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Divine
By
Bob Myhan Although
many, perhaps most, Christians do not seem to realize it, there are some things
that God provides by means of the agency of His people. While
He may use us in ways He has not revealed, there are ways in which He uses us
that He has revealed. In
one respect, “Christ has no hands but our hands to do His work today”
(“The World’s Bible,” Annie J. Flint). That is, He gave us
responsibilities so that He might accomplish certain things through us. God
sent forth His Son into the world to provide salvation for all. “For
God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes
in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son
into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be
saved” (John
3:16-17) But
that was not the extent of divine providence concerning salvation. After the
ascension of Jesus to heaven, He and His Father sent the Holy Spirit to remind
the apostles what Jesus had said and to guide them into all the truth. The Holy
Spirit also bore witness to the truth by enabling the apostles to confirm their
word as the word of God. Jesus told the apostles, “Go
into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.”
(Mark 16:15) “Go
therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of
the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all
things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end
of the age." Amen.
(Matt. 28:19-20) The
apostle Paul told Timothy, You
therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the
things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to
faithful men who will be able to teach others also.
(2 Tim. 2:1-2) Every
Christian shares the responsibility to evangelize the lost. The disciples of the
first century took this evangelistic responsibility seriously. As
for Saul, he made havoc of the church, entering every house, and dragging off
men and women, committing them to prison. Therefore those who were scattered
went everywhere preaching the word.
(Acts 8:4) The
Lord viewed seemingly accidental encounters with others as providential
opportunities to evangelize. (John 3:1-8; 4:5-14) The apostles and other early
disciples did the same. They viewed their physical and social relations as
evangelistic prospects. Andrew, for example, recruited his natural brother
Simon. And Philip recruited Nathanael. (John 1:40-51) The
apostles taught “daily in the temple, and
in every house,” without ceasing (Acts 5:42; 20:20). They knew they
would find an audience in the local synagogue on the Sabbath and took advantage
of this knowledge. Now
when Paul and his party set sail from Paphos, they came to Perga in Pamphylia;
and John, departing from them, returned to Now
when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to
Thessalonica, where there was a synagogue of the Jews. Then Paul, as his custom
was, went in to them, and for three Sabbaths reasoned with them from the
Scriptures, explaining and demonstrating that the Christ had to suffer and rise
again from the dead, and saying, "This Jesus whom I preach to you is the
Christ."
(Acts 17:1-3) One
reason for God, in His infinite wisdom, to give Christians a role in providing
salvation to alien sinners is that the methods and opportunities of personal
evangelism are so diverse: visiting them where they are (Acts 9:10-19;
22:12-16), inviting them into your home (Rom. 16:3-5), taking them aside after
an assembly (Acts 18:24-26) or talking to them at work during break or lunch
period. One should always be on the lookout for opportunities to evangelize,
recognizing that authority plus ability plus opportunity equals responsibility.
& Three
Cheers? By
Jeff Henderson In
a newspaper, I read an article that gave what I feel is a sad commentary on most
of the world today. It was an article telling of three generations of women who
were cheerleaders for their schools. The grandmother was quoted as talking about
the length of skirts that are worn today. The daughters’ skirts were shorter
than the grandmother’s and the granddaughter’s was even shorter she
explained. The grandmother said, “it used to upset me some, but they’re all
dressed alike and you are so proud of them that you don’t seem to notice that
much.” She goes on to say, “You’ve just got to accept that things have
changed since 1949.” I
realize that some things have changed since 1949, the number of automobiles
owned, the pace of communication, etc. But wrong has not become right. I
wonder if the grandmother or mother would respond in the same manner if the
teenager declared that she was attracted to the same sex. Would grandmother say,
“it used to upset me some. But I am just so proud of her that I don’t notice
anymore.” Or what if the teenager was found involved with drinking and drugs,
would it upset the grandmother some or a lot? Would she still be proud of her
granddaughter for the lifestyle chosen? What if the teenager decided to live as
a wife with her boyfriend but not get married? Do you suppose she would still
exclaim you just got to accept that things have changed? Christians, understand
that fornication is still sin. Drunkenness is still sin. Homosexual lifestyle is
still sin. Immodesty is still sin. ( The
One Who Loved You Enough By
Greg Gwin Can
you remember who it was that taught you the gospel? Maybe it was a friend or
neighbor. Perhaps it was a co-worker. For many of us it was our parents. No
matter who it was, there's something we know about them. They loved you! They
loved you enough to teach you the saving gospel of Christ. Think
about it for a minute. It would have been easier for your teacher (whoever it
was) to simply keep quiet. It requires effort to teach others. You have to know
the truth yourself. That means you have to spend the time to study and learn.
Then, you have to be willing to speak up, to invest the time to teach, to expose
yourself to the possibility of rejection. And, not a few have had to withstand
the unpleasantness of being ridiculed for what they have taught. Why
did they do it? What motivated them into action? The answer is simple - they
loved you! They loved your eternal soul, and they were willing to do the work of
teaching you because they did not want to see your soul lost forever in hell. Now,
what will you do? You have learned about the salvation that is in Christ. You
have benefited from this knowledge in obeying the truth. Your sins are forgiven.
You have the hope of heaven when you die. You have all the spiritual blessing
that are in Christ Jesus. Are
you going to stop the chain of loving concern? Are you going to refuse to do for
others as was done for you? If you do not teach the gospel to others, you are,
in effect, saying that you don't love them enough. You are showing that you are
unwilling to make the effort, to go to the trouble, to speak up to save them.
You don't love them like you should. Someone
loved you. They loved you enough to teach you. Won't you show that same
love to others? Think!
&
(via the Beacon—Electronic Edition—3/8/11) |