"Therefore, laying aside all malice, and all guile, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking (gossip), as newborn babes desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby, if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious." 1 Peter 2:1-3 NKJV
Who has not heard this line, "I'll never go there, that Church is full of hypocrites." Most people believe hypocrisy is from the Greek word meaning acting. In this verse it means, "dissimulation." Meaning to cover up what you really are. If you are one of those who fill that all Churches are full of fakes who believe one thing and do another, I first say to you that there is no way that you know all the Christians in one particular fellowship, much less all the groups in your area. So you are making a discussion that will have eternal consequences for you and your family with lack of knowledge.
Now for those of you that believe in Christ and have chosen to follow Him, take off the hypocrisy and walk the talk you profess. See how you affect others by what you say and do. This is a subject that even the non-believer with no religious training at all knows is wrong. For a matter of fact when most of us hear this subject we turn up our eyes for we are beating again the proverbial dead horse.
Today the names Pharisee and Hypocrite have become synonymous with usage. See Matthew 23:23, Mark 12:15 and Luke 12:1. Although a Pharisee is a picture of a hypocrite in the Bible they worked hard at preserving the scriptures and traditions of the Jewish faith which we get our root beliefs, But, Jesus said in Matthew 5:20 that our "righteousness is to exceed that of the scribes and Pharisees. We should work hard in the faith, but do as we say. What people hear and see of us is to be what we are. And if we are truly walking with the Lord, they will see Him instead of us. So take off and put aside hypocrisy. Let others see the new clothes the Lord has given us.
Prayer: Lord, forgive us of our hypocrisy. Forgive us for not being what we say we are and for not doing what we say we do. Help us to show you to others. Clothe us with your truth in our lives that will point others to you. Amen
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
Thursday, October 14, 2010
No Nudist In The Kingdom: Part Two
"Therefore, laying aside all malice, and all guile, hypocrisy, envy, and all
evil speaking (gossip), as newborn babes desire the pure milk of the word, that
you may grow thereby, if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious." 1
Peter 2:1-3 NKJV
In part one of this series we looked into malice which we are told to lay aside
and as mentioned," taking off and laying aside in order to run or work". Now we
will look at "guile". The Greek word here is "dolos " which literally means
"deceit," deceit with the intent of harm to another. Where as malice was "deceit
in order to get ahead." Guile is deceit to harm another.
In the New Testament we see Phillip bringing Nathanael to Jesus and Jesus
calling him a "man without guile." A man that would not harm a flea, as the
saying goes. Although he belittled Jesus because he was from Nazareth, he did
so without the intent to harm Him. It is hard to believe this is possible, but
Jesus sees the heart of a person. (John 1:43-51)Paul states in 2 Corinthians
12:16 that he had caught the Corinthian Church with guile. Paul tells the
Thessalonians that their preaching to them was not deceitful. (1 Thessalonians
2:3) Peter says in 1 Peter 2:22 that Jesus left us an example that while He was
suffering guile/deceit was not found in Him.
What does this all mean for us? In our Christian lives we are not to be
deceitful so take off our garment of guile. Don't do or say anything deceitful
with the intent of harming or "getting back at someone." This goes for not
"doing unto others as they have done to you." Surely we would not harm anyone
without cause. But we may be tempted to give the hurt back to those who harm us.
We are to take off guile and replace it with forgiveness. In times past on the
job I have been wronged by co-employees and even management, but I am not to
look for a way to get-back at them and it is not my job as a Christian to teach
them a lesson. I have in some jobs been discriminated against because of my
race. I wish I could say," that I was a man without guile."
As I put off all these old-natured attributes, I will put on the new garments
given me. (To be revealed in upcoming post)
Prayer: Lord, forgive us of the sin of guile. Forgive us of our deceitfulness to
harm another person made in your image. Help us to forgive others as you forgave
us. Clothe us with your wisdom to do our jobs and to live in a way that pleases
you. Amen
evil speaking (gossip), as newborn babes desire the pure milk of the word, that
you may grow thereby, if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious." 1
Peter 2:1-3 NKJV
In part one of this series we looked into malice which we are told to lay aside
and as mentioned," taking off and laying aside in order to run or work". Now we
will look at "guile". The Greek word here is "dolos " which literally means
"deceit," deceit with the intent of harm to another. Where as malice was "deceit
in order to get ahead." Guile is deceit to harm another.
In the New Testament we see Phillip bringing Nathanael to Jesus and Jesus
calling him a "man without guile." A man that would not harm a flea, as the
saying goes. Although he belittled Jesus because he was from Nazareth, he did
so without the intent to harm Him. It is hard to believe this is possible, but
Jesus sees the heart of a person. (John 1:43-51)Paul states in 2 Corinthians
12:16 that he had caught the Corinthian Church with guile. Paul tells the
Thessalonians that their preaching to them was not deceitful. (1 Thessalonians
2:3) Peter says in 1 Peter 2:22 that Jesus left us an example that while He was
suffering guile/deceit was not found in Him.
What does this all mean for us? In our Christian lives we are not to be
deceitful so take off our garment of guile. Don't do or say anything deceitful
with the intent of harming or "getting back at someone." This goes for not
"doing unto others as they have done to you." Surely we would not harm anyone
without cause. But we may be tempted to give the hurt back to those who harm us.
We are to take off guile and replace it with forgiveness. In times past on the
job I have been wronged by co-employees and even management, but I am not to
look for a way to get-back at them and it is not my job as a Christian to teach
them a lesson. I have in some jobs been discriminated against because of my
race. I wish I could say," that I was a man without guile."
As I put off all these old-natured attributes, I will put on the new garments
given me. (To be revealed in upcoming post)
Prayer: Lord, forgive us of the sin of guile. Forgive us of our deceitfulness to
harm another person made in your image. Help us to forgive others as you forgave
us. Clothe us with your wisdom to do our jobs and to live in a way that pleases
you. Amen
Monday, October 04, 2010
No Nudist In The Kingdom: Part One
"Therefore, laying aside all malice, and all guile, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking (gossip), as newborn babes desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby, if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious."
1 Peter 2:1-3 NKJV
Taking a look at the first verse in this passage we see that the Lord is telling us to "lay aside" some negative attributes in our lives. The phrase, " lay aside" pictures in the Greek as taking off and laying aside in order to run or work. Before going into these attributes I would like to express that when the Lord has us take something out or do away with something, He always gives us something better to put on or take up.
In Zechariah 3:1-5 we see the High Priest Joshua standing accused before the Lord in filthy clothes with Satan standing as an accuser. The Lord orders that the filthy clothes be removed and new ones put on.
A special note here is that filthy rags are a symbol in the Bible as our own righteousness and not the Lord's or better explained, our attempt to be good enough for God by doing things ourselves. (Isaiah 64:6)
In the parable of the wedding feast in Matthew 22 people are brought in from the highways and byways to come to the Kings marriage feast. One person is kicked out because he was not wearing marriage clothes. These people were poor and did not have marriage clothes, so where did they get them? Surely the King supplied them to each of the guest. But one did not receive the clothes offered him and was thrown out because he thought himself good enough. In the parable of the prodigal son the father has a new robe put on the wayward son when he returned home. The Lord always gives to replace what we give up for Him.
In this post I will deal with the first attribute, malice. Malice is being deceitful in order to get ahead. It's like cheating in a race. Stepping on people in the workplace to advance yourself. We are to put this away and do not do it.
How about doing a bad job training a new employee so that you could protect your job. Surely it makes sense not to tell the newbie everything they need to know so you continue to look good and advance as the smarter one and harder working. That is not how things are to be done in the Kingdom of God.
Take off this filthy garment and trust the Lord to clothe you with something much better.
Prayer: Lord forgive us of the sin of malice. Forgive us of our plots and scheming to get ahead instead of doing our best and trusting you with the results. Clothe us with your wisdom to do our jobs and to live in a way that pleases you. Amen
1 Peter 2:1-3 NKJV
Taking a look at the first verse in this passage we see that the Lord is telling us to "lay aside" some negative attributes in our lives. The phrase, " lay aside" pictures in the Greek as taking off and laying aside in order to run or work. Before going into these attributes I would like to express that when the Lord has us take something out or do away with something, He always gives us something better to put on or take up.
In Zechariah 3:1-5 we see the High Priest Joshua standing accused before the Lord in filthy clothes with Satan standing as an accuser. The Lord orders that the filthy clothes be removed and new ones put on.
A special note here is that filthy rags are a symbol in the Bible as our own righteousness and not the Lord's or better explained, our attempt to be good enough for God by doing things ourselves. (Isaiah 64:6)
In the parable of the wedding feast in Matthew 22 people are brought in from the highways and byways to come to the Kings marriage feast. One person is kicked out because he was not wearing marriage clothes. These people were poor and did not have marriage clothes, so where did they get them? Surely the King supplied them to each of the guest. But one did not receive the clothes offered him and was thrown out because he thought himself good enough. In the parable of the prodigal son the father has a new robe put on the wayward son when he returned home. The Lord always gives to replace what we give up for Him.
In this post I will deal with the first attribute, malice. Malice is being deceitful in order to get ahead. It's like cheating in a race. Stepping on people in the workplace to advance yourself. We are to put this away and do not do it.
How about doing a bad job training a new employee so that you could protect your job. Surely it makes sense not to tell the newbie everything they need to know so you continue to look good and advance as the smarter one and harder working. That is not how things are to be done in the Kingdom of God.
Take off this filthy garment and trust the Lord to clothe you with something much better.
Prayer: Lord forgive us of the sin of malice. Forgive us of our plots and scheming to get ahead instead of doing our best and trusting you with the results. Clothe us with your wisdom to do our jobs and to live in a way that pleases you. Amen
Thursday, September 16, 2010
What About Bryan: a true story
Bryan started as a temp. Working on the dock were I worked. Like allot of the guys there he was rude and rude, but a hard worker. he migrated from Vermont to Dothan by way of working as a carny (someone traveling with a carnival). He quickly became disliked by the others by showing a know-it-all attitude and making a habit of breaking into others conversations when he wasn’t asked. Speaking as if he knew exactly what was going on and how to do whatever was being discussed. He always had a story to go with every situation, bigger and better than the one told before. He was quickly branded a liar. People in the south take great offense of this especially if the person is from up north. His speech was no worse than the other guys were. Using GD, MF as if they were all one word and could be to be used more than once a sentence.
I saw a need in Bryan and decided to befriend him. And when the opportunity came try to lead him to the Lord. First of all I did not join in on the jokes and trash-talk that was heaped his way. The others made a habit of twisting every word he said to make it seem he was lying and called him stupid and dummy to his face. Break-time became a bash-Bryan party. Second, Anytime I needed help from a dockhand, I grabbed Bryan to get him away from the rest of the crew and just tried to be nice to him and show him a little respect. But it seemed the more I was nice to him the more know-it-all and smart-mouthed he became to me. He became very hard to work with.
Then one day he did not show up for work. We all though he had skipped town or was in jail. The guys continued to talk about him even after he was gone. I had failed to find a time to speak with him about the Lord, but in my heart I was relieved that the strain of trying to befriend him was gone.
After about a week or more I was greeted at work with, "Hey, Wayne your buddy is back and they hired him full-time". I knew exactly whom they were talking about. Although I got a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach, I was glad I would get a second chance to witness to him. While he was gone I was involved with a discussion group on the internet about the best way to witness at work and the prevailing answer was to just live your witness and be an example. They told me that tracts and straightforward witness was to judgmental and did not work. So I was glad to get another chance.
Again I tried to befriend him and help him out. He returned just as cocky because now he was fulltime and thought, "I must be as good as I think I am". He quickly became the bunt of jokes by continuing to be a know-it-all smart-mouthed food and cigarette bumming creep. But I knew the Lord loved him just as much as He loved me and He could do something great with Bryan.
Anyway, on his first day back he came in mouthing off to me and I started to reply with a quick comeback when I felt inside to remain quit. He then looked on the break table and saw a Bible lying there amongst the newspapers and candy wrappers left by the other workers. He picked it up and asked me if it was mine. When I said yes he asked if he could look at it. Of course I told him yes and when he cracked open the pages he quickly laid it down as if it reminded him of something he didn't want to remember. It was time to go back to work so we all took off to our jobs.
After he grew worse in appearance and conduct I tried to get alone with him and try to share the gospel with him. But the opportunity never came or I did not try hard enough.
Then one day he got off the phone and told me that he had lost the hotel room he was staying and did not know were his wife was. As we were leaving for the day he turned to me with a smile and said that he would have to sleep under the Reeves Street bridge tonight and that it was to late to make it to the rescue mission. Seeing that it looked like it was going to rain that night I told him of a place near our church were he could stay and be out of the rain and cold. Not to mention it was a very dangerous neighborhood, mine. He stated that he didn't mind. He like sleeping out doors and he already knew some of the guys who would be there. He talked as if he was going to a party and was well satisfied with the way he wanted to live. So I said no more. I had passed under that bridge many times and never noticed any signs of homeless people sleeping there. And I look.
That was the last time I saw Bryan. The guys at work told me that they saw his picture on the news after a couple of days. It turned out that he was an unregistered sex offender. The news report said that he took a job near a daycare, which was against his probation. Not registering as a sex offender in our area is a very serious crime. I'm afraid even when he gets, he will not stay in Dothan since his picture will be mailed to everyone within a three mile radius of were he lives.
This is a true story and I wanted to share it because:
1. Was my "witness" by being an example enough for him to make a decision for Christ on his own later if the Lord lead?
2. Did I miss an opportunity to confront (with love) him with the gospel?
3. Will anyone or I else continue the witness?
4. When I stand before the Lord, will I have to give account for this failure? Is his blood on my hands?
If number four is true. Then I can repent because I know the grace and forgiveness that the Lord has in abundance. It is sad that Bryan did not hear about this before he left. All he knows is that Wayne is a nice guy who goes to church and reads his Bible.
I heard Joyce Myers say on the radio the other day, "We are here to impact not influence". How so true this is.
(this is a repost)
I saw a need in Bryan and decided to befriend him. And when the opportunity came try to lead him to the Lord. First of all I did not join in on the jokes and trash-talk that was heaped his way. The others made a habit of twisting every word he said to make it seem he was lying and called him stupid and dummy to his face. Break-time became a bash-Bryan party. Second, Anytime I needed help from a dockhand, I grabbed Bryan to get him away from the rest of the crew and just tried to be nice to him and show him a little respect. But it seemed the more I was nice to him the more know-it-all and smart-mouthed he became to me. He became very hard to work with.
Then one day he did not show up for work. We all though he had skipped town or was in jail. The guys continued to talk about him even after he was gone. I had failed to find a time to speak with him about the Lord, but in my heart I was relieved that the strain of trying to befriend him was gone.
After about a week or more I was greeted at work with, "Hey, Wayne your buddy is back and they hired him full-time". I knew exactly whom they were talking about. Although I got a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach, I was glad I would get a second chance to witness to him. While he was gone I was involved with a discussion group on the internet about the best way to witness at work and the prevailing answer was to just live your witness and be an example. They told me that tracts and straightforward witness was to judgmental and did not work. So I was glad to get another chance.
Again I tried to befriend him and help him out. He returned just as cocky because now he was fulltime and thought, "I must be as good as I think I am". He quickly became the bunt of jokes by continuing to be a know-it-all smart-mouthed food and cigarette bumming creep. But I knew the Lord loved him just as much as He loved me and He could do something great with Bryan.
Anyway, on his first day back he came in mouthing off to me and I started to reply with a quick comeback when I felt inside to remain quit. He then looked on the break table and saw a Bible lying there amongst the newspapers and candy wrappers left by the other workers. He picked it up and asked me if it was mine. When I said yes he asked if he could look at it. Of course I told him yes and when he cracked open the pages he quickly laid it down as if it reminded him of something he didn't want to remember. It was time to go back to work so we all took off to our jobs.
After he grew worse in appearance and conduct I tried to get alone with him and try to share the gospel with him. But the opportunity never came or I did not try hard enough.
Then one day he got off the phone and told me that he had lost the hotel room he was staying and did not know were his wife was. As we were leaving for the day he turned to me with a smile and said that he would have to sleep under the Reeves Street bridge tonight and that it was to late to make it to the rescue mission. Seeing that it looked like it was going to rain that night I told him of a place near our church were he could stay and be out of the rain and cold. Not to mention it was a very dangerous neighborhood, mine. He stated that he didn't mind. He like sleeping out doors and he already knew some of the guys who would be there. He talked as if he was going to a party and was well satisfied with the way he wanted to live. So I said no more. I had passed under that bridge many times and never noticed any signs of homeless people sleeping there. And I look.
That was the last time I saw Bryan. The guys at work told me that they saw his picture on the news after a couple of days. It turned out that he was an unregistered sex offender. The news report said that he took a job near a daycare, which was against his probation. Not registering as a sex offender in our area is a very serious crime. I'm afraid even when he gets, he will not stay in Dothan since his picture will be mailed to everyone within a three mile radius of were he lives.
This is a true story and I wanted to share it because:
1. Was my "witness" by being an example enough for him to make a decision for Christ on his own later if the Lord lead?
2. Did I miss an opportunity to confront (with love) him with the gospel?
3. Will anyone or I else continue the witness?
4. When I stand before the Lord, will I have to give account for this failure? Is his blood on my hands?
If number four is true. Then I can repent because I know the grace and forgiveness that the Lord has in abundance. It is sad that Bryan did not hear about this before he left. All he knows is that Wayne is a nice guy who goes to church and reads his Bible.
I heard Joyce Myers say on the radio the other day, "We are here to impact not influence". How so true this is.
(this is a repost)
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
The Net Is Cast: Part 2
"Also the Kingdom of Heaven is like a net that was put into the lake and caught many different kinds of fish. When it was full, the fishermen pulled the net to the shore. They sat down and put the good fish in baskets and threw away the bad fish. It will be this way at the end of the world. The angels will come and separate the evil people from the good people. The angels will throw the evil people into the blazing furnace, were people will cry and grind their teeth with pain." Jesus asked His followers, " Do you understand all these things?" They answered, "Yes, We understand." Matthew 13:47-51 NCV
In the first post by this title I shared how the internet should be used by Christians to reach out to the lost. You may ask "how can I do this?" I would like to offer some suggestions.
Blogging
Any person with a connection can start a blog (weblog: online journal open to public viewing or private) and share Christ in a very real way. Here is how to start.
First choose a host:
blogspot.com (easy to use and my favorite, very popular)
homesteadblogger.com (easy to use, designed for homeschoolers and homesteaders)
today.com (easy to use and one I recommend)
christianblog.com (good blog with christian content, but you can not double post content from another blog, even if it is yours)
bravernet.com (has adds and not user friendly, but free)
myspace.com (allot to it)
Most of these have templates you can use to design your blog. not must HTML needed to get started.
Second, after starting a blog and getting about 5 to 7 post written by yourself. And about seven days old at least, sign up on a traffic generator site.
Try these:
blogexplostion.com (one I use the most)
blogmad.com (good traffic but not to user friendly)
blogsoldiers.com (start for the military, but open for public, easy to use)
These generators work this way, you sign up, surf member blogs. You earn "credits" for the amount of blogs you view. These credits are assigned to the blog you choose and for each credit you get a viewing by another blogger who is surfing the same way. You can also buy credits from the TG. Some TG have games to play that earn you more credits if you desire. You will need to try to post weekly at the least so that you will always have fresh content to view.
You may wonder what you could possibly write about.
What ever you are interested in sports, pets, gardening, tech stuff, the list goes on and on. Write about what you love and tie it to Christ as a witness.
One idea I have is to do a blog called Rev.Tech. and write about technology that
makes it possible for prophecy of the Bible possible (ex: mark of the beast). Book reviews, music reviews, politics etc...
If you need some help, contact me at: wayneb363 at yahoo dot com
In the first post by this title I shared how the internet should be used by Christians to reach out to the lost. You may ask "how can I do this?" I would like to offer some suggestions.
Blogging
Any person with a connection can start a blog (weblog: online journal open to public viewing or private) and share Christ in a very real way. Here is how to start.
First choose a host:
blogspot.com (easy to use and my favorite, very popular)
homesteadblogger.com (easy to use, designed for homeschoolers and homesteaders)
today.com (easy to use and one I recommend)
christianblog.com (good blog with christian content, but you can not double post content from another blog, even if it is yours)
bravernet.com (has adds and not user friendly, but free)
myspace.com (allot to it)
Most of these have templates you can use to design your blog. not must HTML needed to get started.
Second, after starting a blog and getting about 5 to 7 post written by yourself. And about seven days old at least, sign up on a traffic generator site.
Try these:
blogexplostion.com (one I use the most)
blogmad.com (good traffic but not to user friendly)
blogsoldiers.com (start for the military, but open for public, easy to use)
These generators work this way, you sign up, surf member blogs. You earn "credits" for the amount of blogs you view. These credits are assigned to the blog you choose and for each credit you get a viewing by another blogger who is surfing the same way. You can also buy credits from the TG. Some TG have games to play that earn you more credits if you desire. You will need to try to post weekly at the least so that you will always have fresh content to view.
You may wonder what you could possibly write about.
What ever you are interested in sports, pets, gardening, tech stuff, the list goes on and on. Write about what you love and tie it to Christ as a witness.
One idea I have is to do a blog called Rev.Tech. and write about technology that
makes it possible for prophecy of the Bible possible (ex: mark of the beast). Book reviews, music reviews, politics etc...
If you need some help, contact me at: wayneb363 at yahoo dot com
Monday, August 09, 2010
The Net is Cast
"Also the Kingdom of Heaven is like a net that was put into the lake and caught many different kinds of fish. When it was full, the fishermen pulled the net to the shore. They sat down and put the good fish in baskets and threw away the bad fish. It will be this way at the end of the world. The angels will come and separate the evil people from the good people. The angels will throw the evil people into the blazing furnace, were people will cry and grind their teeth with pain." Jesus asked His followers, " Do you understand all these things?" They answered, "Yes, We understand." Matthew 13:47-51 NCV
Jesus speaks this parable or illustration. In the last days a net will be cast out. This I believe is a prophecy of the now internet. Never has there been a form of communication that makes it possible to reach the whole world at one time. With wireless networks everyone can be hooked to the grid and be in touch watch news as it happens on the other side of the world.
A lot of people see the internet only with it's evils. Porn, gambling, and identity theft. But the Church may be missing out on what God has allowed to be setup for His work. A great net cast to catch the good and the bad fish.
According to the prophecy or parable when the net is full, when the time is ready it will be pulled in and the good fish are separated from the bad fish, the end is here.
Now the question now that you may ask is," Who are the good and who are the bad fish?" The world view today is that although a person has done evil all his life he may still be basicly good and the little good will override the bad. Therefore all mankind is basicly good. So who sets the standard of "Good", a benchmark of Godliness.
Mankind needed an example. God could not find one in man. That's what the whole Old Testament is about. God let man try, but they could not do it. So, being a loving God he choose to make Himself a man and live among them. He becomes a real man and still remained real God. Something only a true God could do. He lives a human life under all the restrictions that man lives under naturally. And when the time came Him offered Himself as the perfect sacrifice for man's sins. He brought Himself back to life to show man that He had this power to defeat death. All mankind had to do was:
Receive the forgiveness He offered
Put their total trust in Him as God
Just as He put the worlds sins on Himself, man must put His Holiness on themselves.
This would make them "good" fish.
Now back to the "net". The internet was put in place by God using man. The church has neglected this resource for social and spiritual change for enough years. It is time for pastors and saints to use this end time opportunity to reach out to the world.
Church, do not be afraid of the evil that is on the internet but overcome it with the truth of the Gospel of Christ. This is not about which church has the coolist website or about showing the world that we are web savy. The point is to reach the seekers out there and show them the truth of Christ. And when the net is pulled in, they will be with the good fish in Christ and not the bad fish in hell.
Jesus speaks this parable or illustration. In the last days a net will be cast out. This I believe is a prophecy of the now internet. Never has there been a form of communication that makes it possible to reach the whole world at one time. With wireless networks everyone can be hooked to the grid and be in touch watch news as it happens on the other side of the world.
A lot of people see the internet only with it's evils. Porn, gambling, and identity theft. But the Church may be missing out on what God has allowed to be setup for His work. A great net cast to catch the good and the bad fish.
According to the prophecy or parable when the net is full, when the time is ready it will be pulled in and the good fish are separated from the bad fish, the end is here.
Now the question now that you may ask is," Who are the good and who are the bad fish?" The world view today is that although a person has done evil all his life he may still be basicly good and the little good will override the bad. Therefore all mankind is basicly good. So who sets the standard of "Good", a benchmark of Godliness.
Mankind needed an example. God could not find one in man. That's what the whole Old Testament is about. God let man try, but they could not do it. So, being a loving God he choose to make Himself a man and live among them. He becomes a real man and still remained real God. Something only a true God could do. He lives a human life under all the restrictions that man lives under naturally. And when the time came Him offered Himself as the perfect sacrifice for man's sins. He brought Himself back to life to show man that He had this power to defeat death. All mankind had to do was:
Receive the forgiveness He offered
Put their total trust in Him as God
Just as He put the worlds sins on Himself, man must put His Holiness on themselves.
This would make them "good" fish.
Now back to the "net". The internet was put in place by God using man. The church has neglected this resource for social and spiritual change for enough years. It is time for pastors and saints to use this end time opportunity to reach out to the world.
Church, do not be afraid of the evil that is on the internet but overcome it with the truth of the Gospel of Christ. This is not about which church has the coolist website or about showing the world that we are web savy. The point is to reach the seekers out there and show them the truth of Christ. And when the net is pulled in, they will be with the good fish in Christ and not the bad fish in hell.
Thursday, August 05, 2010
Examine Your work
" But let each one examine his own work, and then he will have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another" Galatians 6:4
Have you ever been involved in your work or some activity and the thought crossed your mind, "Why should I do extra? No one will notice." In my current job I find it coming up again and again. Then I came across this verse-Galatians 6:4. In context with the rest of the chapter or verses 1 through 5 we are being instructed to help those who are weak and have fallen. Bear each other's burdens. Don't think too highly of yourself. And take responsibility for yourself and your brothers in Christ.
The above verse tells me that I need not worry if others notice my work. I should be able to take the fact that I did a good job with the best of my ability as my only reward. It is easy to state this, but a lot of times I have to work on this attitude. The best way I've found to adjust my thinking is to see my labor as my responsibility and none other. This would show my employer that as Christians we can be trusted to get the job done. And in turn maybe hire other believers or better yet, become a believer themselves.
Monday, July 26, 2010
On God's Time
In this post I would like to offer some hint of the way
we should conduct ourselves in the workplace. So that
we may not damage the witness we desire to be. The one
thing that never ceases to amaze me is how a believer
who is trying to please God and witness to his
co-workers can habitually show up for work late.
Employees and employers know that this will sometimes
happen, but I have noticed that some Christians make a
habit of dragging in late almost everyday. You can
rely on them always to be there, but in their own
time. I had one older brother tell me years ago that
when he was younger his boss started work at a certain
time but had him coming in 30 minutes earlier. When he
asked his boss why, he answered that he could count on
one thing about him. That was that he would be late
everyday at least 30 minutes. That put him at work on
time.
we should conduct ourselves in the workplace. So that
we may not damage the witness we desire to be. The one
thing that never ceases to amaze me is how a believer
who is trying to please God and witness to his
co-workers can habitually show up for work late.
Employees and employers know that this will sometimes
happen, but I have noticed that some Christians make a
habit of dragging in late almost everyday. You can
rely on them always to be there, but in their own
time. I had one older brother tell me years ago that
when he was younger his boss started work at a certain
time but had him coming in 30 minutes earlier. When he
asked his boss why, he answered that he could count on
one thing about him. That was that he would be late
everyday at least 30 minutes. That put him at work on
time.
Do we seriously believe the Lord is pleased with this
attitude? How would we feel if all of our prayers and
blessings from God where always late. Our witness of
God would be like this: "My God answers prayers all
the time. Always late, but hey, better late than
never. Right?"
This attitude of serving our employer at our own convenience
usually spills over into the church. I find it easy to
make it late to services. Surely it's different than
work, I don't get paid to go to Church (Or do I?) But
lately I've seen that it's not a matter of distraction
that keeps us tardy but an attitude that we're get
there when we get there. The whole world moves around
us and "if " we make it at all, those waiting should
count themselves blessed that we did.
I cannot picture the Lord Jesus as being late for
anything. He was accused of being late for Lazarus but
they found out different. God the Father told Him to
wait on arriving in Bethany, but I'm sure He was never
late getting to the carpenter shop or the synagogue.
The whole life of Christ was spent being on God the
Father's time and not His own. If we are to walk as
Christ walked, should we also live our lives on God's
time and not our own?
And remember; "Servants, obey in all things your
masters according to the flesh, not with eye-service,
as men-pleasers, but in sincerity of heart, fearing
God. And whatever you do, do it as to the Lord and not
to men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive
the reward of the inheritance; for you serve (work
for) the Lord Christ." Colossians 3:22-24
This is a re-post from 2005
Sunday, July 18, 2010
Our Biblical Employee-Employer Relation
"Exhort(employees)servants to be obedient unto their own
(bosses)masters,and to please them well in all things; not
answering again;not purloining,but showing all good
fidelity;that they may adorn the doctrine of God our
Savior in all things."
Titus 2:9-10 teaches us quit a few things about how we
are to treat our bosses and employers and why.
First we are to be obedient or submissive to those
over us at work. Even if we do not like what we are
told to do. We are to do it without talking back or
grumbling. It is a shame for a professing Christian to
be reprimanded or released because of being
insubordinate.
Second, We are not to steal from our employers and
to work honestly. Although this is common sense if we
think about it, how many of us has took from our
employers. Office supplies, product or clocked-out
early. Taking what wasn't given to us. Taking it
believing we earned it or really deserved to have it.
Stealing.
And third, which brings us to the whole reason that
the Lord is concerned about how we live our lives at
work. It is the Lord's plan for us to be an example of
the transforming power of the Word of God. Power to
transform an unprofitable servant named Onesimus to a
more profitable servant for his master Philemon. And
the Apostle Paul believed eventually profitable to
himself and the cause of Christ.
I would paraphase this verse as so:
"Teachers, encourage workers to be obedient to
their bosses. Make them happy they hired you. Do what
you are told without talking back or grumbling. Do not
steal from them. Give them a honest days work for a
honest day's pay. Doing this so that you will be an
example of the transforming power of the Word of God
in all that you do."
Also read Eph. 6:5-8 and the book of Phileman
(This is a repost from 2004)
(bosses)masters,and to please them well in all things; not
answering again;not purloining,but showing all good
fidelity;that they may adorn the doctrine of God our
Savior in all things."
Titus 2:9-10 teaches us quit a few things about how we
are to treat our bosses and employers and why.
First we are to be obedient or submissive to those
over us at work. Even if we do not like what we are
told to do. We are to do it without talking back or
grumbling. It is a shame for a professing Christian to
be reprimanded or released because of being
insubordinate.
Second, We are not to steal from our employers and
to work honestly. Although this is common sense if we
think about it, how many of us has took from our
employers. Office supplies, product or clocked-out
early. Taking what wasn't given to us. Taking it
believing we earned it or really deserved to have it.
Stealing.
And third, which brings us to the whole reason that
the Lord is concerned about how we live our lives at
work. It is the Lord's plan for us to be an example of
the transforming power of the Word of God. Power to
transform an unprofitable servant named Onesimus to a
more profitable servant for his master Philemon. And
the Apostle Paul believed eventually profitable to
himself and the cause of Christ.
I would paraphase this verse as so:
"Teachers, encourage workers to be obedient to
their bosses. Make them happy they hired you. Do what
you are told without talking back or grumbling. Do not
steal from them. Give them a honest days work for a
honest day's pay. Doing this so that you will be an
example of the transforming power of the Word of God
in all that you do."
Also read Eph. 6:5-8 and the book of Phileman
(This is a repost from 2004)
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