4/22/13

From Gary.... What makes a cloudy day...







This morning, I walked up to the clubhouse to see the property managers about something and when I started back, I thought I would take a few pictures.  The sky is overcast and once in awhile there is an occasional raindrop, but otherwise it is a pleasantly cool day.  You can see from the pictures that this is what I would consider to be a "nice" 55+ retirement community; with a pool, shuffleboard court and cookout area (with horseshoe pits).  When we (Dorothy's dog, Buddy was with me) arrived at home, I thought to take a picture of the flowers Linda is growing.  All the other pictures are nice, but there is nothing like home to perk up a dreary day.  Still, something was missing... can you guess what it is from the following verses?

2 Timothy, Chapter 1

 1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God, according to the promise of the life which is in Christ Jesus,  2 to Timothy, my beloved child: Grace, mercy, and peace, from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. 

  3  I thank God, whom I serve as my forefathers did, with a pure conscience. How unceasing is my memory of you in my petitions, night and day  4 longing to see you, remembering your tears, that I may be filled with joy;  5 having been reminded of the sincere faith that is in you; which lived first in your grandmother Lois, and your mother Eunice, and, I am persuaded, in you also. 


If you guessed that I missed someone- you were right!!! I miss my two oldest girls and their families in New Jersey.  Now, that is what makes a cloudy day!!!

From Jim McGuiggan... Seeing it through


Seeing it through

In the end, I suppose, when it comes to ethics, believers must summarize true and full life not as a life that is upright and pursues righteous principles but one that is lived out in the image of God (see Ephesians 5:1-3, for example). I’m speaking of course of those who have been confronted with Jesus Christ who is God’s full self-disclosure as a human. I know there are those who have not been given the gospel but by God’s grace live exemplary lives. Still, we can’t settle for less than the highest we know and the highest, a Christian would rightly say, is Jesus Christ.
And while a Christian can’t profess to be morally superior to the rest of his fellows he can do nothing less than insist that Jesus Christ is and was. The Christian’s faith in Christ is a glad confession that Jesus is Lord of all and it doesn’t matter ultimately that he, the Christian, is impressive in virtue just so long as he genuinely insists that Jesus is and that he seeks Christ's likeness. So that the Christian’s ethical life is the imitation of Christ and so it is “gospeling” as well as ethics.
In a world filled with sin, injustice, oppression, cruelty, immorality and greed it isn't hard to feel weary; to be the underdog and to see your loving purposes stymied. The recognition that for all our own personal growth in the moral realm we seem barely better than when we first began the struggle can be a burden hard to bear. To act in righteousness now and then is one thing but to remain always righteous is beyond us; because we are what we are. God doesn't expect sinlessness of us but he does call us to keep our commitment to and faith in Jesus Christ and see it through for that is what God is like. G. S Kennedy, WWI chaplain, reminded us of that when he had a rough-spoken soldier say of Christ in prayer at Gethsemane:
                   And the answer [that] came to  
        the prayers he prayed
                        Was his power to see it through;
                        To see it through to the bitter end,
                        And to die like a God at the last,
                        In a glory of light that were dawning bright
                        With the sorrow of death all past.
                        And the Christ who was hung on the cross is
                        God,
                        True God for me and you,
                        For the only God that a true man trusts
                        Is the God that sees it through.


©2004 Jim McGuiggan. All materials are free to be copied and used as long as money is not being made.  

Many thanks to brother Ed Healy for allowing me to post from his website, the abiding word.com.






From Mark Copeland... The Parable Of The Mustard Seed


                          "THE GOSPEL OF MARK"

               The Parable Of The Mustard Seed (4:30-32)

INTRODUCTION

1. In "The Parable Of The Growing Seed", kingdom growth caused by the
   Word is illustrated as:
   a. Imperceptible - in that we may not always understand how the
      growth occurs
   b. Independent - in that the seed bears fruit beyond our own efforts
   c. Gradual - in that it occurs in stages, not all at once

2. To further illustrate kingdom growth by the Word of God, Jesus told
   another parable...
   a. "The Parable Of The Mustard Seed" - Mk 4:30-32
   b. That describes a kingdom destined for remarkable growth

[To appreciate the point of the parable, some background information may
be helpful on...]

I. THE MUSTARD SEED

   A. THE PLANT ITSELF...
      1. The mustard plant is well known for its hot-flavored seeds
      2. Among seeds sown in a garden it was generally the smallest
      3. As a plant, it reaches ten, sometimes fifteen feet in height
      4. In the fall of the year, its branches have become rigid, and
         the plant often serves as a shelter for birds of many kinds
         (William Hendriksen, Commentary on Matthew)

   B. PROVERBIAL USES OF THE MUSTARD SEED...
      1. The mustard seed was used frequently to describe anything that
         is small in its beginning
      2. Jesus used it on another occasion to describe one's faith - cf.
         Mt 17:20
      3. The Koran reads "Oh, my son, every matter, though it be of the
         weight of a grain of mustard seed..." (quoted by R. C. Trench)

[With this understanding of the mustard plant and its seeds, perhaps we
are better able to appreciate the meaning of the parable itself (please
read Mk 4:30-32)...]

II. THE MEANING OF THE PARABLE

   A. THE KINGDOM OF GOD WOULD HAVE A SMALL BEGINNING...
      1. Old Testament prophecy foretold this:
         a. Concerning the Messiah - cf. Isa 11:1; 53:2-3
         b. Concerning the kingdom - cf. Dan 2:35,44 (starting out as a
            stone, becoming a great mountain)
      2. Consider this description of the beginning:  "The Son of Man
         grew up in a despised province; he did not appear in public
         until his thirtieth year; then taught for two or three years in
         neighboring villages, and occasionally at Jerusalem; made a few
         converts, chiefly among the poor and unlearned; and then
         falling into the hands of his enemies, died the shameful death
         of the cross; such, and so slight, was the commencement of the
         universal kingdom of God." - R. C. Trench, Notes On The
         Parables Of Our Lord

   B. ITS TREMENDOUS GROWTH WOULD BELIE ITS HUMBLE BEGINNINGS...
      1. Just as the "small stone" of Dan 2:35 "became a great mountain
         and filled the whole earth"
      2. The growth of the church in the 1st A.D. certainly confirmed
         the truth of Jesus' parable
         a. The 120 disciples grew to over 3000 just in one day - Ac 2:
            41-42
         b. It was soon about 5000 - Ac 4:4
         c. The number of the disciples continued to "multiply"
            1) In Jerusalem - Ac 6:7
            2) Throughout Judea, Galilee, and Samaria - Ac 9:31
         d. Years later, there were "myriads" of believers just in
            Jerusalem alone - Ac 21:20
      3. Today, we see the growth and influence of the kingdom in lives
         of believers worldwide!

   C. IT'S GROWTH WOULD BE BENEFICIAL TO THE WORLD...
      1. In the parable, Jesus spoke of how "the birds of the air come
         and nest in its branches"
      2. What is meant by Jesus?  He does not say, but the kingdom of
         God is certainly a blessing to all who take refuge in its
         "branches"
         a. E.g., "for the kingdom of God is not food and drink, but
            righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit" - Ro 14:17
         b. To those seeking rest for their weary souls, the King offers
            His tender invitation to come to Him and enter His kingdom
            of rest - cf. Mt 11:28-30

{With this simple parable, Jesus offers encouragement to that small band
of disciples following Him over the hills of Palestine.  They would be a
part of something that would grow and bless the world immensely!

What about today?  The kingdom of heaven continues to grow and spread
out is branches to those who will accept it, certainly.  But can we ever
expect similar growth to that witnessed in the first century?  Consider
a few thoughts about...]

III. THE GROWTH OF THE KINGDOM TODAY

   A. THERE IS THE MATHEMATICAL POSSIBILITY...
      1. Beginning with just twenty disciples, each converting just one
         person a year, and their converts doing the same...
      2. ...the growth would be like a mustard seed!
         a. End of year  1 - 40
         b. End of year  5 - 640
         c. End of year 10 - 20,480
         d. End of year 15 - 655,360
         e. End of year 20 - 20,971,520
         f. End of year 25 - 1,342,177,280
      -- All it takes is for each person to bring one soul to Christ
         each and every year!

   B. THERE IS CERTAINLY THE SPIRITUAL POSSIBILITY...
      1. We have the same seed of the kingdom, the Word of God!
         a. Which is incorruptible, that lives and abides forever - 1Pe 1:23-25
         b. Capable of producing what God intends - cf. Isa 55:10-11
      2. While the parable of "The Four Soils" reminds us that not all
         will accept the Word of God, this parable declares that the
         kingdom will grow!
      -- Do we believe in the power of the Word of God?

   C. WHAT IS NEEDED IS PEOPLE...
      1. People with vision
         a. Who have the vision of Christ, as expressed in His parables
         b. Who look not at an apple and count the seeds, but looks at a
            seed and counts the apples (with their many seeds)!
         c. Who look at converting and developing disciples in the same
            way
      2. People willing to put the kingdom first in their lives
         a. The seed of the gospel will produce fruit, but only if it
            falls on good soil
         b. If we allow...
            1) The cares of this world
            2) The deceitfulness of riches
            3) The pleasures of life
            ...to "choke" us, we cannot bear good fruit
         c. Therefore we need to put the kingdom of God first - cf. Mt 6:33
      3. People willing to abide in Christ
         a. For apart from Christ they can do nothing - Jn 15:4-5
         b. For only they are able to bear "much fruit" - Jn 15:5
         c. And only they will be able to glorify God and be His true
            disciples - Jn 15:8
      -- Are we willing to be such people?

CONCLUSION

1. The potential for the kingdom's amazing growth rests in the Person
   who reigns as its King...
   a. Those who will abide in Christ can be used by Him to produce the
      remarkable growth in the kingdom illustrated by this parable
   b. As per Paul:  "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens
      me." - Php 4:13

2. Brethren, allow "The Parable Of The Mustard Seed" to serve as...
   a. An encouragement - The kingdom is destined for great things,
      despite its small beginnings
   b. A reminder - If we are going to be useful to the Master in this
      ever growing kingdom, we must "abide in Him" so we can "bear much
      fruit"

For those not yet Christians, why not rest your weary wings in this
great tree called "the kingdom of God"...?

   "Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will
   give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I
   am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your
   souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light."

                                                   - Mt 11:28-30


Executable Outlines, Copyright © Mark A. Copeland, 2011

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