Tag Archives: Teachings of Paul

Anything beautiful starts with a plan

Posted on November 24, 2014 by | Comments Off on Anything beautiful starts with a plan

Spring-Garden-506fa51868638_hiresThere is great beauty in a well designed and planned flower garden. Even before we really get into the winter months, those like me, who love gardening, have already begun to plan out what bulbs, seeds, or plants we plan to plant in the early spring months. It takes personal investment in time, effort, and money to make a flower garden. All it takes is to take a trip through town and you will see the results of all the effort placed into gardening. There are some yards and publicly maintained parks that are simply breathtaking and inspiring; they are literally a work of great beauty to behold. Then there are others that seem haphazard at best; no clear plan, no organization, and more akin to a jungle than a flower garden. Rarely do we give them a second glimpse or find them inspiring.

It is the same way with how we live our life as a follower of Christ. Each Christian should have the goal to hear those words spoken by the Lord: His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord (Matthew 25:21). The apostle Paul believed he had lived a life worthy enough to hear those words and even told a young preacher by the name of Timothy, For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing (II Timothy 4:6-8). Since becoming a Christian, Paul had done all that he could do for the Lord, had followed Christ as completely and without question as he could, and knew he had lived a life that Christ would find pleasing.

Just as planting a flower garden requires a plan, a cost, a want, and work to have a truly beautiful and inspiring place of beauty, so does our walk with the Lord. If we want to live a life that brings glory to the Lord and that He will find pleasing, we have to have a plan, we have to have a desire, and we must be willing to work towards that goal. The cost has already been paid by the cross. We must be willing to separate ourselves from the things – from the lusts and sins – that hold us back. I believe that this is exactly what the apostle Paul had in mind when he wrote, This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord, that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind, Having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart: Who being past feeling have given themselves over unto lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with greediness. But ye have not so learned Christ; If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus: That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; And be renewed in the spirit of your mind; And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness. Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another. Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath: Neither give place to the devil. Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth. Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers. And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you (Ephesians 4:17-32).

There’s an old Southern gospel song that has been performed by many people that’s called A Beautiful Life. The song, as it is written, makes me think of a person who is desiring that when they stand before the Lord, He will find their life to be pleasing.  The lyrics of the song are:

Each day I’ll do a golden deed By helping those who are in need
My life on earth is but a span  And so I’ll do the best I can

Life’s evening sun is sinking low  A few more days and I must go
To meet the deeds that I have done  Where there will be no setting sun

The only life that will endure  Is one that’s kind and good and pure
And so for God I’ll take my stand  Each day I’ll lend a helping hand

Life’s evening sun is sinking low  A few more days and I must go
To meet the deeds that I have done Where there will be no setting sun

While going down life’s weary road  I’ll try to lift some traveler’s load
I’ll try to turn the night to day  Make flowers bloom along the way

Life’s evening sun is sinking low  A few more days and I must go
To meet the deeds that I have done  Where there will be no setting sun

It takes a plan to live a life that the Lord will find pleasing. Not only must it involve focusing on meeting the needs and ministering to others, it must include being faithful in other things as well – in our prayer life, in our studying of the Bible, and in our service within the local church. Just as it takes preparing the soil, fertilizing, weeding, watering, pruning and planting to make the garden, there are different things that we must do so that we, too, can have a beautiful life in the eyes of the Lord. Just as a truly beautiful flower garden is designed to appear balanced, to have blooms from late spring to the end of autumn, we must approach our lives in such a way that we have a plan to follow throughout our life. Our Christian faith is not something we retire from when we reach 65, but it is something we are supposed to live through from the moment we accept Christ as our personal Savior until the day when He calls us home either through the rapture or through physical death.

I’ve not always lived a beautiful life for the Lord. I’m ashamed of the life I lived from 1988, when I first accepted the Lord as my Savior until 2006, when I decided to become serious about my faith. Instead of having a beautifully planned garden, my life during that time would resemble a vacant lot in the deteriorating area of town. It was overgrown with the weeds of sin, with the decay of rebellion, with an occasional blossom here and there. I wasn’t reading my Bible daily, I wasn’t praying daily, and I wasn’t faithful in my church attendance nor in resisting sin and the desires of the flesh. Although I was saved, my life was not bearing the fruit that Christians should bear. I’m not saying this in a bragging matter because I am truly ashamed of my life then; however, as I found out in 2006, it didn’t have to stay that way. Maybe you are a Christian but when you look back at your life, you see things that you don’t think the Lord would find pleasing. It’s never too late to give it to Him and allow His plan to take center stage in our lives. We have to reach the point when we are ready, we desire and crave to have spiritual success and not living a life that’s flesh-oriented. Only then will we truly live a beautiful life for the Lord.

So, how do we put a plan together that will allow us to have a beautiful life in the sight of the Lord? I believe that the best way is to simply to take the advice of the apostle Paul: Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth (II Timothy 2:15), Pray without ceasing (I Thessalonians 5:17), In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you (I Thessalonians 5:18), and to follow in complete obedience the teachings of Christ: And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature (Mark 16:15), And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself (Luke 10:27), If ye love me, keep my commandments (John 14:15), and  And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses (Mark 11:25). If we do each of these things on a daily basis, then we, too, will have lived a beautiful life in the eyes of the Lord.

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Beware of the pitfalls of the “modern” faith

Posted on November 19, 2014 by | Comments Off on Beware of the pitfalls of the “modern” faith

Water_safety_sign_Dangerous_currentThis morning, while waiting to have my blood drawn for lab work at the local VA health clinic, a gentleman and his wife sat next to me. He noticed that I was reading the Bible on my smartphone and soon, the three of us were having a conversation about faith and church. For about ten minutes, we were able have an uninterrupted conversation that seemed more of an affirmation to me than any great revelation. All it takes is to think back just twenty years ago to become aware that some things that are happening in our churches and some of the viewpoints held by “Christians” are not in line with biblical doctrines.

The Bible not regarded as the absolute authority

The couple I was talking with were in their mid nineties and the first things we discussed was the role of the Bible. Both the man and his wife were lamenting how far our society has moved in their lifetime. The couple shared how they were now in the process of trying to find a new church home because they no longer felt that God was welcomed in the church where they had been members for the last thirty years. The lady even said that their pastor no longer exclusively teaches Bible on Sunday morning, but will use contemporary writings, poetry, and short stories to make his points. Immediately, I thought of what the apostle Paul told Timothy: All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works (II Timothy 3:16-17). Paul also wrote to the early Christians and reminding them, For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope (Romans 15:4). Even in his day, Paul was having to encourage the early Christians to study the Old Testament. He understood that the Old Testament is the foundation on which the New Testament stands. Paul also gave a warning for the early Christians to stay true to what the apostles had taught:  But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed (Galatians 1:8).

It is essential that any sermon or message have at its core a biblical foundation. It is the Bible that gives the church authority and it is the Bible that defines the purpose of the church. While the Bible – the Word of God – can live outside the church and is not dependent on the church, the church cannot live and function as the church of God if it is not on a biblical foundation. When the Bible is supplanted by humanist philosophies and is taught from behind the pulpit, it does not bring glory to God. Jesus told the crowd around Him, No servant 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 (Luke 16:13). This is especially true for the church. It cannot proclaim that it has the moral authority from the Lord when it is teaching philosophies of the flesh. It is for this cause alone that many of our churches in America are failing. They no longer stand firm on the Bible and have adopted worldly teachings and philosophies to grow their membership.

The Bible is what we are to use as our measuring stick. Not only are we to weigh ourselves according to the scriptures, we are to weigh what is preached to us and what is done around us. For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart (Hebrews 4:12). It cuts through the sin and corruption of the flesh; the apostle Peter wrote, Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever. For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away: But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you (I Peter 1:23-25). Our very salvation depends upon the Word of God! In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not (John 1:1-5).

Within the book of Revelation, I do honestly believe that this is what happened to the church at Laodicea: And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God; I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth. Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked (Revelation 3:14-17). In my mind’s eye, this is the church that appeals to a large following – they have every kind of outreach ministry under the sun, they have hundreds attend their services, they have a great contemporary music program, never financially struggle, and with all that, spiritually they are naked. Rather than take firm and biblical stands on doctrine, sin, and social issues, they reach out with a feel-good sermon that appeals to the vanity of human emotions. Jeremiah wrote, The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? (Jeremiah 17:9) We can be deceived by our own emotions – which is why God has made salvation independent of our emotions.

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A response to an errant view on stewardship

Posted on August 8, 2014 by | Comments Off on A response to an errant view on stewardship

CountryChurch_Large1There are a number of websites that I have subscribed to that send out “morning updates.” While most them are politically based, about a quarter of them are faith-based.  There are some faith-based subscriptions that focus on issues such as abortion, developing church leadership, and even the struggles of Christians facing persecution around the world.  One subscription I receive is for encouraging pastors and leaders of other ministries both inside and outside the local congregation. This morning, that particular subscription focusing on pastors and ministerial leadership had an article that focused on what the writer called the “unwise stewardship of the small congregation.” I have decided to keep the author’s name and the affiliated website to myself for various reasons including that normally I find most of the stuff posted on this particular site useful, encouraging, and enlightening.

Being a member of several small churches over the last thirty years, I have witnessed what I considered to be poor stewardship of church resources. Now to be fair, I will share with you that I see anything that does not increase the visibility of the church in the community, that does not further the reach of the church, or does not give support for the ministries of the church as being a waste of church resources.  I once went to a church that hired a professional decorator to come in every two weeks to come in and decorate the sanctuary so that it would be aesthetically appealing and fresh. Yes, while I do believe that having a nice looking church building is important, spending close to $300 a month to keep the place “fresh” is not wise stewardship.  Many churches have women and men who love to do the exact same thing and if asked, would probably be willing to do the same thing for just the cost of the materials or even for free.  I am sure that many of you could also share stories of things that churches have spent money on that have not always shown the best judgment when it came to stewardship of the church’s resources.

So, with all that said, I fully expected the article to discuss similar issues with some suggestions on how the church leadership could guide the church body into making more sound decisions.  I was surprised as I read past the first paragraph to discover that the author was not focused on poor spending habits of the church but on the wastefulness of small church congregations.  The author, an associate pastor of a large church in the Boston, Massachusetts area was lamenting that smaller congregations, by their very nature, are a waste of God’s resources.  His entire article was that by remaining open and unmerged with larger churches so that their financial resources can better serve the Lord, these churches were wasting those resources. Smaller congregations were identified as any local church having fewer than 300 regularly attending Sunday morning services.  The ideal church, according to the article, were those that regularly had a “participating” membership of 300 or more. Again, the author identified those as “participating” as simply showing up for Sunday morning worship. As a part of the benefits of smaller congregations merging to form larger congregations, the author counts the benefits of such actions as the ability to better support paid positions within the church, the ability to have better worship facilities, and the ability to adequately fund various activities within the local church. The very basis for the article was fundamentally flawed on several levels.

The first thing that came to my mind was the apostle Paul’s description of the local New Testament church: For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit. For the body is not one member, but many. If the foot shall say, Because I am not the hand, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body? And if the ear shall say, Because I am not the eye, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body? If the whole body were an eye, where were the hearing? If the whole were hearing, where were the smelling? But now hath God set the members every one of them in the body, as it hath pleased him (I Corinthians 12:13-18). I, as well as other preachers and teachers, have used this passage to discuss the importance of each believer in the local body of Christ but there is a larger application that can be made.  Each local New Testament church has a specific role within the larger body of Christ. Within any denomination, each congregation has its own unique and distinguishable character.  Just as each member of a congregation has a specific function within that congregation that only they can fill, so each local congregation has a specific role and function that it fills within the larger body of Christ.  

Where the author of the article focuses solely on the financial aspects of stewardship, there are other areas that must be considered beyond church finances. As someone who has served as both pastor and interim pastor, I do know the pressures of serving in a smaller congregation that could not financially support a full-time pastor.  My heart’s burden is for the smaller congregation and I admit I am somewhat biased.  In all the churches I served in within those two roles never did I ever consider the money offered by the congregation as a part of my reason to serve.  In every case, I was approached and I saw an opportunity to serve the Lord.  I prayed about the decision and allowed the Lord to lead me without any regard to the amount of money offered. When I did accept the position offered, I was ready to do what was necessary, both in the role I was serving in and as provider of the family.  If I had to have a part-time job to support the ministry I was in, I was ready to do it wholeheartedly and  without complaint.  With this particular author, he was lamenting that as a seminary graduate, it took him serving as an associate pastor nearly ten years before he could find a church that could financially support him. While I understand the hardships that can be caused by insufficient income, any man who approaches a church with an attitude of “if I cannot get paid $xx, then I will not serve as your pastor” is actually hindering the work of the Holy Spirit and is not living by the faith he exhorts others to live by.

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