New Blog

I have started a new blog. It can be found at www.gatewaytothegospel.wordpress.com

Viewing Circumstances with the Mind of Christ

I speak as concerning reproach, as though we had been weak. Howbeit whereinsoever any is bold, I (speak foolishly,) I am bold also. Are they Hebrews? so am I. Are they Israelites? so am I. Are they the seed of Abraham? so am I. Are they ministers of Christ? I (speak as a fool) I am more; in labors more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequent, in deaths oft. Of the Jews five times received I forty stripes save one. Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep; In journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by mine own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren; In weariness and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness.
2Co 11:21-27

Here, the apostle gives us a list of unchosen circumstances that were undoubtedly hard to deal with. But, thinking over these things, Paul looks back and tells us that he does not regret these trials, he, instead, "glories in them." The only way that we can look past the unwanted situations to reveal the glory that lies therein, is by taking on the mind of Christ and looking to Him. May we see God in our hard times:

In labors, God gives us rest
In stripes, God binds up our wounds
In prison, God gives us liberty in Christ
In beatings, God comforts us
In stoning, God gives us refuge
In shipwreck, God sustains us
In perils of water, God calms our storms
In journeys often, God is our harbor
In perils, God supplies our needs
In weariness, God strengthens us
In painfulness, God soothes us
In hunger and thirst, God satisfies us

Look past the problems, and see the author and finisher of your Faith. He desire to reveal Himself in these things, may our eyes be opened to that revelation.

Love Thy Neighbor

Love thy neighbor. Upon this and the first command to the love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, all thy soul, all thy mind, and all thy strength hung all the law and the prophets. According to Jesus, it was a pretty important mandate (Paul and James also thought a lot of it). These two commands are inseperably linked; our lack of love for our God is evidenced by our lack of love for our neighbor. The intensity of our love for God should be reflected in our willingness to be a fellowhelper. We should obey the command to love our neighbor, just as whole-heartedly as the command to love the Lord our God.

Jesus reflected on these two commands as he spoke to a young lawyer whose intentions, aptly discerned by Jesus, were solely to tempt Him. The young lawyer, pulling from his shallow knowledge of Old Testament law, recited these commands back to Jesus, to which Jesus gave a quick affirmation. In the lawyer's next question, his motives were revealed. The Bible says that he, willing to justify himself, asked "Who is my neighbor?" The answer of the Lord Jesus will take the form of a parable. His story will reveal the true definition of loving your neighbor. In his narrative, He reveals that a neighbor, in Biblical terms, is not someone that is near you; it is someone that is in need of you. We shouldn’t ask, “Who is my neighbor?” We should, though, ask the question, “To whom can I be a neighbor.”

Here are some principles that might be gleaned for Jesus's story and help you as you stive to be a fellowhelper:

1. A Fellowhelper must be more than just religious (10:31)
2. A Fellowhelper must be more than just academic (10:32)
3. A Fellowhelper must do more than see the need (10:31-32)
4. A Fellowhelper must both see and seize God-given opportunities (10:31)
5. A Fellowhelper must be willing to cross social, racial, and cultural barriers (10:33)
6. A Fellowhelper must have compassion (10:33, I Peter 3:8, I John 3:17, Jude 1:22)
7. A Fellowhelper must make contact with those whom he helps (10:33-34)
8. A Fellowhelper must sacrifice (10:34-35)
   Money, Effort, Time, Resources (wine and oil)
9. A Fellowhelper must equip and instruct others to be fellowhelpers (10:35)
10. A Fellowhelper must follow through (10:35)

Let's be doers of the word and get to loving our neighbors. Look for those God has pt you in contact with, and remember that it is not by chance, it is by God. May the Lord fill our hearts with His compassion, and give us a true desire to be a fellowhelper.