The Fruit of the Spirit

In doing some research  for a series of sermons I am now doing on the fruit of the spirit, one of the commentaries I looked at suggested that a good alternative translation would be the harvest of the spirit.  That idea resonated with me.  When the Spirit comes to live with us, there is a harvest that becomes available to us, as we follow the Spirit’s leading.

The Spirit leads like a GPS. He’s always with us, giving nudges and directions, especially through the Word, but never forcing us to follow the lead.  Here is where our own volition and desires to follow his leading come into the picture.

It seems to me this is what Paul means when he says to the Philippian Christians, ^“Dear friends, you always followed my instructions when I was with you. And now that I am away, it is even more important. Work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear.”  Phil 2:12.  Other translations use the prhase, “work out your salvation.” The Spirit has a role, but we also have a role as we work with Him and follow his leading rather than going off on our own ways.  That rebellion often means we follow the lead of our culture rather than the lead of the Spirit.

The Holy Spirit wants to provide a harvest in your life.  Mine too.  Are we ready?

 

A Closer Look at Christ

The Fennell Avenue Church of Christ is hosting a seminar with Eric Lyons of Apologetics Press.  The seminar will be from September 30 to October 2.

Friday, September 30, 2011
7:00 – 8:30 pm                               Did Jesus Really Live?
Saturday, October 1, 2011
2:00 – 5:00 pm                               The Uniqueness of Christ
Resurrection of Christ: Fact or Fiction

Sunday, October 2, 2011
10:00 – 10:45 am                            Answering Christ’s Critics
11:00-12:15                                      Was Jesus Really God?

All Sessions held at
Church of Christ
321 East 27th St.  (at Fennell)
Hamilton, ON L8V 3G8

 

Click here for more information on Eric Lyons.

Click here for more information on Apologetics Press.

Our Wonderful Technology

How are you doing with your technology?

Technology has changed tremendously in recent years. As it changes, our attitudes and use of it, especially for communication has also changed.

In 1800, as it had been for centuries, the fastest a message (or any kind of goods) could be transmitted from one point to another was the speed a horse could run. Then came the iron horse and the telegraph. Since 1840 we have seen the telegraph come and go as a way to eclipse that speed to the point where today we have phones, computers, cell phones and other devices that give us instant communication to virtually anywhere in the world!

The screen (i.e. televisions, phones, computers and other devices) has become vital to many of us as a means of communicating with family and Friends-and perhaps even those we don’t know through mediums like FaceBook and Twitter. It is also where many of us spend our working hours.

A 2009 study showed teens spending 8.5 hours a day in front of a screen, while their parents were spending 9 hours a day and senior citizens perhaps even more. For many at least two of those hours were spent using more than one screen, say watching television while texting and/or playing a video game.

Today, we might legitimately ask ourselves if all of this technology is for us a servant or a master.  Am I spending so much time on-line that I’m not building the face-to face relationships that will have real meaning in my life?  Am I letting second best take over? Do I sleep with my phone? Do I check FaceBook first thing each morning?

Technology can be a real blessing, but we must not let it go uncontrolled in our lives.  So how are you doing at keeping it as a servant rather than a master?

(Some thoughts based on material in The Next Story: Life and Faith After the Digital Explosion by Tim Challies)

What’s Your Net Worth

What’s your net worth?

That’s a common question to hear or read, especially if you spend time around financial planners or those who write about money.

I was thinking about something different though. Jesus said for us to store up treasures in heaven. Now, thinking about the treasures you have in heaven, what is your net worth? What’s in your heavenly bank account? (Mt. 6:19)

No Condemnation

Paul begins Romans 8 with a bold statement when he says, So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus.

Looking at each word, “So” or “therefore” means that this is the result of what he’s just said. “Now” tells us that it hasn’t always been so, but now it is.

No condemnation, literally not one condemnation. Not guilty

For those in Christ Jesus. Who is “in Christ?”  With the idea of letting the Word explain itself, we just need to go to Gal 3:27 which tells us that we were baptized into Christ, put on Christ.

When I hear the message of this verse, I’m reminded of a girl who was the daughter of a wealthy European family.  She had a big, bulbous nose that in her eyes destroyed her beauty and resulted in her seeing herself as an ugly person. Finally her family hired a famous plastic surgeon to change the contour of the girl’s nose. He did his work, and there came the moment when they took the bandages off and the girl could see the results. The doctor saw that the operation had been a total success. All the ugly contours were gone. Her nose was different. When the incisions healed and the redness disappeared, she would be a beautiful girl. He held up a mirror for the girl to see, but so deeply embedded was the girl’s image of herself that when she saw herself in the mirror, she couldn’t see any change. She broke into tears and cried out, “Oh, I knew it wouldn’t work!”

It took six months before the girl would accept the fact that she was indeed an attractive person, and it wasn’t until she had accepted this fact that her self-image and behavior began to change accordingly. So it is with those who are “in Christ.” We must accept our new identity and the blessings we have “in him.”

Japanese Relief Efforts

Our good friend and brother, Joel Osborne lives and works in Mito, Japan. He formerly lived in Sendai for several years.  I am copying his latest written report which relates his visit back to Sendai.  Joel says,

Hi Everyone,

The last week and a half has been quite full – I still haven’t had a chance to do anything to pick up my bedroom after the quake, but slowly our house is getting put back together.  We continue to have regular earthquakes and aftershocks, and they estimate this will continue for another two months.  Japan has moved a full 2 meters east – that’s a big shift.

Atsushi and I got a chance to catch up and he has suggested practically dividing our responsibilities in a way that allows things at Mito church to continue running smoothly while also allowing Mito church to be fully involved in the earthquake/tsunami relief.  I am so thankful for his partnership.  He has a lot on his plate, yet he has also been particularly helpful in trying to shape a direction.  On Monday, the Ibaraki ministers gathered for our monthly meeting – the first since the March 11 earthquake and tsunami.  Including lunch, it lasted 5 hours, but it was good to hear and understand the current situation of each church.  A committee was formed to decide how to use the money that Mito church is holding in trust for the funds being received from outside of Japan.  Junichi Uzawa and I will go to the Tokyo-West preachers meeting on Monday as representatives of the Ibaraki-North meeting.

Burning of the Qur’an

On March 22 Terry Jones publicly burned a copy of the Qur’an.  As you are aware his act motivated violence among those who believe the Qur’an.

Acts like this tend to make the Muslim world paint all Christians and the western world with the same brush.

In the west we often want leaders of Islamic faith to stand up and decry terrorists.  I think it is a fair expectation if they want us to believe that their faith is not synonymous with terrorism.

Using the same standard, I believe we ought to speak out against Jones’ act and let our Islamic neighbours know that his actions don’t fit with Christian ideals.

Consider what Jesus says in Matthew 5:43–48. (ESV)

⁴³“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ ⁴⁴But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, ⁴⁵so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. ⁴⁶For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? ⁴⁷And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? ⁴⁸You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

As we have opportunity let’s make it clear to everyone that when one does these kinds of things he is not representing the values that our Lord teaches.

How do you show love for your enemies?

Can I be Righteous?

Jesus challenged his followers to have a righteousness that is greater than that of the Pharisees (Mt. 5:20). What does he mean by this?

To some this may seem impossible.  After all the Pharisees had developed hundreds of laws to help them attain righteousness. When Jesus spoke of this righteousness (having right standing or relationship with God), he doesn’t mean that we should develop more rules and laws than the Pharisees did.  Actually, in many ways their laws stood between them and having a relationship to God.

After all it was their laws and concepts about the Sabbath that brought them into conflict with Jesus.  To him there were things that were more important than all of these laws.

The Origin of Faith

Greg asked an interesting question in the study of Hebrews last Sunday.  It went something like this.  Is faith an action on our part or a gift from God? We didn’t have time to get into it.

What is your answer?

The question can be supposed to be from two theological views.  Do we believe (have faith, trust, give loyalty to God) and from that salvation comes or does God save us and then grant us faith?

Two different points of view are held by those who call themselves Calvinists as opposed to Arminians.  If you aren’t familiar with those terms, perhaps this will help to clarify. Arminianism is often so called because of the teachings of Jacobus Arminius or his followers, who teach that Christ died for all people and not only for the elect (while Calvinists would hold that Christ died for the elect). That may be too simple an explanation, but I hope it’s helpful.

Does all of that seem a far stretch away from Greg’s question?  I suspect it is, but this is the framework that some would give to the question.

The White Flag Man

I have copied this post from Jay Guinn. It is both thought provoking and it fits well with the sermon from last Sunday, especially the challenge to live the identity of Jesus each day.

Fabulous story from The Sacred Sandwich (you should click the link for the full text of this brief, well-told story) –

The White Flag Man was a fellow by the name of Peter “Petey” Hopkins who every morning at sunrise would go out and hoist up a white flag on a flagpole in his front yard and then take it down at sunset. He started doing it around fifty years ago, not long after his wife and three-year old daughter died in a tragic car accident, and as far as anyone could tell, he never missed a day. At least not until last week. …

But Petey Hopkins had made a point every morning when he awoke that he would surrender himself to Jesus Christ. …

Perhaps it was a cheesy ritual in an outward sense, but for Petey the act of running up a white flag was a gesture that created the perfect impetus for the day. It fixed Jesus in his mind as soon as he left his bed and became the catalyst for his actions and thoughts throughout each waking moment. …

Among the many heartwarming accounts: On the hottest days of the year, Petey was often seen toting jugs of cool spring water to the parched farmers working in the fields; he personally brought a box of groceries to Marge Whittle every week for three months until she found another job; he saved the Hobson boy from drowning in McGonigle’s pond and in the process almost drowned himself; he volunteered his time and tools to help Harvey Cline rebuild his mule barn after a fire; he prayed many times with Jim and Pam Snelling when Pam got terminal cancer and would often drive her to chemotherapy when Jim was at work; and more significantly, he talked about Jesus Christ to Pat Toomey, Ray Bob Smith, Bonnie Sharp, Lori Henderson, Jack Lutcher, Cliff and Janelle McElwee, Thelma Butterworth, Wilson Pratt… well, you get the picture.

This reminds me of a similar story told by Ray Vander Laan.

During Roman times, a Jewish rabbi approached a Roman army camp. As he came near, a soldier step in front of him and barked, “Who are you? Why are you here?”

The rabbi responded, “How much do they pay you to ask such questions?”

The soldier, startled by unconventional response, answered, “One denarius a day.”

The rabbi said, “I’ll pay you twice that if you’ll stand outside my house and ask me those questions every time I leave or enter!”

Questions: Does any one here have a daily ritual to remind you to surrender to Jesus? If so, what has been the impact on your life? Can you relate similar stories about others you know?