Tag Archives: Teachings of the apostles

An opportunity to minister to others

Posted on December 29, 2014 by | Comments Off on An opportunity to minister to others

How-To-ListenAn opportunity to minister to the needs of others is one of the most basic areas of Christian service. I believe that the reason many Christians are afraid of this word are the connotations that the word brings. Within the English language, minister can be used as either a noun or a verb; most are familiar with the noun – and often think of minister as being a member of the pastor or other church clergy or maybe a member of a parliamentary governmental system. The verb, minister, actually has a different meaning: to contribute to happiness and comfort or to give service, care, or aid; attend, as to wants or necessities. For a Christian, this should be a natural desire within our hearts.

Last month I was preparing a Sunday School lesson that discussed the various people we meet in life. As I tell my class, each lesson not only do I learn something from the biblical research I do, but I also get a triple reinforcement of what the Lord has led me to discover – as I prepare the lesson, as I teach the lesson, and then as I prepare the video of the class for our church website. This particular lesson hasn’t been any different; however, it hasn’t let me rest either. My attitude towards other people is beginning to change as the Holy Spirit begins to apply what I’ve been taught.

Each time we learn something about our faith, about ourselves and our walk with the Lord Jesus, we then become accountable for that knowledge and its application in our life. Within the Bible, this principle is taught in several scriptures: Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin (James 4:17), and The lord of that servant will come in a day when he looketh not for him, and at an hour when he is not aware, and will cut him in sunder, and will appoint him his portion with the unbelievers. And that servant, which knew his lord’s will, and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes. But he that knew not, and did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more (Luke 12:46-48). With all my heart, I truly believe when we’ve been taught a biblical principle and make the decision not to apply it to our lives, we are choosing disobedience and not to fully submit to the will of the Lord.

Each Christian looks for an opportunity to minister to others. As I mentioned before, it is a natural change that happens as a result of our new nature that the apostle Paul spent so much of his time teaching other Christians about. The easiest opportunity for us to minister to others is the one that is the most obvious yet rarely done. It is the opportunity to minister to the other people who we meet when we are simply doing the things we do each day. There are people that God brings into our lives on a daily basis that we are to minister to. Sometimes, it may come as a kind word, as a smile, or even the lifting of a need of someone else in prayer to our Lord. Other times it may be presenting the good news that Jesus can save them if they will put their trust in Him. It may be in helping the person who is a couple of dollars short in front of you in the checkout line. It may be a bag of groceries, a Bible, or even something more substantial that the Lord lays upon your heart as a need that someone else has a need of. In any case, the Lord always match an opportunity for us to minister with our abilities and the needs of the people He brings to us.

An opportunity to share the gospel

Within our society and in this time we live people need the Lord more than ever. Right now, according to statistics available through the Family Research Council, there are more people today that have never attended church or are not members of a local church than ever before in American society. They need to hear the good news that Jesus loves them; they need to hear the gospel message of His saving grace and that God does love them and has a plan for their life. This means that every person we meet is an opportunity to share the simple gospel message. Jesus taught his disciples this very thing: Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen (Matthew 28:19-20), And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature (Mark 16:15), and The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised (Luke 4:18). Every person we encounter each day becomes an opportunity to share the gospel of Jesus Christ.

An opportunity to meet a need

Not everyone that crosses our path on a daily basis will be in need of hearing the gospel message. They may already be a Christian, but there are always opportunities to minister to the needs of others. Again, Jesus taught during His earthly ministry: Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in: Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me. Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink? When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee? Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee? And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me (Matthew 25:34-40). There are several applications that can be made from this verse with the most common and obvious being that when we minister to others we are serving the Lord. However, when we take the opportunity to meet the physical, psychological, spiritual, and emotional needs of others we are taking part in an important ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Since October, our church has collected food and toys for baskets to be delivered to families within our area. As a part of this, members of our congregation submitted names of families that they knew were in need. Some families just needed a helping hand with food while others needed food and had children in the home without the financial means to buy presents. Not only did God give our church family with an opportunity to minister to the physical needs of others, He provided blessings for those who were able to give, those who were able to take part in the delivery, and to those receiving the Christmas baskets. Yesterday there were a couple of people who shared with us the joy and blessings they received just from delivering the baskets – which gave our entire church the ability to rejoice in God’s goodness, love, and grace, but to praise His name! We may never see any of those who received the baskets in our church or join our congregation – and that was never our goal. Our goal was to just to take the opportunity to minister to others.

While it is easy to have the spiritual desire to meet the needs of others at Christmastime, this is a mindset (and a heart-set) we need to become more sensitive to all year. It’s easy to turn a blind eye to the very real needs of others even when those needs are clear to us. It is easy to adopt the secular world view that needs can be met through some government agency or service. As an American historian by vocation, I believe that this is one of the many reasons so many people are now hurting in our country is because the church – God’s people – have surrendered the idea of meeting the needs of others within the community to the politicians, bureaucrats, and other government leaders. Before the twentieth century, it wasn’t the government that provided housing, clothing, and food to the poor – it was the local church. It was the local church, through its people, that showed the love of the Lord Jesus Christ to those in need. It was through the people of the local church that the needs of both body and soul were met.

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A brief biblical study in mankind’s free will

Posted on July 31, 2014 by | Comments Off on A brief biblical study in mankind’s free will

mens-bible-studyThis devotional actually began as a conversation I had with a former student of mine on Facebook. Being a third year college student, his major required him to take a course in psychology where the nature of free will was discussed.  In one of the lectures, he became bothered by the professor’s insistence that “free will” of the person does not exist in most religions, including Christianity.  Sadly, the professor began to expound on various doctrines held by some of the various denominations that supported his viewpoint.  What is even worse is that the professor would not allow any other discussion on the matter or allow any student to offer a counter argument. When the lecture ended, the professor had succeeded in assuring that his humanist-based argument against all religion stood strong.

In truth, God created humankind – Adam and Eve – to have free will and to be able to exercise it.  Within the first three chapters of Genesis, this free will is demonstrated through the story of the fall of man. Although God had commanded Adam and Eve not to eat of the forbidden fruit, there was no obstacle placed in their way. There was no angel standing guard, there was no force field, or even a canyon that surrounded the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Adam and Eve could freely walk under its shade, could enjoy the fragrance of its blossoms, but were told not to eat of it. The tree, and all that was in the garden were fully accessible to Adam and Eve and would stay that way until man willfully chose the path of disobedience. It is after the fruit is eaten and God’s judgment pronounced where it is recorded in the third chapter of Genesis: And the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever: Therefore the LORD God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken. So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life (Genesis 3:22-24).

Job also questioned the free will of man.  As he was in the midst of his trials, he asked, Why is light given to a man whose way is hid, and whom God hath hedged in? (Job 3:23). Unlike Greek and Roman mythology that teaches that all mortals are at the whims of a pantheon of gods and goddesses whom change the fates of men and women to suit their own passions, our God is one that gave us the ability to make our own choices. We are not given some maze to run, but are told by the Lord, I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live (Deuteronomy 30:19). Our salvation all rests on our decision, for God’s invitation is extended to everyone regardless of their personal history, nationality, race, sex, or any other artificial construct society creates: For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life (John 3:16). God doesn’t hedge anyone in to make the “right” decision – the most basic decision, to accept the Lord Jesus Christ as your personal savior is yours to make. God wants us to love him out of our free will, not because we feel that we must.

There are plenty of scriptures that teach that God offers mankind a choice. Even within the writings of the prophets, God still  calls out to man, offering the best that He has that awaits all who will choose to accept and to love Him: Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price (Isaiah 55:1). In other words, God is saying that if we choose Him, the best awaits us without price to us. While we may enjoy some of those blessings here, the best is yet to come once we are in Heaven with Him. It is the same concept that Jesus taught, as recorded in the gospel of Matthew: Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light (Matthew 11:28-30). The beautiful thing about our free choice is that when we answer God’s call and accept His offer, He puts no other condition.  During His earthly ministry, Jesus taught: All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out (John 6:37). Notice the concept in both passages – “come to me” – is the only requirement.  It doesn’t say we must come or is it even a commandment to come. It is an invitation to come to the Lord much like one would get to join a family member or a friend for an evening out. Our salvation is dependent upon our free will. We have the choice to accept or reject; to choose death or choose life.

Within the early church, this was taught by the apostles;  Peter told all that would listen to him in those days, And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved (Acts 2:21). Again, contrary to the claims of the Calvinists (those who believe that only certain people are predestined for Heaven) and humanist alike, this contradicts the central belief of both philosophies. The phrase “whosoever shall call” indicated that only those who call upon the Lord will be saved. While God did make the first invitation that all people could be saved through faith in Him, only those who choose to accept the offer will actually be saved.  It is the free will of the person that determines their eternal relationship with God. The final proof of the role in free will in salvation can be found in the book of Revelation: And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely (Revelation 22:17). Again, the invitation to all people has been extended, again, the hand of God reaches out and says “Come.” It is up to the person to either accept or reject the invitation.

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An introduction into the psychology of the cross

Posted on March 19, 2013 by | Comments Off on An introduction into the psychology of the cross

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Its obvious to the world that Christians are getting ready to celebrate Easter – the time where Christians celebrate and remember the death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ.  On television, we see the annual parade of Christian and Easter centered shows, the never-ending rows of Easter baskets and candy at the local Wal-mart, and the never-ending barrage of the critics of Easter who correctly point out that Easter was celebrated long before the death of Christ.  It is important to realize that in their attempt to shatter what they consider the myth of Jesus, they actually miss the simple message of the Cross; this should come as no surprise as the apostle Paul wrote, But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness (I Corinthians 1:23).

For many, celebrating Easter means that family gathers around the dinner table, egg hunts, and a sunrise Easter service.  Lip service is made to what Easter is with little evidence of the actual meaning of the cross evident in their lives.  During a world civilization class one afternoon about six years ago, I was asked a question by a student that really got me thinking.  She asked “why are some people so devoted to a religion that offers them no hope, no security, and yet will devote their entire life and being to it?”  I do not remember the answer I gave her, but I do remember considering the opposite question: “why are some people unwilling to be totally devoted to the worship of the Lord Jesus Christ who offers a hope, unconditional forgiveness, and an eternal security?”  Its because we fail to understand the very nature of the cross.

Christianity is not merely a belief in God – as too often many of us believe it to be.  We have been raised and educated in a society where we have been told to leave our faith at home or in the walls of our church.  We have been told that we do have the “right” to worship, but the privilege of worshiping and honoring God has been removed through the guise of political correctness.  If we are to really see the spiritual growth and fulfillment that we long to see in our lives, we must allow ourselves to become consumed in the meaning of the cross.  After we have accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as our Savior we are renewed, or as the apostle Paul wrote, Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new (II Corinthians 5:17).

In my own life, although I had fully accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as my Savior, I tried to retain all that I had been taught from the world before.  I believed the lies of this world that I had to keep my faith hidden except when around other Christians and only in the confines of church or church related activities.  I was afraid to take opportunities to tell others about the love of Jesus Christ because of not wanting to be offensive.  What I did not and would not understand for nearly two decades is that I was doing the very thing that Christ had warned us against: No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon (Matthew 6:24).

Continued on next page.

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