JULY 18, 2023

 “For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office: So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another.” (Romans 12:4-5)

Paul uses an analogy he has used previously (as in I Corinthians 12:12-31), and that is of a human body. Bodies are a unified whole containing one person. But that unified body comprises many parts that serve wildly different functions from head to toe. In our human bodies, for example, we all have a heart that pumps blood throughout our bodies, but we also have feet, and without feet walking would be impossible. All parts of the body have not the same office. In other words, most members of our body serve different purposes. The same is true of the Church, the body of Christ; it is one body made up of many members. As with the human body and its many members with different functions, everyone working in Christ does not serve the same purpose in furthering the kingdom of God.

Paul describes how Christians whom God has shown mercy – all saved believers – should live now. What kind of life makes sense for us? Verse 4 describes the human body. It is just one person but has many different parts that serve various functions.

Now Paul says that we, as the collective group of Christians, are also a kind of body. We are Christ’s body on earth, often referred to as “the church.” We are countless parts in many different places with vastly different jobs. Still, together we are, by analogy, one unified “being,” a single entity with a united purpose of serving the Lord.

The end of verse 5 is worded in a confusing way where he writes, “…and every one members one of another.” Paul is saying that none of us exist outside of the body. No Christian is an unattached Christian. We are all members of each other, connected to each other with the purpose of serving each other. God intends to do this with us on this side of eternity.

The parable of the talents is one of the parables of Jesus, found in Matthew 25:14-30. In the story, a wealthy landowner prepares to visit a distant country. Before leaving, he gathers his servants together and distributes to them various amounts of talents (a single talent was equal to about 20 years of labor). To one servant, he leaves five talents; to another, he leaves two; and to the last servant, he leaves one. The three men go out after their master leaves, and while the first two do trade and invest, doubling their sums, the man given only one buries his talent in the earth. The master returns after his trip, praising the two who grew theirs and reprimanding the other. One of the main purposes of this parable is to show that the master, who represents God, will give all His servants different amounts of talents or differing gifts and abilities.

We are not all called to preach or teach the Word; all “have not the same office.” But, as with the servant who was scolded for not using his talent, we are expected to use the varying gifts we have been given to further His kingdom.

JULY 13, 2023

 “And Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the knife to slay his son. And the angel of the LORD called unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham: and he said, Here am I. And he said, Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou any thing unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me.” (Genesis 22:10-12)

This passage (Gen. 22:1–19) occurs over a few days when Isaac is most likely a teenager. God commands Abraham to sacrifice his beloved son as a burnt offering. Keen observers will remember that I wrote about the confirmation that God will give Sarah and Abraham a son back on the 18th of May. Abraham and Sarah were promised a child despite their old age, and Isaac was that child of promise.

This context is critical because it makes this command so much heavier. It was an absolute miracle that they could have this son to begin with, and yet, Abraham sets out to obey without hesitation, acting in complete trust that God, somehow, will make all things right. Isaac and Abraham hike up a mountain at God’s direction, and Isaac notices that they have all the necessary materials, but they have no animal to sacrifice, and Abraham responds by saying, “…My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering.” (Vs. 8) Even faced with this horrible circumstance, Abraham is unwavering in his thought that God will spare his son.

Then he prepares to do the unthinkable. At the command of God, he binds Isaac to the altar and prepares to sacrifice him. Did Isaac struggle? At this time, Abraham was over 110 years old, so one would assume that a teenage Isaac could easily run away from or even overpower Abraham; therefore, it makes the most sense to think Isaac allowed himself to be bound. Of course, Scripture does not say this directly, so we cannot be certain. What we do know for sure is that Abraham continued to demonstrate his unshaken faith in God by willingly obeying this command. He was clearly passing God’s test of his faith, showing that his love for the Lord was more significant than his love for his son.

With the knife raised, Abraham was preparing to follow through when he was suddenly stopped by an urgent voice from heaven calling out his name. The Angel of the Lord makes it clear: Don’t hurt the boy in any way. Make no mistake; God did not change His mind here. This was God’s plan all along, and Abraham has passed God’s test, proving his reverence for and faith in the Lord. This Angel of the Lord, Who is truly God in another form, says now I know that you fear God since you have not withheld your only son from Me.

In the Bible (the Old Testament especially), to “fear God” doesn’t mean being scared of Him, like watching a scary movie. Instead, it means to have such great respect and reverence for the Lord’s power and righteousness that you obey Him above all others. God’s test satisfied whether Abraham “feared” God once and for all. We need to carry the same respect for God with us and trust that He will make everything right in the end.

JULY 11, 2023

 “These things write I unto thee, hoping to come unto thee shortly: But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.” (I Timothy 3:14, 15)

There is a major difference between a child who is an adolescent and lives with his parents; and the same child who has come of age and lives on his own. When he is of adolescence and lives with his parents, he is obligated to abide by the rules of his parent’s house. What his parents say, he must obey for the parents are the head of the house. But when the child becomes of age and leaves his parent’s house, a change takes place. He now stands on his own and governs his own house. When he visits his parents, he may receive advice from them, but he is not obligated to take their advice. It may be to his best benefit to listen to their advice, but he is under no obligation to do so. The parents cannot force him, nor can they discipline him for not receiving the advice. He comes and goes as he pleases and is not restricted by his parents because of the freedom that he now has.

Many, today, think of the House of God in the same way as the young adult that left his parent’s house. The House of God is treated as a place where the young adult can come and go as he pleases but is under no obligation. He may receive the Word of God if it suits him but feels that he has no duty of obedience. If the church intrudes too far into his life, then he distances himself by not attending. He does this while still claiming to be a follower of Christ.

While many think of the House of God in the same way as the young adult thinks of his parents, it is quite the contrary. For the true believer in Jesus Christ, the individual has been adopted into the household of God and is a child of God. He is one that is under the headship of Christ and is obligated to obey His rule and instruction. Jesus Christ has commanded the disciples to “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…” (Matt. 28:19-20) These disciples will be instructed to observe all that Jesus commands. Apostle Paul said to his child in the faith, “These things write I unto thee, hoping to come unto thee shortly: But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.” (I Tim. 3:14, 15) Paul did exactly as Christ had instructed. He made disciples and gave them the command of Christ. There is a way in which one ought to behave in the house of God, and this instruction comes from the King, Himself. All of God’s children, young and old alike, are obligated to obey Christ and His instructions.

JULY 6, 2023

 “Many good works have I shewed you from my Father; for which of those works do ye stone me?” (John 10:32)

The extreme wickedness of human nature was fully on display. The unbelieving Jews at Jerusalem were neither moved by our Lord’s miracles, nor His preaching. They were determined not to receive Him as their Messiah. His miracles testified Who He was, and yet for that very reason, they took up stones to stone Him. Having time to think about it did nothing to change their minds. Notice in the preceding verse, “The Jews took up stones again to stone him.”

Our Lord had done them no injury. They could not charge Him with any crime. He was no robber or murderer, or rebel against the law of the land. God ordained civil governments and the powers that be, not as a terror to those who do good, but to those whose works are evil. (Rom. 13:3) Yet as Jesus “went about doing good,” (Acts 10:38), the Jewish authorities were constantly seeking to kill Him. Jesus, as though bewildered by the absurdity of all this, asked, “For which of those works do ye stone me?”

There was no fault or inconsistency in His character. There was no wrongdoing that could be laid to His charge. So perfect and spotless a man had never walked on the earth, yet the Jews hated Him and thirsted for His blood. How true are the words of Scripture quoted in the fifteenth chapter of this Gospel:“They hated me without a cause.”

The true Christian who earnestly strives to be a follower of the Savior should not wonder if he meets with the same kind of treatment as our blessed Lord. In fact, the more like the Master he is, and the more holy and Spirit-filled his life, the greater likelihood that he will experience the truth of Jesus’ words,“The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you…”(Ch. 15:20) Just as it was with our Master, there will not be any degree of consistency. It was for no fault that they found in Him, but rather for His good deeds that He was hated. So it is with His disciples; it is not for our faults that the world hates and persecutes us, but for our graces. Let us take a lesson from the early disciples, who being imprisoned and beaten in return for preaching the Gospel and seeking the best good for men’s souls, went forth “rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name.” (Acts 5:41)

The world hates to see anything of God’s image. The children of the world are vexed and pricked in their conscience when they see others better than themselves. Why did Cain hate his brother Abel and slay him? “Because his own works were evil, and his brother’s righteous.” (I John 3:12) That is all the reason an ungodly world needs for their hatred and persecution of true believers. Why did the Jews hate Christ? Because He exposed their sins and false doctrines; and they knew in their own hearts that He was right, and they were wrong. Jesus Himself said it plainly, “The world…me it hateth, because I testify of it, that the works thereof are evil.” (John 7:7) Some of our bitterest opposition comes from the religious world. True Christianity is built upon Biblical Truth – Truth that exposes the false teachings and lies upon which the false hopes of multitudes of today’s cultists and church-goers rest.

Let Christians make up their minds to drink the same cup as their Lord drank. There is One in heaven Who said, “If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you.” (John 15:18) Let us remember these words and take courage. The day is coming ever nearer when all shall be set right, and everyone shall receive according to his works. “…there is an end; and thine expectation shall not be cut off.” (Prov. 23:18)