God Could Have “Given Up”

Posted by David on October 17, 1999 under Sermons

Would you be genuinely honest with yourself? How many times have you said within your own mind and heart, “What is he really up to?” How many times have you said within yourself, “What does she really want?”

This is an extremely skeptical world. We live in extremely skeptical times. We are suspicious of everything. We tend to think that everything is guided by ulterior motives. We tend to believe that true openness and genuine honesty do not exist.

Our skepticism profoundly impacts the way we look at God. We do not place as much emphasis on what God said as on what God did not say. We are devoted to determining what God actually wants. We often attempt to determine God’s true desires by “reading between the lines.”

I sincerely doubt that any of us are capable of imagining the enormous frustration that we inflict on God.

1. Have you ever considered how easily God could have “given up” on humanity?
   1. Have you ever considered how easily God could have decided that one of the worst mistakes He ever made was creating humans with a free will?
      1. If God were human, He would have cut His losses a long time ago.
      2. To me the greatest evidences that God is not human are seen in His patience, His forgiveness, and His mercy.
      3. No human, not even the best of the best, can endure as much abuse, misrepresentation, and neglect as does God, and remain patient, forgiving, and merciful.
   2. God could have “given up” when Adam and Eve were deceived by evil and perverted His creation.
      Genesis 1:31 God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good. (The New American Standard Bible, 1995 Update, La Habra, California: The Lockman Foundation, 1996.)
      1. Satan in the form of a serpent told Eve that God would not kill her if she disobeyed God.
      2. Eve considered the benefits of disobedience.
         1. She defied God.
         2. She encouraged Adam to defy God.
      3. Genesis 3:8-21 states that their surrender to temptation literally changed everything.
         1. It perverted relationship with God.
         2. If perverted our sexual natures.
         3. It perverted our role on earth.
         4. It perverted the husband and wife relationship.
         5. Nothing is as it was when God brought His good creation into existence.
      4. And that is just the beginning. God could have “given up” right then.
2. The Bible reveals situation after situation when God could have “given up.”
   1. God could have “given up” when the world degenerated into total wickedness.
      1. Genesis 6:5 Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. (The New American Standard Bible, 1995 Update, La Habra, California: The Lockman Foundation, 1996.)
      2. Oh, yes, God could have “given up.”
   2. God could have “given up” when the adult Israelites that he rescued from Egypt returned to idolatry.
      1. After the ten catastrophes God brought on Egypt, after allowing Israel to cross the Red Sea, after providing Israel food and water in the wilderness, after speaking to Israel in a human voice when He gave the ten commandments at Mount Sinai, they turned back to idolatry.
      2. Moses was on a mountain receiving instructions from God for Israel.
         1. Israel grew very impatient while they waited for Moses to return.
         2. They gave Aaron, Moses’ brother, their gold ear rings for the purpose of making them an idol.
         3. He melted the gold, sculpted a calf, presented the calf to Israel, and the people accepted the idol with these words:
            Exodus 32:4 They said, “This is your god, O Israel, who brought you up from the land of Egypt.” (The New American Standard Bible, 1995 Update, La Habra, California: The Lockman Foundation, 1996.)
      3. Oh, yes, God could have “given up.”
   3. God could have “given up” generations later when He gave Israel Canaan for their own country, and Israel became so ungodly they were gross.
      1. The book of Judges ends with two examples of how horrible Israel was.
         1. Judges 17 and 18 tell about a Levite who made himself a priest by worshipping idols and became the spiritual leader of the tribe of Dan.
         2. Judges 19 and 20 tell about a Levite on a journey who spent the night in Gibeah with his wife.
            1. A neighborly old man invited him into his home.
            2. That night some men of the city demanded that the host give them the visitor so that they could homosexually assault him.
            3. The host gave them his virgin daughter and the man’s wife, and they raped the man’s wife to death.
         3. Why were people so ungodly, so gross? In places like Judges 21:25 the writer gave this explanation:
            Judges 21:25 In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes. (The New American Standard Bible, 1995 Update, La Habra, California: The Lockman Foundation, 1996.)
      2. Oh, yes, God could have “given up.”
3. There were so many times when God could have “given up!”
   1. God could have “given up” when the nation of Israel divided into two kingdoms and one of those kingdoms turned totally to idolatry until they no longer existed.
   2. God could have “given up” when Israel rejected and killed His Son.
   3. God could have “given up” when so many of the early churches miserably failed to be the people God wanted them to be.
      1. The church at Rome struggled as Jewish Christians and Gentile Christians completely misunderstood God’s purposes in salvation.
      2. The church in Corinth had the worst kinds of division and ungodliness.
      3. The Galatian churches did not understand what God did in Jesus’ death and resurrection.
      4. The church at Ephesus did not understand that godliness was to be reflected in Christian relationships.
      5. The church at Philippi had major problems respecting each other.
      6. The church at Colossae created their own brand of Christianity by combining parts of Christianity with parts of popular pagan teachings.
      7. The church at Thessalonica thought that Jesus was coming back so soon that they could quit their jobs and do nothing but sit around and meddle in other peoples lives.
      8. The church at Pergamum adopted idolatrous practices.
      9. The church at Thyatira had an influential member who taught Christians that it was all right to commit adultery.
      10. The church at Sardis was dead.
      11. The church at Laodicea made God sick to His stomach.
   4. Oh, yes, God could have “given up.”
4. And then there is today’s Christianity and congregations.
   1. Would you rank Christianity and congregations of today as a plus or a minus?
      1. Do you think that God looks at Christians today and says, “It was frustrating, but it was worth it!”
         1. I am afraid that we American Christians are terribly arrogant before God and do not even realize it.
         2. We tend to think that God sees the church in America as being what He always wanted.
      2. What is the probability that God looks at us and says, “They are exactly what I wanted!”
         1. “They place the emphasis exactly where I wanted it.”
         2. “They are exactly the kind of people I wanted.”
         3. “They have the kind of marriages I wanted.”
         4. “They have the kind of homes I wanted.”
         5. “They respect and care about people just like I wanted.”
         6. “They are forgiving, merciful, and compassionate just like my Son was.”
   2. Does God watch us “reading between the lines” as we try to decide what God really wants.
      1. We cannot listen to the emphasis in the New Testament and fail to see the enormous stress placed on our attitudes, our hearts, our treatment of others, our morality, our ethical behavior, and our relationships.
      2. You see this emphasis in the teachings and the actions of our Lord Jesus.
      3. You see this emphasis in the letters written to the churches.
      4. Love your wife; love your husband; love your children; love fellow believers; love your neighbors; love people who are strangers; even love your enemies.
      5. Help people; do good; share; treat other people like you want to be treated.
      6. Be a merciful people in an evil world because your God is committed to showing mercy to an evil world.
      7. Show compassion; show kindness; be patient and forbearing; forgive; encourage the strong; help the weak; never discourage those who seek God.
   3. And we say, “Yes, I have read all that in the New Testament. But this is the real question: what does God really want?”
      1. And God replies, “If I wanted tabernacles or temples, I know how to command people to build.”
      2. “If I wanted rules and regulations, I know how to give people a law code.”
      3. “If I wanted rituals, I know how to command people to follow details.”
      4. “I know how to tell people to do what I want them to do.”
      5. Do you believe that God knows how to tell us to do what He wants us to do?
5. I would like to share two observations.
   1. Observation one: so much of what we emphasize when we do “church things” is about us, our likes, our desires, our preferences, and our personal priorities, and not much about God.
   2. Observation two: I often fear that in our determined effort to restore the New Testament church that we have little desire to restore New Testament Christianity.

Next Saturday and Sunday Bill Smith and Alan Robertson will spend quality time with us just to give us information on the small group ministry. We need you to be a part of that weekend experience. We need you here Saturday and Sunday. Why? We want to understand everything possible about encouraging and helping people. Why? Because God loves people. That is the only reason that God never “gives up.”

[Prayer: God, thank You for not giving up on us. Help us understand that You do not want us to give up on others.]

The only reason God has not “given up” on you and on me is because God loves us. What do we do to encourage God not to “give up” on us?

How Does a Wish and a Goal Differ?

Posted by David on under Bulletin Articles

Commonly, people are wishers. Wishing thinks, “It would be wonderful if this happened. I hope it does!” Wishing has no specific plan to make a desire a reality. If the desire becomes reality, it just happens.

Some make goals. A goal is specific and can be defined. It proceeds to occurrence in planned steps. “I want this to happen. I will work to make the goal a reality. I will do these specific things to help it happen. I intend for it to become reality by this time.”

God does not wish. He sets goals. Our eternal salvation was a goal. For salvation to become reality, a specific means for human atonement, redemption, sanctification, and forgiveness had to exist. To liberate His grace and mercy, God had to satisfy justice.

(1) God selected a people. His objective: develop a people who trusted Him and understood His actions. (2) Through this people, He would send His Son. (3) Justice would be satisfied when He sacrificed His Son. (4) Through that sacrifice, God would atone and redeem. (5) Those who accepted His sacrifice would be forgiven and sanctified. (6) By resurrection Jesus would become Lord. These would accept God’s sacrifice and Jesus’ Lordship. God’s goal became our reality.

We have congregational goals. We plan to become what God wants us to be. We plan to reach those who have not accepted Christ. We want them to be a part of this congregation. We plan to encourage and sustain those in this congregation. We want to promote the spiritual growth and spiritual maturing of every Christian.

Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, October 22-24, two men from the White’s Ferry Road congregation in West Monroe, Louisiana, will spend quality time with us as we learn about the small group ministry. Bill Smith is an experienced elder. Alan Robertson is their director of small groups. Their congregation is about our size.

This is an informational visit. It is the time to ask questions, to learn purposes, to examine problems, and to evaluate possibilities. The purpose: to equip us to make an informed decision.

If we add this ministry, it will replace nothing. It will be an addition to meet specific needs, not a substitution. It would be a specific step taken to move us toward our goal.

This congregation needs your ears, your mind, and your heart Saturday and Sunday, October 23 and 24. Help us be goal driven, not wish oriented.

Giving God Deserved Praise

Posted by David on October 10, 1999 under Sermons

Think of a person that you know well whom you profoundly appreciate and deeply respect. It can be anyone from any period in your life. Focus on that person. Do you have him or her in mind?

Do you admire this person? Could you explain to me how this person touches your life? Could you list the qualities that you admire in this person? Could you illustrate what an exceptional person this man or woman is?

Could you talk to me about this person? Could you compliment this person? Could I hear your respect and admiration in your words and voice?

1. Do you ever talk about God the way you talk about this person?
   1. I want to talk to all Christians this morning. From young Christian to old Christian, I want you to think with me.
      1. Do you realize the good experiences that you have in your life that exist because you made peace with God?
      2. The most distressful times I ever experience are the direct result of the loss peace with another person.
         1. When peace dies, my stress and anxiety are horrible.
         2. The absence of peace with someone affects my whole life–my eating, my sleeping, my attitude, my thought process, my anxiety level.
      3. If God had not made peace with you through the blood of Jesus Christ, one of two things would be true of your life.
         1. Either you would have no conscience at all.
            1. You would be hard, indifferent, uncaring, selfish, and mean spirited.
            2. Or you would be consumed with guilt–guilt would eat you alive.
         2. What would your life be if you never worshipped, never prayed, never had a godly thought, never knew any Christian, and had nowhere to turn when times get tough and bad things happen?
      4. You would do what most people do who live that existence.
         1. You would enter a deep depression that made you angry at the world.
         2. Your life would be a hell, and you would make other people’s life a hell.
         3. You would try to escape the pain and misery of your existence by running to alcohol, or running to a pill, or smoking a joint, or involving yourself in the kinds of pleasures that temporarily make you numb and unfeeling.
         4. You would probably work hard five days a week doing something you hate just so that you could try to escape for two days a week.
   2. Do you have any idea of what God does for you every day of your life?
      1. Do you think the only things God does for you are hypothetical religious things that are not real and have no every day value?
      2. Because God is not your slave, because He does not do everything you want the way you want when you want, do you think He really does nothing?
      3. Do you have any idea what your life would be like for just twenty-four hours if God did absolutely nothing for you?
   3. When Noah climbed off the ark with his family and stepped on dry land, Noah knew what God had done for him.
      1. Maybe Noah was like us–while building the ark, maybe he thought about all he was doing for God.
      2. When he climbed off the ark, he knew he did nothing for God, and that God did everything for him.
      3. While he was building the ark, Noah lived among extremely wicked people.
         1. How wicked?
         2. Genesis 6:5,6 Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. The Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart.
         3. Those wicked folks did not offer sacrifices to God; in fact those folks did not “waste” their time thinking about God.
      4. Do you know the first thing Noah did when he climbed off that ark on dry land? He offered a sacrifice.
         Genesis 8:20 Then Noah built an altar to the Lord, and took of every clean animal and of every clean bird and offered burnt offerings on the altar. The Lord smelled the soothing aroma; and the Lord said to Himself, “I will never again curse the ground on account of man, for the intent of man’s heart is evil from his youth; and I will never again destroy every living thing, as I have done.
         1. Why did Noah offer a sacrifice?
         2. Did God command, “Noah, when you get off the ark, offer me a sacrifice!” No.
         3. Then why? Noah was grateful, and he thanked the God who was worthy of all the honor and praise that he could give him.
         4. And his sacrifice arose as a soothing aroma to God, an aroma that God treasured.
      5. “I guess that God likes the smell of burning meat.” No.
         1. Noah was profoundly grateful to God for what God did for him.
         2. God was touched by Noah’s gratitude.
   4. That is the heart and soul of the sacrifices offered to God that touch God and deeply please Him
      1. Why do people give sacrifices to God?
      2. “Because they have to in order to obey God!”
         1. There is no question about the fact that people who believe in and trust God must obey Him.
         2. But to think that they do it because “they have to” misses the point of the sacrifice.
         3. You can do exactly what God commands you to do in the name of obedience, and still insult and deeply offend God.
         4. If you doubt that, you need to go home and read Isaiah 1.
      3. Sacrifices given to God that do not express sincere gratitude insult God.
         1. If the sacrifice does not come from the heart, it is an insult.
         2. If the sacrifice does not come from sincere appreciation, it is an insult.
         3. If the sacrifice does not honor God, it is an insult.
2. Christians offer a different kind of sacrifice to God, but they offer sacrifices for the same reasons, the same purposes.
   1. The author of the book of Hebrews talked about the Christians’ altar and sacrifice in Hebrews 13.
      1. God sacrificed Jesus on our altar.
      2. Because God sacrificed Jesus, we can offer sacrifices to God.
         Hebrews 13:15,16 Through Him then, let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that give thanks to His name. And do not neglect doing good and sharing, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.
         1. The fruit of our lips is our continual sacrifice to God.
         2. Our lips praise God for all that He did and is doing for us in Jesus Christ.
         3. To prove the sincerity of our praise, we also offer the sacrifices of doing good and sharing.
   2. The primary way that Christians praise God publicly today is through songs.
      1. The primary place that we praise God by song is in our worship assemblies.
      2. We sing without musical instruments because all evidence indicates that the early Christians sang without musical instruments.
      3. Does the New Testament specifically condemn using musical instruments while singing praise to God? No, the New Testament does not even mention musical instruments in Christian worship.
   3. There are only two brief references that talk about Christians singing.
      1. In Ephesians 5:17-20 Paul said this to the Ephesian Christians:
         Ephesians 5:17-20 So then do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. And do not get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord; always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father;
         1. The context of this instruction does not focus on worship but on life.
         2. Instead of being foolish, understand God’s will.
         3. Don’t fill yourself with wine and go around singing the drunkard’s songs.
         4. Fill your life with the spirit, and sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs that come from your heart and honor your Lord.
         5. Constantly give thanks to God in the name of your Lord Jesus Christ.
      2. Paul said this to the Christians in Colossae (Colossians 3:14-17).
         Colossians 3:14-17 Beyond all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity. Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful. Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God. Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.
         1. The perfect cord that unifies Christians is love.
         2. Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts and be thankful.
         3. Let Christ’s word live in you richly; use wisdom in teaching and encouraging each other.
         4. With hearts that are thankful to God, teach and admonish each other with psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs.
         5. Let everything that occurs in your life honor the Lord Jesus, and through him give thanks to God.
3. In our emphases on worship, we missed an emphasis of basic importance.
   1. Before Jesus died for us, it took many correct things for God’s people to worship collectively.
      1. It required the right place, a tabernacle or a temple, a priesthood, an altar, and animals to be sacrificed. All those were necessary for Israel to assemble and worship.
      2. For Christians to assemble and worship, it takes hearts, minds, and voices.
         1. We are the priests (1 Peter 2:9); we are the temple (1 Corinthians 3:16); and we are the sacrifice (Romans 12:1,2).
         2. The true worship of God depends on nothing more than the hearts, minds, and voices of Christians.
   2. Consider carefully:
      1. Many of you would be deeply offended if we used a musical instrument this morning because the New Testament says nothing about musical instruments in Christian worship.
      2. But some of you who would be offended by the use of musical instruments do not sing.
         1. The New Testament says nothing about musical instruments in worship.
         2. The New Testament instructs Christians to sing.
      3. We need to understand that it is not the melody of the voice that thrills God; it is the melody of the heart. You sing to praise. You sing to say “thank you.”

Consider all God does for you each day of your life. Together, let us offer a sacrifice to God with the fruit of our lips. Let us praise Jesus with our songs.

Sitting Duck

Posted by David on under Bulletin Articles

We have an expression to describe the person (a) who is in serious danger and (b) has zero chance of escaping that danger. The expression is “sitting duck.” The sitting duck has no chance of escaping the hunter. Ducks fly with agility and speed. Ducks swim gracefully, but not with speed. Ducks run ugly and slow. A duck sitting in the water or on land has zero chance of escaping the undetected hunter.

The uncommitted Christian who is not actively serving God is a “sitting duck.” Satan is the hunter. When we choose an existence that spiritually “sits” rather than “serves,” 100% of the advantage is given to Satan. The “sitting” Christian will be wounded. “Sitting” certainly will result in great pain, and it can result in death.

Serving God is not merely a spiritual responsibility. Committed service to God in Christ gives God 100% advantage. God delivers us from evil in Jesus Christ for specific reasons. (1) It allows God to express and fulfill His love for us. (2) It allows us to express and fulfill our love for God. (3) It allows us to receive forgiveness. (4) It gives us the privilege of being members of God’s family and citizens of God’s kingdom. (5) It permits God to use us and our physical existence to achieve His purposes. We must never forget Christians exist to serve God’s purposes.

Nothing will transform you or your life as will serving God. Congregations filled with servants grow. Christian individuals who are servants grow. Christian servants advance the purposes and objectives of our loving God and forgiving Savior. Every achievement God has accomplished in this evil world used human servants. Every achievement God will accomplish in this evil world will use human servants.

In the year 2000 we wish to dedicate Sunday Bible classes to a study of Christian service. We want to encourage each Christian to be God’s servant. This is a clear, stressed, major theme in the Bible. God’s Son, our example, was a servant. As God’s sons and daughters, we are to be servants. To be God’s servants, we must (a) surrender to God and (b) become “whole life” stewards. Beginning in January, these four themes will be the basis of our adult Sunday morning Bible classes.

Next Sunday, there will be a special meeting of all men who teach or are interested in teaching in the Sunday adult Bible class program in 2000. Adult teachers, Ted and I encourage you to meet with us. Please come. Consider the objectives. Consider the resources. Examine our materials and the plan. Help us begin preparation for our adult classes now.

Stabilize the Situation

Posted by David on October 3, 1999 under Sermons

That is an extremely difficult commitment to make. There are things that we can understand today that were not known 20 years ago. There will be things that can be understood in twenty years that we do now know about today. The more that is discovered about Greek and Hebrew, the basic languages of the Bible, the more accurately we can translate the emphasis and the meaning of the texts. The more we can know about the worlds, the times, and the historical context of the writings, the better we can understand the message of the author.

1. In my understanding and judgment, the accuracy of our understanding of and use of the material in the letter we call 1 Timothy should be significantly influenced by our understanding of the situation in the city of Ephesus.
   1. When Paul left Ephesus for Macedonia, he left Timothy in Ephesus.
      1. This letter was intended to remind Timothy of his focus among the Christians in that city.
      2. Paul may have written this letter shortly after Acts 20:1 when Paul left Ephesus for Macedonia.
      3. The riot that occurred in Ephesus marked the end of Paul’s stay.
         1. The circumstances created by the riot may have left Paul too little time to give full instructions to Timothy.
         2. Or, Paul may have thought about things he needed to tell Timothy after Paul left.
   2. Ephesus was the most important Asian city in the Roman empire.
      1. In every way, from architecture to business, it was a very impressive city.
      2. At that time its population is estimated to exceed 300,000 people, almost four times the size of Fort Smith.
      3. Its amphitheater located in the middle of the city could care for approximately 25,000 people.
      4. It had three temples that were built for the purpose of worshipping the Roman emperor.
         1. In fact, Ephesus was the center for emperor worship and strongly promoted the practice.
         2. The book of Revelation was addressed to seven congregations in this area when emperor worship was a major threat to Christians.
   3. Paul had an important relationship with this city.
      1. He made a brief stop in Ephesus in Act 18:18-21.
         1. On that visit he left Aquila and Priscilla there.
         2. He also briefly studied with receptive Jews in the synagogue.
      2. In Acts 19 Paul returned as he promised the Jews and continued studying in the synagogue with them.
      3. In Acts 20:17-38 he met with the elders of the congregation in Ephesus.
         1. Paul had serious concerns about the future of the congregation.
         2. They would be successfully invaded by savage people who would destroy Christians.
         3. Some of the elders themselves would teach perverse teachings in order to create their own disciples.
   4. Acts gives us a lot of insight into the complex religious situation in Ephesus.
      1. Paul baptized twelve men who had been baptized with the baptism practiced by John the baptizer but who had never heard of the Holy Spirit (Acts 19:1-6).
      2. The Jews in the synagogue hardened against Paul’s teachings and Paul left the synagogue (Acts 19:9).
      3. Paul spent two years teaching his disciples in the school of Tyrannus which resulted in the message of the gospel being shared with all Asia (Acts 19:20).
      4. Paul performed so many miracles that people brought pieces of cloth for Paul to touch, and when those cloths were used with the sick, the diseased, or the demon possessed, these people were cured (Acts 19:12).
      5. Some Jewish exorcists figured that if Paul could use Jesus to do this, they could use Jesus to do this (Acts 19:14-16).
         1. They tried to cast the demons out of a possessed man by invoking Jesus.
         2. The spirits said they knew Jesus and Paul, but not them.
         3. The men were attacked, stripped naked, and fled wounded.
      6. People who had magical arts books for spiritual practices burned those books–the books were worth 50,000 days wages (Acts 19:19).
      7. Christianity was growing so fast that it cut into the living being made by those who profited from the temple of Diana, and they started a city wide riot (19:23-41).
   5. Religiously, these are the key factors we need to remember about the city.
      1. The temple of Diana was a powerful religious force in the world.
         1. The temple building itself was the largest single building in the Greek world.
         2. It was one of the seven wonders of the world.
         3. It also functioned as a wealthy banking institution.
      2. This area served as the core area for supporting and advancing emperor worship.
         1. Many years later, the book of Revelation was addressed to seven of the congregations in this area.
         2. The first congregation mentioned is Ephesus (Revelation 2:1-7).
         3. It sounds like they got a great report card: they worked hard and persevered, they did not tolerate evil men, they tested false apostles, they endured without getting tired, and they hated the evil works of the Nicolaitans.
         4. But they did not love Jesus as they did at first, and if they did not restore their love for Jesus, they would be removed.
      3. Jewish Gnosticism seemed to be a religious influence.
         1. It stressed the importance of genealogy.
         2. It could easily get Christians to focusing on the kinds of speculations that would hurt the congregation.
2. With that background in mind, I call these things to your attention in 1 Timothy 1.
   1. Timothy was urged to stay in Ephesus for these specific reasons:
      1. To instruct certain Christians not to teach strange doctrines (verse 3).
      2. Or to pay attention to myths–myths (legends or fables) played an important role in idolatrous teachings as well as Jewish teachings.
      3. Or to pay attention to endless genealogies which played an important role in one of the early heresies.
      4. These things encouraged Christians to devote their thought and spiritual concerns to speculation instead of building faith in God.
   2. Paul reminded Timothy of the goal of their teaching (verse 5).
      1. The goal of their teaching was to produce love.
      2. The love their teaching produced came from:
         1. Pure hearts.
         2. Good consciences.
         3. Sincere faith.
      3. It was when Christians stopped pursuing the love that came from pure hearts, good consciences, and sincere faith that they turned to the fruitless discussions of strange doctrines, myths, and endless genealogies (verse 6)
      4. It was the desire to speculate that created a desire to turn to the law [as opposed to Christ] (verse 7).
         1. These people made confident assertions, but did not understand what they taught.
         2. They did not even understand the purpose of the law.
         3. The law did not exist to direct the righteous man but to control the evil, lawless man.
      5. Paul had been entrusted with the glorious good news of the blessed gospel–God’s power to use Christ to rescue sinners from sin.
   3. Paul clearly understood the purpose of creating love through understanding the power of Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection to rescue the evil person.
      1. What God did to save him was proof positive.
      2. Only God’s mercy and grace could serve a person like him.
      3. God had a special reason for saving an evil man like him–to prove that God could save anybody.
      4. That is why Jesus Christ came–to save sinners.
   4. Paul trusted Timothy enough to give Timothy “this command.”
      1. What command? In my judgment, the urging to stay in Ephesus and pursue the goal of their instruction: teaching people to love from a pure heart, a good conscience, and a sincere faith.
      2. In doing this, Timothy was to care for two things.
         1. Take care of your own faith.
         2. Keep your good conscience.
         3. Anyone who fails to do this will spiritually shipwreck.

In some ways, little changes through the centuries. In every generation, in every century, Christians spend more time promoting speculations than in creating love from pure hearts, good consciences, and sincere faith.

The consequence is that too many Christians do not know how to love. Not their families, not their friends, not their neighbors, not those who have not escaped evil, not their brothers and sisters in Christ. Too many Christians see love from pure hearts, good consciences, and sincere faith as either weakness or as being of minimal importance.

Love sent Jesus to this world. Love put Jesus on the cross. Love kept Jesus on the cross. Love raised Jesus from the dead. Love shared the gospel with the world. Is that weakness? Is that unimportant?

If Paul left a preacher in Fort Smith to spend time teaching and working with us, what would he command him to do?

Communion: Insult or Honor?

Posted by David on under Sermons

Has something at some time completely changed your life and who you are? Probably. Many of us have a list of different things that totally redirected our lives and changed who we were.

Examples? It might be something as simple as an event: a graduation, or marriage, or the birth of a child. It might have involved a person: a teacher, a mentor, a counselor, or a neighbor. It might have involved an act of grace that centered in a second chance opportunity, an illness, a disaster, or a death.

1. Christians in the New Testament powerfully had their lives changed.
   1. They understood that God changed everything when He made Jesus the Christ.
      1. God spiritually changed the world when He made Jesus the Christ.
         1. At that very moment, God made it possible for him to be just and to forgive the sins of every person on earth.
         2. At that very moment, God was totally free to use His mercy and His grace without restriction through out every nation.
      2. God completely changed life when He made Jesus the Christ.
         1. The changes that occurred in lives when people became Christians could not happen before God made Jesus the Christ.
         2. Every joy, every blessing, every assurance, every promise they had as Christians did not exist before God made Jesus the Christ.
      3. Eternity changed when God made Jesus the Christ.
         1. Before God made Jesus the Christ, death was to be feared.
         2. After God made Jesus the Christ, death became the door to eternal life.
   2. In the New Testament, the Christian who understood what God did when He made Jesus the Christ also understood who and what he or she would be if there was no Christ.
      1. The Christian knew who and what he/she would be if Jesus had not come.
      2. He or she knew who and what he/she would be if Jesus had not become the Christ.
      3. How could they know and understand that so clearly?
         1. Simply because many of them lived before God made Jesus the Christ.
         2. They had lived in a world that had no Christ.
   3. God directly intervened in the affairs of the world by Jesus the Christ, and He designed the Christ to do at least four things.
      1. Jesus Christ was designed by God to change the world; the world would never be the same after Jesus died and was resurrected.
      2. Jesus Christ was designed by God to change human life; no person who understood what God did and trusted what God did would ever be the same.
      3. Jesus Christ was designed by God to change relationships.
         1. God and believers would share a relationship that had never existed before.
         2. Believers who belonged to Jesus would relate to people in new ways with a new kind of love and respect.
      4. Jesus Christ was designed by God to change eternity.
         1. By making Jesus the Christ, God defeated Satan.
         2. By making Jesus the Christ, God made it possible for the judgment to be a time of mercy as well as a time of condemnation.
2. Never, never were Christians to forget the importance of what God did when He made Jesus the Christ.
   1. “Well, David, when did God make Jesus the Christ?”
      1. First, God sacrificed the physical life and blood of Jesus on the cross to be a sin offering for us.
      2. Second, God raised Jesus from the dead to be the Christ.
      3. Third, when Jesus ascended into heaven God placed him on the throne to rule until the day of judgment.
   2. “Are you sure?” That is what scripture says.
      Acts 2:36 “Therefore let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and Christ–this Jesus whom you crucified.” (The New American Standard Bible, 1995 Update, La Habra, California: The Lockman Foundation, 1996.)
      1. You killed him.
      2. God made him Lord and Christ.
   3. The night before he was killed, Jesus designed a simple memorial to be a continual reminder of what God and Jesus accomplished.
      1. Jesus established a living memorial to the significance of his sacrifice.
         1. We commonly refer to that memorial as the Lord’s supper or communion.
         2. Jesus established this memorial as he ate his last meal (prior to death) with his disciples.
         3. Luke 22 states at least three times that this meal was the Jewish Passover meal.
   4. While this is a very simple memorial (in no way elaborate), it is filled with powerful symbolism (Matthew 26:26-29; Mark 14;22-25; Luke 22:19,20).
      1. Jesus based the memorial on the two foods that sustained life throughout the Mediterranean world at that time: bread and the juice of the grape.
         1. Bread and wine sustained life in the world as they knew it.
         2. Just as bread and wine sustained daily life, Jesus sustains daily life.
      2. I understand this meal to be an observance of the Jewish Passover.
         1. God commanded that Israel without fail should observe this meal once a year on the date that they left the slavery of Egypt (Exodus 12:1-14; Deuteronomy 16:16).
         2. The Jewish Passover celebrates their deliverance from Egyptian slavery.
         3. The Lord’s supper symbolizes a greater deliverance: God gave the world the opportunity to escape the slavery of sin.
      3. Jesus said that the bread was to be a continual reminder of his body.
         1. He said the juice of the grape was to be a continual reminder of his blood.
         2. Every time they observed this memorial they were to remember Jesus.
         3. The juice of the grape not only represented his blood, but it declared that God was making a new agreement, a new covenant because Jesus’ blood would be sacrificed to destroy sin (Matthew 26:28)
3. Forty-nine days after Jesus’ resurrection, Peter presented to a Jerusalem multitude the fact that Jesus was the Christ.
   1. Christians now understood, and they never wanted to forget.
      1. Eternal forgiveness existed as an established fact when God made Jesus the Christ.
      2. New life in Jesus was a reality because God made Jesus the Christ.
      3. A new relationship with God that never existed began because God made Jesus the Christ.
      4. Those who placed their lives in Jesus by trusting what God had done were delivered from the judgment of condemnation by being made children of God.
   2. All evidence and information that we have verifies that early Christians met to share this memorial each first day of the week.
      1. Sunday was the day Jesus was resurrected from the dead.
      2. That is why every Sunday we share this memorial.
      3. We just want to be Christians, nothing more and nothing less.
   3. When Paul explained communion to the Christians at Corinth (1 Corinthians 11:17-34), he said the Lord’s supper served these specific purposes.
      1. It promoted unity among Christians by reminding them of what Christ has done for each one of them (1 Corinthians 11:17-22).
      2. It declared their faith in the fact the Jesus died for them (1 Corinthians 11:26).
      3. It declared their faith in the fact that the resurrected Jesus would someday return (1 Corinthians 11:26).
   4. Paul said that every time a Christian takes communion, he or she either remembers Jesus and thereby honors God, or he or she insults God in the manner communion is taken and passes judgment on himself or herself.
      1. Nothing is more serious than what happens in our hearts and minds as we take communion.
      2. We can do nothing that is of greater insult to God than to take communion without having our hearts and minds focused on Jesus.
      3. We honor God and Jesus when we take communion in remembrance of him.
   5. At this time, may we remember Jesus and honor God.

   [The congregation takes the Lord’s supper together.]

4. Communion is both simple and difficult.
   1. The most difficult communion challenge I ever faced I encountered almost on a weekly basis in West Africa when I took communion with the Christians there.
      1. In the rural areas where I was, grains that make bread were not grown; they did not eat bread; they had no baking ovens of any kind.
      2. Grapes did not grow there; the only grape juice available was the cheapest wine you can imagine.
      3. There was no refrigeration, so the cheap wine turned to vinegar in the tropical heat in about a week, and I cannot describe the taste.
      4. Due to poverty, they drank from a single glass; to honor missionaries, they served us last.
   2. From experience, I know it is much easier to create habits, traditions, and rituals than it is to think and feel.
      1. It is much easier to stress procedures and details than to focus on content and substance.
      2. May I illustrate that fact?
         1. If we served loaf bread in communion this morning, many would be angry and offended.
            1. Does the New Testament command us to use bread without yeast? No.
            2. Do the actual words of scripture place emphasis on the kind of bread we use? No.
            3. Why do we use bread without yeast?
               1. Because Jesus was eating the Jewish Passover meal when he instituted the Lord’s supper.
               2. In the Passover meal it was specifically commanded that the Jewish people use bread without yeast (Exodus 12:8).
            4. We correctly conclude that Jesus used bread without yeast.
            5. Because we want to do what they did, we use bread without yeast.
            6. I certainly agree that is appropriate.
      3. We would be very upset if loaf bread was used when the actual words of the New Testament place no emphasis on the kind of bread used.
         1. But many are not bothered when the emphasis is on “getting communion over with as quickly as possible.”
            1. “What can we do to shorten communion time so we can dismiss quicker?”
            2. “We are not going to beat the crowd to the restaurant today.”
            3. “We are going to miss the first quarter of the ball game.”
            4. “We just will not have time for all we planned this afternoon.”
         2. The New Testament does say clearly, plainly, that if our minds and hearts are not focused on remembering Jesus we are guilty of killing Jesus, and we pass judgment on ourselves (1 Corinthians 11:27,29).
         3. We can be very emotional about matters the New Testament says little or nothing about, and very indifferent about matters it emphasizes.
         4. The fact that we can do that should deeply concern us.

In Jerusalem, Peter spoke to some of the people who shouted for the death of Jesus. He used evidence they accepted to prove that God made Jesus Lord and Christ. Many of them believed Peter’s evidences and cried out, “What should we do?”

Peter told them that if they wanted forgiveness, they needed to repent and be baptized (Acts 2:38).

Do you believe that God made Jesus the Christ? Will you accept the forgiveness you need and that God offers you? If you believe, will you repent and be baptized?

We Have Something Special!

Posted by David on under Bulletin Articles

This congregation has many special things. One of the many is found in our staff. It should never be taken for granted. The staff works together well as a team. We genuinely like and enjoy each other. We never “tiptoe” around each other. We never “put up” with each other. We share a marvelous spirit of openness and cooperation. It is a joy and privilege to work with Brad, Ted, Roy, Debbie, and Myra.

I hope that you feel a deep sense of gratitude for the events this weekend. Crosswalk is a major happening. Brad began serious work and planning for Crosswalk before his surgery. It is truly an area event. Area youth ministers work together to make Crosswalk a successful reality. Youth groups from three states attend. Our facilities and location make West-Ark ideally suited to host the event.

On Saturday, 625 teens and adults assembled for classes, for challenges, for direction, for worship, and for repentance. Encouragement was given. Hearts were touched. Commitment and resolve were renewed. Faith was strengthened. Two were baptized into Christ.

Besides caring for his own responsibilities, Ted provides excellent help and support. In all the preparation, Ted helped Brad in every way that he could. On Friday, his day off, he came to help with the countless last minute things demanding attention. Ted was here all day Saturday. Of his own accord and thoughtfulness, he video taped the events of Saturday and early worship Sunday morning.

Debbie or Myra never ask, “Is this in our job description?” They never hesitate to offer assistance. Their normal (for them, normal does not exist!) workload is often overwhelming. Yet, they always are willing to make the time to help.

Each staff member would confess quickly that we receive wonderful help and support. So many of you are willingly “there for us” with real assistance and support. Thanks! To all of you who housed young people in your homes Saturday night, thanks! To all of you who took responsibilities and gave assistance, thanks!

Take joy in the good Crosswalk accomplished. Lives were focused on Jesus Christ. Minds were challenged to battle evil. Hearts were touched for eternal purposes.

I Need Your Help

Posted by David on September 26, 1999 under Sermons

Tuesday morning a person called me at the office. I answered enthusiastically. The person said, “You sound different.” I laughed and said, “I guess I do. I just came back from vacation and I feel rested.”

I love going on vacation. It is the one time all year that I can turn the “alert button” in my mind off. I love coming back from vacation because I love what I do.

I want to attempt something that I never remember trying. This attempt has a specific purpose. I want to try to give you some insight into my work.

1. Let me begin by interviewing me. “Why do you love your work?”
   1. First, I love God.
      1. I stand in awe of what God has done and is doing in my salvation.
      2. I stand in awe of what God has done and is doing in my life.
      3. I stand in awe of what God is doing in the world around me.
      4. I am in the last section of my work life; I do not believe that there is any way that I could have used my life that would have been more fulfilling.
   2. Second, I love people.
      1. I love to help people and to watch them grow.
         1. In Luke 15:7 Jesus said that there is more joy in heaven over a repenting sinner than over ninety-nine righteous people who do not need to repent.
         2. I find that incredibly exciting.
         3. Jesus did not say that the ninety-nine righteous people did not cause joy in heaven.
         4. He said there was even more joy when someone who has really made a mess out of life decides to redirect life.
         5. The most exciting thing I see is not the person who has it all together: I deeply appreciate such people.
         6. The most exciting thing I see is someone who finds the faith in God and the courage in Christ to turn life around.
         7. If you find that difficult to understand, think of your own family.
            1. Do you really appreciate the family member who “has it all together?”
            2. How excited would you be if the person who made a mess out of life turned his or her life around?
      2. I love the challenge of teaching in ways that help people better understand God, Christ, and Christianity. The key to life is Jesus Christ.
         1. Long ago Jesus said, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be satisfied” (Matthew 5:6).
         2. I find it exciting beyond explanation to teach people with hungry minds and hearts.
   3. “Basically, what do you do?”
      1. For over forty years I have heard the old joke that preachers just work one day a week.
      2. I work on a weekly deadline every week–there are certain things that must happen every week without fail.
         1. What would you say if I told you one Sunday morning that it was a tough week and I just did not have time to prepare a sermon?
         2. Or if I got up one Wednesday night and said that I was not prepared to teach because there just was not time?
      3. “What are the weekly deadlines you must meet?”
         1. On Mondays I write the bulletin article and care for things I set aside the last week because I could not get to them.
         2. On Tuesdays Brad, Ted, and I have a staff meeting first thing that morning. We also meeting throughout the week on a “need to” basis. If at all possible, Tuesdays I need to prepare Sunday morning’s sermon.
         3. Wednesdays I need to produce the Sunday morning projection script and prepare to teach the Wednesday night auditorium class, and teach in the 7 p.m. assembly.
         4. Thursdays I need to prepare the Sunday evening sermon.
         5. Fridays I need to prepare Sunday evenings projection script and prepare for my Sunday morning class.
         6. Those things must happen while I have secretarial help.
      4. While those things must be done, these are some of the things that I must fit around those deadlines.
         1. Four months a year I prepare and tape the television program.
            1. I tape 26 or 27 programs.
            2. Those programs are repeated.
            3. I change the format for each year’s programs.
         2. I try to be available for any crisis situation that arises, and it is rare to have a week that there are not crises.
         3. There is correspondence to be answered.
         4. Ted and I are preparing special class materials for adult classes for the year 2000 on the themes of serving and whole life stewardship.
         5. I try to do some hospital visitation.
         6. Then there is a significant list I would call “unusual needs,” and it is rare to have a week that something in that category does not arise.
      5. “What is a Sunday like?”
         1. I get up at 6 am Sunday mornings, and all available time until Joyce and I leave for the building is spent in:
            1. Prayer.
            2. Focusing on Sunday morning’s sermon.
            3. Focusing on Sunday morning’s Bible class.
            4. Studying the church directory.
         2. I teach the young adult class at the 9:30 assembly and preach at the 10:20 assembly.
         3. I greet people as much as I can when we dismiss; Joyce and I usually get home around 12:30 to 1 p.m.
         4. Unless there are meetings that I need to attend or appointments that I have, I try to relax for two or three hours Sunday afternoon.
            1. I focus on Sunday evening’s lesson.
            2. I preach in the 6 p.m. assembly.
            3. I greet people, and Joyce and I often go out with a group to eat.
            4. We ordinarily get home around 9 p.m. Sunday night.
         5. Then Monday morning schedule begins again. And it never matters how good last Sunday’s lessons were.
      6. In addition to these things:
         1. Joyce and I try to attend four to five fellowship group meetings a month, which we genuinely enjoy.
         2. We accept personal invitations unless there is a conflict.
         3. We assist with the Discovery Dinner program, Joyce works with the inner city program, the jail ministry, the Wings Bible class, the quilting group, and substitute teaches in the first and second grade Bible classes.
      7. It is very important for you to understand that we enjoy everything that we do.
2. About two weeks ago, Bill Dickey, Earl Flood, Mat Griffin, Bob Null, and Sam Roberts (our elders) met with me for the purpose of discussing my work.
   1. It was a very constructive meeting, and I really appreciated their focus and the discussion we shared.
      1. One thing they emphasized to me was the fact that I cannot do everything.
         1. The demands of teaching two classes and preaching two sermons on a regular basis was too much.
         2. They told me that I need to give up one of those responsibilities because they did not want me to “burn out.”
      2. That is really tough for me to do.
         1. I love to teach the young adult class.
            1. They are the immediate future of this congregation.
            2. That class is the only meaningful contact I have with that age.
         2. I love to teach the Wednesday night auditorium class.
            1. Many people in that class are the reason West-Ark has the opportunities of right now–they sacrificed; they paid the prices.
            2. That class is the primary contact I have with these people.
         3. I love to preach.
            1. I believe preaching can be a powerful teaching and motivational tool.
            2. I believe the primary purpose of preaching is to build faith in the individual’s life.
            3. No person can get the spiritual education he or she needs to survive in this evil world from 104 thirty-minute sermons a year.
            4. But people can be challenged to awaken to their spiritual needs.
      3. The elders are right: I cannot do everything.
         1. What I do places three basic demands on me: time demands, physical energy demands, and emotional energy demands.
         2. I enjoy what I do.
         3. But I confess that my schedule and my work drain me at times.
   2. My suggestion for consideration:
      1. Let my Sunday evening lessons assume a teaching format.
      2. Let those lessons basically be a direct study of the text of scripture.
      3. Do not use projection scripts on Sunday evening.
      4. Incorporate special times on Sunday evening.
   3. Having said that, we need to look at some realities.
      1. For most of you who attend regularly on Sunday evenings, that will be fine.
      2. For many who do not attend, that will not create interest or desire.
      3. Reality one: people learn differently.
         1. I am not trying to convince you of anything; I am just sharing.
         2. From one-on-one involvement, from small group involvement, from large group involvement, from preaching, I can tell you a fact: people learn differently.
         3. A method that is interesting and effective to one group with one background is ineffective and uninteresting to another group of another background; I live and work with that reality every single week.
         4. Some people are very visual, some are very verbal, some are very interactive, some are very passive.
         5. Knowing and respecting those differences is extremely important when there is nothing compulsory about attending or learning.
      4. Let me give you a specific illustration.
         1. “Why do you use a full sentence outline for you sermons?”
            1. Personal discipline: I take my teaching very seriously; that makes it necessary for me to study and prepare; I don’t use old material; I don’t coast.
            2. Longevity: at one time in Mississippi statewide the average stay for a preacher in a congregation was six months.
               1. If you knew what it was in Arkansas, it would astound you.
               2. It is not uncommon for preachers to move every two to three years.
            3. Opportunity: I do not just preach to those who attend, but to all who read or use the lesson.
               1. Before I moved here, Duane Walker told me he had 500 of my sermons on his computer.
               2. He copied several and gave them to the elders.
               3. Some of the elders read them and Sam Roberts called me.
               4. Every month I receive letters from preachers and teachers who use the material I share with you.
               5. I approach my lessons as mission work.
            4. Protection: that kind of preparation protects me from substituting emotions for substance.
      5. The two practical purposes of preaching are teaching and building faith.
         1. I have not taught unless people learn; teaching involves more than presenting material.
         2. If I do not help you discover the difference between sincere prejudice and genuine faith in God, I fail you. I fail myself. I fail God.

I do not work any harder than a number of you do. While many of you would not change places with me, I would not wish to change places with you either.

But some of you do not understand why I work as I do. You will understand when we all stand before God. I fervently pray that you will understand long before that occasion. In all of life, nothing is as important as being alive in Jesus Christ.

When we understand who Jesus is, what he has done for us, and what he is willing to do for us, we understand an essential truth. Becoming a Christian is not just a matter of assuming some responsibilities. Becoming a Christian is learning to live a specific life.

Jesus Changes the Way We See People

Posted by David on under Sermons

I want to begin by talking to everyone who has loved someone enough to marry them. Whether you did or did not marry the person, or whether the marriage was a success or failure is not my present concern. I want to talk to every person who loved someone enough to marry him or her. I want to ask you some questions.

Can you remember the first time you met this person?

The very first time that you met him (or her), did you say to yourself, “I want to marry him (or her)”?

Can you remember the first time that you knew that you were in love with this person?

What happened between that first time you met the person and the moment that you knew that you would marry him (or her)?

A lot of powerful things happened. Among them was a simple but important thing: the way you looked at the person changed.

1. Why are Christians unique?
   1. I cannot answer that question until I understand what you mean by “Christian.”
      1. By the word Christian, do you mean:
         1. People who have a religious background and call themselves Christians?
         2. People who go to church?
         3. People who have placed membership in a congregation?
         4. People who believe the Bible is the word of God and are religious?
      2. To be honest, if that is your definition of “Christian,” there probably is very little that is unique about such people.
         1. Many of them believe that they are religiously unique. But…
         2. Many of them rarely read the Bible and never actually study the Bible.
         3. Many of them seldom pray to God.
         4. Many of them attend church assemblies either because they feel it is necessary or because it is a life long habit.
         5. Yet, many of them rarely worship when they attend.
      3. Or, by the word “Christian,” do you mean those people who see the eternal God working through Jesus Christ?
         1. These people believe God actually put His work to produce salvation “in gear” when evil first expressed itself in human life.
         2. They believe God’s work will continue until the moment comes when God through Christ will judge all people who have ever lived.
         3. They believe that all the total work and purposes of God are tied together with the death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus Christ.
         4. They actually live their lives on a daily basis by placing their trust and confidence in Jesus who was raised from the dead.
         5. They govern their daily lives by understanding Jesus’ teachings.
         6. All their definitions of right and wrong, of good and evil are based on faith in Jesus’ teachings.
         7. Therefore, they commit themselves to Jesus’ purposes.
         8. They rejoice in their forgiveness and welcome both the responsibility and the privilege of being God’s son or daughter.
         9. They declared their faith in the power of Jesus’ cleansing blood by being baptized into Christ.
         10. And they honestly redirected their lives.
      4. If you are asking what is unique about these people, there are too many unique things to list.
   2. I want us to look at just one basic way that people converted to Jesus Christ are unique: it changes the way they look at people.
      1. When Jesus lived on earth, he looked at people in a way that Israel’s religious leaders never saw people.
         1. When Jesus called Levi the tax collector to follow him, Levi gave a huge banquet for tax collectors, and Jesus attended (Luke 5:29-32).
            1. The Pharisees saw a group of dishonest, thieving men who collected taxes for the Romans, men to be shunned and rejected.
            2. Jesus saw people who needed a spiritual doctor; Jesus saw people who needed to be called to repentance.
         2. When a prostitute washed Jesus’ feet, the Pharisee saw a prostitute who was known to be a prostitute by everyone in town; Jesus saw a woman who grieved as she repented (Luke 7:36-50).
            1. The Pharisee saw a horrible sinner and said to himself, “If Jesus knew who she was, he would not let her touch him.”
            2. Jesus saw a grief-stricken person who was repenting, and he said to her, “Your sins have been forgiven.”
      2. As you read the gospels, it is amazing to note the times the Pharisees saw sinners to be shunned and rejected when Jesus saw people hungering and thirsting for direction and forgiveness.
   3. But changing the way people look at people was hard even in the early church.
      1. It is obvious in the New Testament letters we call epistles that changing the way people looked at each other in the church was one of the greatest challenges of early Christianity.
         1. Jews looked at non-Jews and saw a bunch of spiritual heathens who had worshipped stone images and were incredibly ignorant about the living God.
         2. People who were not Jews looked at Jews and saw a bunch of stuck-up, arrogant people who thought God loved them more than anyone else.
      2. In the church, it was very hard to change that, but Paul made it clear that Christians must change the way they looked at people.

      Galatians 3:27-29 For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s descendants, heirs according to promise. (The New American Standard Bible, 1995 Update, La Habra, California: The Lockman Foundation, 1996.)

   4. If a person has been genuinely converted to Jesus, if he or she has been baptized into Christ and thereby clothed with Christ, that person must change the way that he or she looks at people.
2. How can that happen? How does being converted to Christ lead you to change the way you look at people?
   1. The first thing conversion does is change the way that you look at yourself.
      1. This is what the conversion process does:
         1. First, conversion shows you the evil that exists in your life–in living color.
         2. Second, conversion makes you fully aware of the fact that God knows everything about you–everything you think, everything you feel, and everything you do. God knows you better than you know yourself.
         3. Third, conversion reveals to you that God, who knows everything about you, loves you and in Christ will gladly forgive you.
            1. God does not love and forgive us because we are worth it; we are not!
            2. God loves and forgives us because of His goodness.
         4. Fourth, conversion creates an undeniable drive and determination to change the direction of our lives.
            1. Conversion opens our eyes and makes us see self.
            2. We don’t like what we see; in fact, we despise what we see.
            3. Through the forgiveness and strength of God, we are determined to change who we are.
      2. All of that happens because we see ourselves differently.
   2. When we change the way we look at ourselves, we will change the way we look at other people.
      1. Why? It is very simple.
      2. God tells us, “You must understand that I love every other person as much as I love you.”
         1. “I do not love you any less than I love anyone else, but neither do I love you more than I love anyone else.”
         2. “If you love Me, if you love My son Jesus, you must dedicate yourself to learning how to love other people like I love other people.”
         3. “I seek the present salvation and the eternal good of every sinner, and that includes you. If you love Me, you will do the same thing.”
3. Seeing other people differently is a fundamental uniqueness of any congregation that belongs to Jesus Christ.
   1. Conversion creates the desire for Jesus to use our lives.
      1. If Jesus is to use you or me, we must change the way we see self.
         1. If you cannot see the evil in your life, Jesus cannot use you.
         2. If you cannot see God’s grace in your life, Jesus cannot use you.
         3. If you cannot see your dependence on God’s mercy, Jesus cannot use you.
         4. If you cannot see and appreciate Jesus’ forgiveness in your life, Jesus cannot use you.
      2. Men and women converted to Jesus Christ yearn to see our world change in basic ways.
         1. Converted people hunger to see the pain and devastation of stereotyping end.
         2. Converted people hunger to see the pain and devastation of prejudice end.
         3. Converted people hunger to see the pain and devastation of racism end.
         4. Converted people hunger to see the pain and devastation of abuse end.
         5. Converted people hunger to see the pain and devastation of hate end.
      3. But these things are not ending; they are growing.
   2. How can they be reversed?
      1. The reverse will begin when Christians have the courage to let God teach them how to look at people.
      2. Nothing good can happen until we change the way we look at people.
4. What do you spiritually expect of yourself?
   1. I am a grandparent with four grandchildren.
      1. I want every grandchild to be a first grader–for one year.
      2. I want every grandchild to be a sixth grader–for one year.
      3. I want every grandchild to be a senior in high school–for one year.
      4. I want every grandchild to be a wiser, more mature person each year of his or her adult life.
   2. Are you converted to Jesus Christ? If you are,
      1. You belong to the eternal God who created you.
      2. You belong to Jesus Christ who died and was raised from the dead for you.
      3. You are committed to understanding the mind of God and developing the mind of Christ so that you can better understand life every year that you live.
   3. What have you learned, what do you understand about yourself, about your God, about your Savior, about your salvation that you did not know and understand two years ago? five years ago? ten years ago?
      1. This year, what has God taught you about yourself?
      2. This year, what has God taught you about other people?
      3. Do you want God to teach you anything? Will you allow Him to?

[Prayer: Teach us to be unique by reflecting the uniqueness of Jesus Christ.]

Every Sunday morning we have visitors. Some of our visitors have never visited a congregation of the Church of Christ before. If a visitor who has never worshipped with a congregation of the Church of Christ visits us this morning, what would you want him or her to say about us?

As a converted Christian, let me share the most obvious difference I pray they could see.

Gratitude: The State and the Discovery

Posted by David on under Bulletin Articles

To be appreciative we must be grateful. We cannot be appreciative if we are incapable of gratitude. Gratitude is more than being polite. After receiving a kindness, it is polite to say words of gratitude. However, selfish people can be trained to respond appropriately to kindness.

Gracious acts and words of thanks appropriately expressed in a timely manner may prove only that a person is well trained. They may reveal gratitude. They may not.

Gratitude is a state of heart produced by an appreciative mind. Politeness is responsive behavior expressed through gracious manners and an appropriate vocabulary. While the heart is essential to gratitude, it is not essential to politeness.

This past week Joyce and I were richly blessed by a week of vacation. While we “had fun,” the real joy was experienced in time together, rest, and escape from stress. The week freed my mind “to see” and “to feel” in ways that heightened awareness. Frequently I found myself quietly praying prayers of gratitude.

Through opportunities and experiences, God gave me “eyes” that “look at life” from more than the American perspective. The greater majority of the world’s population suffers from a poverty that exceeds our ability to grasp. In their wildest imagination these people could not mentally picture our vacation world.

For many their government decrees how many children they can have. This decree is enforced through abortion when necessary. For many others, half of their children die before reaching five years of age. Because of poverty and overpopulation, children either (a) are not wanted [by the government] or (b) have a fifty percent chance of survival. The parents are powerless to change either reality.

From birth to adult death, many will never have enough to eat. Many adults die rarely having eaten all they wanted any day of their lives. The majority could not buy enough food for their families if they spent everything they earned just on food.

In the early 1990s Joyce and I worked in Poland. Economic recovery had just begun.

We heard of a Russian who dreamed of visiting America. He could not believe the stories he heard about America’s prosperity. Then, he had a chance to visit Poland. As he prepared to return to Russia he said, “I no longer want to visit America. Nothing could be as prosperous as Poland!”

“God, may we turn from a mere vocabulary of politeness. Give us hearts of gratitude.”