Planted by Water

Psalm 1:3 And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.

A tree by a river has a continual source of water.  It will never wither away, because it is always getting what it needs.  If we are constantly needy, it may be worth examining if we are planted by the rivers of water or not.  This would also be a tree that is strong and stable, sinking down deep roots. The life of the righteous man is marked by strength and stability.

Love Never Fails

1 Cor. 13:4-8 Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,  (5)  Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;  (6)  Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth;  (7)  Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.  (8)  Charity never faileth:….

This chapter is called the love chapter of the Bible.  Of course, the word love is from the Greek word agape.  It is translated “charity” in the KJV. 

In this chapter we find a display of love, not a definition.  We must remember that this chapter does follow chapter 12 which dealt with the gifts of the Holy Spirit.  Therefore, it is logical to assume that chapter 13 tells us that the energy or fuel of the gifts is love.

Thus, a good way to see how we’re doing is to simply replace the word “charity” with our own names.  Try it and you’ll understand as I do, that we fall so short, but thanks be to God who loves us still!

Paintball with some middle school students

Love Made Perfect

1 John 4:18 “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.”

Many times this verse is quoted out of context because the previous verse says, “Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment.”  It’s primary interpretation is referring to the fact that as Christians we have no need to fear because we have already been judged at the Cross.  Of course, it can have secondary application to everyday life issues as well.

I read this illustration of the love of God several years ago, “A certain medieval monk announced he would be preaching next Sunday evening on "The Love of God." As the shadows fell and the light ceased to come in through the cathedral windows, the congregation gathered. In the darkness of the altar, the monk lighted a candle and carried it to the cross.  It illuminated the crown of thorns, the two wounded hands, the two wounded feet, the marks of the spear. A hush fell on the congregation.  He blew out the candle and left.  There was nothing else to say.”

Use Time Wisely

John 19:30 “When he had received the drink, Jesus said, "It is finished." With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.”

Psalm 90:12 “Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.”

“If you had a bank that credited your account each morning with $86,000 that carried over no balance from day to day...Allowed you to keep no cash in your account, and every evening cancelled whatever part of the amount you failed to use during the day, what would you do? Draw out every cent every day, of course, and use it to your advantage! Well, you have such a bank, and its name is TIME! Every morning it credits you with 86,400 seconds. Every night it rules off as lost whatever of this you failed to invest to good purpose. It carries over no balances, it allows no overdrafts. Each day it opens a new account with you. If you fail to use the day's deposits, the loss is yours. There is no going back. There is no drawing against tomorrow.”

Comfort One Another

1Th 5:11 “Wherefore comfort yourselves together and edify one another, even as also ye do.”

The encouragement here is not for us to “take” comfort, but to “give” comfort.  In other words, if all Christians had a heart to comfort others then all would be comforted.  The idea is that a church should be full of active participants and not passive spectators.  Hiebert says, “It is clear that in the early church that the care of souls was not delegated to an individual, but it was the work in which every believer shared.”  Paul’s encouragement wasn’t to scold them for not doing it, but to encourage them to continue doing it.

It's a Daily Decision

There is something terribly right about...realizing that our struggle with sin is in many ways similar to an alcoholic's struggle with drinking. It's never over. How often I find myself talking about sin in the past tense as if being a sinner is something I'm beyond--a page turned in the book of my life. But sin is like alcoholism. Sinners are never cured; they simply decide to stop sinning...and it's a daily decision.