Two postal carriers, each in his own mail truck, took offense with the other in a small Maryland community. In public view they began banging on the other’s window, then used their vehicles as battering rams against each other. They continued the battle around the corner, spilling mail from both vehicles on the street.
Residents called 911, and the Post Office sent a third vehicle to collect the scattered mail and deliver it to customers. Hopefully, both of the offending drivers were fined and sued for damages by the Post Office—maybe even fired. Since the route’s regular carrier was on vacation, residents couldn’t identify the warring offenders. No report on the cause was given. San Diego U-T, 6/12/22 The account does have spiritual lessons. One, Christians have often been better at fighting each other than confronting Satan. And the result is a lot of spilled testimony abut Jesus that gets trampled in the conflict, not delivered to sinners. Shame on Christians who would rather condemn believers just as serious in serving Christ as they than commit to offering Jesus our best personal witness to awaiting sinners. Two, no Christian ever goes off-duty as Christ’s witness. And that’s just as well…since, despite our weaknesses, no other person can ever be as good a witness of Christ as Christians. Only we are empowered by the Holy Spirit to be the Master’s testimony to the unsaved. Therefore, Christians…let’s commit to “shaping up as disciples.” Let’s live our claims. Rise to our privileges. Boast only in the Christ. Bear patiently with other believers. Presently accept our differences about God. Knowing he will eliminate ANY difference at Judgment so we can ALL be in ABSOLUTE AGREEMENT on every point forever!
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It may come as a surprise to many who think prejudice is simply one race against another, particularly whites against blacks. That's untrue. Many blacks are as prejudiced against whites.
It's more amazing to find people of the same origin prejudiced towards each other. This writer remembers Professor Paul Benjamin talking to one of his church members. He complained about Germans coming to America. When reminded that he was a German who had come to America, he replied, "I know, but I was here first." He thought priority has its privileges, even in immigration. The arrival in America of huge numbers of Irish in the 1840's proved that prejudice within race was nothing new. It ignited wholesale opposition—from Irish settlers in America who had come earlier, in smaller numbers. They had become assimilated into American life and resented seeing MORE of their nationals. It hit the newcomers hard that their own people treated them with the disrespect often shown by native-born Americans. As Hebrews 11 delineates, Christian believers in every generation have enjoyed an immense circle of Old Testament heroes cheering for us. Even though they lived under Law, and we under Grace; they with an honored Moses as their leaders, we with the I AM God Almighty Jesus Christ as ours. They don't begrudge us our spiritual benefits; they instead rejoiced that their faith in lesser privileges would encourage our faithfulness to God with greater. Understand...they don't sit in Paradise now in a gigantic amphitheater cheering. No, THEIR LIFE with lesser light encourages us with greater. For, however different the temptations today, all temptation is conquered by resisting to overcoming the devil, James 4:7, with spiritual dominance the Holy Spirit provides. In a symbolic sense, the ancient heroes would never slam the door in our faces. Having emerged through their time to victory, they assure us of success in ours through Christ's overwhelming, can't-be-denied, must-be-acknowledged victory over all of God's enemies I Corinthians 15:20-26. Paul could forget God's earlier promise of appearing before Caesar, Acts 23:11, by experiencing an existential threat to his life in heavy winds and heaving seas. How many of us have felt like giving up when:
However, once turning from passenger to prophet, from having a common despair to offering an uncommon hope, Paul changed gloom to glow, and hopelessness to heroism. In the same way we have merit before our skeptical, godless world. As he possessed a winsome personality bolstered by an absolute faith that God had:
We discover that our sins and bodily and intellectual shortcomings only HINDER, not PREVENT, our successful witness if we have our life anchored there! Then, with a life that at least:
Christians have for too long used our failed humanity as an excuse not to proclaim Christ's perfection. As if the spiritual battle is between us and satan, not between Christ's Truth and satan's lies! Christians, the integrity of God's Word and God's Son stimulates our witness if we admit to being only saved sinners who must, despite our failures as Christians, proclaim Christ Alone as our Savior and Christ Alone as humanity's HOPE. But take heart, Christians. We do not lose our integrity as witnesses of Christ:
Note: the contents of this blog came to mind early this morning 11/9. Part III follows tomorrow.
We understand that all Christians are saved by Grace Alone through Faith, though never by Faith Alone. However, Christians serve effectively as Christ's witnesses to the unsaved by proving our spiritual merit. Since our fallen body inhibits our spirit's desire to serve Jesus, Mark 14:38, we must pray oftener, if not longer; seek the Spirit's presence more, our wants and needs less; desire Christ's glory in us to be dominant, our desires in service recessive. Taking the apostle Paul's spiritual struggles as examples, our bodily limitations need not weaken our witness if accepted, admitted and find us faithful to Jesus regardless. Consider: In II Corinthians 2:3, he felt distress by the spiritual immaturity of the Corinthians. In Galatians 4:11, he felt greater distress by fearing he wasted his effort on the Galatians. Indeed, he experienced spiritual pain over their spiritual immaturity akin to a woman in childbirth Galatians 4:19. In II Corinthians 2:12-13, he lost his peace of mind through lack of Christian fellowship. In Acts 27:20, with all other passengers on the ill-fated ship, he and other Christians aboard lost hope of being saved. And so on. Why, then, did God let circumstances carry even his chosen servants to the brink of despair? Why let their robust faith fade to infirmity? Why let their bruising confidence in Christ be bruised into doubt? It's all part of God's plan to create merit in his witnesses. End Part II n the best tradition of the sea, and in the only account of its kind from the ancient world, Dr. Luke relates the spellbinding tale of:
Nearly two weeks of endless battering by wind and waves:
During the 14th night sailors sensed a distant landfall and sounded for depth:
Panic reigned: obviously, at the mercy of the elements, the ship blew uncontrolled through the dark towards some unknown shore. And even the practiced seamen could only:
How did Paul, heretofore only a prisoner of Rome, suddenly become a prophet of God speaking for Jesus Christ? End Part I American industry muscled military production to colossal levels once President Wilson declared war on Germany in 1917. All belligerents knew that the GAME CHANGER had chosen sides. The only question in world capitals involved TIMING. The Allies wanted to hang on till American doughboys arrived. The Central Powers hoped to land a knock-out blow before they arrived.
The usual confusion in America when transitioning from peace to war seemed to favor Germany. For while they lacked guns, ammunition and uniforms, American training camps bulged with willing recruits. As a result, enthusiasm waned as delays continued. A Christian evangelist in the camps had posted a sign for the men that read, "Where will you spend eternity?" A waggish recruit scribbled under the quote, "At Camp McClellan". Life History U.S., Vol. 10, p. 14 The problem badgering Christians in the 21st century isn't a lack of spiritual ammunition to shoot at the enemy, or a lack of disciples willing to engage the Enemy. It IS a lack of personal lifestyle evangelism in Christians and planned programs of evangelism in churches. Lifestyle evangelism occurs when Christians naturally embody Christ I Peter 3:15. Planned programs occur when churches sponsor efforts directed at opening conversations with the unsaved. Maybe, as Erwin W. Lutzer wrote in We Will Not Be Silenced, we can't eliminate all the damage Christian lethargy has allowed into society. But we can stop further deterioration by returning to personal evangelism. Where we at least say with Philip to a skeptical Nathaniel, "Come and see" Jesus John 1:46. And, if at all possible, convince a sinner to accept Jesus, so we can say with Jesus of Zacchaeus, "Today salvation has come to this house" Luke 19:9. We cannot "strengthen what remains" by continuing to hold entertainment-centered, music-filled worship services, with fun-filled sermons. Or Bible studies which are often anything but. Surely even the least-aware Christian can understand the folly of the models being used. Since as churches got bigger audiences on Sunday, daily morality plummeted in culture. Back to personal evangelism, Christians! With new approaches that make it pleasant, not onerous, lifestyle oriented, not plagued by memory verses and sales-like pressure. THAT return, exposes spiritually darkened minds to the LIGHT of the WORLD, John 9:5, 11, 15, 17, 19, 21, 25, 26-27, 30, 39-41, and enlightens them spiritually as it removes their sins in forgiveness. The issue resolves itself in two principles.
One, the Principle of Influence If Christians don't change the unsaved, they will soon change us. And don't we see in many churches today ideas, habits and relationships foreign to Bible teaching? In 2003, evangelical Wheaton College decided to allow student dancing on campus and faculty drinking and smoking off campus. And why? Dancing because it had been an important factor in student lives before they came to Wheaton. Drinking because a 1991 state law forbade discrimination against employees who used “lawful products.” Let’s see: dancing was allowed because it REFLECTED society; and drinking was allowed because STATE LAW said prohibiting it was discriminatory!? While we may or may not wish to make an issue of either practice, we must question the reason on which Wheaton officials made the decision. Should we EVER determine Christian decisions based on secular perspectives? Indeed, nothing is more mortally wrong than to adjust our expectations downward to the morality society accepts and practices. Two, the Principle of Purpose God did not design Christians for certain work. Before and during World War II a group of devout Christian intellectuals met weekly in Germany to discuss ways to bring moral regeneration to the nation. Whatever they suggested, however, they refused to even consider assassinating Hitler—though they had no explanation how change could come while Hitler lived. But with our respect for human life, we’re not designed to be assassins. Neither are we designed to be experts on global warming, as some evangelical leaders advertise themselves. We are qualified to tell environmentalists that the creation wants to be incinerated, not preserved. For in being burned it will be renewed as the eternal home of God’s redeemed, not simply the temporary home of fallen, mortals. We’re not designed to be economists, but we are qualified to warn people against greed and materialism that make a god of wealth and possessions. We’re not designed to be geneticists, but we are qualified to know that life begins at conception, and that homosexuality is a learned, not an inborn behavior, and therefore a sin, not an alternative lifestyle. No…we’re not made for some roles—which anyone can fill. But we’re fearfully made for others that only we can fulfill. We are made to see spiritual truth and meaning where others see only facts and statistics. And in those spiritual insights we enlighten the spiritually blind and educate the spiritually illiterate. And only we can! Fini Consider how Jesus is the perfect leader in a counter-cultural movement. First, as God's revelation of himself, whatever the Testament, whoever the people, in whatever form the message came, Christ always appeared differently from expected. For the purpose of this blog, these few examples.
Jesus never:
In relating to humanity, Jesus:
In establishing his kingdom, Jesus:
In these examples, Jesus Christ perfected, as all prophets before him approximated, God's will in every way possible, however unlikely it seemed. End Part II According to Merriam Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, 10th Edition, a counter-culture is "a culture with values and mores that run counter to those of established society."
Counter-cultures can be bad:
All of the above are satanic in origin, concept, practice and destiny. Anyone believing, supporting or sponsoring any of the above, and particularly the secular humanist plan to deconstruct America without God in Christ, are:
Next, why Jesus proved the perfect counter-culture leader in ministry, continues to lead his people in his cause and why Christians must become an aggressive counter-culture. The First World War concluded in an Armistice that made WWII inevitable. At least, the existence of standing allied armies able and willing left no doubt of the outcome. Since the Korean War ended in an Armistice, that continues to be an explosive political and military issue, America's enemies have found that we will fight only UNTIL it becomes too expensive militarily, politically and financially. UNTIL...then we pull out our troops and leave the nations helped to protect themselves. Consider: Cuba, Viet Nam, Laos, Cambodia, Iraq, and now, Afghanistan.
In a humanitarian gesture that wouldn't be necessary had we allowed our military to fight TO VICTORY, we now invite those to America those who befriended us while in their country but left them vulnerable once we pulled out. As a result, Afghanis-friendly to America will be coming here because we wouldn't fight TO VICTORY over radical Moslems in a Moslem country. The radicals learned from the North Koreans and Chinese, the Viet Cong and Communist Cubans, that they had only to persevere against us to eventually drive us out. It's a painful reminder of our fall into an untrustworthy ally, who will help us only UNTIL it becomes too expensive. But all in keeping with America becoming the tail, not the head. As a result, we invite to America more religious fanatics, who bring with them the demand to keep their religious beliefs while giving only lip-service to America. And, in the present administration, any religious faith is welcomed without demanding the Americanization that all previous immigrants faced as EXPECTATIONS. The secularization of America continues. End Part I |
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