“The Love Problem”- By Clint Patterson

Hello, friends and family! I would like for you to consider something for a moment. If I were to ask you to write three things you loved the most in this world, what would be the top ‘3’ on your list? No doubt family, friends, and hobbies would most likely make the cut, but how many of us would have truthfully put the Lord and His kingdom in our elite love selection?

The reason I bring this up is because there seems to be a love problem in the church. When you love something, you will devote your time and resources to the upkeep and betterment of that particular thing, item, or person. For example, good parents will sacrifice anything for their children even if it means they do without things. A good soldier will lay down his life for his country in order to protect her, and the list could go on and on. True love is a sacrificial love.

Consider God; Romans 5:8 tells us that God demonstrated His own love toward us that while we were still sinners Christ died for us. John 3:16, the well-known and often quoted verse, shows us this same type of sacrificial love that God has for the world. God’s love is that type of love that is described in 1 Corinthians 13. His nature, as well as Christ’s nature is love (1 John 4:8), and He calls for us to have that same type of love for Him and our brethren ( Jn. 13:34-35; Rom. 13:8-10; 1 Jn.4:7-21). However, too many times when it comes to church related functions that would serve the overall good of the kingdom, our love diminishes for God as the pursuit of self becomes more important than pursuit of God and His kingdom.

 If we want to grow our love for God into the sacrificial love He has for us, then we need to spend our time and resources on doing such; for remember where our time and resources are, there our love is also. We need to spend more time with God in prayer. We need to give more of our time in fellowship and service to the Lord’s church. We need to give our monetary resources to further the Lord’s kingdom. We need to diligently study God’s word, while looking for ways to put what we have learned into action. Most importantly, we must always remember the great sacrificial love that God showed us in the willing sacrifice of His precious and perfect Son.

So from now on, ask yourself from time to time where God and His kingdom fall on your love list. Doing this will only show you where your love is for God but will also help you make sure God and His kingdom stay in your number one spot, thus keeping the love problem at bay.

 May we all strive to love God more than self, and always remember the love He has for us. Oh, and I almost forgot, always remember it is all about Jesus (Col. 1:15-18)!

A Selfless Resolution

As we approach the end of 2011 and the start of 2012, many have undoubtedly begun to think about, and possibly have started, their New Year’s resolutions. As I was pondering this topic, it occurred to me that most people’s resolutions revolve around self- centered pursuits, or in other words, ways to better self. Most resolve to do better in the New Year with regards to finances, eating habits and exercise. Some pledge to dissolve a bad habit they have been practicing over the past years; others vow to use their time more effectively, and on and on the list can go. However, while these resolution pursuits in and of themselves are not bad, none of them focus on the benefit of others. So the question I propose is, “What are you going to do for others this New Year?”

In Philippians 2, Paul encouraged the Philippian brethren to strive to have a mind like Christ. This mind, or mindset that Christ had, was that of a selfless servant. Paul, in verse 4, tells the brethren not to look out only for their own interest, but also for the interest of others. Paul then proceeds, in verses 6-8, to give the greatest example this world has ever seen of selfless servitude. “Jesus, being in the form of God, did not consider his equality with God something to be grasped, but made Himself nothing, taking the form of a bondservant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even the death of cross” (ESV). This selfless act of servitude is now what brings salvation to all men who obey God’s gospel. (1 Cor. 15:1-4; Rom. 6:3-14) Imagine what our world be like if Jesus only looked out for His own interests…

What are you going to resolve to do this New Year? Why not follow Jesus’ example and resolve to make a selfless resolution to serve others, instead of yourself. You may be surprised with the happiness you will find!

“A Moment’s Choice”

The moment is where our choices take place. They can either be moments that we spend making choices that will help our faith progress, or moments we spend making choices that will lead our faith to a dark end. It seems we forget how valuable the moment truly is, for we spend our moments without ever asking ourselves, “Are we making choices that will progress our faith, or choices that will kill our faith?” What if we had the ability to look ahead and see where today’s moments led; what if we found that a choice we made today led us to fall away? John 12:1-8 records a choice two individuals made in their moments with Jesus. One’s choices led to life while another’s choices led to death.

Mary, the sister of Martha and Lazarus, is the first individual we will observe. Mary appears three times in the Gospels (Luke 10:38-42; Jn. 11:28-32; Jn. 12:1-8). Every time we see Mary, she is always found at the Master’s feet. Her choices led her to submit herself under the feet of the Master (Luke 10:39, 42). Her choices led her to confess a great faith at the feet of Jesus (Jn. 11:32). It led her to value Jesus more than a bottle of perfume that was worth a working man’s yearly wage (Jn. 12:3). It led her to offer her hair to dry Jesus’ feet. Mary’s choices in her moments with Jesus led her to life.

Judas Iscariot is the next individual we will observe. Judas is found multiple times in the Gospels (John 12:4-6; Matt. 26:14-16, 25, 47-50; 27:3-5). Unlike Mary, Judas’ choices led him to steal money from the Lord. It led him to sell Jesus (Matt. 26:14-16). It led him to betray Jesus (Matt. 26:47-50). And it eventually led him to kill himself (Matt.27:3-5).

How are you using your moments; and what choices are you making? Mary’s choices led to life; Judas’ choices led to death. Where are your choices leading you? Are you heading towards death, or heading towards life? The moment is now; make the right choice.

“Surrender to Win”

“Never surrender” is a phrase that has been around for many years. It has been screamed out by men of war; it has been used to motivate sports teams to victory; it can be found in entertainment; and it also has been used by many boys pretending to hold off a fierce attack of world-dominating creatures. This phrase has been a part of almost every person’s life at one point or another. I can relate to this phrase, for I grew up being one of those boys who had a wild imagination. Nevertheless, while the world shades this phrase with honor and respect, the truth is that there is more to life then the physical battles we face. There is a spiritual warfare that is taking place as well, and in order to win, we must surrender to God and fight no more.

2^nd Kings 21 is an account of Manasseh’s reign over the southern portion of the divided kingdom of Israel. Manasseh, the son Hezekiah who was a devoted man of God, was nothing like his father. Instead, Manasseh spent his days in absolute rebellion against God and His Law, and if one read only 2^nd Kings 21, he would think this is where the story ended. However, 2nd Chronicles 33 fills us in on what 2^nd Kings leaves out, and here we find a wonderful example of someone surrendering to win. Due to Manasseh’s sinful ways, God allowed Him to be carried away by the hooks of his enemies. When he arrived in enemy territory, instead of looking to heaven with a high hand toward God, Manasseh humbled himself and prayed to God. God heard Manasseh’s prayer and brought him back to his country where he spent the rest of his life serving God (2^nd Chron. 33:10-17).

If Manasseh would have lived by the phrase, “Never surrender,” with regards to God, he would have died as a captive in a foreign land. Because he surrendered, he was delivered. In our life, we will face battles where we need not surrender, but with God, we must surrender to win!

“I Am A Duck”

René Descartes, the famous French philosopher, said, “I think, therefore I am.” Now this philosophy, if logically followed, could lead a man to say, “I think I am a duck, therefore I am a duck.” We all know that a human being can not be a duck, no matter how strongly he may desire it. The sad thing about this example, even though it is funny, is that it can be found in the lives of many religious people today. I have known people to profess that they were Christians; however their lives did not match with that statement. Nevertheless, we have seen from the example above that just because a man thinks something that does not make it true.

Many of the Jews had this very same issue when it came to their religious worship of God. Because of their ‘illustrious’ beginnings as God’s “chosen people,” the Jews trusted in their nationality and the sign of the covenant by circumcision as their replacement for worship and justification instead of giving their hearts, which involves the whole being, over to a compassionate, loyal, and just God (Malachi 1-3; Isaiah 1:13, ff).  The Jews thought that because they were Jews by birth, they were automatically a part of God’s saved Israel. However, Paul, in Romans 2:28 – 29, states that a Jew is not a Jew based merely on outward things such as circumcision, flesh, and nationality but is a Jew based on things inwardly such as the circumcision of the heart and the spirit of doing God’s will by faith.

This concept still applies to us today, for God never changes. Just because someone says they are a Christian based on their claims, thoughts, or actions does not make them a true follower of Christ. What makes them a Christian, and a part of God’s family, is their willingness to deny self, pick up their crosses, and follow Jesus (Matt. 10:38). For in Christ, the only thing that matters is an obedient faith working through love for God (Romans 1:5; Gal. 5:6b; Eph. 5:1-2; I Thess. 5:15-20; I John 4:7-8).

“Count Blessings or Sorrows?”

Recently the United States celebrated “Thanksgiving.” On this day, many traveled far distances in order to share a day of thanksgiving over a spread of food that would make a king salivate. Unfortunately, not everyone spends this day counting their blessings; instead some do the opposite and count their sorrows. One may ask, “Why would people want to spend their day focusing on what they lack and not on what they have?”  Not everyone knows how blessed they truly are, therefore they spend their time focusing on the negative things in life instead of the positive. So, the question is how does one remain thankful even when it seems there is nothing for which we can be thankful?

In order to be thankful, one needs to cultivate a thankful mind set; that is, find areas in your life for which you can be thankful. A good example of gratitude can be found in the Apostle Paul. Paul, at one time, was known as one of the “big up and comers” amongst his Pharisaic Jewish Brethren (Gal. 1:14, Phil. 3:4-6). However, when he was converted to Christ on the Damascus road, the elite status he held now turned into deadly thorns in his side (Acts 9:1-16, 22:6-16; 2 Cor. 11:22-27). Nevertheless, Paul, instead of lamenting over his losses, focused on the things he had gained in Christ (Phil. 3:7-11). If one spends much time in his Epistles, one will find this to be true. Paul wrote Philippians, a letter which emits joy and thanksgiving, while sitting in a Roman prison. In this letter, we find Paul’s key to cultivating a thankful mind set. In Phil. 4:4-9, Paul says to pray with thanksgiving while focusing on the things that are excellent in life. Counting blessings is better than counting sorrows, and scientific studies have proven that thankful people are healthier than those who are not thankful.  The plus side is that we all have areas in our lives we can be thankful for regardless of what our lot is in life. Therefore, we should give thanks every day, for we are blessed!

“Self- Help, Really?”

It’s seems like every time you turn around you see someone promoting a new “self–help” book. These books claim to hold the solutions to a variety of life’s problems. However, what surprises many is that they never really help you solve the problem. They merely teach you how to handle the difficulty better or suggest ways to handle the symptoms. In other words, they put a Band-Aid on your bullet wound, and say “You’re all better now!”  While man tries to come up with solution after failed solution to fix their problems in life, The Bible has been giving the right solution for almost 1,800 years.

2 Timothy 3:16 states “All scripture is inspired by God.” Unlike man’s literature which is thought of and produced by man, the Bible is produced by God. 2 Peter 2:20-21, says… “No prophecy of scripture comes from someone’s own interpretation. For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.”

God gave man the ability to record His word because He loves us and wants all to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth (1 Timothy 2:3-4). He wants to teach us about the abundant life that is found in His Son (John 20:30-31). He wants to correct, reprove and train all men in righteousness so that we can be completely equipped for good works. (2 Timothy 3:16b-17). God knew what we needed, and He acted. However, we must faithfully respond to His word (John 3:16; 2 Thess. 2:14; Rom. 10:17; Rom. 10: 10; Acts 2:38; 1 Peter 3:21; Rom. 6:3-5). 

Men have desperately tried to come up with a solution to the problems of life, and sadly, all the attempts have failed. However God has the answer to man’s problems, and they are recorded in His divinely inspired book. If you want to help yourself, allow God to help you for He is the only one that can give you a solution to the problems of life, and He freely gives the solution to all.