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Bulletin Article Archives:
Attitudes
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A habit is the resulting action of a disengaged mind. One may not realize he is biting his nails while another suddenly finds herself puffing on a cigarette she doesn't recall lighting. Some habits are spiritually devastating (1 Corinthians 6:9-10) while others promote spiritual maturity (Daniel 6:10). Between the two extremes lay habits ranging in varying shades of gray.
One factor renders a blow to any habit: thought. Especially for the bad habit, thought interrupts the thoughtless actions throwing a mental "monkey wrench" in the mind idling in neutral. It is far from a risky venture to assume that everyone who reads this has, will and needs to devote thought and attention to changing some action that has grown habitual.
Everyone has habits. Many need to be changed. The evil one needs to be replaces by the good one and it in turn needs to be replaced by the better one. While it is true that change hurts, it is also true in some cases that not changing kills! Take some time to honestly examine your life.
Having their choice, they likely would have preferred better accommodations. Luke tells us that their room was dark and their mobility severely restricted by the chains that held them securely to the wall.
These two evangelists had undoubtedly been better situated in times best situated in times past. The imagination need hardly be called upon to factor in the dampness, rats and the stench of unwashed and sick human bodies that would make the Philippian penitentiary a terrible place to spend the night.
With backs bruised, swollen and bleeding from the severe beating using long iron rods, Paul and Silas were somehow able to suppress the pain and to be overpowered by the joy which welled up within them.
The reaction of these two men challenged the minds of those who listened. Feeling pain, they acted as if none existed. Sitting in the darkness they acted as if in bright daylight. Surrounded by the gloom of the dungeon they acted as if on the front row of the synagogue. At midnight the prison rang, not with the customary curses of the condemned, but with the praises to the God and Father in heaven.
Was this hypocrisy? Hardly. Paul and Silas acted the way they desired to become. No hypocrite would dream of becoming what they act. Their act is to deceive, never planning to become a better person. But God was glorified by the positive twist Paul and Silas put on their bleak circumstances. No Christian is a hypocrite who longs to glorify God by becoming how he acts.
The Law was everything to the Pharisee. They studied it meticulously and imposed it mercilessly. They even dressed the part without flaw. You would know a Pharisee was near if he prayed or did some good deed. He would make sure of that (Matt. 6:2, 5). Their path was paved with praise of their goodness. They went to great extremes to make sure everyone knew that they were righteous. Yet Jesus labeled them hypocrites (Matt. 23).
They lectured openly of the Law's teachings on vital subjects of their day (Matt. 5). They spoke of the evil of murder without considering the anger that prompts it. They taught of adultery but ignored lust. They recommended proper oaths but failed to practice honesty. The Pharisee's life was full of knowledge but void of truth (Matt. 23:3).
Therefore Jesus urged his audience to heed what the Pharisee said while avoiding what he does. Then he prepared them to realize righteousness unlike any known in their time. Jesus, in his daily life and words, modeled true goodness before them. For the righteousness they had grown accustomed to seeing was empty.
"Happy ... favored by luck, fortune or circumstance: FORTUNATE" (Webster's Dictionary). Etymologically the English word "happy" derives from the Middle English hap or happe and the Icelandic happ meaning luck or chance. Happiness then is a favorable response based on outward circumstance, which, by nature, is constantly changing.
For the majority, luck or chance governs happiness. Herein is the very reason unhappiness runs rampant in near epidemic proportions. Constantly shifting moods fluctuate between peaks and valleys. At times happiness is a frequent guest and at times it is an unfamiliar acquaintance. Happiness personifies the elusive pursuit that few realize and fewer still retain.
Yet our Lord promises that for the Christian happiness is a guarantee wrapped up in the abundant life (John 10:10). It is uprooted from luck and replanted in the fertile soil of assurance. While once chance watered worldly happiness, now spiritual happiness is nurtured at the fountains of hope. Once it was warmed in the sometimes harsh light of fleshly circumstances but for the believer it is now energized in the warm glow of God's amazing grace. Here, in its new and perfect environment, happiness blooms the flowers of joy (Galatians 5:22).
A chill was permanently set in the air. A stench contaminated each breath taken. The echo of jangling chains drifted up the corridor as the passing guard occasionally blocked the meager light. Weary eyes strained to see the words that filled an empty parchment sprawled on the table as a letter of joy sprang from a gloomy dungeon (Phil. 4:4).
Norman Vincent Peale's message, so familiar to the twentieth century culture, was alive and well in that first century prison. The power of positive thinking sustained Paul, a prisoner, as he preached the joy of Christianity to the Philippians. He urged them to appreciate the natural joy Christ brings. Repeatedly in this small epistle the writer's mind returns to the fount of joy to find its refreshing attributes.
Joy does not deny the actual but accentuates the ultimate. It is not preoccupied with the negative but focuses on the positive. Paul's joy came from a personal walk with Christ that could be confined to no cell (Phil. 1:21; 4:13). This was a joy no chain could bind and no court could suppress. It would be drowned by no adversity, crushed by no foe (Phil. 2:17; Col. 1:24).
Joy is most obvious when threatened, the very time it is most often abandoned. Like a lifesaver, Paul pleads with us that we need it most when life's storms rage about us. Cling to joy. Let us permeate your disposition. Embrace it as an attitude for living and it will hold you up as you float to the safety of God's eternal shore.
There can be no greater tragedy than to lose the joy of Christ in our life. There is no defeat so bitter as the victory of a negative mind.
The Cape Girardeau area is to observe "Random Acts of Kindness Week" May 12-18. In light of what appears to be general apathy creeping into all areas of life this is not a bad idea. During these seven days people are encouraged to do unexpected acts of kindness towards the needy, friends or total strangers. Some of these unusual acts will be gathered for reports in the local newspaper throughout the week.
At the risk of sounding picky, permit me to raise this small objection. Shouldn’t kindness be commonplace rather than random? True kindness must find its roots in Jesus, the perfect example of kindness. In the coming days some may dedicate themselves to unusual acts of kindness. Christianity urges us to fill each day with normal acts of kindness in the name of Christ. Jesus called it "letting your light shine" (Matt. 5:16).
History would teach us that special days are not successful in altering human nature. Just as Thanksgiving Day may be seen as imposing unintended limits on one's tendency to be thankful, one might wonder what residual effects may linger after a week of concentrated good works. While any increase in kindness is greatly desired a lasting increase in kindness is the ultimate goal.
They had been prospecting for gold. A motley group of miners set out into the Montana wilderness braving Indians, the elements, and the frustration of unrealized dreams of wealth. However, their patience paid off. By this time their supplies had grown so meager that it was necessary to return home before their mission could be concluded.
The miners made a pact with each other not to reveal their discovery to anyone. They agreed to act as though nothing had happened. They would gather the needed supplies and set out just as they had done many times before. As the miners left town they soon realized that they were being followed. Each insisted they had not broken their pact of silence. Unconvinced, they tried to discover from the crowd behind them who tipped them off. "Nobody," they replied, "we could tell by your beaming faces."
Christian joy should be impossible to hide. It is the master of every circumstance. It emboldens the weak. Joy is as natural to faith as oxygen is to life. It would probably be impossible to find any mere mortal who suffered more for the faith than the great apostle Paul. Who can be found more filled with joy? No matter what our circumstance in life our joy in Christ could be greater. Joy should be impossible to hide. But then, who would want to?
Carmel shook as the fiery hand of God consumed Elijah's sacrifice (2 Kings 18). The prophet, clad in camel's hair, stood victorious as idolatry was dealt yet another crushing blow by Jehovah. Baal's prophets died that day by the waters of Kishon.
Jezebel shook with fury, consumed with hatred, at word of Baal's defeat. The evil queen vowed that not even God could deliver Elijah from her death sentience. She sent him word that he had but twenty-four hours to live.
Elijah shook with terror as he was consumed with fear. Reflecting back, his efforts seemed futile. He felt alone in the struggle to loosen the clutches of idolatry, convinced that nobody cared.
The fires of discouragement raged in his troubled mind as the sacred prophet ran for his life. Along the way he was sustained with food and water and encouraged to return to the mountain where Moses received the Law. There the prophet came face to face with a mighty wind, an earthquake and a furious fire. Elijah found comfort, not in these manifestations but in a gentile breeze. In the presence of God Elijah received a new mission, a fresh outlook, and the realization that his efforts were not in vain. God extinguished the fires of discouragement Satan had ignited.
Patience, as defined by Webster, is the quality of enduring without murmuring; not being easily provoked but persevering. Vine reveals that one of the Greek words behind the English word patience in the New Testament means to abide under. This is the ability to wait in difficult situations. Another Greek word used for patience means to be long tempered or to put anger far off. Patience does not remove responsibility for one's actions. It simply delays judgment and anger to allow room for repentance (2 Peter 3:9).
A sign of God's deep love for man is His patience. That same trait is expected of Christians (Matthew 18:21-ff.). Patience is itself a gift (Galatians 5:22). It is the first descriptive comment in Paul's explanation of love (1 Corinthians 13:4). Patience is a sign of spiritual maturity, becoming like God by adopting His attributes (2 Peter 1:6). It does not respond to evil by being evil (1 Thessalonians 5:15).
A key to growing in patience may be found in James' discussion of that subject. He referred to the classic example of patience, Job (James 5:11). Job's ability to wait under trial and forego anger was vindicated by the outcome, or end, of his situation. But it was his trust in a just outcome that enabled him to be patient (Romans 8:28). A lack of patience usually reveals the temptation to want our way now. Patience is primarily trust in God's compassion and mercy. It is the belief that, in the end, God's way is the best way.
Time has had a way of improving the conditions of daily life. Health, travel and communication are but three of the many examples that could be offered. In spite of the great strides in improving the amenities of living, life itself has continued amazingly the same. Modern humanity, like its first century counterpart, must face the identical stress of acquiring basic necessities. Jesus, in his most famous sermon, addressed the concerns and anxieties created by the urge to attain even the most fundamental of human needs: food, clothing and the uncertainty of life (Matthew 6:25-27).
Contemporary generations have seen changes on every front. They have also seen the multiplication of worry and stress. Volumes have been written to abate the damage of these mental burdens. None are nearly as effective as the simple advice offered by the Son of God (verses 33-34).
Stress, according to Jesus, can be neutralized by keeping clear in one's mind the spiritual priorities of living (verse 33). You are entitled to place your trust in God, in whose image you were created. Unlike the rest of creation God gives us special value (see the question of verse 26). Let God have priority over any and every problem of life.
Worry, and the stress it spawns, can be reduced by living one day at a time (verse 34). Jesus teaches that God is well aware of our needs. Dream big about tomorrow, but don't steal its heartaches! Times being such as they are we can hardly afford to neglect these relevant lessons that will produce contentment in our stressed out world.
Our study of the virtues recorded in 2 Peter chapter one enables us to draw the conclusion that love is a crowning trait of spiritual maturity. This is confirmed further by examining the fruit of the spirit (Gal. 5:22-23), Paul's discussion in 1 Corinthians chapter thirteen and Jesus' response to the "greatest commandment" (Matt. 22:36-40). Love plays an essential role in the Christian faith.
"Agape love can be known only from the actions it prompts" (W. E. Vine, An Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words). An examination of those actions reveals the nature of true, agape love.
"The trouble with being optimistic is that some people will think you're illiterate." "If it weren't for the optimist, the pessimist would never know how happy he isn't." "A pessimist can hardly wait for the future so he can look back with regret" (E. C. McKenzie, 14,000 Quips & Quotes).
The world is predominantly pessimistic. Good things happen daily but bad things get more exposure in the media. People tend to think negatively about themselves, others and life in general. We expect the worse and are not surprised when we find it. Sin has such a powerful grip on society that it influences all of us no matter how careful we are to avoid it. No wonder the pessimist feels bad when he feels good for fear that he'll feel worse when he feels better.
In Jesus we find more positive thoughts to center our lives around. He provides us a haven from the negative vibes of the world. Christ upheld the conclusion of Solomon (Prov. 23:7; Mat. 15:18-20). Keeping our mind pure is the key to keeping our life holy. Fill your mind with the beauty of God's Truth and think on these things (Phil. 4:8).
The scenario is familiar. You pass by the water fountain at the back of our auditorium and have the urge to get a small drink of cold water. The fountain decides to drench you in cold water. It knows its purpose and function well and accomplishes it with all its might. That is zeal.
Defined in the dictionary as “eagerness and ardent interest in pursuit of something,” zeal is an admirable quality when it comes to religious service. It is the disposition to make full use of the gifts bestowed upon us to carry out God’s work. But Paul warns that zeal must be constrained by a proper knowledge of God’s will (Rom. 10:2). Once we have learned what God expects, we must be eager to use what He has given us to perform His desire.
God wants you to be zealous for good works (Titus 2:14). To that end He has equipped you. May we, like the infamous water fountain, be about doing what we have been purchased for with all our might.
The most cutting of all the parables told by Jesus must have been the one we term the “Good Samaritan” (Luke 10). Building on the Jew’s well-known hatred of the Samaritan race (John 4:9,. 8:48), Jesus tells of how an unnamed Samaritan, at great cost and inconvenience to himself, responds to the need of a fallen traveler. Amazingly, this despised outsider sorted through the multitude of excuses to not get involved only to overstep them for the one reason to help: a fellow man’s desperate need.
The Samaritan’s act is starkly contrasted with the apparent lack of compassion exhibited by a priest and Levite traveling down the Jericho road. Of all members of the Jewish family, the priest and Levite, religious leaders, would be expected to offer a caring hand. Instead, they pass by with only a quick glance of the situation. The ones most motivated to care didn’t. Instead, after only a moment’s hesitation, they continue down a road paved with good intentions leading to a most unpleasant destination.
Time has a way of improving the conditions of daily lives. What posed as hardship for my grandparents are today's luxuries. Surrounded with gadgets and gizmos to make life easy, why can't they invent something, anything, that will remove worry from our lives?
Volumes have been written to abate the damage worry causes. Man may find more things to worry about, but Jesus alone holds the secret to beat worry. Jesus said that to neutralize stress one must keep clear, spiritual priorities (Mat. 6:33). The Christian is entitled to place his trust in God. Unlike the rest of creation, God gives the faithful disciple the benefits of His protection (v. 26). Let God have priority over any and every problem and one can live without being crushed by worry.
Worry, and the stress it spawns, can be reduced by living one day at a time (v. 34). Jesus teaches that God is well aware of our needs. Dream big about tomorrow but don't steal its heartaches. These are literally the times that try men's souls. Jesus alone can bring contentment to the stressed out world.
"Why are you angry?" God always knows the right questions to ask (Gen. 4:6). Anger is a natural part in humans that prepares them to deal with painful situations. We feel hurt, afraid or frustrated so our body prepares to act to gain relief. Anger is that state of preparedness, not the chosen action. It is impossible not to experience anger.
Cain needed to act. He needed to do something to deal with the unpleasant situation that confronted him. He was hurt because his offering was rejected. He was frustrated that Abel had succeeded where he had failed. Perhaps he was afraid of what displeasing God might mean. That is anger. Now he must make some decisions about how to express these feelings of anger.
God suggested he choose to do good, to put his energy into obeying, learning from his mistakes (verse 7). He warned Cain that sin is just a step behind anger.
In anger Cain chose to commit murder. It was his choice and only he could be held responsible. To claim that someone made him mad did not float. The consequences of an angry decision to act cannot be avoided.
When we feel angry we would do well to follow God's lead. Ask yourself why. Think of the consequences for your usual course of action BEFORE you act. Then choose to act in a way that will heal not destroy. God made us capable both of experiencing anger and choosing wisely how to express it.
"With God all things are possible" (Matthew 19:26). Our's is a powerful God. He created the seas, then parted them. He placed the sun in the heavens then made it stand still in the skies. He gave Israel a Law then demanded that they keep their promise of obedience. When they couldn't, He gave us His only begotten Son. It would seem nothing is too difficult for our God.
The writer of the Hebrew letter did, however, think of one thing God could not do. "It is impossible for God to lie" (Hebrews 6:18). Limited only by His own holy nature, the One who inspires scripture is eternally truthful. Writing to the church in Rome around the turn of the first century, Clement, an uninspired writer, recognized this central trait of divine integrity in God. "Let our souls be bound unto Him that is faithful in His promises and that is righteous in His judgments. He that commanded not to lie, much more shall He Himself not lie: for nothing is impossible with God save to lie."
Clement clearly believed what the inspired Paul had earlier written to this same city: "let God be found true, but every man a liar" (Romans 3:4). Not only is honesty the best policy, it is a divine policy.
Vine defines the word "mercy" as "the outward manifestation of pity; it assumes need on the part of him who receives it, and resources adequate to meet the need on the part of him who shows it" (Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words, p. 403). Mercy is sympathy reaching beyond words extending itself in action.
To understand mercy one need only contemplate how God manifests this notable trait. The fingerprints of God's mercy are found throughout the pages of inspiration. From creation to the exodus, from the judges to the prophets, God's mercy is evident at every turn of Old Testament history. But it is in the coming of Jesus that mercy shines brightest. Every great blessing revealed in the New Testament is itself a testament to a merciful God.
Mercy's imprint is evident in our personal lives. Without it we would be lost. Aren't you thankful the pity God extended toward you did not remain a thought? Divine sympathy instead broke forth in action. "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). When pity matures beyond a thought and manifests itself in action it has become mercy.
"Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God" (Matt. 5:9). The following observations are gleaned from the writing of D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones in a work entitled Studies in the Sermon on the Mount. The author outlines the identifying qualities of a peacemaker.
1. A peacemaker learns when not to speak. "If only we could all control our tongues there would be much less discord in this world. When, for example, something is said to you, and the temptation is to reply, do not do it. Not only that; to not repeat things when you know they are going to do harm."
2. Think in terms of how the Lord and His work will be impaired. A peacemaker can set aside personal feelings and selfish motives and "go out of your way to look for means and methods of making peace."
3. A peacemaker not only is at peace, they "diffuse peace wherever they go."
Peacemakers may not be common but they are easy to recognize. They closely resemble the Father.
From the caricature of a failure (weak, sickly, and ugly) arises one of the world's greatest hymn writer's. Isaac Watts is remembered as a brilliant, deeply spiritual man whose hymns continue to enliven Christian worship. What Isaac lacked in health and good looks he made up in intelligence and hard work (he learned Latin by the age of five, Greek by nine, French by eleven, and Hebrew by thirteen).
Born in England in 1674, young Isaac quickly revealed a talent for composing verse. Rebuked by his father for obsessive rhyming, he replied, "O father, do some pity take / And I will no more verses make." Isaac, Sr. likewise took a dim view of Isaac, Jr.'s criticism of the current "lifeless and out-dated" hymns. Returning from morning worship one Sunday his father challenged Isaac to either write something better or stop complaining. That evening as the congregation met for worship Watts presented them with a new composition. Each Sunday for the next two years he came to worship with a brand new hymn.
Isaac Watts distinguished himself in many fields of endeavor, but he is best known for his hymns (around 600; 17 are included in our songbook). Although he stood a mere five feet tall, Watts remains a "giant" in Christian hymnology. Through his hymns "those that love the Lord" can "survey the wondrous cross," arise as its "soldier," "[un]ashamed to own the Lord," a fact evidenced by the proclamation of their "joy to the world."
The Apostle Paul was absolutely fearless when it came to conducting his ministry. He frequently seized evangelistic opportunities without regarding the life-threatening dangers encompassing them. When faced with a riotous crowd he was eager to meet the challenge head-on. In Ephesus, where the populous stirred to anarchy because of the greed of one silversmith, the Apostle was barely restrained by his friends from entering the theater to address the crowds (Acts 19:20). Later, when prejudice would be used to stir up angry opposition among worshippers in the Jerusalem Temple, after being carried to relative safety, Paul begged for and received the opportunity to preach to the mob (21:35; 22:1-ff.).
New Testament records reveal his reluctant catalog of suffering (2 COR. 11:23-27). So convinced was he of the veracity of the message he preached, Paul on a number of occasions emphasized his willingness to give up his own life, if need be, in the course of fulfilling his obligation as an apostle of the risen Lord, Jesus Christ (Acts 21:13; 25:12). Although not specifically attributed to Paul, the sentiment presented of the anonymous Hebrew writer effectively captures his attitude towards life and death: "Let your character be free from the love of money, being content with what you have; for He Himself has said, "I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you," so that we confidently say, "The Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid. What shall man do to me?" (Heb. 13:5-6).
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David Bragg
Memoirs of a Martyr
"For God so loved the world that He gave His only
begotten Son" |
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