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Let Us Do Good

The fire on a lit match casts no shadow.  If Christians are light, then why do we often rely exclusively on worldly means–signs, advertising, an attractive facility–to compete with the darkness to get noticed?  Jesus and the 1st century disciples didn’t have billboards or business cards.  And, while some of this is useful (Luke 16:8) for us, the greatest periods of growth in the Lord’s church came about by preaching truth and doing good (Galatians 6:7-10).

I. Acts 10:36-38.  Jesus reaped what He sowed.  While on this earth, He viewed every interaction as an opportunity to advance the gospel, so much so that He was known for going around and doing good.  Even when He spoke, He wasted no effort to show the world that God was among them (John 7:40-46).  So, our every word and deed ought to show the world Jesus (Colossians 3:17) to increase His kingdom.

II. Matthew 25:37-40.  Preaching truth and doing good is light in a world of darkness, and so different than any of the worldly efforts we could employ to get noticed.  And, because it is hard, we may grow weary.  Jesus promises to be with us (Matthew 28:18-20), so we are never alone.  If we persevere as a church and in our personal ministries to shine our light on a stand for all to see, we will be rewarded.

III. Ephesians 4:15-16.  So, we must view every interaction we have out in the world and with each other as an opportunity to show Jesus by preaching truth and doing good.  Rather than seeing the church as a refuge–God is instead (2 Samuel 22:2-3)–to escape the world, we must see it as a base to regroup (Acts 13:1-3) so we can serve.  Only by shining light can we compete with the darkness to overcome it and grow.

We must pray that God will give us opportunities to preach truth and do good and that we will see them.  Then we can serve as a church and develop personal ministries in every interaction and situation.

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So That You Might Follow

I remember trudging behind my dad in the deep snow when I was little.  My short legs had a hard time just lifting out of the hole.  At some point he must have looked back to see me struggling because he began encouraging me and lessening the length of his stride.

We think of the gospel as only Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection, but His incarnation and intercession are essential as well.  John 1:14 tells us, “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us ….”  There’s more than just His work on the cross and tomb; Jesus’ example shows us how to live our lives in the flesh (1 Peter 2:21-24) … and His footsteps are not always easy to follow!

I.  1 Peter 3:8-11.  We are called to follow Jesus’ example, but His steps lead through Gethsemane and onto Golgotha.  He did all that because of our sin and for our sin.  What a heavy burden it was to bear, and what a burden we too must bear if we truly place our feet in the deep depressions His feet have made.  But, we see the cross as God’s wisdom and power.

II.  1 Corinthians 1:18-29.  Jesus led by facing whatever challenges were before Him by faith.  He entrusted Himself to Him who judges justly, and so must we!  Through that same lens of faith, the ‘nots’ see the world differently.  As Jesus’ suffering brings a blessing to us, we consider wise the things the world finds foolish and find a stepping stone in what the world considers a scandal.

III.  Acts 2:22-39.  Jesus did all of that so we might die to sins and live for righteousness.  Many choose not to after they initially obey the gospel by believing, confessing ‘Jesus is Lord,’ repenting, and being baptized into Jesus for the forgiveness of sins.  Faithful living, however, must characterize the lives of the ‘nots’ as all we have to boast in is Jesus’ faithful walk while in the flesh.

Obeying the gospel is an event; living as a new creation takes a lifetime.  Jesus gave us an example of how to do it.  The path is difficult, but He is with you.  Are you willing to follow in His steps?

 

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I Want to Be a Soul Winner

In the movie version, based on the WWII story of conscientious objector Desmond Doss who saved 75 men on Hacksaw Ridge, the combat medic, exhausted and abandoned by his infantry company for dead, powerfully cries out, “Just one more, Lord,” as he lowers the wounded one by one down the cliff edge.  This should be our attitude towards evangelism, not just one aspect of church life that we’ll get to if we can or have time but the vehicle through which we conduct our Christian walk (1 Corinthians 9:16-27).

I.  Do you want to be a soul winner for Jesus every day?  Paul describes his preaching of the gospel that “necessity is laid upon me,” that “Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel,” and that he has been “entrusted with a stewardship.” Are you similarly compelled?  What return are you making on the investment that has been entrusted to you (Matthew 25:14-30)?  How often we sing, “I want to be a soul winner for Jesus every day …,” but do we mean it?

I want to be a soul winner for Jesus ev’ry day, He does so much for me; I want to aid the lost sinner to leave his erring way, And be from bondage free.

II.  Do you want to be a soul winner and bring the lost to Christ?  Paul’s compulsion made it so that everything he did “in word or deed” was done “in the name of the Lord Jesus” Colossians 3:17.  Is what Christ has done for us through the gospel also convict us to “become all things to all people that by all means [we] might save some”?  Do you view your life as not your own because you were bought at a price (1 Corinthians 6:19-20) and so must persuade others (2 Corinthians 5:11-21)?

I want to be a soul winner and bring the lost to Christ, That they His grace may know; I want to live for Christ ever, and do His blessed will, Because He loves me so.

III.  Do you want to be a soul winner till Jesus calls for you?  It’s evident that Paul understood that his very eternal reward was at stake, and so being a soul winner was the operating system through which he lived his life (Romans 6:4-11) in Christ.  He wanted to run his race in such a way as to win the prize and the only choices were to be disciplined or to be disqualified.

I want to be a soul winner till Jesus calls for me, To lay my burdens down; I want to hear Him say, “Servant, you’ve gathered many sheaves, Receive a shining crown.”

Do you truly want to be a soul winner for Jesus?

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Walk as Jesus Did

As the Christian walk has been described as being on the narrow road that few find and leads to eternal life (Matthew 7:13-14), it’s easy to picture him struggling to keep his balance on a tightrope while the will within and the winds without work to knock him off.  In Philippians 3:17-21, Paul gives us three ways to persevere to the safety at the other end of the narrow line.

I. 2 Timothy 1:5-7. We must keep our eyes on those who walk according to the example. Paul ventured to tell others to follow him as he followed Christ (1 Corinthians 11:1), and then the Hebrew writer tells of the great cloud of witnesses who had walked this walk before us (Hebrews 12:1-3).  Because that walk was difficult for them (Hebrews 11:33-38), we should learn from their example, just as Timothy did from the godly women that had walked the tightrope before him.

II. Judges 2:2-10. Beware of the many who walk as enemies of the cross of Christ. Colossians 3:1-4 gives us the motivation to keep our balance on the tightrope: we died with Christ and so will be raised with Him.  Sometimes that which makes us fall are of our earthly nature and our selfish will that we haven’t yet put to death (Colossians 3:5-10), and sometimes the enemies are winds of the immoral culture or circumstances beyond our control. Our example to others watching how we walk is at stake.

III. Ephesians 4:11-16. Because our citizenship is in heaven and not of this world, we must walk in obedience as Jesus did (1 John 2:3-6). He left us an example that we might follow in His steps (1 Peter 2:21-23), so we can fix our eyes on Him to persevere to the end of the tightrope.  He has given us in His church everything we need to attain unity and mature into the fullness of Him. He has given Himself and His Word as poles for balance as the whole body in fellowship helps each other reach the end.

Some on the tightrope are so concerned about their own balance that they’ve stopped helping others to step out onto it or their fellow walkers to keep their balance.  Working together using what Jesus has equipped us with, we can all reach the end safely.

 

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None of Self and All of Thee

In our relationship with God as in our earthly relationships, we would all insist that we love the other, but to what degree do we love?  The transition to love for God begins when we recognize ourselves in the first stanza of this song and obey the gospel:

O, the bitter pain and sorrow That a time could ever be,

When I proudly said to Jesus, “All of self, and none of Thee” …

[In brackets, I will tell the story of four Valentine’s Days or my spiritual journey: In our last semester of college while student teaching, my wife and I both obeyed the gospel on Sunday, February 14, 1993, just four months before we would graduate and be married, and thus we began our married life together as new Christians.]

I.  1 John 4:7-12.  Growing in our relationship with God, however, progresses from our second birth–just as a baby grows from his first birth or a marriage grows from a wedding.  Sadly, many Christians stagnate for years with a head knowledge of God and the gospel.  They can often cite book, chapter, and verse and can tell all about the love of God (Romans 5:6-8) without truly loving Him in return.  They are caught in the second stanza:

Yet He found me; I beheld Him Bleeding on th’ accursed tree,

And my wistful heart said faintly, “Some of self, and some of Thee” …

[On February 14, 1994, my wife gave me a study Bible to celebrate our first birthday in Christ.  I dove into knowing everything I could learn about it, God, and salvation, even completing a Bible degree.  While my wife was always a solid rock of faith–even through a cancer diagnosis of 2012 and a first brain tumor diagnosis of 2017, I used the gifts God gave me to teach and preach for the next three decades with a strong head love for Christ that went up and down through the years.]

II.  1 Peter 1:6-9.  In the Old Testament, God speaks about refining His people in the furnace of affliction.  In the New Testament, He speaks of using various trials to test the genuineness of our faith that hopefully leads to the salvation of our souls.  In most places today, the freedom to worship and general lack of persecution has made Christians complacent in our spiritual growth and content living with a low level of faith.  Struggles can stir us to a heart love for God as seen here:

Day by day His tender mercy Healing, helping, full and free,

Bro’t me lower while I whispered, “Less of self, and more of Thee” …

[The previous summer had my wife reacting to air quality, chemicals, surfaces, electricity, and wifi.  In desperation, she attended a naturopathic clinic in Kansas in January that showed a mold toxicity in her system.  I began mold remediation and reconstruction in the house to prepare it to sell while also cleansing, storing, trashing, or burning our possessions.  Living with a friend with similar issues, my wife met me for dinner on February 14, 2020, less than a month before her second diagnosis of brain tumors, where we spoke about our uncertain future.  Through radiation, a host of physical struggles, and months of hospice care, God gave us a last season together while He and I worked to break through my wall and I could grow in my heart love for Him.]

III.  James 4:7-10.  A total submission to God in a Christian’s head, heart, soul, and strength is required for him to truly love God and live (Luke 10:27-28).  This soul love can only come with a yielding of oneself to Him entirely and is beyond a head and heart love.  It comes through much prayer and perseverance.  When seeking of His kingdom and righteousness (Matthew 6:33) is added to fear of God and the keeping of His commandments (Ecclesiastes 12:13), submission can be achieved.  It is beyond the first four stages of grief after a great struggle or loss: denial, anger, bargaining, and depression.  It is found in acceptance and is spoken about in the last stanza of the title song:

Higher than the highest heavens, Deeper than the deepest sea,

Lord, Thy love at last has conquered, “None of self, and all of Thee” …

[I did not arrive here when my wife died in mid-December.  It was only in the past couple of weeks when I finally gave up in my fight against God, no longer struggling to make provision for the flesh (Romans 13:11-14), that I awoke to that soul love for God and Christ, my Savior.  Not that I no longer face temptations, but I am wearing the armor of God while fully submitting to Him and seeking for Him.  And so, this is the lesson I am preaching this Sunday, February 14, 2021, on the 28th anniversary of when my wife and I first professed our love for God, having first realized His great love for us.]

Which stanza of the song do you find your love for God?

 

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Stand Before the Son of Man

When coming to Luke 21, we can’t switch from preaching the gospel to reading the tabloids!  In the manual for life, Jesus, zeroing in on verses 34-36, gives us advice about how to live in this life so we can live in the next.

I. Matthew 14:27-30.  After Peter is invited to step out of the boat, he loses his focus on Jesus and begins to sink.  So do we when our hearts are weighed down by the struggles of this life.  We are to fix our eyes on the eternal (2 Corinthians 4:16-18), particularly on Jesus so we don’t grow weary and lose heart (Hebrews 12:1-3).

II. Mark 14:32-38.  At Gethsemane, Jesus asks his followers to watch while He prayed.  Why?  For Him or for them?  The question is answered when He returns and tells them to watch and pray to not be tempted.  Prayer is the church’s weapon of choice (Acts 12:4-5).  We do not wage spiritual war as the world does, and so must use heavenly weapons (2 Corinthians 10:3-5).

III. Ephesians 6:10-13.  At the end of all things, we must be able to stand before the Son of Man.  That’s what the decisions we make in this life are all about.  How good it will be to hear, “Well done, good and faithful servant” (Matthew 25:21), if we have stood our ground using the full armor of God to aid us.  If we persevere, God will hand us a crown of life as we stand before Him (James 1:12).

So, is your heart weighed down by the temporary struggles of this life?  Where are your eyes fixed?  Are you watching and praying?  Are you wearing the full armor of God daily?

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More Will Be Given

Most only know that Zacchaeus was a “wee little man” who climbed a tree to see Jesus as He passed by, but this account is about great grace given because of this chief tax collector’s realization of his great wickedness and his reaction of great repentance.

I. Luke 19:1-10.  Though short in height, Zacchaeus had risen in earthly stature through ill-gotten gain.  So, he naturally believed the way to see this great teacher that some perhaps were secretly murmuring was the Messiah was to climb a tree.  When he saw the true riches that Jesus offered, he realized that the way up with God was to fall to His knees and he repented (Ezekiel 18:21-24).

II. Luke 19:11-26.  The parable that Jesus tells next challenges us to examine our relationship with Him.  How we act with God’s blessings and gifts He’s entrusted to us reveals our true motivation.  We don’t want to be found as the wicked servant who hid what he was given lest it be taken away and given to those who are using their talents for God and His Kingdom.

III.  Matthew 6:19-21.  Where we store our treasure reveals where our heart truly is–whether in heaven or on earth.  Storing treasure in heaven is hard work and requires spiritual training (Hebrews 12:7-11).  It means giving to others how we want to receive from God (Luke 6:37-38) and a conscious understanding of what we are sowing to know what we will reap (Galatians 6:7-10).

Squirrels are often busy, well … squirreling away their treasure of acorns for the winter, but this is a selfish model of what we shouldn’t do.  They won’t share what they’ve been given with other squirrels in other trees.  This is how Zacchaeus was before he climbed down from the tree and hosted Jesus in his home.  What great grace could be yours with your great repentance?

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With Fear and Trembling

With the invention of the printing press in 1455 a.d. there must have been a bunch of unemployed monks who no longer needed to painstakingly copy every jot and tittle of Scripture by candlelight in a dark monastery.  Suddenly, the common man had access to God’s Word.  Okay, it took a while for copies to no longer be smuggled into England in barrels of flour, but there was no quenching the thirst to know God’s will for mankind after fifteen centuries of spiritual starvation.

I.  Once Erasmus translated the Latin Vulgate that had reigned supreme for 1100 years in 1516 back into Greek, Martin Luther the very next year read God’s Word and nailed his 95 challenges to the establishment to a church door in Germany.  The Reformation had begun, and Tyndale published his English translation eight years later in 1525.  This and Erasmus’ work became the backbone of the King James Version in 1611 that reigned supreme for 300 years.

II.  John 4:24.  With greater access to God’s Word came a way to satisfy the spiritual hunger to know and live by the truth.  Contrast that to today with so much availability of God’s Word in stores, our homes, even our phones, and our excused for spiritual laziness fall so short.  Instead of squandering the leisure time that western culture has given us, we must once again recapture a hunger and thirst for God’s Word.

III.  Philippians 2:12-16.  Before this time when only some of the clergy had access to God’s Word, the people had no choice but to accept fallible human mediators for their salvation.  Greater availability to God’s Word meant that people could work out their own eternity with Jesus alone as their go-between.  Spiritual laziness again makes people today desire a return to such a system as they think the preacher is in charge of their salvation.

What a gift to have access to the Creator’s Word to us that tells us what we must do to find salvation through the death and resurrection of Jesus!  How we squander that gift by not studying His Word to work out our salvation with fear and trembling.

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The Missionary

The Missionary   [I wrote this towards the beginning of my now twenty year mission]

 

Today I removed a stump.

I loved a child who knew not love.

I was her father for she had not one.

She played with my kids and ate dinner not from a box or delivered by a car.

She bowed her head at a table with a family

and heard the man who took her in submit himself to God in prayer.

My wife held her and hugged her and rocked her and told her that she was loved.

The child learned that Jesus was hope and not a vain epithet muttered in angry hopelessness.

She stayed the night because there was not a place for her at home.

 

The roots of the stump ran generations deep.

Did I uproot it in one day?

No, but countless days, chopping and straining against the gnarled behemoth.

And still, shoots from the old wood may spring forth and dominate.

For now there’s a hole.

Not much to show, it seems, for my effort.

But a place to plant a seed.

 

Around me are the holes of many absent stumps

with sprouts from seeds I have planted.

Tomorrow it may be rocks I must remove

lest the roots beshallow and the plant be scorched.

Or maybe tomorrow I will pull the life-choking thorns that spring so readily

from this hard ground now that there are holes in the canopy.

 

The Master Farmer has sent another to share in the toil!

When I have fallen, he has lifted me up.

When the cold gripped the rugged land, we kept each other warm.

When wolves attacked, trampling and tearing at the tender shoots,

we were not overpowered but stood back to back.

Twice, herbicide was sprayed across the rough field.

How we mourned the dead!

How we struggled daily to purify the soil and nurse the sick.

 

We look now at the field and see holes–

empty places where the old growth once shielded seed from the Son,

empty places where boulders once laid unyielding,

empty places where thorns once sucked life.

 

We also see poking through the debris and amongst stumps, rocks, and thorns yet to be pulled–

young plants.

Some have thickened in their trunks, having persevered through countless storms.

Most have blossomed and are nourishing fellow plants.

They are leading and loving, giving and growing.

 

But from the distant watchtower those who squint see only the holes.

“Where are the new and mighty trees? Have you not cast any seed?”

What can I answer?

Today I removed a stump.

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The Wise Man Built

Having grown up doing a lot of work to cut wood and bring in hay as part of a family, I’ve always been partial to rugged, outdoor clothing–even though now my work is more at a desk rather than stacking brush or throwing bales.  I glance at catalogs and shake my head at models dressed in flannels with waterproof boots, completely free of mud and sweat, who look like they’ve never worked physically a day in their lives.

They are a lot like Christians who love to hear the Word of God preached but don’t apply it.

Most have sung “The Wise Man Built His House Upon the Rock” from Matthew 7:24-27 and at a youth event.  There are several principles from this illustration that are important to understand.

I. Both the wise and foolish men were ‘building.’  Both were sincere in picking up the tools and actively engaged in construction.  They did not just read a book about house building and agree with the techniques used.  They both worked hard and ended up with a place to live.  Everything that we say and do–even if we refuse to say and do–we end up with a life, good or bad, that we have built.

II. The distinction between the two men is whether he puts Jesus’ words into practice.  Both hear Jesus’ words, but only the wise man applies them to the building of his life, right from the first choice, perhaps the most essential choice: which foundation to build upon.  The wise man chose the rock while the foolish one, who probably felt justified and had good excuses, chose sand.

III. The reason we must build well is because the storms of life do come.  Notice that nowhere in Jesus’ illustration does he say if the hard rains, the rising streams, and the terrible winds come.  They will, and only the wise will be prepared for them.  Throughout many years of ministry and in my own life, I have weathered and helped others weather life’s storms.  Some houses have fallen with a crash.

So, in your life are you the outdoor catalog model in new clothing, holding an unused axe?  Or, are your sleeves rolled up in readiness, your knees dirtied from prayer, and calluses lay across cracked and toughed hands?  Are you building?  Are you building on the rock?  Will your house withstand the storm?