Silver Bullet

Be honest now, we all want some kind of silver bullet to get us to the heart of the broken things we value and love most and make them right. Those who might want to lose weight, will want to know exactly what to cut out, so that the pounds will fall off easily. Athletes want to know what the single best thing is for them to work on to make the biggest difference. Scientists working on a cure for serious diseases want to get down to the root of the problem, and eradicate using that silver bullet to beat all sorts of diseases.

Sometimes, with the best intentions, Christians want to know what the biggest thing is that will make a difference to the work of the Kingdom, whether in their own heart, their church, or the wider world. There is nothing wrong in wanting to know, and use, that silver bullet in any capacity. For dieters, athletes, and scientists such a single silver bullet is elusive, and not available, no matter how much research is done. However, we all know that a balanced diet, or the right mix of things from separate areas, are needed for all of these issues.

It’s a different story for people of the Christian faith because we have it clearly defined by none other than Jesus Himself who tells us plainly how we can look, and act as God would want.

We don’t need to look further, or research, or study madly. We have the silver bullet, and it works every time we use it. Sadly though, sometimes we decide not to use it.

You have heard that it was said, Love your neighbour and hate your enemy. But I tell you, love your enemies. Pray for those who treat you badly. If you do this, you will be children who are truly like your Father in heaven. Matthew 5:43-45

Legalistic and Judgemental

When I was growing up and finding my feet in church and the teaching of Scripture, the worst thing that anyone could say about you, was that you were legalistic and/or judgemental. The words would come in a torrent of criticism and almost spat out, yes even by other Christians. We should not want to be legalistic like the pharisees, or judgemental in such a way to give others an excuse not to give the Christian faith a chance in their life. But are both of these characteristics for ever and always an error of our salvation?

In today’s world and church, we have become so PC that we dare not offend anyone, whether those in the church or outside. It follows that the ten commandments and Jesus’ words are laws, and by definition that makes them legalistic. When we read the old and new Testaments, there are many occasions when the patriarchs, apostles, and even Jesus Himself would pass judgement. Again, that makes these judgemental acts. So what was, and still is, seen as the problem?

When done in a spirit of Christian love, it can be right and proper to point out the commandments (laws) of Scripture, and Jesus. It is also fitting that we are able to discern wrong or false spirits and teaching, and thereby passing Bible based judgement on these actions. In both cases, when acting in love, we must be careful to point to the error, and not the person. The old way of saying this was, “hate the sin, but love the sinner”, and I don’t think there is a better way of saying it.

Next time someone, Christian or not, says you are legalistic and/or judgemental, when you speak in love, it may just be the case that you are shining a light on their own shortcomings, and this is the best defence they can come up with. Let’s face it, this is a very poor defence and tells a much bigger story! The other side of the coin applies too. Next time you point out without love, the flaws, failings and sins of another, be aware that this can be a poor defence, and also tells a much bigger story about ourselves. It can be so easy to say we are speaking in love, but we must be aware that others may see our actions in a different light. Romans 12:9 NKJV says it this way: Let love be without hypocrisy.

If I had the gift of being able to speak in other languages without learning them and could speak in every language there is in all of heaven and earth, but didn’t love others, I would only be making noise. 1 Corinthians 13:1 (TLB)

Greener!

Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. Philippians 4:11

The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence. How many times have you heard that? It comes out in other ways, like “if only I/they had”, or “they should have”, or maybe even “if that was me, I wouldn’t have done it that way”. All show a deep level of insecurity and discontentment, and they are all avoidable.

We all have that one friend, and if you are unfortunate you may have more than one, who can find fault with just about anything and everything. Nothing goes right, and it would seem that the world has turned against them. Conversations are difficult, and your eyes glaze over as you try to look as if you are listening, but meanwhile you are far far away. Our friend(s) may be Godly, but don’t have contentment.

Now there is great gain in godliness with contentment. 1 Timothy 6:6, so here’s a question: “If there is great gain in Godliness WITH contentment, does it not follow that Godliness WITHOUT contentment is a great loss? I think so. I trust God will grant us the ability to be fully content with the lot God has given us, whatever the circumstance. After all, there is always someone worse off than you and me.

Charity

“In essentials, unity; in non-essentials, liberty; in all things, charity.” - Augustine

‘Charity’ is one of those old words we don’t use very much now, but it has a wealth of significant meaning, especially for the faithful Christian. It is mostly translated as ‘love’ in the Bible, and who doesn’t know the love chapter of 1st Corinthians 13? Jesus also told us to love one another, as we love ourselves, and as He has loved us. We can’t dodge it, we have to show charity, or in other words to love one another.

The other meanings of ‘charity’ would be ‘concern’, ‘caring’, ‘looking for the best’, ‘welfare’, ‘goodness’, and in each case it involves the initial parts of falling in love. Can you remember the time when you started to notice the woman who would become your wife? All your thoughts, feelings and emotions were only for her good, and aimed at the one who would become your love. Is it stretching it too far to suggest that if you say you act in love, but don’t have the caring heart needed up front to support it, then this kind of love is only a part time feeling, and maybe even a sham?

Augustine nailed it when he suggests that in all things we must have charity, or love. It tops essentials and non-essentials every time, and is based on sound Scripture. Perhaps we could all do with some more good old fashioned charity.

A soft and gentle and thoughtful answer turns away wrath, But harsh and painful and careless words stir up anger. Proverbs 15:1 (AMP)

Heavenly Minded?

So anyone who thinks they are standing strong should be careful that they don’t fall.

1 Corinthians 10:12

Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall. Proverbs 16:18

My mum had a saying that went, “The bigger they are, the harder they fall”, and in a way that sums up these verses. I also suggest that Alexander Pope hit the nail on the head when he said, “A little learning (knowledge) is a dangerous thing”. Every gathering has an expert on any given subject, and most of the time they give themselves higher plausibility than they are worth. In the army, they are known as “Barrack room lawyers”, and they will profess to know everything and pass judgement on just about anything and anyone.

Respect is something that is earned, and does not happen overnight. You do not give it to yourself. Respect is conferred ON you by others. The folks who know everything, tend to be seen as a bit of fun, but they are not usually respected. The kind of person who resists passing easy judgement on a subject or person too quickly, is one who has been taught well, and has learned a lot over a long period of time.

In the verses above, both Paul and Solomon are wise and respected by their peers. Paul spent years learning at the feet of one of the wisest and most clever in his day, Gamaliel and spent about three years in his own wilderness. The wisdom of Solomon was conferred directly by God himself. Both can be trusted in the things they say and teach, which is more than can be said about some of today’s teachers that you will find on the internet under the guise of Bible interpreters of note. As my dad said more than once to me, “pen and paper will accept anything”. Today, we would translate that as, “don’t believe everything you read and see on the internet”. Dad was wise beyond his earthly years!

The time will come when people will not listen to the true teaching. But people will find more and more teachers who please them. They will find teachers who say what they want to hear. People will stop listening to the truth. They will begin to follow the teaching in false stories. 2 Timothy 4:3,4

Poor In Spirit

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 5:3

This small verse has pride of place in the list of beatitudes because Jesus thought it was important enough to put it first. A coincidence? I don’t think so.

What comes to your mind when you hear the phrase, “poor in spirit”? A few thoughts pop into my head, and maybe they match some of your own. I think of the folks who live and think simply and uncluttered by life’s troubles. I think of some who are diseased or afflicted of mind, and don’t think straight. They maybe couldn’t hold down a regular job. What about those who feel down and depressed? These folks don’t get a lot of sympathy in today’s world because they make a point of keeping their feelings hidden. In fact none of these fit nicely into our acceptable mould, yes even our pristine clean church leaders and members don’t know what to do with them.

Here’s the good news, and it’s worth remembering when you think of your family and friends who are not blessed with a clear, sound mind now. Perhaps they once did, and were the life of any get together, but now find it impossible to hold a conversation, and in extreme cases, may even need help in their everyday routines. Jesus has a word for your friends.

Jesus calls them “Blessed”. That’s the same word used when the angel visited Mary to tell her she would carry and bear the Saviour of the world. “Blessed”. Let it sink in. Then as if that wasn’t enough, Jesus gives the best announcement for these blessed “poor in spirit” folks. He tells them, and everyone else like them, that “theirs is the kingdom of heaven”. Jesus confers two of the greatest honours on these people of simple thought and mind. They are blessed, and have a promise of heaven. Brother and sister, it doesn’t get any better than this does it? And straight from the lips of the Saviour. Amen and Amen!!

Asset or Liability?

I don’t profess to be an accountant, but I can grasp the concept of a financial asset, against a liability. One is a good thing, the other is not. One gives a plus amount in the ledger, but the other takes away from the account. Any accountant worth his or her salt wants plenty of assets, but no liabilities. Not even one!

In our journey through life as Christians, we want to be considered an asset to the Kingdom of God. It would hurt us to think that we might be a liability to the witness of the salvation we profess. We are warned about being a liability, and the Bible would call this a ‘stumbling block’ as shown in Romans 14:13 which says, “Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in the way of a brother or sister.”

So, what’s our lifestyle like? Do we help or hinder the young in faith, no matter their age? After all, we have so much to learn and we should want to grow into an asset, not a liability, as we help others to become an asset too, so keeping the cycle going.

Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him if a great millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea. Mark 9:42

The Journey - Flat Tyre

Moreover, no one knows when their hour will come... so people are trapped by evil times that fall unexpectedly upon them. Ecclesiastes 9:12

Everything on our journey does not go to plan. If we are fortunate, most things run smoothly, but then there’s the whopper that comes along out of the blue. You don’t see it coming and so it hits harder than usual. No one likes the unexpected, and when it happens, it can hurt and hurt badly. A flat tyre can ruin the holiday car journey, or at best delay it indefinitely. To say it is frustrating is an understatement.

Have you suffered a ‘flat tyre’ on your faith journey? You will not be alone if you have. Flats come in many guises, but all are frustrating, and have the ability to question the wisdom of your choice of destination, and certainly when you would expect to arrive. We take our cars for granted, and when that unexpected puncture happens, we often don’t even know how to change the tyre, or even find all the tools!

Since these emergencies happen unexpectedly, it is essential that we live and drive well prepared in advance. Anything else is folly, and only invites the disaster we want to avoid. After all, why have a spare wheel when you don’t know how to change it? I would suggest it is a good idea to look at the car handbook before you need to use it. It makes no sense to read the book when it’s too late. Do you see the similarity with our faith life? Don’t think about looking at the instruction book, the Bible, until we are in a serious illness, or worse still nearing death. You can’t phone for the AA to come and help you then, so be wise and find out how to live now. If you find out how to live, you will also find out how to die when that unexpected eternal flat tyre happens. That, my friend, makes the preparation all worthwhile!

In My Day

In my day, the summers were warmer, the snow was whiter in winter, people were kinder and didn’t need to lock their doors, neighbours were friendlier, school produced better citizens who could spell and read, times were tough but we were survivors, friends stuck together, and the list could go on. It often does.

Then there’s Church. Church was better, more active, more members, with better hymns and not these too loud modern songs, lots out midweek, piano and organ, no guitars and certainly no drums, lives changed at an altar of prayer, great saintly examples, a church board of stalwarts, pastors called, who preached and visited on a very low wage, tithes and offerings given freely for growth of the Kingdom, and again the list could go on. It often does.

It is important that I don’t fall into the ‘grumpy old man’ trap, where everything old was good, and everything new is bad. One sure way to turn folks off at any age, is to be a know-it-all, and try to make things look better if seen through my eyes. It doesn’t work. In fact, Jesus was, is, and always will be truth, so what was done in the past will remain if it is of God, and this is also true of today. The good will persist, and the bad will fall away like ‘snow aff a dyke’ as we say in Scotland. You and I need to be sure we are on the right side of truth. That’s all. It’s that simple, so let’s not get hung up on what the youth are doing in church today, and take more care over our own example and up to date testimony. God will be our judge, and theirs, in all things old or new!

Leave them alone. If their plan is something they thought up, it will fail. But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop them. You might even be fighting against God himself! Acts 5:38,39

Party!

“Let’s party” seems to be the byword for a good time, and the signal that party time is the only way to have fun. The unspoken thought behind the words, at least in my culture, is that alcohol must be a part of the night’s revelry, otherwise it’s a waste of time. But does it have to be that way?

In our young, immature years, we think that some wine, beer, or spirits will unlock the door to fun, and happiness. Sadly, many have to learn the hard way that this is not true. Ask the young girl who ends up with the choice between having an unplanned baby, or an abortion. Ask the young man who has picked a fight with his best pal, and maimed him for life. Ask the nurses at A&E. Ask the Police who have to literally pick up the pieces shed on a good night out. Ask a parent who lies awake praying that their son or daughter is safe and will come home unharmed.

We can’t be too hard on our teenagers, when we remember our own youthful escapades. We may have got out of our youth unscathed physically, but many of us bear the unseen scars mentally and emotionally. That is the very reason parents, and yes grandparents too, worry for their own because they have been there, and even now may live with the uneasy consequences. So the next time your mum or dad says, “be home by …”, “stay safe” or “keep good company” or “don’t be on your own”, it’s not because they want to be a kill joy. On the contrary, they want you to avoid the pitfalls they almost fell into, and they know that the unintended bad memories stay real and vivid for a long time. Maybe for ever. So next time you hear the words, “let’s party” try to keep in mind the things that are important. The things that will outlast your years, way beyond any (bad) decision you may make for the short term. Oh, and for the record you CAN have fun and enjoy yourself without alcohol. It’s true!

“Then he said, ‘I know what I will do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger barns! I will put all my wheat and good things together in my new barns. Then I can say to myself, I have many good things stored. I have saved enough for many years. Rest, eat, drink, and enjoy life!’ “But God said to that man, ‘Foolish man! Tonight you will die. So what about the things you prepared for yourself? Who will get those things now?’ Luke 12:18-20

Responsibly

We are all adults, and we know that we must act responsibly, but have you noticed (if you haven’t, you are numb from the neck up) that our Radio and TV are choc full of adverts for alcohol, all the way from alcopops to the real hard stuff. Every advert finishes with the words on the screen, “please drink responsibly”. Why do you think they say that? Yes, it is a legal requirement, but why was the industry made do it against their will? Firstly it’s because it’s a good idea, and secondly, and I see this as more important, there are many many people who do NOT drink responsibly. In fact the vast majority of drinkers do NOT drink responsibly, they just want to get drunk, and there are lots of bad news reports when drink is involved. Ask any policeman, nurse, doctor, or social worker. If you live in Scotland especially at New Year time, you will know what I mean!

You might smile at the adverts for alcohol, but what if we took this to another level, and when it comes to the Bible, it should read, “please read responsibly”? At this point, you may be raising your eyebrows while asking yourself, where is he going with this? A very good question. In just the same way that the warning is needed for those who might abuse alcohol, a similar warning is required for some who might just over-egg, or over-do, or over interpret Scripture verses. I accept that we all have our favourites, but we should never misuse the Bible to read the way we want it, and to our own ends or agenda.

Not reading the whole Bible responsibly can result in ‘non-mainstream’ beliefs, and that same misuse can pit one group of believers over and against another. If we take a few verses in isolation, we can just about justify anything. However, if we follow the instruction to “please read responsibly”, we will avoid any extreme pitfalls and live a balanced Christian life. After all, the Bible contains the very words of life! The whole canon of Scripture is essential to our understanding, ALL of it, not just a few chosen verses!

All Scripture is given by God. And all Scripture is useful for teaching and for showing people what is wrong in their lives. It is useful for correcting faults and teaching the right way to live. 2 Timothy 3:16

Out With The Old!

Well that’s part of our journey over for another year. What will you remember most from the past 12 months? For many there have been relationship troubles, illnesses, bereavement, hardship, and money worries. For some, maybe all of these have affected their year, and that is not easy to bear. Even though there may have been some highs, most look forward to starting the next year afresh. We want to make a better job of our life, and a new year is a good place to begin.

There are many things we have no control over, and if you look over the list in the last paragraph, you will see what I mean. So I think if we are going to be serious about making a fresh start, it must be in something we do have control over. We tend to look for the big things that need to be changed, but sometimes it’s the little things which mean a lot as the old song says.

If we are really fortunate we might stumble across a small thing which will make big differences, and those new and better big changes will start to fall like dominoes. We have to look no further than the words of Jesus, and where better to start at the new year. His words have eternal value, and it does us good when we heed them, so how about this little change for starters? While you are at it, take good note of the words “new” and “must”. Obviously Jesus thought this new command was important, and we should treat it as important too.

I give you a new command: Love each other. You must love each other just as I loved you. John 13:34

Are you up for it? Let’s give it a try. Better still, let’s give Jesus a try in our lives and see the difference a little love in the right attitude makes. Have a Happy New Year 2017!

Reach The Goal

Brothers and sisters, I know that I still have a long way to go. But there is one thing I do: I forget what is in the past and try as hard as I can to reach the goal before me. I keep running hard toward the finish line to get the prize that is mine because God has called me through Christ Jesus to life up there in heaven. Philippians 3:13,14

The New Year is now on us, so may we take these verses seriously. Paul brings his life’s work down to one thing as he tries as hard as he can to forget the past, which is not easy, and reach the goal of eternal life in heaven, because this prize is ours and worth all the trouble this world can throw at us. So, let’s keep these words in our hearts and minds as we enter, and work through the coming year 2017.

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL OUR CHURCH FAMILY AND FRIENDS, AND MAY OUR GRACIOUS GOD BLESS YOU RICHLY, AND KEEP YOU IN HIS CARE.