6/19/13

From Gary... Evil for good


Right and wrong; these are concepts we learn early in life.  Once learned, hopefully they will stay with us  forever.  However, DO NOT EXPECT OTHERS TO SHARE YOUR VALUES.  If you do, you are in for a disappointment!!!  Some people's values (right and wrong are just examples) are twisted by sin, which may exhibit itself in manifold ways.  Selfishness, conceit, greed, lack of regard for the rights of others, and hatred are just a few of a very long list.  Frankly, this topic has been among the most difficult for me to learn and the lessons it took to teach me this have given me much heartache and loss of sleep.  When applied to "family", the pain associated with this is unbelievable.  Recently, I read the following passage as part of my daily reading regime and it seems quite appropriate to list it here...

1 Samuel, Chapter 25

2 There was a man in Maon, whose possessions were in Carmel; and the man was very great, and he had three thousand sheep, and a thousand goats: and he was shearing his sheep in Carmel.  3 Now the name of the man was Nabal; and the name of his wife Abigail; and the woman was of good understanding, and of a beautiful face: but the man was churlish and evil in his doings; and he was of the house of Caleb.  4 David heard in the wilderness that Nabal was shearing his sheep.  5 David sent ten young men, and David said to the young men, “Go up to Carmel, and go to Nabal, and greet him in my name.  6 You shall tell him, ‘Long life to you! Peace be to you, and peace be to your house, and peace be to all that you have.  7 Now I have heard that you have shearers. Your shepherds have now been with us, and we didn’t hurt them, neither was there anything missing from them, all the while they were in Carmel.  8 Ask your young men, and they will tell you. Therefore let the young men find favor in your eyes; for we come in a good day. Please give whatever comes to your hand, to your servants, and to your son David.’” 

  9  When David’s young men came, they spoke to Nabal according to all those words in the name of David, and ceased. 

  10  Nabal answered David’s servants, and said, “Who is David? Who is the son of Jesse? There are many servants who break away from their masters these days.  11 Shall I then take my bread, and my water, and my meat that I have killed for my shearers, and give it to men who I don’t know where they come from?” 

  12  So David’s young men turned on their way, and went back, and came and told him according to all these words.  13 David said to his men, “Every man put on his sword!” 

Every man put on his sword. David also put on his sword. About four hundred men followed David; and two hundred stayed by the baggage.  14 But one of the young men told Abigail, Nabal’s wife, saying, “Behold, David sent messengers out of the wilderness to Greet our master; and he railed at them.  15 But the men were very good to us, and we were not hurt, neither missed we anything, as long as we went with them, when we were in the fields.  16 They were a wall to us both by night and by day, all the while we were with them keeping the sheep.  17 Now therefore know and consider what you will do; for evil is determined against our master, and against all his house; for he is such a worthless fellow that one can’t speak to him.” 

  18  Then Abigail hurried and took two hundred loaves of bread, two bottles of wine, five sheep ready dressed, five measures of parched grain, one hundred clusters of raisins, and two hundred cakes of figs, and laid them on donkeys.  19 She said to her young men, “Go on before me. Behold, I come after you.” But she didn’t tell her husband, Nabal.  20 It was so, as she rode on her donkey, and came down by the covert of the mountain, that behold, David and his men came down toward her; and she met them. 

  21  Now David had said, “Surely in vain have I kept all that this fellow has in the wilderness, so that nothing was missed of all that pertained to him. He has returned me evil for good.  22 God do so to the enemies of David, and more also, if I leave of all that belongs to him by the morning light so much as one who urinates on a wall.” 

  23  When Abigail saw David, she hurried, and alighted from her donkey, and fell before David on her face, and bowed herself to the ground.  24 She fell at his feet, and said, “On me, my lord, on me be the iniquity; and please let your handmaid speak in your ears. Hear the words of your handmaid.  25 Please don’t let my lord regard this worthless fellow, even Nabal; for as his name is, so is he. Nabal is his name, and folly is with him; but I, your handmaid, didn’t see the young men of my lord, whom you sent.  26 Now therefore, my lord, as Yahweh lives, and as your soul lives, since Yahweh has withheld you from blood guiltiness, and from avenging yourself with your own hand, now therefore let your enemies, and those who seek evil to my lord, be as Nabal.  27 Now this present which your servant has brought to my lord, let it be given to the young men who follow my lord. 28 Please forgive the trespass of your handmaid. For Yahweh will certainly make my lord a sure house, because my lord fights the battles of Yahweh; and evil shall not be found in you all your days.  29 Though men may rise up to pursue you, and to seek your soul, yet the soul of my lord shall be bound in the bundle of life with Yahweh your God. He will sling out the souls of your enemies, as from the hollow of a sling.  30 It shall come to pass, when Yahweh has done to my lord according to all the good that he has spoken concerning you, and shall have appointed you prince over Israel,  31 that this shall be no grief to you, nor offense of heart to my lord, either that you have shed blood without cause, or that my lord has avenged himself. When Yahweh has dealt well with my lord, then remember your handmaid.” 

  32  David said to Abigail, “Blessed is Yahweh, the God of Israel, who sent you this day to meet me!  33 Blessed is your discretion, and blessed are you, that have kept me this day from blood guiltiness, and from avenging myself with my own hand. 34 For indeed, as Yahweh, the God of Israel, lives, who has withheld me from hurting you, unless you had hurried and come to meet me, surely there wouldn’t have been left to Nabal by the morning light so much as one who urinates on a wall.”

  35  So David received of her hand that which she had brought him: and he said to her, “Go up in peace to your house. Behold, I have listened to your voice, and have granted your request.” 



Luke, Chapter 6

 27  “But I tell you who hear: love your enemies, do good to those who hate you,   28  bless those who curse you, and pray for those who mistreat you.   29  To him who strikes you on the cheek, offer also the other; and from him who takes away your cloak, don’t withhold your coat also.   30  Give to everyone who asks you, and don’t ask him who takes away your goods to give them back again. 

  31  “As you would like people to do to you, do exactly so to them.   32  If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them.   33  If you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same.   34  If you lend to those from whom you hope to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to receive back as much.   35  But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing back; and your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High; for he is kind toward the unthankful and evil. 
  36  “Therefore be merciful, 
even as your Father is also merciful. 


I have always tried to be good to other people. However, some people really don't deserve it.  Their actions seem to cry out for punishment (as with Nabal above) and the easy thing to do would be to appoint yourself as judge, jury and executioner.  Fortunately for David, he listened to Abagail's entreaty, accepted her gift and did no one harm.  As it turned out, not long after this episode, God killed Nabal.  Which is appropriate as the scripture says the following...

Romans, Chapter 12
19 Don’t seek revenge yourselves, beloved, but give place to God’s wrath. For it is written, “Vengeance belongs to me; I will repay, says the Lord.”

Jesus teaches us to do the right thing, regardless of who the person is- even an enemy!!!  This is a tough one for me and sometimes my sense of Justice is inflamed when others act despicably.  Who says following Jesus' teachings is necessarily easy.  But, for the rest of my years on this Earth I will try!!!  I just wish others would do the same.  There I go again, expecting others to do good!!!  Reality is: some people will always return evil for good and I have to accept that and deal with it!!!!  Just one more thing to pray about.  And, OH, yes- DO NOT GO INTO A LION'S CAGE UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES- I DON'T THINK YOU WILL BE ABLE TO "REASON" WITH HIM!!!!! 

From Jim McGuiggan... Suffering and Comfort


Suffering and Comfort

Suffering has many faces and biblical writers discuss it from many angles. The suffering that's most prominent in the New Testament is the suffering that comes as a result of faithfulness to Christ. In fact, so prominent is that face of it that Stanley Hauerwas thinks that disease, calamities and the like are left un-addressed in the New Testament. When we look at the pain and loss of little children, he thought, we are forced to stand silent. I think this is a mistake.
Still, in 2 Corinthians the emphasis is peculiarly (though not exclusively) on Paul's experience of suffering and how it works in with the gospel and his ministry. His opponents see his sufferings and loss as proof that he isn't a genuine apostle of Christ and that his gospel is false. In this letter Paul is always anxious to show that his suffering is one essential aspect of his commission. This is the primary thought about suffering throughout the book so we should expect it in 1:3-11. This means we should be careful how we use 2 Corinthians when discussing suffering--we need to let it speak it's own message and pay attention to its immediate concerns.
Still, 1:3-11 has a breadth of vision about it that suggests we should embrace Paul's personal situation without excluding wider concerns. God is the "God of all comfort" and not just Paul's comforter (1:3). And the comfort God gives Paul in his trouble is to enable God through Paul to give comfort to others (1:3). The affliction to which Paul offers comfort is not restricted to suffering for righteousness but embraces "any" or "all" afflictions with which people are afflicted (1:4). It's possible that the "any" affliction others might suffer is to be understood as within the parameters of suffering "for righteousness sake" but whether we should do that is another question. I don't think Paul here wants us to understand that he is offering comfort only to those who are suffering as a result of their faithfulness to God. That seems to me to reduce the power and breadth of the whole section.
While I think the section is broader than Paul's own immediate concerns he nevertheless has his own agenda in view. It may well include more than his situation but it includes no less. If opponents imply there's no good reason for someone like Paul to suffer Paul would insists that it enables him to be God's channel to comfort others and it taught him utter dependence on God (1:9).
His utter dependence in the face of imminent death is not on some god or other. It is not even on God, as he (gratefully) had known him in pre-Christ days. The God on whom his virtual death made him dependent is "the God who raises the dead" (1:9). Paul insists that his virtual resurrection was not only a physical rescue it was a theological eye-opener and faith builder. But it was more than that! And he will speak later of how his own (virtual) death and resurrection is in fact a rehearsal of the gospel (see 4:10-12).
So Paul's section on comfort while it has a breadth of assurance that covers those who need comfort in time of "any" affliction deals with more specific concerns that are especially relevant in the Corinthian situation. Nevertheless, we need to bear in mind that Paul never sees himself as independent, free-standing unit but always as a part of the body of Christ which suffers with and from and for the entire world.

©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... Binding The Hands Of Jesus (Mk 15:1)


                          "THE GOSPEL OF MARK"

                   Binding The Hands Of Jesus (15:1)

INTRODUCTION

1. In Mk 15:1, we are told the enemies of Jesus bound Him and sent Him
   to Pilate...

   "Immediately, in the morning, the chief priests held a consultation
   with the elders and scribes and the whole council; and they bound
   Jesus, led Him away and delivered Him to Pilate."

2. As we read this, it is easy for our hearts to be filled with sadness,
   and even with a touch of righteous indignation for that crowd that
   bound Jesus in such a way

3. And yet, there are few today who are not guilty of binding the hands
   of Jesus in a figurative way!

[To see what I mean, consider some of the various ways we can be guilty
of "Binding The Hands of Jesus" today...]

I. BY REFUSING TO OBEY THE GOSPEL

   A. JESUS STRETCHED OUT HIS HANDS AND DIED FOR OUR SINS...
      1. Today, through His gospel, He pleads with all to take advantage
         of His vicarious suffering
      2. He does not want us to suffer for the guilt of our own sins
      3. In truth, then, His "tender invitation" of Mt 11:28-30 is still
         being offered today

   B. BUT WHEN ONE REFUSES TO OBEY THE GOSPEL...
      1. The hands of Jesus are bound!
      2. There is no way such a person can then receive the benefits of
         Jesus death!
      3. For him or her, the death of Jesus was in vain!

   C. IS THIS TRUE OF YOU...?
      1. It will be...if you do not obey the gospel of Christ - cf. 
         Mk 16:15-16; Ac 2:38
      2. And if so, you will one day have to face His righteous
         indignation! - 2Th 1:7-9

[But even those who obey the gospel can be guilty of "Binding The Hands
Of Jesus".  How...?]

II. BY REFUSING TO BE TRANSFORMED

   A. CHRIST’S WILL IS THAT WE BE TRANSFORMED...
      1. This transformation involves a renewal of the mind - Ro 12:1-2;
         Ep 4:20-24
      2. Through study and meditation upon the Word of God - 
         1Pe 1:23-2:2; Php 4:8

   B. BUT MANY NEGLECT THE INSTRUMENT OF RENEWAL...
      1. We do not "receive with meekness the implanted word..." - Jm 1:21
      2. Thus we "bind the hands of Jesus" that we do not change!

   C. ARE WE GUILTY OF THIS...?
      1. We are, if we neglect to study the Bible on our own!
      2. We are, if we fail to take advantage of opportunities to study
         with others!

[Neglect the transforming power of the Word of God, and we are just as
guilty of "Binding The Hands Of Jesus" as were those who delivered Him
to Pilate! We can also bind the hands of Jesus...]

III. BY REFUSING TO PRAY

   A. JESUS HAS BECOME OUR HIGH PRIEST...
      1. He became man for this very purpose - He 2:17-18
      2. He’s made it possible for us to boldly approach the throne of
         grace in prayer - He 4:14-16
      3. As our high priest...
         a. He is able to save those who come to God through Him - He 7:25
         b. He "ever lives" to make intercession for us - ibid.

   B.  WHEN WE DON’T PRAY AS WE SHOULD...
      1. Jesus cannot be our high priest, our intercessor!
      2. Figuratively, we’ve taken the "praying hands" of Jesus and
         "bound" them behind His back!

   C. ARE WE DOING THIS...?
      1. If so, what a travesty this is!
      2. For here is Jesus...
         a. Who "lives" to intercede for us
         b. But Who can’t, because we prevent Him from doing so by our
            failure to pray!

[Another way to be guilty of "Binding The Hands Of Jesus"...]

IV. BY REFUSING TO DO OUR PART IN THE CHURCH

   A. THE CHURCH IS DESCRIBED AS THE "BODY" OF CHRIST... - Ep 1:22-23
      1. As His body, we are individually members of one another - 1Co 12:27
      2. As members of one another, we are to care for one another - Ep 4:15-16
      3. It is through such "mutual edification", that Christ provides
         much of His help for the members of His body!

   B. WHEN WE FAIL TO DO OUR SHARE, AGAIN JESUS IS "BOUND"...!
      1. Just as our physical head can do little if our bodily members
         fail to follow its leading, so it is with Jesus and His church!
      2. Jesus could do so much more for His members, if only more of
         the members did their part!

   C. HAVE YOU EVER CONSIDERED...?
      1. That by failing to do our part, we "handicap" the body of
         Christ?
      2. That because of neglect or apathy...
         a. Either the whole body of Christ suffers
         b. Or others are forced to do "double duty" in order to make up
            the difference?

[Yes, there are many ways we can be just as guilty of "Binding The Hands
Of Jesus" today as were the religious leaders who delivered Jesus to
Pilate!  But consider just one more...]

V. BY REFUSING TO SHARE THE GOSPEL WITH THE LOST

   A. DISCIPLES ARE JESUS’ "HANDS" TO TAKE THE GOSPEL TO THE LOST...
      1. Consider Mt 28:19-20; Mk 16:15-16; 1Pe 2:9
      2. In every case of conversion recorded in Acts, Jesus used a
         disciple to tell the good news
      3. Jesus works the same way today!

   B. TO THE DEGREE WE KEEP THE GOOD NEWS TO OURSELVES...
      1. We have "bound the hands" of Jesus once again!
      2. We hinder Jesus from telling others of His wonderful grace!

   C. ARE WE "BINDING THE HANDS OF JESUS" IN THIS WAY...?
      1. Every day, countless souls die with no hope of eternal life
      2. This need not be, if more made sharing of the gospel the
         primary concern in their lives!
      3. Sadly, in too many cases the primary concern of Christians is
         the pursuit of pleasure and acquisition of worldly treasures!

CONCLUSION

1. Yes, one does not have to literally "bind the hands of Jesus" to be
   guilty of the same sort of offense that we read about in Mk 15:1; as we
   have seen, there are many other ways as well!

2. Why not today, resolve to "loose the hands of Jesus" so that in us
   and through us He may accomplish His full desire?  Which is...
   a. To save us!
   b. To transform us!
   c. To use us!

               Christ Has No Hands But Our Hands
                  ~ By Annie Johnson Flint ~

     Christ has no hands but our hands to do His work today
     He has no feet but our feet to lead men in the way
     He has no tongue but our tongue to tell men how He died
     He has no help but our help to bring them to His side.

     We are the only Bible the careless world will read,
     We are the sinner’s gospel; we are the scoffer’s creed;
     We are the Lord’s last message, given in word and deed;
     What if the type is crooked? What if the print is blurred?

     What if our hands are busy with other work than His?
     What if our feet are walking where sin’s allurement is?
     What if our tongue is speaking of things His lips would spurn?
     How can we hope to help Him or welcome His return?


Executable Outlines, Copyright © Mark A. Copeland, 2011

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