Divine Providence (Part 8)

By Bob Myhan

Every member of the local church also has a part to play in the edification of the saints. When mutual and reciprocal edification occurs, divine providence is at work.

And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head--Christ-- from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love. (Eph. 4:11-16)

We are to be "teaching and admonishing one another in psalms, hymns and spiritual songs" (Col. 3:16); we are to "consider one another to provoke unto love and good works." (Heb. 10:24, 25)

Each Christian must be aroused to his personal responsibility, and should be appreciated for doing his part (1 Cor. 12:12-27). In time, all saints "ought to be teachers" (Heb. 5:11-14). This requires effort; it comes by perspiration not inspiration.

Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. (2 Tim. 2:15)

The Christian also has a role in divine providence where physical needs are concerned. That is, the Christian is to provide for the poor and needy.

And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith. (Gal. 6:10)

Let him who stole steal no longer, but rather let him labor, working with his hands what is good, that he may have something to give him who has need. (Eph. 4:28)

Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world. (James 1:27)

But whoever has this world's goods, and sees his brother in need, and shuts up his heart from him, how does the love of God abide in him? (1 John 3:17)

We will be judged, in part, on the basis of whether or not we help others.

"When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on His right hand, 'Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.' Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?' And the King will answer and say to them, 'Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.' Then He will also say to those on the left hand, 'Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels: for I was hungry and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink; I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.' Then they also will answer Him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?' Then He will answer them, saying, 'Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.' And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life." (Matt. 25:31-46).

One should be able to see from the passage above that, in rolepart, we serve God by serving others. Brothers and sisters, let us fulfill our  in the providence of God! &

What Did They Not Know They Were Doing?
By Bob Myhan
While hanging on the cross our Lord and Savior prayed for His enemies, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.” (Luke 23:34) However, we know that they were not ignorant of the fact that they were condemning a man unjustly! We know this for at least four reasons.
1.   They knowingly accused Jesus falsely.
And they began to accuse Him saying, “We found this fellow perverting the nation, and forbidding to pay taxes to Caesar, saying that He Himself is Christ a King.” (Luke 23:2)
“And though they found no cause for death in Him, they asked Pilate that He should be put to death.” (Acts 13:28)
2.   They solicited false witnesses against Him.
Now the chief priests, the elders, and all the council sought false testimony against Jesus to put Him to death. (Matt. 26:59)
3.   They conspired against Him.
When morning came, all the chief priests and elders of the people plotted against Jesus to put Him to death. (Matt. 27:1)
4.   They were motivated by envy.
Therefore, when they had gathered together, Pilate said to them, “Whom do you want me to release to you? Barabbas, or Jesus who is called Christ?” For he knew that they had handed Him over because of envy. (Matt. 27:17-18)
What was it then that they did not know they were doing? Of what were they ignorant?
They were ignorant of at least three things.
1.   They did not know that they were crucifying the Lord of glory.
But we speak wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory, which none of the rulers of this age knew; for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.  (1 Cor. 2:7-8)
2.   They did not know that they were killing the Prince of life.
“But you denied the Holy One and the Just, and asked for a murderer to be granted unto you, and killed the Prince of life, whom God raised from the dead, of which we are witnesses…. Yet now, brethren, I know that you did it in ignorance, as did also your rulers.” (Acts 3:14-17)
3.   They did not know that they were fulfilling the prophets.
“For those who dwell in Jerusalem , and their rulers, because they did not know Him, nor even the voices of the Prophets which are read every Sabbath, have fulfilled them in condemning Him.” (Acts 13:27)
And when they had brought them, they set them before the council. And the high priest asked them, saying, "Did we not strictly command you not to teach in this name? And look, you have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine, and intend to bring this Man's blood on us!" (Acts 5:27-28)
This is interesting in view of their statement to Pilate concerning the guilt of the blood of Jesus.
When Pilate saw that he could not prevail at all, but rather that a tumult was rising, he took water and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, “I am innocent of the blood of this just Person. You see to it.” And all the people answered and said, “His blood be on us and on our children!” (Matt. 27:24-25)
There were, indeed, some things they did not know they were doing. But they knew full well that they were condemning an innocent man. &