Monthly Archives: January 2014

All Because Of Another 5

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God allows people to come into our lives and leave our lives.  Some people come into your life and you are fulfilled and made better for them.  Still others come into your life and it can be a disaster.  I know there are people in my past that are better left there.  There are other people that I would love to have come back into my life.

I don’t like it when I am in the presence of people that want to verbally tear a person down.  I mean, this is so sad.  If the person doing the bashing really listened to themselves they would be embarrassed and would stop.

Everyone has an opinion.  We have various opinions of others.  We must be careful not to form an opinion too quickly.  The Apostle Paul and his friend Barnabas parted company.  Why?  All because of another.  Look at Acts 15:39, “And the contention was so sharp between them, that they departed asunder one from the other: and so Barnabas took Mark, and sailed unto Cyprus;”  These two men of God had differing opinions about John Mark and it caused them to separate.  Thankfully it was only for a time and then Paul declared that John Mark was “profitable” to him.  This division came about “All Because Of Another”.  We have to be careful who we associate with because they can bring us down and not build us up spiritually.

So, how are you doing?

All Because Of Another 4

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This series of blog posts came about because of a message the Evangelist Bob Carrico preached nearly twenty years ago.  I still remember him saying, “All because of another”.  I hope that this series will stick with you like that too.

Today we see our society that for the most part is all about “me, myself and I.”  Sometimes they are all for “me, my four and no more.”  If someone makes a sacrifice and does something for someone else it is show on the evening news and portrayed as the person being a hero.  If more people would step up and do the right thing it would be more commonplace to see and would not seem so foreign.

Even Jesus’ ministry was not totally about Himself.  His ministry was ultimately about bringing glory to His Father and pointing people to Messiah (which is Himself).  There was a problem and Jesus came to rectify this problem.  The problem is found in Romans 5:12, “Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:”  Sin, is and was the problem.

Jesus had never sinned, could not sin and will never sin.  He is the Sinless Son of God!  He came to earth “All Because of Another”.  This is you and I.  Jesus came to die on the cross at Calvary to pay our sin debt so that we can go to Heaven when we die.  This allows us to spend eternity with Him and the Father.  Jesus mission can be found in the Word of God in Luke 19:10, “For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.”  That is you and I.  Without Jesus we are lost, unsaved; but, we can be saved if we will put our faith and trust in Him.

So, how are you doing?

All Because Of Another 3

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My mind kept going to a certain account in the Scriptures.  As Jesus was passing by a man that was blind his disciples posited this question; “who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind?”  This is a valid question.  We; as these disciples, know that sin brings consequences with it.  They failed to realize a great truth.  They focused on the negative.  Their question shows this.

Notice their tone.  They were basically saying, “Who sinned?”  “This man or his parents?”  It had not entered their minds that neither had sinned.  Then Jesus tells them.  “Neither one has sinned.” (This is my interpretation.)

So, why was this man born blind?  He was born blind so that Jesus could demonstrate the power of God to heal.  This man was an instrument in the hand of God to show His power and His person.  I mean, that by his healing it was to point people to Jehovah.  Instead the so-called religious people looked down upon Jesus.  They interrogated the man as to Who had healed him.  It was somehow his fault that Jesus had healed him it would appear.  This shows the extent that people will go to in discrediting Jesus.

You see, this man was born blind “All Because Of Another”.  He was born blind so that the power of God in healing could be revealed to the world to draw them to Jesus.  The point was to draw men to Jesus for salvation.  All because of another.

So, how are you doing?

John 9:2-3, “And his disciples asked him, saying, Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind?   Jesus answered, Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him.”

All Because of Another 2

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Mephibosheth is a tremendous study.  I would highly recommend you take some time and study him in his entirety.  There is something about him that just draws me to him.  Maybe it is because if he were living in our day he would be considered a person of “special needs”.  He would be considered disabled.  I prefer to see him as differently able.  I cannot put my finger on it.

Our man Mephibosheth (Yes, I do like to say his name.  Ha, Ha!), is a picture of you and I.  Here is a man that is lame.  He cannot walk.  He is without the ability to do many things for himself without help from someone else.

I think of myself and others just like me.  Sin has crippled the human race.  We cannot save ourselves no matter how hard we try.  We cannot do enough good things in life to out weigh the bad we have done no matter how good we have been or tried to be.  We are plagued with an incurable disease from our perspective.  Yet, there is One who is well able to cure us from this plague for all of eternity.

God, the Father showed you and I just how much He loves us by sending Jesus to die in our place.  All we have to do is put our faith and trust in Him.  Maybe the Scripture can say it better.  Look at Romans 5:8, “But God commendeth (demonstrated) his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners (in the very act of sin), Christ died for us.”  Every one of us is pictured in Mephibosheth.  We are all spiritually lame.  We need the King of all kings and the LORD of all lords to come along and offer to take care of us.  He has done this.  Will you listen to Him call you today and please respond in faith believing and trusting in Him.

So, how are you doing?

All Because of Another

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Last night was a cold and snowy evening.  I really wanted to stay home; but, I had committed to go to hear a photography presentation.  I am glad that I went as I learned a lot.  The snow was more like sleet when we came out to leave.  I was glad to be sitting in the back seat and not be driving.

The reason I braved the cold and snow was because I had said that I would be there.  A friend was one of the presenters and I was obligated to uphold my word.  Then I was thinking about the past four or five posts and the things that we do “one for another” and my mind raced back to the Old Testament.

Look at II Samuel 9:7, “And David said unto him, Fear not: for I will surely shew thee kindness for Jonathan thy father’s sake, and will restore thee all the land of Saul thy father; and thou shalt eat bread at my table continually.”  This is about a man named Mephibosheth.  He was lame (he could not walk) because the person who cared for him had dropped him in the process of fleeing the house.  He was not able to walk.

This is the setting that we find our passage of Scripture today.  King David was making a vow to care for Mephibosheth because Mephibosheth could not care for himself.  What a picture.  King David cared for Mephibosheth because he was the son of David’s dear, close friend Jonathan, the son of the former king Saul.  Because David loved Jonathan he cared for Jonathan’s son after Jonathan had been killed in battle.  King David did it “all because of another.”

So, how are you doing?

One For Another 4

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We looked yesterday at the first part of this verse in the third day on the subject of “One For Another”.  Today we will keep going on that very same subject.

As we consider what James is telling us I would like to give you something to think about.  I think it is possible that James is exhorting you and I to keep a short account with God or in other words confess and forsake our sin often in order to know for sure that our prayers can be answered.  The Psalms tell us that if we regard iniquity in our heart that God will not hear us.  The remedy for that is to confess and forsake sin.

So if we confess and forsake our sin there is no hindrance between us and our Heavenly Father.  Now we can pray in faith and know that our prayers have been heard and will be answered.  James goes on to tell us that the “effectual fervent prayer availeth much.”  What he is saying is that our prayers will be effective and have an effect because it has effect or force.  Also, we must be righteous which means we are in a right relationship with our Heavenly Father and we are holy.  Look at James 5:16, “Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.”

Hopefully, this puts into perspective for you and I the truth about praying and having our prayers answered.  It is not some name it and claim it kind of teaching.  It is Bible truth.

So, how are you doing?

One For Another 3

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If you; my dear reader, are not aware of the impact of sin on people you have missed something truly profound.  I have seen people and been around people that look many times older than they are in actuality.  When you talk to them they are either currently living or in the past have lived a life of rebellion against God.  Sin takes a toll on us all.

As I was asked to prepare a series of blog posts on a specific passage of Scripture, I was caught by this phrase we have been looking at for the past three days.  The phrase “one for another”.  I enjoyed it so much that I put it together into a sermon and preached it three days ago on Sunday morning in the Church where we are serving the LORD.

We have seen that we need to tarry one for another and care one for another.  Today we will look at the third point.  We must “pray one for another, “.  We know that prayer is work.  If we are going to stand against sin we must pray.  Someone that I cannot remember said, “All failures are prayer failures.”  Think about that.

Look at James 5:16, “Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.”  Notice where this starts.  It starts with “Confess your faults one to another.”  Now, I do not aim to be unkind to our Catholic friends; but, there is no Biblical grounds for their concept of confession.  I am sorry.

What I think James is telling you and I is that we must keep a short account with God concerning our sin and that we need to be real with others about our sin too.  If you break down the first part of this verse we find some interesting things.

We must confess (to same the same thing about our sin that God says) our sin (this means sin on purpose and sin by accident).  We are to do this to one another and pray to God one for another.  Praying over each other that they may be cured.

So, how are you doing?

One For Another 2

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Yesterday we looked at the truth that we should tarry one for another.  Today we will look at something else that we must do “one for another”.  That is we must care one for another.  As we looked at yesterday, sometimes we need to tarry or wait one for another.  Not everyone progresses in the Christian life at the same rate of growth.  This brings about the need to wait or tarry one for another.

When Jesus was here on earth He humbled Himself to the place that he girded Himself with a towel and took a basin of water and washed the disciples feet.  Did these men need their feet washed?  Maybe not physically.  Maybe they need them washed as an example.  This was Jesus’ point.  He was showing them that there were people that they would come in contact with that would need them to humble themselves to the place of taking thought for them and caring for them.  Look at I Corinthians 12:25, “That there should be no schism in the body; but that the members should have the same care one for another.”  The word care means to be anxious about and can be translated to take thought about.

Jesus ministered to the down and out.  He humbled Himself and went to people that everyone else had cast off and would have nothing to do with.  He came to people like you and I.  He came to care one for another.

So, how are you doing?

One For Another

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Last summer Tara took a picture of our son and sent it to me on my phone.  It was funny, really.  They were supposed to be walking together.  Jonathan was way ahead of Tara as she took the picture.  He does walk really fast sometimes.

As I was thinking about this I went over my thoughts again from the morning message yesterday.  The Word of God gives us three things that we can do “one for another”.  This phrase appears only three times.

Look at I Corinthians 11:33, “Wherefore, my brethren, when ye come together to eat, tarry one for another.”  This is what came to mind while I was strolling down memory lane.  As Jonathan was way ahead of his mother so are some of us.  We are not all at the same place spiritually.  Some are more mature and some are less mature.  This does not make a person better or less.  It just simply means that we are all at different places in our Christian life than others.

Sometimes we have to “tarry one for another” because of this.  The context of our text is that some people were eating meat that had been offered to idols and that caused some weaker Christians to stumble.  They saw this meat as somehow spiritual.  Mature believers know better; but, in order to keep a weaker brother from falling it is best not to eat the meat offered to idols.  It is pretty simple; but, it is something needful.  We need to tarry one for another.  Quit trying to be so super spiritual and try to help another Christian along their path.

So, how are you doing?

Confusion

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When I was growing up I remember sitting in the back seat of my Dad’s red Chevy Impala singing at the top of my lungs, “Hell, fire up.  Hell fire up.  My heart’s on fire.  Hell fire up!”  The problem with this is that I was singing the Oak Ridge Boys hit song “Elvira”.  I am sure my family all had a good laugh at my expense.

There was another old country song that I used to sing.  It went something like, “You can’t be a Deacon if your light don’t shine.  You can’t be a Deacon if your light don’t shine.”  Okay, again I was mistaken.  It was, “You can’t be a beacon if your light don’t shine.”  Ha, Ha!  I hope you enjoyed my trip down memory lane today.

The truth of my version of that old country song was a little off.  Yet, both versions have truth in them.  You cannot be a beacon if your light don’t shine.  Well, frankly, part of being a Deacon is shedding abroad the Light of Jesus Christ to those who are around us.  What does the Scriptures say about this?  I am glad you asked.  Look at Matthew 5:16, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.”

So, how are you doing?