christ is not risen, then our preaching is vain, and your faith is also vain. Yes, and we are false witnesses of God because we have testified that He raised up Christ... For if the dead rise not, then Christ is not raised and if Christ is not raised, your faith is vain; you are yet in your sins. Then they also which have died believing in Christ have perished. If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable. (I Corinthians 15:14-19).
Unthinking Christians sometimes say, “Well, if we are wrong, at least we have lived well...” Scripture says if we are wrong, we are fools. We have given our lives to follow a lie. The joys of belonging to Christ aside, we have turned our backs on the pleasures of sin, even given up all this world has to offer, and if there is nothing beyond this life, what do we have?
Jesus says this life is fleeting but what we do with it makes a difference – in it, and in the next life: “There is no man that hath left (all) for the kingdom of God’s sake, who shall not receive manifold more in this present time, and in the world to come life everlasting” (Luke 18:29,30).
Spending a life ignoring death ill prepares one for its eventuality. Preoccupation with it also ignores its power; we can’t win the battle. Looking at it as a foe, but a conquered foe gives us hope, yet that hope must be placed in the One who won the victory. We can’t conquer death because we can’t conquer the cause of death (sin); only Jesus did that. Only faith in Him gives us the same victory – over sin and over death.
The Bible triumphantly shouts to the enemy: “O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin [is] the law. But thanks to God, which gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Jesus hated death. He wept at the tomb of Lazarus, He felt compassion for the widow of Nain who lost her only Son; He wouldn’t let death claim either one of them. Nor did He enter it joyfully Himself. In Gethsemane His sweat dropped as blood and He cried, “Father, let this pass from me... nevertheless, not as I will but Your will be done...”
And because God so loved the world, He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
A coffin holds the attention of mourners. A mother sobs for her dead. A wife is now a widow, children fatherless. Entire families grieve. Death, the final enemy, wins again.
Even aside from the obituaries, death serves as a main ingredient in the news of the day. Violent death, accidental death, death as a result of a battle with disease -- the only joyful accounts are when someone “cheats death” and even then, it is a temporary victory.
Some refuse to think about it, as if neglect will make it go away; but the saddest grief is for those who pretend it will never happen and find themselves face to face with reality -- death has snatched someone they love. Others are so preoccupied with death they spend their entire lives trying to beat it -- with everything from anti-aging cream to youth elixirs, only to find themselves a victim of the prey they could not capture and cage.
We hear of heroes who “bravely face death” and cowards who run from it; but regardless of the attitude, death always wins; well, almost always...
The most exciting thing that ever happened to humanity involves the one person who met death on death’s terms, allowed death to win, and then turned the score and rose a winner, conquering the unconquerable enemy and changing forever the hopes of it’s victims. Jesus Christ defeated the last enemy.
There are many people who don’t believe that. They say He didn’t really die, or He didn’t really rise; His disciples imagined or invented it. Scripture answers, “...if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ is not risen: And if Christ is not risen, then our preaching is vain, and your faith is also vain. Yes, and we are false witnesses of God because we have testified that He raised up Christ... For if the dead rise not, then Christ is not raised and if Christ is not raised, your faith is vain; you are yet in your sins. Then they also which have died believing in Christ have perished. If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable. (I Corinthians 15:14-19).
Unthinking Christians sometimes say, “Well, if we are wrong, at least we have lived well...” Scripture says if we are wrong, we are fools. We have given our lives to follow a lie. The joys of belonging to Christ aside, we have turned our backs on the pleasures of sin, even given up all this world has to offer, and if there is nothing beyond this life, what do we have?
Jesus says this life is fleeting but what we do with it makes a difference – in it, and in the next life: “There is no man that hath left (all) for the kingdom of God’s sake, who shall not receive manifold more in this present time, and in the world to come life everlasting” (Luke 18:29,30).
Spending a life ignoring death ill prepares one for its eventuality. Preoccupation with it also ignores its power; we can’t win the battle. Looking at it as a foe, but a conquered foe gives us hope, yet that hope must be placed in the One who won the victory. We can’t conquer death because we can’t conquer the cause of death (sin); only Jesus did that. Only faith in Him gives us the same victory – over sin and over death.
The Bible triumphantly shouts to the enemy: “O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin [is] the law. But thanks to God, which gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Jesus hated death. He wept at the tomb of Lazarus, He felt compassion for the widow of Nain who lost her only Son; He wouldn’t let death claim either one of them. Nor did He enter it joyfully Himself. In Gethsemane His sweat dropped as blood and He cried, “Father, let this pass from me... nevertheless, not as I will but Your will be done...”
And because God so loved the world, He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
Monday, January 26, 2015
A Sweet Smell ................. Parables 227
(July 25, 1990)
What thoughts come with the smell of warm apple pie... the difficulty of losing ten pounds?... Grandma’s house?... Cheddar cheese and melting ice cream?... Or harvest time and a crew of men around the table?
Odors evoke memories. Some publishers even put them in “scratch and sniff” stories to make scenes more alive for young readers. For example, one child’s book I’ve read has berry pie, pepper, chocolate and automobile exhaust fumes hidden in the ink.
Children are not the only ones treated to scented ink. At least one major food chain uses it in their flyers. It is subtle, fades quickly, but reminds potential customers of how good food tastes and hopefully draws them into the store.
The Bible talks about the allure of a sweet scent too. It is not a splash of cologne or aftershave but a heavenly fragrance, the aroma of Christ. The Apostle Paul put it this way, “Thanks be to God who... through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of Him. For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life...” (2 Corinthians 2:14-16).
The origin of this metaphor is found back to the Old Testament where sacrifices for sin were burned on an altar: “And you shall burn the whole ram upon the altar: it is a burnt offering to the LORD: it is a sweet savor, an offering made by fire to the LORD.” Exodus 29:18
Figuratively speaking, the smell of the sacrifice rose to the nostrils of God and gave evidence that a sinner had made the necessary offering, in faith, for the forgiveness his sin. That offering was a shadow of a future offering that would be made by a Savior.
When Jesus came, He became the final and perfect sacrifice. As He died on the cross, His offering rose as a sweet smell to God, setting sinners free from the death penalty. Now, according to the New Testament, those who believe in Christ are bearers of that sweet smell.
Notice that 2 Corinthians 2 says “we are to God the aroma of Christ;” that is, our new life is first for God, for His delight because it gave Him great pleasure to provide it.
Secondly, this aroma “is among those who are being saved... the fragrance of life.” Our Christlikeness is also for the pleasure of those who are Christians. To one another, it is a reminder of the perfect sacrifice of Christ and attracts us to the Savior. It is He who gives each one His sweet fragrance.
Lastly, it is “the smell of death... for those who are perishing.” Perhaps the Bible means that those who do not believe in Christ see His death as defeat. To them, the gospel is nothing but a morbid message. Maybe they think Christians are mere fools, bearing not an attracting odor of life but one that repels. To those who don’t believe, Christians may also be an unwanted reminder of an uncertain eternity.
Just what is this aroma? Is it the niceness of a committed Christian? The loveliness of Jesus? Perhaps; but since this word is used in context with sacrifice, I believe it is the message of the Cross lived out in the lives of those who believe in Him. Because Jesus died for our sins, was buried, and rose again, we die to sin, put our past behind us, and live in newness of life. The death of the old nature demonstrated in practical obedience smells good to God, just as our new life in Christ also pleases Him.
I know -- not all Christians smell right. Sometimes that God-given odor can be masked with the stench of sin. But when confess our sins and take a wash in His Word, He restores the sweet aroma, then uses it to bring the memory of Him to the hearts of those around us.
What thoughts come with the smell of warm apple pie... the difficulty of losing ten pounds?... Grandma’s house?... Cheddar cheese and melting ice cream?... Or harvest time and a crew of men around the table?
Odors evoke memories. Some publishers even put them in “scratch and sniff” stories to make scenes more alive for young readers. For example, one child’s book I’ve read has berry pie, pepper, chocolate and automobile exhaust fumes hidden in the ink.
Children are not the only ones treated to scented ink. At least one major food chain uses it in their flyers. It is subtle, fades quickly, but reminds potential customers of how good food tastes and hopefully draws them into the store.
The Bible talks about the allure of a sweet scent too. It is not a splash of cologne or aftershave but a heavenly fragrance, the aroma of Christ. The Apostle Paul put it this way, “Thanks be to God who... through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of Him. For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life...” (2 Corinthians 2:14-16).
The origin of this metaphor is found back to the Old Testament where sacrifices for sin were burned on an altar: “And you shall burn the whole ram upon the altar: it is a burnt offering to the LORD: it is a sweet savor, an offering made by fire to the LORD.” Exodus 29:18
Figuratively speaking, the smell of the sacrifice rose to the nostrils of God and gave evidence that a sinner had made the necessary offering, in faith, for the forgiveness his sin. That offering was a shadow of a future offering that would be made by a Savior.
When Jesus came, He became the final and perfect sacrifice. As He died on the cross, His offering rose as a sweet smell to God, setting sinners free from the death penalty. Now, according to the New Testament, those who believe in Christ are bearers of that sweet smell.
Notice that 2 Corinthians 2 says “we are to God the aroma of Christ;” that is, our new life is first for God, for His delight because it gave Him great pleasure to provide it.
Secondly, this aroma “is among those who are being saved... the fragrance of life.” Our Christlikeness is also for the pleasure of those who are Christians. To one another, it is a reminder of the perfect sacrifice of Christ and attracts us to the Savior. It is He who gives each one His sweet fragrance.
Lastly, it is “the smell of death... for those who are perishing.” Perhaps the Bible means that those who do not believe in Christ see His death as defeat. To them, the gospel is nothing but a morbid message. Maybe they think Christians are mere fools, bearing not an attracting odor of life but one that repels. To those who don’t believe, Christians may also be an unwanted reminder of an uncertain eternity.
Just what is this aroma? Is it the niceness of a committed Christian? The loveliness of Jesus? Perhaps; but since this word is used in context with sacrifice, I believe it is the message of the Cross lived out in the lives of those who believe in Him. Because Jesus died for our sins, was buried, and rose again, we die to sin, put our past behind us, and live in newness of life. The death of the old nature demonstrated in practical obedience smells good to God, just as our new life in Christ also pleases Him.
I know -- not all Christians smell right. Sometimes that God-given odor can be masked with the stench of sin. But when confess our sins and take a wash in His Word, He restores the sweet aroma, then uses it to bring the memory of Him to the hearts of those around us.
Friday, January 23, 2015
Standing on a slippery slope? ................. Parables 226
(July 18, 1990)
A few people sit around the kitchen table, coffee cups in hand. They discuss morals... and the absence of them. One person shocks the rest with a story about some particularly offensive sinful condition into which another had fallen. Most shake their heads and wonder how anybody could do “that.” One of the group declares, “I would never do that...” Another says, “Me neither.”
Most people don’t plan gross evil as their goal in life, at least not to begin with. I don’t suppose the offender had “that” in mind ten years earlier either. Maybe he once sat having coffee with a group of friends discussing the same issue. Maybe he was just as shocked about it then as they are now. Maybe he even said, “I would never do that...” And just maybe his pride was the first warning of the slide to come. “Pride goes before a fall” the Scripture says. Consider Lot, for instance...
Lot was a relative of the patriarch Abraham. When God called the older man to leave his home and go to the land of promise, Lot went along with him. The New Testament calls Lot a righteous man so we know he too had faith in God (the Biblical prerequisite to being called righteous); very likely his travels with his uncle started out honorably.
As these two men increased in wealth, the area in which they lived became too small for their large herds. Soon their herdsmen started quarreling. Abraham didn’t want that, so he took Lot to a hill that overlooked the whole area and gave him his choice, either the well-watered eastern valley or the land of Canaan to the west.
The valley had the greener grass. Perhaps Lot thought he deserved the best pasture. He didn’t hesitate; he left Abraham and settled in the Jordan Valley, seemingly without any concern that he would be living close to Sodom and Gomorrah, two cities filled with wicked people.
The next thing we read about Lot, he is living right in Sodom. He is even “seated in the gates” indicating he is involved in leadership. At first that sounds good. After all, maybe this righteous man will influence those evil people for God; but it doesn’t work out that way.
The people of those two cities continue in their sin. Finally, God decides to destroy them but first He tells Abraham. Abraham prayerfully intercedes for Lot and his family, then God sends angels to tell Lot to take his wife, two daughters, and their husbands, and get out immediately.
But they don’t want to go. They like Sodom. Lot’s words don’t carry any weight with them. In fact, neither son-in-law will listen to him. Finally he leaves with the women, but his wife disobeys the angel, turns and looks back at the home she didn’t want to leave, and is destroyed.
The daughters (brought up by a “righteous” man, remember) decide that the family name is doomed. So they come up with a plan to continue the line of Lot; they get their father drunk, commit incest with him and become pregnant. And that is the last we hear about Lot.
Way back in those early days, when Abraham and Lot started out in faith on that great adventure of finding the promised land, I’m sure Lot didn’t have any inclination or plan to become a disrespected citizen of an evil city. I doubt if the thought of incest ever entered his head. But he made a wrong choice, a choice possibly based on greed. From there, it became increasingly easier to make wrong choices until finally he was committing gross sin.
As for us, it is easy to sit in judgment, to look at the messy lives around us and say, “I’d never do that...” Maybe we wouldn’t. Then again, Lot didn’t think his pride would grease the slide either.
A few people sit around the kitchen table, coffee cups in hand. They discuss morals... and the absence of them. One person shocks the rest with a story about some particularly offensive sinful condition into which another had fallen. Most shake their heads and wonder how anybody could do “that.” One of the group declares, “I would never do that...” Another says, “Me neither.”
Most people don’t plan gross evil as their goal in life, at least not to begin with. I don’t suppose the offender had “that” in mind ten years earlier either. Maybe he once sat having coffee with a group of friends discussing the same issue. Maybe he was just as shocked about it then as they are now. Maybe he even said, “I would never do that...” And just maybe his pride was the first warning of the slide to come. “Pride goes before a fall” the Scripture says. Consider Lot, for instance...
Lot was a relative of the patriarch Abraham. When God called the older man to leave his home and go to the land of promise, Lot went along with him. The New Testament calls Lot a righteous man so we know he too had faith in God (the Biblical prerequisite to being called righteous); very likely his travels with his uncle started out honorably.
As these two men increased in wealth, the area in which they lived became too small for their large herds. Soon their herdsmen started quarreling. Abraham didn’t want that, so he took Lot to a hill that overlooked the whole area and gave him his choice, either the well-watered eastern valley or the land of Canaan to the west.
The valley had the greener grass. Perhaps Lot thought he deserved the best pasture. He didn’t hesitate; he left Abraham and settled in the Jordan Valley, seemingly without any concern that he would be living close to Sodom and Gomorrah, two cities filled with wicked people.
The next thing we read about Lot, he is living right in Sodom. He is even “seated in the gates” indicating he is involved in leadership. At first that sounds good. After all, maybe this righteous man will influence those evil people for God; but it doesn’t work out that way.
The people of those two cities continue in their sin. Finally, God decides to destroy them but first He tells Abraham. Abraham prayerfully intercedes for Lot and his family, then God sends angels to tell Lot to take his wife, two daughters, and their husbands, and get out immediately.
But they don’t want to go. They like Sodom. Lot’s words don’t carry any weight with them. In fact, neither son-in-law will listen to him. Finally he leaves with the women, but his wife disobeys the angel, turns and looks back at the home she didn’t want to leave, and is destroyed.
The daughters (brought up by a “righteous” man, remember) decide that the family name is doomed. So they come up with a plan to continue the line of Lot; they get their father drunk, commit incest with him and become pregnant. And that is the last we hear about Lot.
Way back in those early days, when Abraham and Lot started out in faith on that great adventure of finding the promised land, I’m sure Lot didn’t have any inclination or plan to become a disrespected citizen of an evil city. I doubt if the thought of incest ever entered his head. But he made a wrong choice, a choice possibly based on greed. From there, it became increasingly easier to make wrong choices until finally he was committing gross sin.
As for us, it is easy to sit in judgment, to look at the messy lives around us and say, “I’d never do that...” Maybe we wouldn’t. Then again, Lot didn’t think his pride would grease the slide either.
Wednesday, January 21, 2015
Not all rewards are bankable ................. Parables 225
(July 11, 1990)
Long, long ago, when children were taught to say please and thank you and polite conversation was normal, a young employee worked overtime to meet a deadline. When the assignment was finished and she was getting ready to leave with a friend, her boss said thank you. The friend muttered, “Thanks doesn’t buy much beer.”
There are still a few people who will stay late on a job without expecting or even wanting overtime pay, but they are almost as rare as a polite please and thank you. Mere appreciation isn’t enough in this materialistic society. The reward has to be tangible and preferably bankable.
I came across a startling verse of Scripture one day that showed me the norm for the Christian worker should be diametrically opposite to the norm of our day. It was written by the Apostle Paul to the immature believers in the church at Corinth. He said, “I will very gladly spend and be spent for you; though the more abundantly I love you, the less I be loved.”
I don’t know about most Christians but I find myself often expecting, even taking for granted, that other Christians will not only appreciate me but love me, especially if I spend myself to meet their needs. It isn’t that I serve to earn love but some expression of gratitude is the normal response of a spiritual person, and it usually happens.
However, Paul wasn’t dealing with spiritual persons. He told them in the beginning of his letter that they were carnal, behaving as ordinary men and not saints of God with envy, strife, and divisions among them (3:3). He rebuked them thoroughly and instructed them in godly behavior. At the end of his letter though, he told them he would gladly love and serve them, even if they did not respond as they should. Obviously he wasn’t motivated by any response he hoped to get from them, but what did motivate him?
In his second letter to them, he tells why he could keep on regardless of their reaction: “The love of Christ constrains us...” He could have put it this way: The love of Christ controls us...” It was not a forced restraint but willing submission to the force of the love of God that provided him the necessary motivation to serve others.
But how do you keep on serving people who never show any appreciation? Jesus revealed that to Peter after He rose from the dead and had cooked breakfast for some of the disciples. Taking Peter aside, He asked him if he loved Him. When Peter responded, Jesus said, “If you love me... feed my sheep.”
It is not love for the sheep but love for Jesus that counts. When we love Him, we do what He says. Doing what He says usually involves serving the needs of others. Many times those others are grateful and say so; and many times the Lord will even reward His servants in other ways; but there are occasions when the job is done in love and humility and no one says thanks, or cares, or even seems to notice.
Actually, it is thankless people who really test my relationship with Christ. Am I doing this because I love Him and serve Him? Or am I looking for a pat on the back, my name on a plaque, or at least a mention (with appreciative reverence) from the pulpit next Sunday? Perhaps the truest test of love for Christ is working to help someone who would choke if they had to say thanks, and die on the spot if they had to return the favor, and do that service without a trace of expectation or bitterness.
No, verbal “thanks” doesn’t pay the bills, nor does a servant-spirit keep bread on the table; remuneration is vital to an employee. But if our Master is the Lord and our workplace is with His people, how important to remember that serving Him is a privilege, even a thank-offering, because He gladly spent His life in service to us.
Long, long ago, when children were taught to say please and thank you and polite conversation was normal, a young employee worked overtime to meet a deadline. When the assignment was finished and she was getting ready to leave with a friend, her boss said thank you. The friend muttered, “Thanks doesn’t buy much beer.”
There are still a few people who will stay late on a job without expecting or even wanting overtime pay, but they are almost as rare as a polite please and thank you. Mere appreciation isn’t enough in this materialistic society. The reward has to be tangible and preferably bankable.
I came across a startling verse of Scripture one day that showed me the norm for the Christian worker should be diametrically opposite to the norm of our day. It was written by the Apostle Paul to the immature believers in the church at Corinth. He said, “I will very gladly spend and be spent for you; though the more abundantly I love you, the less I be loved.”
I don’t know about most Christians but I find myself often expecting, even taking for granted, that other Christians will not only appreciate me but love me, especially if I spend myself to meet their needs. It isn’t that I serve to earn love but some expression of gratitude is the normal response of a spiritual person, and it usually happens.
However, Paul wasn’t dealing with spiritual persons. He told them in the beginning of his letter that they were carnal, behaving as ordinary men and not saints of God with envy, strife, and divisions among them (3:3). He rebuked them thoroughly and instructed them in godly behavior. At the end of his letter though, he told them he would gladly love and serve them, even if they did not respond as they should. Obviously he wasn’t motivated by any response he hoped to get from them, but what did motivate him?
In his second letter to them, he tells why he could keep on regardless of their reaction: “The love of Christ constrains us...” He could have put it this way: The love of Christ controls us...” It was not a forced restraint but willing submission to the force of the love of God that provided him the necessary motivation to serve others.
But how do you keep on serving people who never show any appreciation? Jesus revealed that to Peter after He rose from the dead and had cooked breakfast for some of the disciples. Taking Peter aside, He asked him if he loved Him. When Peter responded, Jesus said, “If you love me... feed my sheep.”
It is not love for the sheep but love for Jesus that counts. When we love Him, we do what He says. Doing what He says usually involves serving the needs of others. Many times those others are grateful and say so; and many times the Lord will even reward His servants in other ways; but there are occasions when the job is done in love and humility and no one says thanks, or cares, or even seems to notice.
Actually, it is thankless people who really test my relationship with Christ. Am I doing this because I love Him and serve Him? Or am I looking for a pat on the back, my name on a plaque, or at least a mention (with appreciative reverence) from the pulpit next Sunday? Perhaps the truest test of love for Christ is working to help someone who would choke if they had to say thanks, and die on the spot if they had to return the favor, and do that service without a trace of expectation or bitterness.
No, verbal “thanks” doesn’t pay the bills, nor does a servant-spirit keep bread on the table; remuneration is vital to an employee. But if our Master is the Lord and our workplace is with His people, how important to remember that serving Him is a privilege, even a thank-offering, because He gladly spent His life in service to us.
Monday, January 19, 2015
Heaven is a destination of choice! ................. Parables 224
(July 4, 1990)
As we discussed travel, a friend told of relatives from Greece journeying to Canada for the first time. After a day or two in Alberta, they wanted to pop over for an afternoon visit with another relative -- in New Brunswick! To convince them HERE was not the same as THERE, my friend had to show them the size of Greece compared to the size of Canada on a world map.
Most of us cannot identify with something outside of our experience. Before my husband became a Christian, he used to say, “Heaven would be boring, just sitting around doing nothing or playing a harp all the time...” He wasn’t putting that destination in his itinerary.
His too-small concept of heaven was a mixture of what life is like here and what is seen in cartoons. He could not imagine anything different. What helped both of us was the map drawn by the Lord in Scripture.
The word heaven occurs over 500 times in the Bible. Some verses mean the sky or space but many of them refer to an actual place Jesus said He would prepare for His people (John 14).
Regardless of all these references, the description is sketchy, apparently because we can’t relate to its wonders. I Corinthians 2:9, for instance, says: “...as it is written, eye has not seen, nor ear heard, neither has it entered into the heart of man, the things which God has prepared for those who love him.”
God reveals this much: Jesus came down from heaven to do the will of His heavenly Father, ascended back to heaven where He now intercedes for His people, and promises to return again from heaven to raise the dead (John 6:38, Acts 1:11, Hebrews 9:24, and 1 Thessalonians 4:16). So heaven is the home of the Father and the Son: holy, perfect, sinless Beings. My problem is that I can’t imagine perfection or a place without sin.
Heaven also is special because of rewards. The Bible doesn’t say exactly what they are except they are eternal, immune from theft, pollution, and corruption, and far better than anything we have here (Matthew 6:20, Hebrews 10:34, 1 Peter 1:4). I can’t imagine that either.
Angels are another extraordinary feature of heaven. These beings, created by God to serve Him, fill heaven with their joy when sinners repent because someday, those sinners, made saints by the grace of God, will join them there. Jesus even declared: “Many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven.” Thus heaven will be well populated, a surprise considering Jesus said the way was narrow and only a few would find it, leading to another thing about heaven: there is a way to get there and it is a narrow way, narrow but not impossible. Jesus also said, “I am the way... no one comes to the Father but by me.” He Himself is the route to this wonderful place.
Our part in making travel arrangements for heaven, is humility of attitude and a willingness to change while we are here. Both were described when Jesus said: “Unless you are converted (changed), and become as little children (humble), you shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.” Jesus gives complete travel arrangements for the journey in His Book.
Those of us who have already accepted God’s Way to heaven, delight in the One who guides in our travels. He may not tell us all we would like to know about our destination but we have been given a glimpse, enough that we call HERE our temporary address... and call THERE our permanent home!
As we discussed travel, a friend told of relatives from Greece journeying to Canada for the first time. After a day or two in Alberta, they wanted to pop over for an afternoon visit with another relative -- in New Brunswick! To convince them HERE was not the same as THERE, my friend had to show them the size of Greece compared to the size of Canada on a world map.
Most of us cannot identify with something outside of our experience. Before my husband became a Christian, he used to say, “Heaven would be boring, just sitting around doing nothing or playing a harp all the time...” He wasn’t putting that destination in his itinerary.
His too-small concept of heaven was a mixture of what life is like here and what is seen in cartoons. He could not imagine anything different. What helped both of us was the map drawn by the Lord in Scripture.
The word heaven occurs over 500 times in the Bible. Some verses mean the sky or space but many of them refer to an actual place Jesus said He would prepare for His people (John 14).
Regardless of all these references, the description is sketchy, apparently because we can’t relate to its wonders. I Corinthians 2:9, for instance, says: “...as it is written, eye has not seen, nor ear heard, neither has it entered into the heart of man, the things which God has prepared for those who love him.”
God reveals this much: Jesus came down from heaven to do the will of His heavenly Father, ascended back to heaven where He now intercedes for His people, and promises to return again from heaven to raise the dead (John 6:38, Acts 1:11, Hebrews 9:24, and 1 Thessalonians 4:16). So heaven is the home of the Father and the Son: holy, perfect, sinless Beings. My problem is that I can’t imagine perfection or a place without sin.
Heaven also is special because of rewards. The Bible doesn’t say exactly what they are except they are eternal, immune from theft, pollution, and corruption, and far better than anything we have here (Matthew 6:20, Hebrews 10:34, 1 Peter 1:4). I can’t imagine that either.
Angels are another extraordinary feature of heaven. These beings, created by God to serve Him, fill heaven with their joy when sinners repent because someday, those sinners, made saints by the grace of God, will join them there. Jesus even declared: “Many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven.” Thus heaven will be well populated, a surprise considering Jesus said the way was narrow and only a few would find it, leading to another thing about heaven: there is a way to get there and it is a narrow way, narrow but not impossible. Jesus also said, “I am the way... no one comes to the Father but by me.” He Himself is the route to this wonderful place.
Our part in making travel arrangements for heaven, is humility of attitude and a willingness to change while we are here. Both were described when Jesus said: “Unless you are converted (changed), and become as little children (humble), you shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.” Jesus gives complete travel arrangements for the journey in His Book.
Those of us who have already accepted God’s Way to heaven, delight in the One who guides in our travels. He may not tell us all we would like to know about our destination but we have been given a glimpse, enough that we call HERE our temporary address... and call THERE our permanent home!
Friday, January 16, 2015
Traveling Light? ................. Parables 223
(June 27, 1990)
The date is circled on the calendar; ready or not, the movers are coming to take some of our household goods. The problem is that word some.
What stays? What goes? Do I need this casserole dish? Will I need that pair of shoes? And what will it be like for the packers as I stand there saying, “No, not that, pack this, no, just a minute, leave it and pack that...” Twenty-four previous moves didn’t prepare me for the decisions of this one.
It is easier to just pack all of it, but we can’t. We have to travel light. All of our stuff won’t fit in our condo in Saskatchewan. Besides, our son needs some of it: dishes, bedding, and a can opener, at least. This is the only time being a pack rat has paid off; we have at least two of almost everything! However, the decisions make my head ache. The other day I caught myself hoping for the Second Coming before the end of June. That way I wouldn’t have to pack anything, at least I hope I don’t try to.
I realize a crisis situation can bring out unusual characteristics in people. A friend whose house was threatened by a next-door fire was horrified when the only thing she thought to grab on her way out was her sugar bowl off the middle of the kitchen table, containing a few stray coins collected every laundry day. Later, she wondered about her value system!
The Second Coming may also clarify our priorities. When Jesus talked about the signs of His return, He told His audience, “Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house, neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes.” He must have looked ahead to the day when time ticks its last and seen some people frantically stuffing their treasures in a United Van Lines carton as they looked at the evening news and realized The End truly had arrived. Though they must have heard “you can’t take it with you,” they were trying.
Along with this curious admonition to forget about possessions at a time when it seems no one should think of them, Jesus also said “whoever seeks to save his life shall lose it; and whosoever shall lose his life shall preserve it.” He obviously knew the human quirk I fight every time I move... I do want to take it all with me; every book, every knickknack.
In a crisis, or even in ordinary days, abandoning ourselves, without luggage, into His care is never easy. Possessions can be a comfort. Perhaps learning to rely more on Him and less on things has been the lesson of our nomadic lifestyle. According to Jesus, it is a lesson for all His children.
The Apostle Paul even had to learn to leave his luggage, but not just possessions -- prestige and achievements too. In fact, when Paul allowed God to do his packing -- and he left behind almost all his material possessions PLUS the esteem of his heritage, education, position and reputation. With that gone, he was still able to say: “What things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. Yea doubtless, and I count all things [but] loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them [but] dung, that I may win Christ.”
Paul also encouraged others to take “joyfully the spoiling of your goods, knowing in yourselves that ye have in heaven a better and an enduring substance.”
I’m just moving to Moose Jaw. Sorting necessary items from not-so-necessary has to be done. One day, it will be a longer move -- and far easier, without any decisions to make, books to pack, or boxes to sort. Not only that, I can leave behind the baggage of my old, dead, sin nature -- it won’t bother me ever again.
Now that is traveling light!
The date is circled on the calendar; ready or not, the movers are coming to take some of our household goods. The problem is that word some.
What stays? What goes? Do I need this casserole dish? Will I need that pair of shoes? And what will it be like for the packers as I stand there saying, “No, not that, pack this, no, just a minute, leave it and pack that...” Twenty-four previous moves didn’t prepare me for the decisions of this one.
It is easier to just pack all of it, but we can’t. We have to travel light. All of our stuff won’t fit in our condo in Saskatchewan. Besides, our son needs some of it: dishes, bedding, and a can opener, at least. This is the only time being a pack rat has paid off; we have at least two of almost everything! However, the decisions make my head ache. The other day I caught myself hoping for the Second Coming before the end of June. That way I wouldn’t have to pack anything, at least I hope I don’t try to.
I realize a crisis situation can bring out unusual characteristics in people. A friend whose house was threatened by a next-door fire was horrified when the only thing she thought to grab on her way out was her sugar bowl off the middle of the kitchen table, containing a few stray coins collected every laundry day. Later, she wondered about her value system!
The Second Coming may also clarify our priorities. When Jesus talked about the signs of His return, He told His audience, “Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house, neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes.” He must have looked ahead to the day when time ticks its last and seen some people frantically stuffing their treasures in a United Van Lines carton as they looked at the evening news and realized The End truly had arrived. Though they must have heard “you can’t take it with you,” they were trying.
Along with this curious admonition to forget about possessions at a time when it seems no one should think of them, Jesus also said “whoever seeks to save his life shall lose it; and whosoever shall lose his life shall preserve it.” He obviously knew the human quirk I fight every time I move... I do want to take it all with me; every book, every knickknack.
In a crisis, or even in ordinary days, abandoning ourselves, without luggage, into His care is never easy. Possessions can be a comfort. Perhaps learning to rely more on Him and less on things has been the lesson of our nomadic lifestyle. According to Jesus, it is a lesson for all His children.
The Apostle Paul even had to learn to leave his luggage, but not just possessions -- prestige and achievements too. In fact, when Paul allowed God to do his packing -- and he left behind almost all his material possessions PLUS the esteem of his heritage, education, position and reputation. With that gone, he was still able to say: “What things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. Yea doubtless, and I count all things [but] loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them [but] dung, that I may win Christ.”
Paul also encouraged others to take “joyfully the spoiling of your goods, knowing in yourselves that ye have in heaven a better and an enduring substance.”
I’m just moving to Moose Jaw. Sorting necessary items from not-so-necessary has to be done. One day, it will be a longer move -- and far easier, without any decisions to make, books to pack, or boxes to sort. Not only that, I can leave behind the baggage of my old, dead, sin nature -- it won’t bother me ever again.
Now that is traveling light!
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