Posts tagged Marriage and Family

40 Days of Preparation Day 37

Apr01
2012 Leave a Comment Written by Warner Smith

Today, Sunday April 1, 2012, is the thirty-seventh day of preparing our hearts, souls and minds for the most high of all Christian holy days, Easter Sunday. Today I need to “put off” lying and “put on” speaking the truth. You and I live in a society where honesty is in short supply. Today the two major political party’s version of reality is so diametrically opposed to one another that the only logical conclusion which an unbiased, outside third party can draw is “one of them is lying.” The problem is determining who.

The prevalence of lying has become so great in America that a former president of the United States, and fellow Southern Baptist, Bill Clinton became famous, or infamous, for so carefully parsing the words of his legal testimony that in one specific area he said its truthfulness depended on what ones “meaning of the word ‘is’ is!”  Our predisposition for lying has even become the butt of jokes. Mark Twain wrote that their are “lies, d*** lies, and statistics.” We have become so comfortable with lying that we use a color code to absolve ourselves from a lie’s severity.  A “white” lie is widely believed to be harmless, perhaps even healthy. The problem with this logic, however, is that any lie and every lie is a sin. This is yet another reason to value silence.

Such a casual attitude for the truth is clearly in violation of God’s word and reveals why you and I need to “put off” lying and “put on” speaking the truth. Writing to the people in the Church at Ephesus Paul reminds us that speaking truth is a prerequisite for holiness.

22 to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, 23 and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, 24 and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness. 25 Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another. Ephesians 4:22–25 (ESV)

Lying is part of our old nature. Whenever we lie we are guilty of keeping rather than putting off our old nature. Lying is more insidious than this, however, because when we lie we are not only hurting ourselves, but we are also hurting our neighbors as well. The entire community is harmed by our falsehoods. Clearly lying is no joking matter.

After the children of Israel have returned from their Babylonian captivity (punishment for their continual idolatry) and are beginning to reorder their society God tells the nation of Israel what they should do.

16 ‘These are the things which you should do: speak the truth to one another; judge with truth and judgment for peace in your gates. 17 ‘Also let none of you devise evil in your heart against another, and do not love perjury; for all these are what I hate,’ declares the Lord.” Zechariah 8:16–17 (NASB)

Do you understand what you have just read? God hates perjury, God hate injustice, God hates it whenever we do not speak the truth to each other. If God hates it, then I should hate it also! God’s desire for Israel then is also His desire for America today. Therefore, because God hates it I need to “put off” lying and “put on” speaking the truth.

 

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40 Days of Preparation Day 36

Mar31
2012 Leave a Comment Written by Warner Smith

Today, Saturday March 31, 2012, is the thirty-sixth day of preparing our hearts, souls and minds for the most high of all Christian holy days, Easter Sunday. Today I need to “put off” showing favoritism and “put on” loving others as yourself. It feels good to be the favorite.  Secretly we may desire to be the favorite, but favoritism can wreck relationships in a family.

The most famous example in the Bible of how destructive showing favoritism can be in a family is the relationship of Esau and Jacob.  Esau was his father Isaac’s favorite and Jacob was the favorite of his mother Rebekah (Genesis 24;25:19-34;27:1-46). Some of the ramifications of the favoritism shown in this family still exist in the ancient enmities of the Middle East region today. Instead of showing favoritism you and I need to “put off” favoritism and “put on” loving others as ourselves.

Loving others as ourselves is the Christian ethic taught throughout the New Testament. Philosophers have discussed the wisdom and elegance of Jesus’ statement which has come to be known as the “Golden Rule.”

31 Do to others as you would have them do to you. Luke 6:31 (NIV)

No one wants to be the one who is left out while our sibling, relative, friend, or co-worker is doted over by whomever is showing favoritism. Since none of us want to be left out, we should not play favorites with others.

James explains it this way.

1 My brothers, show no partiality as you hold the faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory. 2 For if a man wearing a gold ring and fine clothing comes into your assembly, and a poor man in shabby clothing also comes in, 3 and if you pay attention to the one who wears the fine clothing and say, “You sit here in a good place,” while you say to the poor man, “You stand over there,” or, “Sit down at my feet,” 4 have you not then made distinctions among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts? 5 Listen, my beloved brothers, has not God chosen those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom, which he has promised to those who love him? 6 But you have dishonored the poor man. Are not the rich the ones who oppress you, and the ones who drag you into court? 7 Are they not the ones who blaspheme the honorable name by which you were called? 8 If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing well. 9 But if you show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors. James 2:1 – 9 (ESV)

James reveals the bottom line problem with showing favoritism. It is not that it disrupts family harmony but that playing favorites is sin. As we prepare to celebrate Easter as the highest of all holy days we need to “put off” all of the sin we find in our life.  That includes the sin of showing partiality (i.e. playing favorites).  So as you and I prepare for Easter lets “put off” showing favoritism and “put on” loving others as ourselves.

 

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40 Days of Preparation Day 33

Mar28
2012 Leave a Comment Written by Warner Smith

Today, Wednesday March 28, 2012, is the thirty-third day of preparing our hearts, souls and minds for the most high of all Christian holy days, Easter Sunday. Today I need to “put off” being inhospitable and “put on” hospitality. I know it may be hard for some to believe, but one of the most hospitable places on earth is the middle east. Those who travel there speak of the wonderful hospitality which they experienced while traveling and meeting those people who inhabit these sometime inhospitable lands. In America those of us who live in th south have taken pride in “southern hospitality.”

The biblical culture valued hospitality and severely punished those who were inhospitable. In the Old Testament the Ammonites and the Moabites, were cursed to the tenth generation for having been inhospitable to the nation of Israel when they came to the promised land, although they were distant relations.

3 “No Ammonite or Moabite may enter the assembly of the Lord. Even to the tenth generation, none of them may enter the assembly of the Lord forever, 4 because they did not meet you with bread and with water on the way, when you came out of Egypt, and because they hired against you Balaam the son of Beor from Pethor of Mesopotamia, to curse you. 5 But the Lord your God would not listen to Balaam; instead the Lord your God turned the curse into a blessing for you, because the Lord your God loved you. 6 You shall not seek their peace or their prosperity all your days forever. Deuteronomy 23:3–6 (ESV)

It is important for the authentic practice of our Christianity that you and I “put off” being inhospitable and “put on” hospitality. It is with the seriousness of this cultural value for practicing hospitality that Peter’s admonishes Christians to practice hospitality to one another.

8 Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins. 9 Show hospitality to one another without grumbling. 10 As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace: 1 Peter 4:8–10 (ESV)

We are not to grumble as we are hospitable but are to genuinely care for the comfort and support of each other. It is about this attitude of being exuberant as we practice hospitality that Paul speaks to the Romans.

9 Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. 10 Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. 11 Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. 12 Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. 13 Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality. Romans 12:9–13 (ESV)

At the risk of alienating you I want to share my observation that in America today we are becoming more and more inhospitable.  In the biblical world being hospitable related to two distinct classes of people: the traveler and the resident alien.

In the original biblical languages these words are sometimes used interchangeably. A stranger, foreigner, alien, sojourner, wayfarer, or gentile are those who do not belong to a particular community or group. In Israel, the law protected the resident alien, a foreigner who had settled permanently in the land. While he could not own land, he could participate in communal activities. The traveler, however, was extremely vulnerable and depended solely upon the hospitality of strangers.

We need to consider Peter and Paul’s admonitions toward our practicing hospitality and our attitudes toward the transients and illegal aliens who live in or pass through our communities today. We may not have invited them but our genuine acts of hospitality could be used by the Holy Spirit to lead them to faith in Jesus.

One thing is certain our being inhospitable to them, or making disingenuous attempts at being hospitable will not positively impact them for Christ.  You and I need to “put off” being inhospitable and “put on” hospitality toward one another, and the transients and illegals in our society.

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40 Days of Preparation Day 31

Mar26
2012 Leave a Comment Written by Warner Smith

Today, Monday March 26, 2012, is the thirty-first day of preparing our hearts, souls and minds for the most high of all Christian holy days, Easter Sunday. Today I need to “put off” hypocrisy and “put on” sincerity. When asked, those who choose routinely not to attend church, always place the hypocrisy of Christians among their top reasons not to attend. If the church is ever to regain her prominence in the eyes of the average American then Christians must examine our own lives for every instance of hypocrisy and put it off!

Websters defines a hypocrite as any “a person who puts on a false appearance of virtue or religion” or a “person who acts in contradiction to his or her stated beliefs or feelings.” Sincerity on the other hand is “the quality or state of being sincere; honesty of mind; freedom from hypocrisy.”

The word “hypocrite” combines the Greek prefix “hypo” meaning “under” and the verb “krinein” meaning “to sift or decide.” So the original meaning implied a deficiency in the ability to decide. Such a deficiency, regarding beliefs and feelings, forms the current meaning.

This idea is best illustrated by the nation of Israel as they tried to serve both God and Baal. We need to heed the prophet Elijah’s challenge to his nation to decide which God they will serve prior to his challenging the priests of Baal to a show down between his God and their false god Baal.

21 And Elijah came near to all the people and said, “How long will you go limping between two different opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him; but if Baal, then follow him.” And the people did not answer him a word. 1 Kings 18:21 (ESV)

Unlike the children of Israel Christians need to answer, decisively and sincerely (without hypocrisy).

Many preachers have given the church a bad name.  We who handle the Word of God must speak honestly concerning our own short comings and limitations. It is so easy to allow people to think we are more virtuous than we are actually, which is hypocritical. Each of us need to be more like Paul when he said;

3 Our appeal to you is not based on error or impure motives, nor do we try to trick anyone. 1 Thessalonians 2:3 (GNB)

The problem with making hypocrisy apply primarily to ministers is that this assumption overlooks the fact that every Christian is a minister. There are no class divisions among Christians.

28 In Christ, there is no difference between Jew and Greek, slave and free person, male and female. You are all the same in Christ Jesus. Galatians 3:28 (NCV)

The ground at the foot of Calvary’s cross is level. There are no big “I’s” and little “you’s” in Christ’s church. You and I need to “put off” hypocrisy and “put on” sincerity because there is no room for dishonesty in the body of Christ. Instead we all need to be able to honestly say what the apostle Paul said that;

12 We are proud that our conscience assures us that our lives in this world, and especially our relations with you, have been ruled by God-given frankness and sincerity, by the power of God’s grace, and not by human wisdom. 2 Corinthians 1:12 (GNB)

You and I need not simply to say that we are sincere, we need to be sincere.  Notice that Paul states that his life, not simply his speech, is sincere. Paul says that his life and his relations with the Corinthians (a church with which he had much conflict) have been ruled by God given honesty and sincerity. As a Christian we need to be honest with God and one another. To be capable of such honesty I need to “put off” hypocrisy and “put on” sincerity.

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40 Days of Preparation Day 24

Mar19
2012 Leave a Comment Written by Warner Smith

Today, Monday March 19, 2012, is the twenty-fourth day of preparing our hearts, souls and minds for the most high of all Christian holy days, Easter Sunday. Today I need to “put off” indifference and “put on”fervency. How often do you see a need which should be met and which you could meet and think someone should do something?  How often do you hear someone say something about which you disagree and think someone should say something? Do you help? Do you say anything? If you answered no, to either question then like me you need to “put off” indifference and “put on” fervency.

The following story underscores why each of our responses when we see human need or hear error are so important.

This is a little story about four people named Everybody, Somebody, Anybody, and Nobody. There was an important job to be done and Everybody was sure that Somebody would do it. Anybody could have done it, but Nobody did it. Somebody got angry about that because it was Everybody’s job. Everybody thought that Anybody could do it, but Nobody realized that Everybody wouldn’t do it. It ended up that Everybody blamed Somebody when Nobody did what Anybody could have done

Jesus tells us a story that illustrates where our responsibility to others begins and ends.

29 . . . [An expert in the Law], desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” 30 Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead. 31 Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and when he saw him he passed by on the other side. 32 So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33 But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion. 34 He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him. 35 And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, ‘Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.’ 36 Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?” 37 He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” And Jesus said to him, “You go, and do likewise.” Luke 10:25–37 (ESV)

In this story Jesus teaches us that the love we have for God must be reflected in the way we value and assist all those whom He places along our life’s path each and every day. This service may take the form of mending and caring for wounds, or it might be that we need to correct someone who mistreats another in our presence. Sometimes we may need to stand up for the truth of the gospel in the presence of others. Whatever the circumstances are in which we find ourselves we need to “put off” indifference and “put on” fervency.

In the Bible the word “fervent” means, always ready to speak or act. Of the 12 disciples Peter was by far the most fervent. He was constantly speaking up and taking the initiative. In the book of 1 Peter he directs Christians to “fervently love” each other.

22 Since you have in obedience to the truth purified your souls for a sincere love of the brethren, fervently love one another from the heart, 1 Peter 1:22 (NASB)

The idea is that Christian love is to be active. If we are to go out of our way to serve strangers on the pathways of life how much more should we be willing to be inconvenienced for brothers and sisters in Christ. Read carefully the following passage.

7 The end of all things is at hand; therefore, be of sound judgment and sober spirit for the purpose of prayer.8 Above all, keep fervent in your love for one another, because love covers a multitude of sins.9 Be hospitable to one another without complaint.10 As each one has received a special gift, employ it in serving one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. 1 Peter 4:7–10 (NASB)

As we understand that we are either living in the end times or in the end of our time, we are to be fervently loving one another.  This fervent love will be hospitable without complaint and will utilize our spiritual gifts to serve one another as good stewards of God’s grace.

As we prepare our hearts, souls and minds for the most high of all Christian holy days, lets “put off” indifference and “put on” fervency whatever the circumstances whether we see strangers, friends, family or brothers and sisters in Christ in need of our assistance, advice, or admonition.

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