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The Cornerstone
This is the Stone which was rejected by you builders, which has become the Chief Conerstone." Acts 4:11
Pulbished to Support the Work of the West End Church of Christ, Richmond, Virginia
Volume 9 * Number 32* August 12, 2007
Trying to Serve God & Mammon
Jesus plainly said “You cannot serve God and mammon” Luke 16:13, yet each day Christians often try. With one foot dabbling in the riches in this life and the other in true riches we seek to balance ourselves but we simply cannot.
Covetousness is a real problem in this day of plenty. Like the Israelites, we can find ourselves at “ease in Zion”, lying upon our “beds of ivory” and all stretched out upon our luxurious “couches”. (Amos 5:1-6) Nothing material seems to be out of our reach so we are never satisfied. “Hell and destruction are never full; so the eyes of man are never satisfied..” Proverbs 27:20
In Ecclesiastes 4:7-8, Solomon wrote of a man who labored for no apparent reason. “Then I returned, and I saw vanity under the sun. There is one alone, and there is not a second; yea, he hath neither child nor brother: yet is there no end of all his labour; neither is his eye satisfied with riches; neither saith he, For whom do I labour, and bereave my soul of good? This is also vanity, yea, it is a sore travail.” More and more service to mammon/wealth, and no service to God. How sad when Christians loose sight of why they labor and they are consumed in material things.
“Charge them that are rich in this present world, that they be not highminded, nor have their hope set on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy; that they do good, that they be rich in good works, that they be ready to distribute, willing to communicate; laying up in store for themselves a good foundation against the time to come, that they may lay hold on the life which is life indeed.” I Timothy 6:17-19
One may try to serve God and Mammon but it is impossible.
Stacy Crim
"Book, Chapter, and Verse"
--Mike Noble
For generations the cry has gone forth among God’s people for “book, chapter, and verse preaching.” We wholeheartedly agree with the sentiment believed to be behind this plea, for the disciples of the Lord Jesus seek to follow Him through the words of His “gospel” or “doctrine” (1 Timothy 1:10-11; 2 John 9). In Scripture we have “all things that pertain to life and godliness,” everything necessary to make the “man of God...complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16,17). Beyond the doctrine of Christ we dare not trespass (2 John 9), nor dare we add to or take away from its words (Revelation 22:18-19; Galatians 1:8-9). Thus the need has been stressed for the Christian to be able to put his finger on the passage(s) that would authorize his words and deeds (see Colossians 3:17). “Book, chapter, and verse” is not some mere slogan. We believe it describes the mindset of a true disciple.
Two warnings, though, are here offered to the child of God.
First, we all must take care lest this attitude toward scripture deteriorate, through negligent laziness on our part, leading to superficial study. Such will, consequently, make ourselves easy prey for the blind acceptance of unbiblical doctrines. Simply because a preacher or teacher can provide “scripture” for some doctrine he’s espousing, doesn’t necessarily make his doctrine so. Let us not forget that the devil quoted “book, chapter, and verse” in his attempt to convince Jesus of a falsehood, and men today will try the same tactic on the Lord’s disciples (Matthew 4:6). Does one come with a teaching, complete with convincing scriptures? Well and good, but do his conclusions harmonize with the rest of Scripture? “The entirety of [God’s] word is truth...,” and one part cannot contradict another (Psalm 119:160).
Further, the child of God must be careful lest he himself approach scripture with “something to prove.“ It is one thing for the Christian to proclaim, “I must have New Testament authority for all that I do and say,“ while another thing entirely to say, “I need to find book, chapter, and verse for this doctrine I’ve adopted.“ One attitude goes to the Bible seeking the Lord’s counsel, while the other approaches scripture seeking for agreement. When the latter resides in an individual, he looks for that “one passage” that will validate his reasoning. With rare exception, he will be successful every time -- to his own ruin! The Bible speaks of “those who are untaught and unstable,” who “twist to their own destruction...the scriptures” (2 Peter 3:16). We believe we are seeing as much of this today as ever before, and the Christian must beware of the temptation to approach God’s word in such a manner.
May we each determine now to be that “worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15).
&
Agape Matters
Warren King
We could say ‘love matters’, but ‘love’ means different things to different people. ‘Agape’ is not that broad. And, the Old English word ‘charity’, used in the King James Version, today implies benevolence to the poor. But, ‘agape’ is not that narrow.
It was ‘agape’ that motivated God to sacrifice His Son to die for us (Jn 3:16). And, it is ‘agape’ that prompts His children to respond in adoring obedience (2 Jn 6).
It is ‘agape’ that motivates a husband to work and devote himself unselfishly to the needs of his wife and children (Ep 5:25-29). And, it is ‘agape’ that drives a wife and mother to selflessly care for the needs of her family (Ti 2:4-5).
It is ‘agape’ that characterizes a Christian’s behavior toward other Christians (1 P 1:22), toward the world (Lu 10:25-37) and, yes, even toward our enemies (Mt 5:43-44). In fact, ‘agape’ defines the very essence of Christianity (Jn 13:35). Without it, we are mere pretenders.
Clearly, ‘agape’ matters.
&
Making Plans
A financial planner observed that most folks spend more time planning their summer vacation than they devote to planning their most important lifetime goals. That is, without doubt, a sad but true fact. How can we hope to succeed in life without planning and goal-setting? If you want to be a successful student, businessman, politician, etc. - it takes planning!
Surely this same point can be made in regards to our spiritual service to God. In fact, it may be even more true in this particular realm. We might even say that some folks appear to spend more time planning what they will do after supper on a given night than they have ever spent charting their plans for serving God. It's a sad situation, to be sure.
The problem is that we have gotten our priorities out of order. Notice what Jeus said:
"Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Where withall shall we be clothed?. . . for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you." (Matt. 6:32,33)
Do you see it? Jesus said that we ought not to worry about the things that we most often do worry about. And, He said that we should give careful consideration to our spiritual work - putting it first in our lives.
Christian, are you making your plans to be faithful to God and to be active in His service? Have you spent any time lately planning about the things that are really most important? - by Greg Gwin
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