Last week, we learned that attitude allows us to:

1. Influence The three Hebrew children influenced the king.
2. Endure
   David endured in Ziglag; he encouraged himself.
3. Make the right choices
   Caleb and the scouts

Perspective is a sub-topic of attitude. We can have a worldly perspective or a Godly perspective.

perspective

A particular attitude or way or regarding something; a point of view.

I need a volunteer. Jay, would you come up here? Now, like the picture in your handout of hands holding the world, Jay is going to represent the world, and I’m going to represent the hand of God. Sometimes we feel like God is (holding Jay by the neck) right here, and sometimes we feel like we’re (holding Jay’s hand by the fingertips) dangling. But no matter where God has us, the important thing is to remember that we’re always in God’s hands.

There are scriptures that say God’s ways are high and holy and righteous, but it says here that God’s thoughts are literally not our thoughts. So we shouldn’t feel bad when we don’t understand what’s going on. God’s word will do what he set out for it to do; it won’t return void. We as humans in the flesh have a choice whether to be a part of that plan. That’s our choice: how we receive God’s words. Hopefully we will have the perspective to realize that God has a plan, and want to be a part of it.

God didn’t make anything by accident; everything is by design. We strive to overcome faults and shortcomings, but God gave them to us for a reason. He doesn’t improvise and patch things together; he builds each of us by design.

What is God’s Perspective?

So God wants us to keep his commandments. He knows what is going on, and he says “I need you to have the trust and faith to keep my commandments.” You know what? God is going to equip us to do just that.

> A happy person is not a person with a certain set of circumstances; rather a person with a certain set of attitudes.

God gave us all different circumstances. We have a choice in how we react to them.

That’s how we can show God that we love him. And God is going to help us:

So far we’ve covered:

• God’s ways are higher than our ways
• God expects us to obey him

I remember a story Pastor Thomas told. There was an established businessman, and a young man who wanted to be his apprentice. So the older man said, “You need to shave off your mustache.” The younger man said, “That’s rediculous! I’m not going to do it.” So the older man refused to mentor him. He was only trying to see whether the young man would obey him or not.

God is looking for us to have the simple seed of faith to obey him.

Who is a parent in here? Sister Ulysse, do you ever have a desire to not give your kids what is best for them? Your primary instinct as a mother is to do what’s best for them, even when that’s discipline that they don’t want.

God is our father: the perfect father, if you can fathom that concept. The natural instinct of a father is to put the kids’ needs above his own. Keep that thought as we roll this video clip.

> Video clip: “What is that?”

We’re talking about the concept of God the Father. What are a couple of lessons we can learn from this?

• God is patient with us; we should be patient with each other.
• If God asks us something constantly; we should just do it without getting mad.

God sincerely desires us to obey. Our perspective is so small and miniscule; sometimes what he asks us to do seems so rediculous. But when we do it, God is pleased.

• Sometimes ministering to people is doing th e same thing over and over again, whether it’s for the same person or for other people.

At times, doesn’t it seem like an evildoer is running by you, getting all good things that he doesn’t even deserve. That happens in the world often, but sometimes it even happens in ministry. Suppose you’re out there on base, sharing with people faithfully. But other people seem to reap the benefits.

A lot of times, God wants us to rest in his faith. Maybe God wants us to hold our tongue, and just be that testimony. “I’m content with what I’m doing.” Sometimes we have to be that “spiritual punching-bag.” There are times when everyone’s attitude toward each other won’t be perfect, whether in the church or outside the church.

When you hold your tongue, or you don’t hit “send” on that email you wrote in anger, your perspective may change a bit. I’m not saying to sit still and do nothing, but use wisdom.

What are physical things to God? How much do you really have control over? Do you have any control over the economy? Suppose you build a business: a multi-million dollar business. Can that system fail? Can your health fail? We don’t even have control over how much time we have left in this life. It could be ten minutes or a hundred years.

That’s why attitude is so important.

> Life is ten percent of what happens to me, and ninety percent of how I react to it.

> John C. Maxwell

Are we doing things with love and charity?

God manifest in the flesh as Jesus had a certain perspective, but somebody else had a different perspective:

So was it wrong for Martha to make sure people had food and water and all that stuff? No, but there was a perspective to minister. Mary’s perspective in this case was to minister. Sometimes when we go through the motions we miss a ministering opportunity.

Let’s say, Ben, you’re walking to church because the people who are doing the lawn are meeting at 10am. You guys are going to meet with all the lawnmowers, bust it out, and be ready for church on Sunday. Let’s look at three different perspectives:

1. Ben is walking down the street, and God sees Ben is faithful. “Here is a brother or sister who needs comfort; I’m going to place this person on Ben’s path so he can minister to him.”

2. Man’s perspective is, “I’m in a hurry. I’m focused; I know what I have to do. Here’s this person making eye contact with me; he could slow me down, so I’m going to walk on the other side of the sidewalk.”

3. A spiritual perspective is, “God, I’m ready to do whatever you would have me to do. The grass is still going to be there an hour from now.”

God was pleased because Solomon’s attitude was toward ministry. In this case, God’s answer was, “Okay, you’re a wise man now; I’m going to equip you to do ministry.” So people gathered from miles around to see Jerusalem and hear the wisdom of Solomon.

What should man’s perspective be?

> I may not be able to change the world I see around me, but I can change the way I see the world within me. > John C. Maxwell

Let’s look at another two people who ministered in a different way from King Solomon:

Solomon had a lot of influence, but Peter an d John didn’t have much of anything in the world. So using nothing, God worked a miracle and healed that man. How quickly do you think news of that miracle spread? God will give us just what we need to do ministry, whether that’s a church the size of ten Rock Churches, or just meeting people in the street. When you throw a rock into the water, it makes ripples across the whole surface of the pond.

Keep this perspective: We have what we need to do ministry.

> Video: The Hospital Window

Once again, there are no right or wrong answers. There are lessons we can take from that:

• He gave the man hope.
• Being able to find a positive aspect in a negative situation
• Making a friend in any situation

I think all three of those combine perfectly, because that was all he could do. He did all he was equipped to do, in ministry. He had a voice, and he used it to make a friend. God gave him just what he needed.

We hear all the time that we have to walk in the spirit. But “the carnal mind is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.” We have to walk in the spirit to know what God’s will for us can be. God is going to guide us and direct us, and he may use different things to do that.

Job had a lot taken away from him, but we can encourage ourself with these scriptures. Job was stunned; he sat for a week and didn’t move or speak. There’s nothing wrong with taking “time out” when things happen that affect us spiritually and emotionally. But what did Job do next?

We wait on the Lord and rest in the Lord. We’re not superman; sometimes all we can do is wait. Sometimes things will happen and all we can say is “God, I don’t understand what’s going on, but I know you’re in control.”

How does God communicate his perspective to us?

1. People

It doesn’t have to be a shining light from heaven.

2. The word of God

It doesn’t have to be audible to be the word of God. Sometimes we have to read it.

3. The Holy Spirit

> (John 14: the whole chapter)

Sometimes we get perspective from God’s holy spirit dealing with us.

Hopefully a story or example in this study will help when you’re trying to keep a Godly perspective.

what is God’s perspective?

• God expects us to obey
• God makes us promises and keeps them

What should my perspective be?

• We should be looking for ministry
• We have what we need to do ministry
• God has the whole world in his hands
• God is a perfect father

Attitude of Ministry, part 1 of 3

> Jonathan Santiago

Week 1: What is attitude?
Attitude is something you have all the time.

Week 2: Perspective
Perspective can change over time.

Week 3: Focus
God gives us certain things to focus on.

What God gives us to deal with, his ways and how he works things through his pastor and his truth is not always what we see as most beneficial to us. Attitude is a way in which we choose to interpret what God has for us. We can choose to interpret with a good attitude or with a bad one.

Bill Blackwell

I want to thank you for making the effort to be here tonight. From my experience, I’ve seen in the times we go that extra mile, God always honors that faith. I’m expecting for all of us to be able to leave tonight with something just a little extra from God.

Attitude is built up over time. It’s literally what we bring to the moment: every prayer, every sacrifice, everything we’ve ever done in our Christian life will determine, moment to moment, what our attitude is when we respond to something. This is what defines our attitude that people see.

Each of the three weeks as we go through, this will be a cornerstone scripture in how we see the living, the carrying out of our attitude in ministry. Rick Hahn said, “There is a distinct difference between our attitude about ministry and attitude of ministry.” An attitude of ministry comes from the inside out.

An attitude of ministry will cause us to endure only if there is that essential ingredient of encouragement. Being able to encourage ourselves will allow us to pray that next prayer. David was upset because he was being pursued by King Saul through no fault of his own. These things have taken place, and he came up on Ziglag utterly destroyed. So what did he do? He encouraged himself in the Lord.

Moment by moment in life, we take the opportunity to make different choices, to have different perspectives. Our focus will always be on some thing, but that focus has been determined by things that have taken place prior to that time. David’s perspective was predetermined by choices that he had made in days prior. That’s where he got that gumption, that ability. That’s what allowed him to endure and carry on.

An attitude of ministry will enable us to make right and wrong choices. Joshua and Caleb and ten others were sent out to spy out something that was already theirs. It had been promised.

Here was something that God had already promised to them, yet there was something that had to be accomplished. They sent out twelve spies, and all twelve saw the same thing. But only Joshua and Caleb said:

Wait a minute! It sounds like there is something that has to be done, some action that is required. But yet, what did it say in verse 27?

They arrived carrying a vine that was so great that it had to be carried between two of them. What more evidence was required? Yet we see in some of them an answer of fear. What is our Canaan today? What is the thing in our own ministry that needs to be overcome?

Let me draw a distinction between sharing and ministry. We share the gospel in thousands of ways:

• Invitation
• Being a friend
• Offering to pray
• A kind word

But there is a distinction. We can share, but maybe ministry has not taken place. Ministry is overcoming spiritual opposition. Sharing is the “front line”; it’s the first thing that happens. But when God moves, and opposition is overcome, then ministry has taken place: a demonstration of the power of God.

The ten spies who brought evil report were unwilling to see ministry happen. But Joshua and Caleb allowed God to minister.

In our attitude of ministry, we see a change in a co-worker, in a family member we’ve shared with for years. Now there is a softening of the heart, an easing of the mind, a better foundation with which to work. It’s our conversation, our attitude of ministry that allows the spirit of God to cause a shift in the spiritual perspective of others around us. That’s awesome!

Making right or wrong choices

Understand that our attitude of ministry will cause us to have influence. The greatest part of that is that it happens first in our own heart. So whatever it is that people see in our conversation, we had to be there first.

In 1996, it had been exactly fifteen years since I had last visited the congregation of Norfolk, Virginia. The church in Waukegan had chartered buses; we were getting ready to visit. I had submitted my request for time off from work. I spent literally five days prior to leaving making arrangements for all of my responsibilities to be covered. All the bases were covered. On Friday afternoon, the boss walked around passing out paychecks, and he came to me and hands me one envelope. Normally when you’re paid on a weekly basis, and you’re getting ready to go on vacation, they hand you two checks, one for the advance pay. He said to me, “Bill, I don’t think this is going to work next week.” I was stunned! I didn’t know what to do or say. So I followed him around. He got to the last person and his hands were empty; there were no more envelopes. I was scratching my head and thinking, “What’s going on here?” I had done everything that was required. So my friends started coming up to me and saying “Bill, you’ve got to talk to him. You’re right.” And it really started to fester my attitude. So I got up to give him a piece of my mind. Halfway out of my chair, the Holy Ghost said to me, “Would you rather be right or righteous?” What was that? I sat back down in my seat. The emotion was there; I was charged up to go rip this guy apart. But I stayed at my desk until I had to see the boss anyway with the end-of-day paperwork. And right when I got up, there was this entourage of important people from the front office, engineers and such, who came through the shop. If I had gotten up the first time, I would probably have been in full steam, tearing him up, in front of all those people. And it would have totally destroyed my testimony that I had built up over the years.

Two weeks after I got back from this time off, (and I did get paid; they cleared all that up after I got back), my boss stood on the factory floor and literally poured out his heart to me. I’d never heard anything like that from him. But he needed a compassionate ear – he told me some family issues and some historical things that had happened in his life. Rewind back to the moment when I was ready to tear him up. If I had done that, would I have heard him open up to me? Not in a million years.

If we develop an attitude of ministry, God will bless an honor that.

What had the king set up? It’s like, “you die if you don’t do that.” And they were put in the burning fiery furnace, heated to seven times its normal temperature. So now, they arrived at the moment with their mind made up, predetermined and settled in their heart. They knew exactly what they were going to do. They didn’t know what they would face, necessarily. Neither do we. We don’t know what challenges and opportunities we will face from day to day. So the king thought that he would have them killed, but in the process of answering the king with a made-up mind and a settled heart, what happened? God showed up on the scene. When we go into these moments and we have our minds made up and our hearts settled, God knows what we’re going through. God will always honor faith. We just have to be of that mindset and sureness to allow God to do what he desires to do for the benefit of … who did it benefit? I mean, the kind didn’t just take away the law; he completely reversed it. And notice that the honor wasn’t being given to the three Hebrew children; it was all for God. Did they get their individual personal rewards? Absolutely, they did! What kind of bolstering of their confidence do you think they had after that? How did they change? What kind of blessing and encouragement did they walk away with? So it benefitted everybody, and God got the glory.

That’s pretty dramatic! It’s miraculous to say the least.

So they were recognized. But it was all resulting from them making sure that God had every speck of glory due to his name and his power. They didn’t take anything on themselves. They received benefit; they received promotion because God chose to use the king to reward and honor and elevate and lift up and promote. Again, it was God who did that.

Let’s look at the definition of attitude. And as we do, I want you to think about your life, where God has brought you from and where God desires to bring you to.

Attitude

a settled way of thinking or feeling about someone or something, typically one that is reflected in a person’s behavior.

We’ve all come from different backgrounds. But looking forward, where is it that God desires to take us to? For Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, they really didn’t know. But they had that purpose settled in their heart: “Come what may, God gets all the praise and the glory.”

I’m looking forward to seeing the fruit. There are victories to be won, miracles to be had, prayers to be answered. Got follows us around; he walks where we walk; he knows what we think; he knows every teeny-tiny detail of our lives. So where does it stop? Is there a cap? Is there a limit?

God is the one who hung the stars in the sky; he put in us the breath of life. Where does it stop, God’s potential to provide? It’s all because of our attitude of ministry. What limit is there? What is it that God does not desire to give us? We could write a volume of stories filled with the testimonies of what God has done in our lives.

Homework: What controls our attitude toward ministry?

• Hebrews 3:13
  If we fellowship daily, that will control our attitude of ministry.
• Matthew 23:11
  Be a servant to others.
• John 14:26
  The Holy Ghost will bring to remembrance everything that is taught.
• Psalms 1:1-3
  What controls our attitude of ministry? Delighting in the word of the Lord.
• Psalms 73:17
  Come before the Lord in his sanctuary, praising him. That sanctuary is anywhere you and the Lord happen to meet. God can meet you anywhere.
• Matthew 8:24-27
  Build up your faith.

Getting this right will affect every aspect of our personal ministries.

Friday Night Men’s Fellowship

Study: Gird Thyself Up Like A Man

Jay Hunemuller

God told Job twice, “Gird thyself up like a man”. There were a lot of things that Job didn’t understand. A lot of bad things were happening, and he didn’t know whether it was God or something else. God helped him get over a little of his self-righteousness. So God helped him get an understand both the battle and his adversary. We know that Job maintained his integrity through the whole ordeal.

Is there a lot of sin and transgression against the Lord in our country right now?

It says that their righteousness will only save themselves.

We don’t know what is coming, but we do know the signs of the times. We know that sin abounds and the love of many will wax cold. But though men sin, God’s ways remain the same.

Tonight, God will challenge us in the way we think about some specific issues. I hope we go home being more aware of our thoughts and how we choose them. Just because a thought enters our mind doesn’t mean we own it. We have to claim it, whether the thought is positive or negative.

What does “gird” mean?

• To cinch or bind up
• Especially about the loins
• Keep yourself together
• Strengthen yourself

gird

The process of tucking up the long Eastern robes through the girdle to prepare for energetic work, thus figuratively, to prepare for action.

War takes a lot of preparation. When someone is in a war, they constantly have to prepare for action. In life, we have this constant cycle of preparing, then action. Are we at war? Yes, we are.

What kinds of things do you have to prepare for?

• evangelism
• answer peoples’ questions
• stand your ground
• teach a Bible study
• eat
• fight, as a boxer
• walk in the spirit
• heaven, eternity, Jesus coming back

That last is the biggest thing we have to prepare for, because we all need to be saved, stay saved, and see others saved.

That scripture summarizes all that God has done for us through the Old Testament and the apostles.

We need to be conscious of how we think. We need to not be blown around by every wind of doctrine. The easiest way to tell a counterfeit is by knowing the real thing. We have a promise in the word of God that we can bring every thought into the captivity of obedience to Christ.

We’re not talking about a revenge against other people, but putting the devil in its place. Even Jesus did it to Peter. He was angry at the devil who was causing Peter to look at things from a worldly perspective. We also read just a little bit ago about the basic things, “not according to the former lusts.”

Let’s look at something that can help us to put all of our thoughts into perspective, not just “is it sin or is it not?” There are thoughts that frustrate us. Fill in the blank:

> Oh, ___ will never change!

The truth is, you can choose to own that thought, and allow yourself to be frustrated, but I don’t recommend that. Why should you be frustrated? The truth is, things won’t change only because you won’t change them, or because you won’t change yourself. First, you need to evaluate the need for change. “Maybe I just need to change my perspective. Maybe I’m just frustrated by something that doesn’t really matter.” Or if it is a change that needs to be made, “What are my resources?”

Don’t worry about being too old. How old was Caleb? He was eighty when he said, “I’m going to kick those giants out of my land.”

You can’t change another person, but you can change how you react to that other person. And maybe that will help change that other person. There’s no guarantee, but if you give a positive reaction, negativity will flee, because you give it no place. But if you react negatively, you will activate the world accordingly.

Here’s another thought:

> I’m the only one!

Again, you can choose to own that thought, but I don’t recommend it. First of all, it’s false. But what if you were? Did God lay that on your heart? If so, and you don’t want your crown or your blessing, God will eventually give it to someone else. God may be patient with you for a time, as he was with Jonah, but how do you know if it was for such a time as this?

How about:

> Nobody else cares about ___.

How do you know, unless people tell you what they care or don’t care about. It’s not wise to compare ourselves. All any of us really knows is what God put in our heart.

Does this help get the juices going? Does this help you evaluate your thoughts? Do you have one that you want to share?

> Why this battle?

Whatever the thought, you need to put it into context and consider, “Do I really want to own that thought?”

> I can never get help with…

You can seek help. God said, “Ask and it will be given.” You can also evaluate how much you’re helping the people you’re asking for help. Maybe they can’t help you because they’re too busy doing the things that you won’t help them with.

If we don’t want to do something, what is it that we do?

• Do other things
• Procrastinate
• Turn it over to someone else
• Complain
• Rationalize (make excuses)

There are a lot of reasons why we may want to do things or not do things, and they’re not always bad. But how many excuses does it take to absent ourselves from something? How many excuses does the Devil have for us?

So when it comes to choosing what the spirit has for us, it’s all about our priorities. Jesus really doesn’t like excuses.

We know that he is a mighty God.

So hear that last line. Which ones were they who would not taste of the Lord’s supper? They were the ones who made excuses. I can’t look at you and know what God has laid on your heart, but we know what God has laid on our heart. He said in another place,

We have received this saying from our founding pastor:

> If it’s going to be, it’s up to me.

You and I don’t need worry about what anybody else is doing. Each of us need to do what God has called us to do.

Wednesday Evening Study, 10/28/09

Jeff Linger

Pastorship, Part 3/3

1. Services Expected of a God-called Pastor
2. How we should repond to their leardership and authority.

Services Expected

• Feed The Flock

The scenario before that was that Israel was backsliding, and Judah (her sister) saw it and did nothing about it. At one time, God said “I will write Israel a bill of divorcement”, but his heart was that they would come back. If you get time, read the rest of the chapter.

It’s like seeing your children take a wrong step or make a bad choice. Your heart goes out to them. You don’t stop being the parent; you long to see them restored. You as a parent go the extra step and become that parent even more. This is what God was saying. Israel was going through this bad time and going after idols, and God went the extra step of sending them pastors according to his own heart.

A God-sent pastor is going to have the heart of God, and is goingto give us what we need to live a successful, spiritual Christian life.

We see that Paul was telling the church what breaks a pastor’s heart. He pours out his heart, and looks out over the congregation and sees strife and division. He knows that he needs to fix those problems. He feeds the flock.

Paul wrote to the church that he desired to feed them spiritual things, but he couldn’t. The pastors have a desire to feed us at a spiritual level. I’m thankful that they’re able to teach at that spiritual level. But all these divisions were happening.

Feed the flock. Paul talked about “for the time, you ought to be teachers, but have need that someone teach you again.” I don’t remember everything I ate at every meal, but each meal gets me to the next one.

When the pastors feed us, they are trying to get us to the point of being able to receive the strong meat of God. It’s like coming into the military. You start out as an E-1, but the Navy doesn’t desire for you to stay as an E-1. In fact, if you don’t move up, after a while the Navy will kick you out, because you have become of no service.

There is a time when we’re just starting out in God and we’re only nibbling at the many topics available. You’ve got to constantly learn and study in order to be able to teach others. If you tell the same story all the time, people will get tired of hearing it. Paul was addressing the issue that we need to reach a higher level. Milk won’t keep you strong for long. For me, I like to think I work hard. I need that strong meat to survive. As we’re out there struggling and breaking those strong bands that try to bind us, we need that strong meat.

This is an example of teaching doctring for the stability of the church. If somebody doesn’t study their rate, never picks up the books, they’ll be labeled as ignorant. But here, Paul says “I would not have you to be ignorant.” He was talking about a certain issue that he wanted them to understand. Sometimes the pastors have to do that. We often take it for granted, because some of the basic things that we have learned, if you try and talk to people on the outside about them, they’re clueless.

There’s a lot of issues out there; the pastors don’t want us to be ignorant. I’m thankful that we have an education program. It’s totally amazing how God can bring out his word and make it relevant to the situations in life.

We’ve got the charge. Timothy received the charge. I don’t know if there was a horn blown or a gun going off, but he got a charge from Paul. And the charge was, “Preach the word; be instant in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort.” That charge is still alive and being taught by pastors and teachers today. That’s why we’ve got to study, because we never know when people will ask a question. No matter how silly the question, we’ve got to be able to take it, turn it around, and minister with it.

If we have that long-suffering, we’ll be able to endure those afflictions. I’m thankful that we have all this technology and we know when the storms are coming, but spiritually that’s not always the case. It’s not like you can flip to the channel guide and see what temptations are coming next.

> “I’ve heard twenty Bible studies on baptism!”

Good. You might hear twenty more this year. Sometimes, when we don’t go over topics for a while, we begin to forget them. So we take these refreshers, and the next week we’ll find somebody asking about them.

• Be Available To The Congregation

We know that being available is a sacrifice. It means that we have to put things on hold, perhaps. They never know when they’ll get that call, “Pastor, I need help; I need prayer; I have this situation that’s bothering me.”

That scripture alone has a lot of teaching in it. Paul is saying, “I’m not seeking what you can give me; I’m seeking your own welfare.” He compared it to parents who lay up money or their life. I have a woman at home who says, “I have no life. I spend all my time on my kid.” I told her, “You have more life than many people.” I pray it changes her perspective.

Pastors don’t mind being available. It’s not like they wake up and say “Oh, man! I wonder how many phone calls I’m going to get today. I hope nobody calls me!”

We’ve all been in situations where we feel like we’ve gave more than we’ve been given; where we’ve loved more than we’ve been loved.

Paul longed to be there, to fellowship with them, that their mutual faith could be shared. At this time, Paul wasn’t able to, but we see his heart.

That’s what we do; we come together to comfort and edify. And pastors are working to make sure that this environment is available.

Some people, when I begin to talk to them, I realize that they don’t know their pastor. Some of them don’t even know his name. But I’m thankful for this environ

• Provide Spiritual Counsel

There was a warning going on, with tears and teaching, and warning, and spiritual counsel. I like that word “spiritual”. This wasn’t some opinion from Time Magazine. And the end of that spiritual counsel is to build us up and give us the ability to receive an inheritance.

What was the counsel here? He told them to shun profane and vain babblings. He says that they will increase unto ungodliness. He says first, “Timothy, I want you to keep studying.” That’s spiritual counsel. Why? Because you’ll be able to rightly divide the word of truth. And every spiritual counsel will be rightly divided from the word of truth.

I love this spiritual counsel. We need to keep hearing this one: Abstain from all appearance of evil. Satan tries to make evil things look “cool”. He gives sin an image that we often would think would fit with our life, but it doesn’t. The spiritual counsel that Paul gives here is to abstain from it.

How We Should Respond

How should we respond to leadership and authority? What are our responsibilities?

• We all need a pastor

There are many people who come to church faithfully, but have never come to the realization that they need a pastor.

David acknowledged that he had gone astray. We all have gone astray. What’s the remedy for that? It’s having a good pastor who will make sure to shepherd us. The whole job of a shepherd is to lead the flock and make sure none of them go astray.

God knew what the eunuch was reading. God knew that he didn’t understand it. So God, being right on time, sent Philip. These days, God might send a pastor in a car. God provided through Philip, and God provides today through pastors.

A lot of people think they don’t need a pastor. I tried to give a guy at work a bulletin on pastorship, and he said, “That’s okay, Jeff. I know it all.” I didn’t know what to say to that. We all need to know more. God could easily have spoken directly to the eunuch, but God has a plan, and that plan includes pastors. In that time, his plan included Philip.

Who is “he” in this scripture? Paul is referring to God. We have all of these positions today, for the same reasons. How should we respond? We need to be listening, because we need to be more perfected, more help to the ministry, and more edifying to the body of Christ.

We are a family; we work together to see this body perfected and edified. God could do it all, but he reveals his secrets to his servants the prophets, so they can tell the people.

• Reverence and Respect for Pastors

That’s a good perspective to keep. There is no power but God. Sure, the pastor has power, but he gets it from God.

So if we’re doing what we’re supposed to, we don’t have to worry. If we give honor where honor is due, we’ll have a good relationship with authority. We won’t have to be afraid.

I have a lot of respect for pastors, because they’re called by God to cut out the sin and remove it.

What was the issue with Korah? The Levites started out respecting authority, but somewhere along the line, they lost it.

There are a lot of people we give honor to: parents, dignitaries, a lot more. But Paul was saying that pastors are worthy of double honor. That puts a little heavier weight on how we should deal with them. Their job is one of spiritual sacrifice for God’s people.

As you find time, read the following:

> * 1 Corinthians 4:15-17 > * Galatians 4:8-16 > * Hebrews 13:17 > * 1 Timothy 5:19

• Provide for Their Needs

(That’s us)

We’re not talking about physical needs like clothes, cars, houses, and so forth.

If you’re a farmer sowing seed, you expect crops. With all the labor and sweat, I guarantee you, he is looking for a return.

That’s their job. Read verse 11 again:

That’s the job of a pastor. He does all these things so that we would be spiritually well-fed and cared-for. He pours out his heart so that he could see a congregation filled with spiritual things.

Love

> Bob Vincent

What is love?

There are many different kinds of love, ranging from simple preference, as in Jacob’s love of Esau’s savoury meat, to the love between David and Jonathan that the Bible called “greater than the love between a man and a woman.”

Gary Chapman, author of The Five Love Languages, wrote:

> Love is the most important word in the English language – and the most confusing. … We use it a thousand ways. We speak of loving activities, objects, animals, nature, people. … We also use the word love to explain behavior. “I did it because I love her.” That explanation is given for all kinds of actions. … What is loving behavior?

Robert Heinlein, in Stranger in a Strange Land, wrote:

> I’ll give you an exact definition. “Love” is that condition in which the happiness of another person is essential to your own.

In this study, we’ll be talking about the particular type of love that results from a conscious decision to place someone else’s needs and wants above your own.

This is the type of love that is a reflection of God in us, not a reflection of our physical desires and emotions. This is the type of love that is described in the thirteenth chapter of Paul’s letter to the Corinthians. This is the special type of love that the Bible calls “charity”.

Love is Long-Suffering

How long is “long”?

Men and women who fall in love sincerely believe that theirs is the love that conquers all, the love that spans a lifetime. But research shows that this initial euphoria lasts an average of about two years before disappearing completely. The “falling in love” experience isn’t long-suffering. It isn’t even short-suffering. It’s being swept away by the emotions of the moment. The long-suffering comes later, after the newness has worn off. Even so, the task of loving someone isn’t necessarily painful. The original Greek word translated as “suffers long” merely indicates spiritual patience:

3114, Strong’s Greek Lexicon

to be long-spirited, i.e. (objectively) forbearing or (subjectively) patient.

Love is Kind

How kind is “kind”?

The Old Testament teaches us “the golden rule,” that we should do unto others as we would have them do unto us.

But loving-kindness goes beyond this reflexive “do unto others” rule. It goes beyond “putting yourself in their shoes.”

When you “put yourself in their shoes,” you aren’t considering the other person; you’re considering yourself. It is as if you made a copy of yourself and moved that copy into the other person’s shoes, replacing their thoughts, feelings, and emotions with your own. It’s a good start, perhaps, but it doesn’t go far enough. Loving-kindness means doing the things that would please the other person, not a mirror image of yourself.

Love is Considerate

In order to truly consider one another, to reach out to them and develop that best of all personal relationships called “love,” we have to communicate. It isn’t enough to simply imagine, “How would I feel if I were in their place?” You aren’t them and they aren’t you. We’re all different; God made each of us unique.

Often the best way to find out what someone needs is the simplest. Just ask, then listen. In his book, Gary Chapman gives example after example of people who are unhappy because they failed to communicate. Most communication failures happen not because we don’t talk, but because we don’t listen. Someone says “I want this; I need that,” and we filter their words through our own value system and reject what we judge to be unreasonable or trivial. The other person naturally feels hurt, because we have effectively told them, “Your desires aren’t important to me, except where they resemble my own.”

David wrote:

Love is Risky

When you truly love someone; when you place their wants and needs above your own, you take a great risk. You invest time and effort and trust in someone who is just as frail and human and failure-prone as yourself, with no immediate hope of reward. You risk the possibility that your investment will never be rewarded. You risk rejection and humiliation. You take a chance that this other person might not love you back.

In Mister God, This is Anna, Fynn described the difference between being “safe” and being “saved”. He says of Anna, a four-year-old child:

> This was her way of being saved. … She would stand some distance off, run toward me, and launch herself at me. The run toward me was deliberate and active; the moment after her launch she was completely passive and limp. She made no effort to help me catch her, no effort toward her own safety. Being safe meant not doing these things at all; being saved meant trusting in another.

The other day someone asked, “Is it safe to tell you something?” I answered, “It’s never safe. I respect and honor your willingness to trust me, but trust always carries risk, and you have to decide for yourself whether the risk is worth the reward.”

That doesn’t mean you should be afraid of the risk, but you should be aware of it.

Every investment carries with it the risk of failure. But the risk of failure is a necessary ingredient to success. In any situation where you are not allowed to fail, neither can you truly succeed. You shouldn’t be afraid to take the risk, because even failure carries with it the seeds of future success; it teaches us to do better the next time.

Love is Forgetful

Paul wrote that love:

I think he should have added, “forgetteth all things.” When you truly love someone, you turn a blind eye to all their past mistakes and faults and failings.

As the song says, “He looked beyond my faults and saw my needs.”

We should love one another as God loved us. A focus on the past, whether good or bad, won’t supply that motivation forever. As the Haitian proverb goes,

> All that is good is written in sand; all that is bad is written in stone.

In order to truly love someone, we must, like God, maintain a hope for their future.

Love is Unconditional

As Pastor Paine said, If you give, you’ll get, but if you give to get, you spoil the getting.

Love doesn’t carry any strings; it has no limitations. When we say “I love you” only in response to desirable behavior, that isn’t love; it’s negotiation. Love isn’t about negotiation; it isn’t a contract.

Often those who aren’t blessed with great ability or beauty or wealth are most in need of an outward show of love.

Love is Complete

If something is worth doing, it is worth doing well; if it isn’t worth doing well, then it isn’t worth doing. And the only way to love well is to give it your all.

Love is Rewarding

Ultimately, love does conquer all, but only if we continue therein.

Jesus promised that even love toward our enemies will not go unrewarded.

Notice that it says “shall men give into your bosom.” This is talking about a reward here on earth, not just in heaven. In some ways, the true measure of our ability to love can be measured by our love toward our enemies.

Love is Transforming

Anyone who has been in love or has been around someone who is in love knows what a dramatic difference it can make. Why is this? Gary Chapman uses the metaphor of a “love-tank” that each of us has inside. When we feel loved, the love-tank fills up. As we experience the trials and tribulations of life, the love-tank gradually empties. He writes:

> Psychologists have concluded that the need to feel loved is a primary human emotional need. For love, we will climb mountains, cross seas, traverse desert sands, and endure untold hardships. Without love, mountains become unclimbable, seas uncrossable, deserts unbearable, and hardships our plight in life. … The emotional need for love … is fundamental to our nature. It is at the center of our emotional desires. … We will need it as long as we live.

Love is Godly

I believe that God gave us that need for love so that we would be forced to reach out to each other. God wants us to learn to love each other in order to be more like him.

That need to reach out, to connect, is what drives the spread of God’s word.

The Bible says that Christians are known by their love for each other:

Let’s Love One Another

In order to reach our full potential as individuals and as Christians, we need to love each other better. Love doesn’t come easy. It takes effort; it takes patience; it takes communication. Love means taking risks; it means letting go of the past; it means laying it all on the line and giving everything you’ve got. But in the end, love is always worth it. Because love truly does conquer all.

Putting those last two scriptures together,

I can do all things through love.

> Pat Mahoney

Pastor Davis used to say quite often that the best testimony is the one that’s lived. I think about religion and the impact it’s had, especially on the Western world where I live. They look at God as being created after Man’s image, for his own purposes, such as control of the lower classes. When people see a testimony, it makes a difference. It made a difference to me when I met people who went to church and lived a testimony away from church, even when they didn’t think you were listening.

Pastorship, part 2 of 3

This isn’t how to become a pastor; this isn’t the training course. So if you missed last week’s study, don’t worry; you’re not going to miss out on a certificate on that account.

1. Pastors are Accountable to God

Accountability

Subject to giving account; being answerable to; responsible

Pastors are responsible for something more than a job. It’s kind-of like a job, but it’s not something they can take vacation from. It’s a seven-days-a-week, twenty-four-hours-a-day obligation. The accountability is positive, from a desire to serve, not negative, from God’s pointing finger. The accountability is something that pastors take on gladly, out of a desire to shepherd and feed the flock of God.

So pastors are going to give account to God, having a higher standard to live up to. They should be blameless in all of the things that the world considers to be normal and ordinary: they are not idolators or drunkards or rioters. They live a life that has been cleansed.

A: Pastors answer to God, not to the congregation

Let’s look at the commission that applies to all of us, but especially to pastors, who are solidly committed to admonish the congregation. That’s why we sit before them on Sunday mornings.

So every time the pastors stand before the congregation to deliver a message, that is a warning and admonition from God. I know that I’ve heard the same message on the same topic preached dozens if not hundreds of times, but each time I have to stop and ask myself, “What didn’t I hear the last time?” The pastor isn’t there for himself, but to give a message to deliver a soul from the power of Satan. That is his burden.

The pastor wants people to be solidly grounded on the word of God, so that when they’re out there dealing with the lions, they won’t be taken. The pastor’s burden is to watch always, not sleeping at his post.

That repetition is not to bug us, but to remind us.

Let’s look at some men who did not have that calling on their lives:

The point is who is called and who is holy. Pastors have a special calling that is from God. We don’t all have that calling to lead and guide each other. There are certain questions that you will hear from time to time that it is not up to you to answer, even if you know the answer. Spiritual counsel and guidance is the pastor’s responsibility. If we labor in the ministry and have our hand to the plough, we should have that spiritual communication line with God to know the difference.

Instead of rising up indignantly and saying “This is my authority”, Moses fell on his face.

Now in the law, it talks about offerings, and who could offer and who could not. To offer strange fire before the Lord was considered an abomination. So Moses said to them, “You go ahead and offer this fire, if you think it’s right in God’s eyes to do so.”

So they were already ministers, but they said, “I want to be the top dog. I want to be the same as you, Moses, in authority and power.”

If you read on, you’ll find out what happened to them. Korah and Dathan and Abiram became like burnt match-heads, and as for the rest of their company, the earth opened up and swallowed them whole. So we have this example to show that pastors do have an authority that comes from God.

B: Pastors are answerable to God for our souls

Pastors seek things that are profitable for us; they seek to build up and edify us. In the Old Testament, they called the judges “gods” with a lower-case “g.”

If you go before the judges, you shouldn’t take lightly their anointing of God.

Absalom was a man who waited outside the gate to turn the hearts of the people away from their established leader, and if you read the story, you’ll find that it didn’t go well with him. One of David’s mighty men killed Absalom for trying to subvert the authority of the king. In this same respect, the pastors have been given authority, not as slave-drivers over us, but to speak the word of God and teach it appropriately.

Pastors, have been given much, in the way of authority and responsibility. So the weight of punishment for a pastor who neglects his responsibilities will be much greater than ours.

C: Pastors have the oversight of the flock

Pastors wear a lot of hats, but they also have the authority to delegate. They are responsible for teaching holiness, and they are accountable for those under them.

In the Old Testament priesthood, there were a lot of things that had to go on in the sanctuary. Moses just couldn’t do it all in the time alotted. Everything had to be done a certain way. And today, God would also have things done in decency and in order. That direction comes from the top down, not from the bottom-up.

We’re going to look at two men who were roughly on the same level of authority. As we read this, we find out that pastors are also accountable to each other for their own ministry.

When James came, he sat and ate with him. But when some Jews came, he said, “You guys stay here; I’m going to go eat with the Jews.” Peter had already received a vision from God teaching that he should call no man common or unclean, but he had started to fall back on his own self-righteousness.

This was an open rebuke because it concerned everyone there, and they all needed the correction lest anyone should be confused. If it had been a simple matter of administration, probably it would have been handled privately, and nobody else would have known.

D: Pastors are responsible for the vision of the ministry or congregation

We know the vision that has been cast for us, because the pastors have told us.

It’s up to the pastors to blow that trumpet; it’s not up to us. We can “vote with our feet” by leaving, but it’s not up to us to cast the vision.

Paul had a big vision. He wanted to go into Asia, though the Holy Ghost forbade him for a time. The pastors likewise have a big vision. They don’t sit around waiting for God to send them; they have things that they want to do, and they bring them before God in prayer. Some of those things, we see happening right now. One of the big visions is to see a ministry established in every place in the world where the Navy goes.

Pastors don’t serve for fear of accountability of what will happen if they don’t; they serve for the love of the church and for the love of the calling that God has placed on their lives. It’s not a drudge to serve under such a calling; God won’t place a calling on your life if it’s not something you will accept. Sure, you may feel unworthy; the pastors have to rely on God just like we do.

2. God’s Intent and Purpose for Pastors

A: For the edifying of the body of Christ

All those things may work together, but the pastors fulfill a lot of those roles. A pastor can be a prophet, an evangelist, and certainly a teacher. The pastors have those gifts for our sakes, and certainly there are things that we won’t receive except through the pastors. The Bible doesn’t go into specifics in this regard, but I know that there are certain things that I’ve pondered in my own life, that if I hadn’t heard it from the pastors I never would have figured it out.

B: To restore and feed the flock

Restoration: to set people free. The gospel will make us free; the truth comes to us through the word of God, through a pastor. I sat in a couple of different services before I got saved, but the people who taught me in studies were students of the pastor. All of the things spoken of in this verse are either administered directly or delegated by the pastor.

God saw that people had to have a pastor. They took their faith and turned it into religion, and the God wanted to give them pastors to restore them. God’s relationship to the church is something he wants the pastors to recognize and understand. God has a relationship to the church that is like a marriage; we may not recognize and understand that relationship, but the pastorship does. Even if the number saved, “one of a city and two of a family” is not a lot, God still wants to save them. Even though we may backslide and fall or leave the ministry, God through the pastors welcomes us back in if we’re willing.

C: To present every man perfect to Christ

Paul understood the nature of his calling. I’m thankful that he did. Paul wrote much of the New Testament, and he had an excellent grasp of just how we should deal with our “humanness”

Paul had an idea of what we would suffer, not from anything new, but from our human condition. He had a fervor for us to be saved, and wanted to make people perfect and acceptable to Christ.

D: To speak in Christ’s stead

Even in the face of physical punishment or death, they wouldn’t back down from what God had spoken to them. They did what they knew to do; what Christ would have done. Christ spoke through his testimony of healing, and so Peter and John did the same. Since the Pharisees weren’t doing likewise, their jealousy and hatred caused them to bring these men before the council. Like Peter and John, the part of the pastors is to speak the word of God without compromise or partiality.

The part of an ambassador is to pass on a message from the authority, without changing it.

The pastors are called to speak in Christ’s stead, not from their own understanding, but being led of the spirit for our edification. The pastors are accountable to Christ to speak in Christ’s stead, as though he were standing there for us.

Be a Man!

Jay Ugali

We’re talking about putting on the whole armor of God.

How are we going to stand? By putting on the whole armor of God. We’ve got to make sure and put on the whole armor, not just a part.

How many of you guys are glad to know the truth? Isn’t it the most wonderful thing in the world? Our job is to go out and share that with people.

In order for us to be strong, God wants us to know his word.

I look at it as a hard thing. That’s really important. We need to make sure that we find ourselves continually in his word. We have to study his word, because if we don’t, we won’t be able to share with people.

How many of you guys have a delight? He doth meditate when? Sunday and Wednesday night? No, God wants us to get to know his word and build our relationship with him. Once we know, then we have to do it.

So this person heard the word and did it. Where was his house built on? A rock, right? Because he did it.

We’ve got to get out and evangelize so that people will hear the word. But it says here,

So we’ve got to hear his word and what? Do it.

The scribes knew the word of God, but they didn’t do it. Sometimes we wonder, “What can I do to make sure my teaching ministry is growing?” You’ve got to know the word of God and be led of his spirit. Every time we go out to do ministry, we’ve got to be led of his spirit.

What is the title of the Bible study? Be a man. But he that is unskilful in the word is a babe. Do you classify yourself as a meat-eater or a milk-drinker? Forget the milk; I want the meat.

You have to look into your life. If you find yourselves being bored as a Christian, you have to look at yourself. If you find Bible studies boring, why? You should have faith, every time you go into it, “God I’m going to get something out of it.” One day in the One-Stop Bible Shop it was just three people: me, Pat, and Clarence. We had a good time! We were loving it.

(manifest myself to him)

We have to know his commandments; we have to do them. We have to be willing and obedient. Not just willing, but willing and obedient. One time in Waukegan, I just said, “God, what would you have me to do?” Rick Matzack was in the kitchen, so I helped him out in the kitchen. That was fun, so I said, “What else, God?” Then Pastor Saniatan had me answering the phones. So I started answering the phones. I got to talk to people from all over the world. Anything else, God? All the carpets needed shampooing. One time I walked down into the basement when they were stripping and waxing the floor. Oh, my! All I saw was yellow spots all over the place. So I went to Pastor Saniatan and asked, “You mind if I just do that job?” He said okay, and I got to minister. The Bible says,

If you find it boring, you need to watch yourself. Every time I’ve put my hand to ministry, I’ve received a blessing.

Ooh, that’s a big thing for David to do at that time. What was his job? To tend the sheep, right? And here’s Jesse asking him to take food to his brethren.

So we see that David was just a deliverer of food. He wasn’t a part of the army. We have to find ourselves being useful for God. If you just wait for something to happen, it won’t ever happen.

Gee, these were supposed to be in the army, and they were running away. Imagine if our men did that, in the Marines.

I love David’s attitude. “How dare they talk about my God like that!” I imagine David looking around at the army and wondering, “Why are they so afraid?” When you got baptized and went down into the water, did anybody tell you what you’d be doing for God? How many of you knew exactly what would happen? None of us. You know why? Because we probably would have run away. We’re not meant to know. We don’t want to do a work for God; we want to stay home and watch football and play video games.

Man, he’s not even getting support from his own brother! He’s worried about David’s sheep. Should he be worrying about David’s sheep? No, he should be worrying about that giant down there. Sometimes we get like that. “What about this brother? What about that brother?” We need to worry about our own ministry. We spend too much time worrying about what someone else is doing.

Everyone was against David. “Shut up, David!” Are we encouraging a brother or discouraging him? Think about it.

What did David have in mind? “I can.” What did Saul have in mind, the leader? “You can’t.”

So you see what happened after that, he fought him and beat him. For time’s sake, I’m going to jump ahead.

So David tried the armor, and it was like a little bitty kid trying on his Dad’s clothes.

Check out his boldness in the next verse.

David was not afraid; he ran towards the giant. And he said, “I’m going to take your head,” even though he didn’t even have a sword; all he had was a sling.

So David slew him with a stone, but was the job done? No, because the Philistine army was still there.

Oh, man! All this with just a stone. You ever see the little kid version of David and Goliath? This is the man’s version. Don’t settle for just knocking him down; finish the job! It’s time to be men, right?

There were all these men following Jesus, right?

So what do we have to do? Am I telling you that you’ve got to go to your mother and say, “I hate you?” No, I’m not. How many know the story of when Jesus was missing for a few days and his mother and father came looking for him? What did he say? The same thing I say to my Mom when she asks, “Jay, when are you coming back to L.A. to visit?” “Mom, I’ve got to be about my father’s business.”

I’m not telling you that you’ve got to go sell your house, but you’ve got to count the cost.

Serving the Lord takes everything. This isn’t like High School; it’s not a popularity contest. So I’m encouraging everybody; continue to study; get into the word; meditate on it day and night. That’s when God can use you. We all work together; it’s a team effort. Everyone needs to do their part. The Bible says that we are one body but many members.

I pray that we continue to be faithful in whatever we do now. Whether it’s working in financial ministry or going out there and cutting grass, the Bible says that if we remain faithful, we will have our reward.

Pastorship, part 1 of 3

Jeff Linger

I’ve been talking to a young man at work named Teddy during lunch break. Today we got to talking about pastorship. We learned that the word literally means “shepherd.” A shepherd was a job that was kind-of at the bottom of the market. It was a dirty job, not one you would send your kids to college for. The term “pastor” wasn’t often used in reference to Aaron and the Levitical priesthood. It’s interesting that the word we use today traces back to such a humble occupation.

Appointment by God (Anointing & Position vs. Calling)

A true God-called pastor has a job that carries a greater responsibility than the mere position. A Biblical pastor is someone who looks out for your soul. Our perfect example in anything is Jesus, especially when it comes to leadership. He was sent by God, so his leadership models what pastors are supposed to do.

Pastors are no different from anybody else; they don’t have any bragging rights. What makes them difference is their calling and their passion.

Realize that we are all saved by the grace of God. Any ability or calling that we have is God-given. We can’t brag like we are all that – God isn’t impressed.

Abraham was called and appointed by God. In his life, he had to come out of a very idolistic culture, even in his own house.

Definitely, pastors are on the front line of our faith. God called Abraham when he was seventy-five. At that time, you aren’t going to be thinking of anything but putting your fishing-cap on and retiring. But that’s when God called him to do something. There was a spiritual calling that God had on his life, but he had to separate himself from his father’s house and his country. He could have said, “Thanks, God, but I’m too old. I have my family; I have too much stuff.” I’m thankful that pastors today don’t give the excuse of being too old or having too much stuff, but go where God sends them.

You don’t see titles over these men’s names calling them “Pastor Abram” or “Pastor Moses”, but God called them for a specific job.

Wait a minute! God started out saying “I will deliver my people,” and then he said, “I’m going to send you to do it.” Moses just came out of Egypt. I’m thinking that going back in wasn’t his specialty. So Moses did a little back-pedaling, but in the end, he did what God told him to do. And we may, in the course of our calling, do a little back-pedaling, but it’s in our best interest to do what God has for us to do.

If God has a desire for me, and he is using a man to fulfil that desire, it’s in my best interest to lift up his hands. We’re a family here, of all different types and personalities and interests. But God has called a pastor to pastor all of us people, and some of us are hard to work with. In my time, pastors have had to do some chiseling on me like you saw in the movie on Wednesday.

What about Samuel? God called Samuel, and if it was all about qualifications, Samuel wouldn’t have been called. I don’t have anything against education; we have an in-house college, and I’m thankful to work with it. But if education is what it takes, Samuel is out of the picture.

There a lot of concepts we could pull from this. Eli, like the religious world, had grown callous toward the will of the Lord. Samuel didn’t have a great education, but was called while he was just a child. I’m sure that later, working with the priesthood, he received an education. Eli wasn’t doing what God had required, for he let the lamp of God go out in the house of the Lord, which wasn’t supposed to happen.

Some of you think, “I can’t be a pastor, because I didn’t come from a family of preachers. In fact, I didn’t come from a family of church-goers at all.” Is there an example of God calling somebody who didn’t have this type of background?

So Amos wasn’t one of those guys who you look at saying “Look at that guy picking sycamore fruit! That’s pastorship material! Look at him herding!” But God saw his heart, and how he did his job, and God called him. This wasn’t something that Amos was preparing for all of his life. He wasn’t in preparation for it. It’s just like the guy who I work with. He’s spent years and years in preparation; he already has one master’s degree, and he’s working on his second. He’s saying “After that, I’m ready to go for my divinity degree, and then I can start teaching.” I’m like, “Okay, but hopefully you’ll get a chance to teach one or two people along the way.”

In the Old Testament, you knew who was the high priest by the clothes that he wore. But today you know by his heart.

Position vs. Calling

• Education comes after the calling.
• Colleges don’t produce pastors.
• God produces pastors

Example: King Saul

King Saul had a position. He became a king only because the people wanted a king, so they could be like all the other nations. That’s not what God wanted; God wanted to be their king. But the people kept complaining to Samuel, “We want a king”, so God gave them one.

Wow. That’s the whole scenario. It wasn’t about what God wanted; it’s about what the people wanted. I’m thankful that we’re not gathering together to decide who should be our pastor. Frank said to me the other day, “Tomorrow’s the big day! We’re going to vote on our pastor; if he doesn’t do a good job, he’s outta there!” But that ties your pastor’s hand. It doesn’t allow him to preach with conviction. Voting in a man-called pastor will give you:

• Worldly Judgment
• The Will of the People

If God puts a pastor there, you’re going to get what God wants. But if the world puts him there, you’ll get what the people want. Men-called pastors won’t preach with conviction; you’ll lose more than you will gain.

They’re losing out because the people picked King Saul to be there. That’s what happens. But I’m thankful that in this ministry we have God-called pastors. God put them there, and we’re benefitting. Look at all that Israel lost by having a man-called leader. I’d rather have a pastor called by God.

Holding a Position

Scribes and Pharisees were people who held a position. And Jesus points some ways that they were just there to hold a position.

I’m thankful that our pastors are called by God, and they realize that they have to set an example.

That’s all about position.

Now, let’s look at David, a godly king. This is what happens when God calls somebody, though he be a young man.

Wow. That’s amazing. Here it is, the big day; Samuel the big prophet is coming to Jesse’s house, and he brings all of his sons except for David. Where’s David? He’s not even in the house; David is keeping sheep. So here’s Eliab, probably a big guy with big muscles, and even Samuel thought he would be the one, because he was looking on the outward appearance. And so it was with the other sons. But when David came in, he didn’t have to convince anybody of how good he was; God just said, “That’s the one. Anoint him.”

People pay a lot of attention to how well you can speak, but some of our pastors didn’t go to these theological schools to learn how to speak.

A Sacred Calling

When I say the word “sacred,” what do you think?

• Sacrifice
• godly
• precious
• valuable
• An item that is protected

Pastorship is a sacred calling. When God calls pastors, they can’t live just any way they want to.

When God called the priesthood, he told Aaron and Moses to make for them special clothes. He called them “holy garments.”

So even by the way God made clothes for them and dressed them, ti was a sacred calling. We understand now that the holiness is in the inside. But God decided what would make them look different. That’s important. It’s not for man to decide how to look different; that’s for God to decide.

I was at work in the Navy and a guy said, “Linger, I like you. I don’t know why I like you; I just like you.” So I invited him to a Bible study and he was too busy to come. So when I got back he asked, “How was it?” I was like, “Oh man! The Holy Ghost just moved! You should have been there!” And he wished he had been there.

He pretty much severed his relationship at that time. When he boiled their oxen, that was their livelihood. So here was Elijah, with a sacred calling. The mantle was the representation of that calling, and he passed that on to Elisha. When you look for someone to continue after you in your calling, what will you look for? You’ll look for someone who has a heart and a passion. Only God can know these qualifications in your life.

God’s Calling vs. Our Own Will

• Jesus didn’t want to suffer in the flesh, but he did it for our souls.

If Jesus didn’t go to the cross; we wouldn’t have salvation, but he did. What God did for us is truly amazing; you can’t put it into words.

We’ve had a lot of messages on Jonah; Pastor Paine loves preaching on Jonah.

What did Jonah do? He went the other day. Brutha got on the boat, went the other way, and we know the story. He got swallowed by a great whale, repented, and got spit out on Nineveh. We see that Jonah had a calling that wasn’t his will. I hope that we don’t wind up in the belly of a whale, but God might put us in a position where we don’t want to be. Sometimes pastors get put in that kind of position, and they’re willing to do whatever God calls them to do.

Saul, otherwise known as the Apostle Paul:

First of all, I don’t think Saul at that time was somebody that I’d want to invite out to church. He was going around and persecuting Christians; he had them bound and I’m sure he had some killed. But in the midst of all that, God stopped him and said, “Wait a minute; I’ve got something for you to do.” We know what Saul’s will was; he probably was getting enjoyment out of catching these Christians and making their life hard. Now let’s look at God’s will.

God is speaking to Ananias here:

Wow! That was amazing. You see the turn here? We would have said to him, “Get out of here; I don’t have anything for you.” But God saw things differently.

Characteristics (Truthful Representation)

Examples:

• Noah
• Job
• Paul

I can’t do that justice in five minutes, but look at their common characteristics. The Bible says that we are ambassadors. Out pastors are ambassadors for Christ. What you see is what you’ve got. You go to any of our pastors homes, and what you see in the pulpit is what you’ll see lived. There will be a truthful representation of a life for Christ. You study these three people on your own time and pull out some examples of how they were truthful representations of a Godly lifestyle in their own time.

I’m thankful for pastors who are willing to make themselves available at 2:00 in the morning; who are willing to live a Godly lifestyle no matter what happens.

Friday Night Men’s Bible Study

Bruce Wilson

One of the biggest challenges we’re facing as a ministry is one we also face as a society. A lot of our leadership are being asked to do a lot more things in a lot less time. A lot of people we count on to be leaders are putting in fourteen to eighteen hour days before they even hit the pier. Those of you who are active duty, that’s not a strange thing for you, but we’re seeing the same thing on the civilian side, too. That’s just part of the economy. The whole capitalist society has its good points and bad points.

I want to talk to you tonight about our example as Christian men. I want you to think about the kind of examples we have around us in our society, and how powerful they are to those people who, without any direction in their own life, just follow that example. It might be a good moral example, but does that mean that those who follow are also moral?

What kinds of things do we come against in our daily life? You hit the ground running at your workplace, and there are people who are very influential about what happens in that workplace.

“Good morning!”

> What’s good about it?

“How’s it going?

> Same-old same-old.

As Christians, we should be aware of what we’re doing every day. We should know why we’re doing it. If there’s anything God is saving us from in this world, it’s mindlessness. I can look around me at the opportunities for action and know that I can do something, even though I’m a puny human being.

Paul talks about things that are neither clean nor unclean in themselves, but he said “I will not be brought under their power.”

There is no lack of bad, ungodly, worldly influence around us. That’s why we need armor; that’s why we have the mind of Christ. That’s why we pick up the cross and follow him. But let’s talk about the positive examples. What difference does it really make if you decide to be a good example today? If you have a good, positive attitude today, you don’t know who is going to be there. But you decide to have a good attitude no matter what else. What kind of impact does that have? Think about that, because if we don’t think about it, we don’t claim it, and we don’t hold that possibility. I think we all understand that it’s a part of our obligation as Christian men, but I want you to really think about what kind of difference it makes. I’m not talking about putting on your “Holy Joe” attitude and quoting scriptures and saying “Praise the Lord” at every opportunity. Some people get so religious that it’s debatable whether they have any influence at all.

If Jesus had just stayed at the table as they sat and reclined and ate a little more bread and wine, what kind of effect would it have had if he just said it as he leaned on his elbow at the table? What if he just leaned back and said that and everybody took another bite and said, “Yeah, Jesus, yeah.” But knowing that his example would be heard of by millions of people, he made a physical demonstration. He actually did what the servants usually do. They were all a little uncomfortable, I’m sure. He had kept talking about what would happen in Jerusalem, and they were in Jerusalem; they were not idiots. (A little slow sometimes, but they were not idiots.) Then he pulls this. Not too many hours later, they all tucked tail and ran from him, as the guards hauled him away to prison. You don’t think this example stuck with them? Absolutely it did. He needed to prove a point; he needed to give them the power of example.

Are there things that we, as men of God, as men that need to be able to give an influence to the world around us, do we not need to be providing some kind of example? Absolutely. One thing you will find in good counsel, in good understanding of the man’s proper role in the household, or in mixed company: the man takes the initiative. The man sets the example. We as men of God need to take the initiative, to set the example.

Let’s get a little more specific in your own relationships in your workplace. How do people look at you and me? What kind of report card did we get this week? The purpose of this Bible study is to get in your business. That’s what we are supposed to be doing. I’m not here to cast doubts or to rock your world, but you need a good work-out. All of us do. We need to be exercised in our spiritual thoughts, in what we’re doing with our life, our talents, our abilities. You’ve been given talents, things to do. How did you do this week? People looked at you, even when you didn’t know they were. What did they see? Did they see a good example? Did they see someone that maybe sticks out a little bit, peculiar? Doesnt’ get torqued off like everyone else? Or maybe gets a little worked up when nobody else cares? Do any of you deal with apathy at work? Nobody cares about doing more than just getting by?

When people see you, what do they see? What do they expect from you, from me? There are some people who will never like you; there’s just no winning them over. Okay, don’t worry about that one. The Bible says:

You don’t need to worry about pleasing everybody. But there are things that we should be doing, things that we need to step up to do. You might be the only one who is willing to step up and say, “Chief is right. We should be helping out more.” Everybody might look at you as a traitor, but that power of example may be what it takes to turn things around. It may be only you who has the conviction it takes to turn things around. The boss can’t do it; they can’t make you respect them. And if you don’t have a very effective boss, you’re not off the hook. In fact, you might be more on the hook to set that example.

There are things we need to do as Christians, to support the wrong things, and to stand against the wrong things. Make a stand. Is there nothing that can be improved on? Everything is just rosy? I don’t think so.

Here’s an example. A co-worker is just lipping off, maybe about the boss or maybe about somebody else. Are you just going to join in and throw some more fuel on that gossip fire? It’s something we do, just mindlessly, in our society.

What is God looking for? What is God expecting of us? Are you thinking about that as you go in to morning quarters? What can I do? What can I not do? As you lay your head down on the pillow, do you confess to God, “I know that I’ve been a woefully poor example. Help me to do better tomorrow, God.”

We have the power, but that power isn’t being tapped into. It’s like a big fancy machine that just sits there because nobody plugged it in. Is that where your example is?

You could even say, “Let no man despise thy age.” Some of us are getting to that point in the crowds we’re in. “Those young whippersnappers, they don’t understand anything.” But that’s just a role; that’s just a box that people put us in. Paul is saying, “Don’t let anybody put you in a box. You go out and be that example. If that example rubs somebody the wrong way, then so be it. We’re not trying to show anybody up here. We’re not like:

> Hey! Check out what I can do for God. Don’t you wish you could do that? Check out my faith!

No, it’s about being an example of something that you could give your life to. Day by day, it’s in being an example. We, as a band of brothers, as Christian men, are commissioned by God to make a difference in the way you carry yourself. As you go through the grocery store, a simple positive comment, I’m amazed what a difference it can make sometimes. When you’re determined to be positive and inject that into your life around you, that’s what God is looking for. And yes, you’re supposed to be taking the initiative, whether you’ve only got one stripe on your sleeve or whether you’ve been there thirty years. I made more of an impression to my boss at the second job I took by sleeping the floor than by anything else I did. I’m a couple of years older than he is. It bothered me that the floor was dirty; it’s a doggone showroom, for goodness’ sake!

Whether you’re Zeke’s age, going to school, or a little older going to college; whatever our environment, we miss opportunity when we don’t set the example for the people around us. People need that example; they hunger and yearn for it.

People might get the wrong impression about you and me at first; we’re not always the best at making a good impression at first. Thank God he gives us second and third chances. But as they get to know you, what do they know you as? A man who lives a Christian example? A man who is always ready to have a prayer with someone? It’s a pretty tall order, to be a Christian, to be like Christ. But God wants us to be successful; he is backing us up all the way, if we just let him.

This gets way beyond personality, gentlemen. It gets way beyond being a jovial guy who likes to crack jokes or being someone who is very serious and never cracks jokes. It gets way beyond being a squared-away Joe who is going to make first class or someone who will never make anything. Sometimes our personality is our worst enemy.

I’m emphasizing the manly aspect because I’m speaking to men tonight. God made us different from women. We’re called to be different. We’re not in competition; it’s unseemly and a waste of time. But what is the job we’re supposed to be doing? Guaranteed, it’s the job we’re not doing. One thing about Western civilization is that men aren’t doing the job they’re supposed to; they’re standing back and letting the women and the seniors take their place. That’s what makes it more important for us, as Christian men, to set the example.

Talking like this makes me sound like I’m a sexist. But I can tell you that there has never been a time when I’ve been moved by God to set the example and someone said, “That’s not your place.” People will be relieved when you’re doing the job you’re supposed to do. Your boss will certainly be relieved. Are Christians good servants? The best in the world, because we’re not just trying to please the boss; we’re trying to please God. Most of the people we deal with are hungry for a godly example, and you can feed that need.

The power of example:

• Tienamen Square: A little scrawny Asian kid stood in front of a tank. One person, in front of a whole line of tanks. Did it affect you? It affected the whole world, whether they understood what was going on or not.

• Nelson Mandela: An incredible story of perseverance.

• Sullivan the pilot: The pilot who did a safe water landing and saved 166 people.

• Martin Luther King: A lifetime of example.

• Pastor Davis: When I got saved, the way he used to handle the streets, and the poeple on the streets. He wasn’t afraid of anyone.

Examples: what does that do to our heart, our psyche, our attitude? It encourages us. You can be that encouragement for somebody at work tomorrow.

How about in the home? That’s a tough one, because it’s always the same-ole, same-ole, same-ole. They already have their script about how you’re going to act and what you’re going to do. Erase that script. Set the example. They’re not doing what you ask, Dad? Set the example. You want the room clean? Guess what, you set the example. You go in there and show them how it’s done. “It’s fun when we do it together!” Right, chief?

If you go in there with enthusiasm, you take the initiative, you’ll be surprised what a difference it can make.

Some of you are stuck in a rut of the routine of things, and you’re robbing yourself of the privilege of setting the example. Oh, it won’t turn the world upside down in a day, but there’s something undeniably powerful about setting a consistent, day-to-day example. Your example will change things that nobody else can change. Not the C.N.O., not President Obama, not your mama. That’s what’s so powerful about setting the example as Christian men. You’re the one who’s supposed to be making a difference. Why? Because “You da man!”

We have lost our privilege of setting the example as Christian men. Quit worrying about whether you’re old enough or young enough; just worry about having enough God in you. Start praying, fasting, taking it to heart.

Back to some more scriptures:

I don’t think this is a complete list, but it’s a very powerful list; it’s a very peculiar list. He’s trying to make the point, “Quit thinking like everybody else.” When they look at your testimony, don’t worry about last week; it’s in the past. Start with next week. They see how you handle yourself, will they say, “Blessed are the meek. Blessed are the poor in spirit.” Do they see that? Sometimes you need to provoke them to think, “Why did he do that?” Sometimes that’s an uncomfortable position to be in. The more peculiar the situation, the greater the opportunity to minister.

I’m hoping that you will spend a little time to converse with your brothers and figure out how we can be a little better example to our co-workers, to our families. The people around us are hungry for that example; they’re starving for it.

The poor in spirit? Isn’t our society all about being rich? Isn’t that the measure of your manhood, and the only reason anybody should take notice of you is because of what you’ve attained, what you’ve got? I think Jesus is saying that it’s okay not to have everything. It’s okay to sacrifice. It’s okay to say, “I don’t think those things would be very good for me, so I’m not going to go for them.”

People just want to party. They just want to chase away the blues, get rid of that bad feeling. “Here comes brother so-and-so; he’s so serious. I don’t want to deal with him.” Sometimes that’s exactly what they need: somebody who’s sober, who will give them an attitude check. “You’re not all that, just because your fantasy team kicked butt this weekend.” There are a lot of bad and unpleasant things going around in the world, isn’t there? I imagine that on every street there is something terrible going on, whether it’s to the wife or the husband, the aunt or the uncle, or the dog. There’s something to be mournful about. And there’s something that happens when we’re mournful. It causes us to do things, to say and act differently when we mourn. Mourning isn’t just being upset; it’s an uncommon and powerful thing.

God’s got your back. You don’t have to prove everything, to be the dominant “alpha” in everything you do. Don’t be a doormat, but be meek in a godly way. We’re going to inherit the earth anyway. I look at folks who spend their whole striving for this and that, but at best I’m going to live another fifty years, and then it’s gone and so are you. There’s the story about two men who were arguing about who owns this hill. A third man comes and says, “Let’s come back in a hundred years and talk about who owns it.”

Righteousness is the perfect balance of anger, fear, just enough of everything that’s needed. Do you think the world needs more of that? Do you think that your family and co-workers need more of that? We come to bring that balance. Some encouragement, some laughter, some soberness, some firm correction at times. You let the Holy Ghost get ahold of you, you might wind up correcting your boss, and he’ll thank you for it. Because that’s righteousness. Now, you’d better make sure it’s the Holy Ghost, or don’t come crying to me!

Our wold is so lacking in mercy, so quick to judge. There’s no forgiveness; there’s no willingness to admit that “I do just as badly, if not worse.” That’s the core of mercy, the understanding that “There, but for the grace of God, go I.” This world needs some mercy; it needs some good examples of mercy.

You can get mocked when you strive to be pure in heart. Sure you can, and it hurts. You can be made a spectacle of. But the Bible says it’s just fine to suffer as a Christian. In fact, that’s the best kind of suffering. You and I can be pure in heart, striving for the pure things, the best things. We can set that example. You can’t get somebody to stop cursing, but you have every right to get them to quit cursing at you. “You can use that language, sir or ma’am, but you won’t direct it at me.” You have every right to take that stand. What are some things that you need to do to be more pure at heart, and to set that example in the world around you?

Peacemakers, wow! There is so much conflict and argument and disputing, and nobody seems to care enough, hunger enough, desire enough for peace to just get beyond it. Things would be so much better if somebody would just step up and be the peacemaker. It had better be us, men. People need it. People are hungry for it.

Yeah, you’re not always going to be loved because you set a good example. Jesus said, “Don’t tell me I didn’t tell you so. I already told you that you’d be persecuted.” Yeah, we can still complain to God. We’d be better off in the long run if we get it off our chest. But people won’t bow down to you and say, “I’m so glad you’re being that good Christian example.” No, but they’ll be better off for the example you set. And that’s our role as Christian men, gentlemen. God is looking for us to be that example. God is looking to elevate our hearts, and you and I can’t be that example unless we let God elevate our hearts. Say:

> I’m going to be that peacemaker, I’m going to make that difference for God.

And people will be grateful.

You might not be in charge, but people will be grateful for the example you set. You don’t think so? Try it and see. Your teacher needs it; your foreman need it; your co-workers need it. They’re hungry for it. They’re waiting for it. They need it.

Judgment (Part 3 of 3)

Jay Hunemuller

The purpose of this three-week series is to raise our level of awareness of judgment so that we can properly evaluate how we judge ourselves and others, and so that we can as Paul said, “judge not mine own self.”

In the first two weeks, we established that:

• Jesus is the judge of the living and the dead.
• He plays no favorites.
• He requires repentance for forgiveness of sin.
• When we do repent, God won’t remind us of our past sins.
• The severity of God is to lead us to repentance.
• We choose whether to lead a repented life.
• There is nothing good in our flesh; the only good is in God.
• Human judgment is carnal; God’s judgment is spiritual.
• Human judgment is partial, imperfect, faulty, biased, immature, and incomplete.
• God’s judgment is complete, whole, and unbiased.

We’re going to look at scriptures that tell us:

• We should not judge
• We do judge
• We shall judge angels

If we understand these scriptures in context, we will see that they don’t contradict each other.

This study is about “judge not”. So how is it that we judge?

In this story, we see that Job’s friends were called “physicians of no value.” They came and fasted with Job for seven days without speaking, but when they did speak, they condemning of Job. God used the testimony of Job to judge them.

God uses us to judge others by our testimony. The life that we live and the example that we set is what God uses to judge others. We can also positively affect people with our testimony. Barlyn Uribe, and Chuck Bellairs were taking Will Aygarn home from the hospital. They were stopped at the intersection, and were struck from behind by another car. When they spoke to the driver, he said “You’re not like the other young guys.” He saw a difference in their lives.

In the questionnaire last week, we found that in many ways, we do judge many things. That’s not all bad, because God has given us the ability to judge things. We lock our car because we know human nature. We see a situation and evaluate it and decide, “This is not where I want to be.” God built into us an ability to judge. But due to the sinful nature of the flesh, our judgment is not perfect. So how is it that we prejudge others, and how do we prejudge ourselves? How can we make it better?

This sounds harsh, but it shows the importance of understanding God’s judgment. People look to us for knowledge and hope, so it’s important for us to know God’s judgment.

We study to prepare ourselves, so that we will have what we need and what other people need.

The combination of a right relationship with God that continues to grow, diligent study, and seeking will teach us to rightly divide the word of truth and discern both good and evil.

The spirit of God is the judge, and God can judge through us. We have to be in the spirit for that to happen. It could be through actions, or through a spiritual gift. But when we lean to our own understanding, that’s when we get into trouble. If we trust in God, then he’ll direct us.

Back to the story of Job: Do you think that Job’s feelings were affected by his friends condemning him? Do you think he felt pretty bad? Think how you would feel if you were laid up in the hospital and your friends said, “I don’t know what you did, but it must have been pretty bad.” What do we say when somebody hits us in the heart with something like that? What do we do when we think that someone has totally misjudged us? That’s when it’s important to not judge ourselves and not judge them. It’s easy to respond, for example in anger. Anger is a pretty common emotion. I try to suppress it, but people make me angry at times. I can count on the fingers of less than one hand the times when I’ve been angry and it was a righteous anger,

There are a lot of powerful people who trust in their heart, but that doesn’t make them right. If you trust in your heart, the Bible says you are a fool. The Bible says your heart is what? Desperately wicked. You’d be a fool to trust in something that is desperately wicked.

Sure, God can affect your feelings. If God heals you, it may make you feel great. But most of our feelings are not led of the spirit.

This is the good news; this is the other side of the coin. You can our your heart out to God. I’ve done that a lot of times. I’ve said to God, “I feel this way; it’s not right; help me out.” And God does.

Remember the sermon a couple of weeks ago on Jonah? Pastor prefaced the sermon with two statements. “Lord, I will receive this message,” and “Lord, I will submit to your will.” First, Jonah didn’t want to receive the message, and then when he delivered the message God had for him, and the people repented, Jonah got angry about it.

How many of you know that David was a man of God? How many know that he was not perfect? As a matter of fact, we have some pretty serious stories about David in the Bible. One example is the story of Bathsheba and Uriah, which we covered in Sunday’s sermon. Here we find an example of God’s judgment.

So a couple of points from this text:

• David repented
• God forgave him.
• The consequences of sin still remained.

You’ll find that everything God pronounced concerning that judgment happened. The consequences of David’s sin affected many people. In our theme scripture, Paul wrote, “He that judgeth me is the Lord.” We need to allow God to judge us, because we all need to be corrected at times.

How do we allow God to judge us?

The Bible teaches that we must confess our sins. We did that once when we repented and got saved, but God teaches us that we must continue to live a repented life. Some people say, “Why do I need to confess? God already knows.” There are two reasons:

1. First, we need to be honest with ourselves, because godly sorrow worketh repentance.
2. Secondly, if we don’t confess, God will wait until the final judgment to hold us accountable for our sins.

We are judged here, instead of waiting and letting it all happen again. We allow God to judge us now, so that we can repent as God shows us. God won’t lay on us more than we can bear. If God showed us all our faults all at once, we’d just fall down in failure. So God works with us. But if we’re not growing, we’re dying.

Remember David? He was guilty of adultery and murder, but God forgave him. There was another instance when, through an error in judgment, he was responsible for the death of seventy thousand people. (See 2 Samuel 24:15, and 2 Chronicles chapter 21) But David got over his mistakes and still lived a victorious life, by trusting in God’s mercy and forgiveness.

David didn’t have what we have; he didn’t have the grace of God poured over his life. So what do we say to Jesus on the cross if we don’t forgive ourselves? If that wasn’t enough, then nothing will ever be enough.

How can we not judge ourselves?

• Not condemn ourselves

We don’t want to grieve the Holy Spirit. If the devil brings up the past, we’ve got to tell him, “It’s covered by the blood. Talk to Jesus about it.” (See 1 Timothy 2:5-6)

• Not justify ourselves

Paul was at that level. He knew that he could neither condemn nor justify himself. All he could do was live a repented life and trust in God. Our righteousness is as filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6).

• Examine ourselves by the Word of God

How can we be less or non-judgmental of others without compromising the gospel?

We need to learn to separate the sin from the sinner, the behavior from the person. That might not be easy to do. You could probably think of things that you absolutely abhor, but frankly God sees those kinds of things in all of our lives. This guideline applies to both others and ourselves. The devil may try to bring up the past, but you are not your past, and neither is anybody else. Sure, if they stay that way, and don’t repent, then they’ll die that way. But while there’s life, there’s hope.

I’m going to use a couple of examples. Even child psychologists say to parents, “Address the behavior, not the child.” Don’t say, “You’re a rotten kid.” Say “That was some rotten behavior.” Jesus gave a perfect example, in the story of the woman taken in adultery. (See John 8:1-11) He knew that the people bringing the woman to him were just as much sinners as she was. Jesus used wisdom, and allowed them all to understand their condition without compromising God’s judgment. He let them know how that judgment and mercy can coincide with judgment without condoning the sin. He didn’t let anybody off the hook; he required repentance from everyone, including the woman: for he said, “Go and sin no more.”