The Carpenter's Chapel (6)

Wednesday, 2nd March, 2005

Why do you serve God?

Simple enough question, isn't it? We could come up with many answers.

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• Because its my job, I'm a preacher.</font>

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• I want my church to grow.</font>

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• The Bible tells me to do so</font>

Sadly, if we were honest they might be some more subtle, hidden reasons.

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• If I don't, Pastor will be knocking on my door.</font>

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• I don't want to look bad.</font>

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• It makes me feel good to do my part.</font>

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• I want to be considered a success.</font>

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• If I serve God He will bless me.</font>

God's Word is very clear on what our motivation should be. In 2 Corinthians 5v14 we read:

I love this old King James word "constraineth." It may not mean much to our 21st century ears and it may roll roughly off the tongue, but I think it captures best the meaning that Paul intended under the Holy Spirit's direction. Some versions use "control" or "compel" and I suppose they are fine, but I prefer this word "constraineth." The old Webster's dictionary defines it this way, "To compel or force; to urge with irresistible power, or with a power sufficient to produce the effect." I heard a preacher one time describe this word with the idea of water being forced through a tight channel. The idea is the thing which "pressures" us to serve the Lord.

One of the worst pressures we can put on ourselves to serve the Lord the self pressure. If we ever put the wrong kind of pressure on ourselves to serve we will not live up to the expectations.

However, if we are driven, compelled, and pressured by the love of Christ we learn to just keep on serving. When we have that kind of "constraint" we will never stop serving. We are driven not by a cruel taskmaster, but by the love of Christ, the same love that resulted in Him being "...moved with compassion on them, because they fainted..."

Lord, remind us of what is our constraining force. Help us to be driven on by His love, not by human pressure, not by peer pressure, not by self pressure, but by the love of Christ, through which He gave Himself for us on the cross.

 

Thank you Jim,

Prayer is so important in the Christian life and walk. It is sad that we needed to be reminded of it.

God Bless

Sheila

 

Friday, 4th March, 2005

2 Corinthians 5v14

Lets pause for just a minute and see what the we are being told here. We are motivated, compelled, indeed constrained by the love of Christ. Just how great is this constraining love? His love was so great that He died on the behalf of all mankind.

How should we respond to this great love? By seeing ourselves as dead now to the things and the appeal of the world around us. The translators of the Geneva Bible put it this way in their notes:

These thoughts are not exclusive to this passage, "Since you are risen with Christ set your affection on things above," "...looking not on the things which are seen, but the things which are unseen," etc. This present world should have no appeal to those who are dead to the world. Paul wrote in Colossians, "You are dead and your life is hid with Christ with God," In Romans he writes, "Reckon, or account, yourselves dead to sin." In Colossians again we read, "You are dead to the rudiments of this world..."

If we are indeed dead men to the world, motivated and constrained to the things of the world, why does it have such a draw and appeal to us? Sadly, we too often allow ourselves to be drawn away and distracted by our flesh, which begs us to give it attention.

O Lord, help me today to see myself as dead to the rudiments of this world, rejoicing that my Saviour died allowing me to be dead to the world in Him.

 

We are in the world, but the world is not home. Thanks Roger.

 

Saturday March 5, 2005

Jesus heard that they had cast him out; and when he had found him, he said unto him, Dost thou believe on the Son of God? He answered and said, Who is he, Lord, that I might believe on him? And Jesus said unto him, Thou hast both seen him, and it is he that talketh with thee. And he said, Lord, I believe. And he worshipped him. And Jesus said, For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind.
And some of the Pharisees which were with him heard these words, and said unto him, Are we blind also? Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye should have no sin: but now ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth.
(John 9:35-41)
Then Jesus comes to him in the presence of some of these same Pharisees and introduces Himself. Remember the blind man had heard Jesus' voice, but up to this point had not seen the Master. Now Jesus asks the most important question in this mans whole life: Does he believe on the Son of God?
Please note the difference between healing and salvation. Many people were genuinely healed of various ailments, yet few are recorded as actually accepting Jesus as their Saviour. The ten lepers save one, were too busy to thank the Lord for their new lease on life. The maniac of Gadera and Mary Magdalene were the exceptions. This man healed in John 9 is ready to believe and Jesus clearly identifies Himself as the Messiah. (9:37) Imagine the healed man's joy as he realizes that he is standing with Jesus, the Son of God! Verse 38 gives us the insight to the meaning of "worship". It is not a formal service we attend, but it is simply giving glory to God! Their is no certain level of emotion mentioned, rather the choice of honoring God above our own selves.
Now Jesus explains that as He comes to bring salvation and a home in heaven, there is also a negative side. Those who reject Him will find judgement because they are "blind" spiritually. This is true of the lost, for many consider themselves morally good, only needing a little help from God. Jesus makes clear that man apart from God is blind and unable to find heaven. A blind man in Jesus' day was totally dependent upon the mercy of others to live. Judgement will come to those who reject the "Light" and therefore continue to dwell in darkness. John 3:19 "And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. 20 For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, either cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved."
The Pharisees that had followed Jesus now ask: "Are we blind also?" We don't know the sincerity of their question, but the answer is the same: since they were trusting in their own self-righteousness, instead of the work of God for their salvation, their self-righteousness was blinding them from seeing the first great requirement for God's salvation: their own sin. Let's contrast the 2 groups of blind people:
1) The blind man who the Pharisees said was "born in sins" (9:34) trusted Jesus' Word and received sight ("one thing I know, that, whereas I was blind, now I see." (9:25)
2.) Now the Pharisees believed they were the true keepers of the light, but trusted in their own knowledge and keeping of the law, were blind to their own sin!

 

Sunday March 6,2005

Chapter 10

Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear his voice: and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out. And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice. And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers. This parable spake Jesus unto them: but they understood not what things they were which he spake unto them. Then said Jesus unto them again, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep. All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture. The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
(John 10:1-10)
Remember that the question Jesus answers here in chapter ten was asked by the Pharisees in 9:40: "Are we blind also?" Not only does Jesus affirm their thought, but He gives an example of the shepherd and the sheepfold. It is said that if you travel to Israel today, you could still see working sheepfolds. They are built by a city or group of shepherds to protect the sheep at night. Built of stones with sharp objects on top to deter thieves or wolves, it has only one opening in which the porter (a night watchman) guarded himself. This allowed the shepherds a night at home in their own beds for most of the year. By using a sheepfold, it was only during summer droughts that a shepherd would be forced to go long distances from home to find green pastures. Luke 2:8 speaks of "shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night." Either it was poor shepherds who couldn't afford to pay a porter, or they were away from home in search of green pastures when the angels came. Now in the text Jesus takes this common object of a sheepfold and declares some truth about Himself. The first truth that Jesus presents s that He has come the proper way as the Good Shepherd. It is obvious to all that the door was the only right way to enter the sheepfold. It was the job of the porter to restrict access to only the true shepherds. Jesus came in the legal, proper manner as He fulfilled all the Old Testament prophecies regarding the Messiah. He was born in the town of Bethlehem (Micah 5:2); He was born of a virgin (Isa.7:14); of the seed of David (2Sam. 7:8-17); a rod out of the stem of Jesse (Isa. 11:1). J. Vernon McGee notes that "By the time Jesus came, the royal line of David had dropped back to the level of the peasant. There was no royalty anymore. Jesse had been a farmer down in Bethlehem. In fact, he raised sheep. His son, David, had the anointing oil poured on him, and that line became the kingly line. But when the Lord Jesus was born, He was just a branch out of the stem of Jesse, the peasant. Jesus was simply a carpenter and wore a carpenter's robe. How accurately prophecies were fulfilled!" (p.429) Only Jesus could come legally into the sheepfold. Not Abraham or even Moses!
Even these Pharisees, did not have God's authority to lead His people. They were as thieves and robbers preying on the sheep instead of nurturing and helping the people. Jesus described them in Mt. 23:13: "But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in. 14 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For ye devour widows houses, and for a pretense make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation. 15 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves."
The second truth is that Jesus, as the Good Shepherd, knows His sheep. Shepherds lead their sheep while ranchers "herd" or push their cattle. He has gone before us, not asking us to go where He has not. It is a relationship, not just outward obedience that s the key. He knows each of us by name! To become a child of God you must have a personal decision to accept God's gift of eternal life which He paid for with the precious blood of Jesus. It is an individual decision. Grandma's salvation does not have a group policy that covers all the kids. You must accept Christ personally. Once you receive Him, John 1:12 promises: "But as many as received him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name." Also notice 10:4-5 that the sheep "know His voice." If you don't know for sure if you are saved, then you must not be one of His sheep! By the way, sheep are pretty dumb animals; they wander into dangerous places, but they still know His voice and when He gathers them back to the sheepfold, they will follow Him out. They will flee from "the voice of strangers." Someone who sits comfortably in a God-denying, liberal church ought to examine which voice they're following.
The third truth Jesus presents is that He is also the Door of the sheepfold. As the Door, Jesus is our access to the Father. Later He would declare "I am the way...no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." Today, Jesus would be called narrow and intolerant of other religions. Baptists have historically stood for freedom of religion, yet they have never accepted the ecumenical call for unity at the expense of Biblical doctrine. Jesus is still the only way to heaven!

 

Tuesday, 8th March, 2005

We are not too far from St Patrick's Day, and this little poem attributed to him fits into our current discussion of 2 Corinthians 5v14-20.

There is no real strong evidence that these are the words of St Patrick, but that does not detract from the thoughts expressed which I think really summarise 2 Corinthians 5v15, "And that He died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto Him which died for them and rose again"

We find here another motivation for service tied in to the first motivation. We are constrained by the love of Christ, that is obvious. We should also be motivated by the result of that love - "He died for us..." What are you willing to do today for the One Who died for you?" What am I willing to do today for the One Who died for me?

Lord, remind us today of words attributed to St Patrick. May Christ be;
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• In the heart of every man who thinks of me</font>

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• In the mouth of every man who speaks of me</font>

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• In every eye that sees me</font>

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• In every ear that hears me</font>

 

Jim,

Thank you for all your contributions in this thread. I have found them a real blessing.

God Bless you,

Sheila

 

Amen, I'll second that.

 

Thursday, 10th March, 2005


"Seeing others in a new light"

2 Corinthians 5v16

Here we read some memorable words. "Because of all the Christ has done, because we are dead to the world through Christ," Paul writes, "from now on we do not look at men after the flesh..."

O, how foreign that thought is to most of us. We tend to judge men by our first visible impression of them. We see a poor beggar on the streets and think "Why don't you get a job?" We may see a troublesome teenager and think, "What's wrong you, you little punk? Why don't you get your act together?" We see a pregnant girl considering abortion and may think, "You wouldn't be that way if you had any morals."

On the other hand we see someone of great wealth and influence and think, "Man, you have it all. I wish I had half of what you had."

Here we read of an entirely different mindset. What do you think it means to "see no man after the flesh?" From the context I think it is clear that we are to see men with the eyes of Christ. How did He see the world? We mentioned earlier that when Jesus saw the multitude, the dirty, smelly, filthy multitude, knowing that they would reject Him and call for His death, that He was "moved with compassion" for them.

Today Father, help us to the world of men, not through our eyes, but through eyes of our Saviour!


and I agree with the previous posters, Jim

 

Amen. Thank you Roger.

God Bless

Sheila

 

Thank you Roger!

 

Saturday March 12, 2005

I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep. But he that is an hireling, and not the shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf coming, and leaveth the sheep, and fleeth: and the wolf catcheth them, and scattereth the sheep. The hireling fleeth, because he is an hireling, and careth not for the sheep. I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine.
(John 10:11-14)
The Greek word used here for "Shepherd" is the same as for "pastor" The Lord Jesus, therefore was saying, in effect: "I am the good pastor: the good pastor giveth His life for the sheep (that is, 'for His flock')." A good pastor is, thus, one who leads his flock into good pasture, who knows his flock, and is known by his flock. A good pastor would even give his life for his flock (vv.1-16)
However, this is not merely a term for the leader of a church congregation. The term and the concept are sufficiently broad to include all those individuals (teachers, military officers, parents, etc.) who have leadership responsibilities.
In all such cases, our guide and example is our good shepherd, our good pastor, our good leader-the Lord Jesus Christ. With this in mind, consider some of the other Biblical references to our good shepherd: "Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind.; Neither as being lords over God's heritage, but being ensamples to the flock. And when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away (1Peter 5:2-5)
Note also Hebrews 13: 20-21: "Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you perfect in every good work to do His will, working in you that which is well pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever."
Most every Christian, at least on occasion, must assume the function of a spiritual shepherd, and every Christian, always is spiritually a sheep. The Lord Jesus is our good shepherd, and we Do well to follow Him in all things.
Jesus gives a fourth truth from the example of sheep. The Master now reminds them of the difference between shepherds and hirelings. As the "Good Shepherd," Jesus is willing to die for His sheep while the hired worker cares not for the sheep, just for his own welfare. Look at the life of David, the young shepherd. He explained to king Saul how he defended the sheep. 1Sam. 17:34: "And David said unto Saul, Thy servant kept his father's sheep, and there came a lion, and a bear, and took a lamb out of the flock: 35 And I went out after him, and smote him, and delivered it out of his mouth: and when he arose against me, I caught him by his beard and smote him, and slew him. 36 Thy servant slew both the lion and the bear: and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be one of them, seeing he hath defied the armies of the living God." As the Good Shepherd, Jesus was willing to leave Heaven's glory and come to seek and save that which was lost. Also this verse reminds us that Jesus knew the bitter cup that awaited Him at the Cross. He knew that to redeem His sheep would cost His own precious Blood! Note: In our present text, He is the Good Shepherd; in Heb. 13:20 He is the Great Shepherd; and in 1Peter 5:4 He is the Chief Shepherd.

 

Amen.

Thank you Charles.

Blessings

Sheila

 

Sunday March 13, 2005

As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep. (John 10:15)
Who is our shepherd? Is it Jesus, the good Shepherd? Is it the One who knows His sheep by name-the One who would care for His sheep even if it meant dying for their needs?
Or is it someone less loving; someone who might lead us in the paths of righteousness for a while but desert us when the going gets rough? Could it be one who would fail to recognize us in time of greatest need? Is it one who might not risk what it takes to bring us back from the brink of destruction?
Most of us, at some notable times in our lives-or even at periodic intervals or as a natural lifetime habit-get off the path of righteousness. As sheep tend to go their own ignorant ways, we continually err and fall into ruts of sin and foolishness.
(Psalm 38:3) There is no soundness in my flesh because of thine anger; neither is there any rest in my bones because of my sin.
(Psalm 38:4) For mine iniquities are gone over mine head: as an heavy burden they are too heavy for me.
(Psalm 38:5) My wounds stink and are corrupt because of my foolishness.
Perhaps at those times, more than at any other time, we look around for a shepherd, until we find one who will guide us towards security.
But in following a “shepherd,” other than the Good Shepherd, grave danger lurks. How do we really know who that person is in whom we trust? Whom does he follow? How firmly ingrained are his principles of righteousness? Is he controlled by self-interest too? Will he ever fail?
Anyone but the Good Shepherd will surely disappoint us and, eventually, lead us astray. Some may certainly point us in the paths of righteousness for a while, but none other than the Lord Jesus is meant to be the Shepherd. Everyone else certainly will fail, and at some time step off the right path.
(John 10:8) All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them.
Only the Good Shepherd is sinless, so only He can be our example and guide. Only He knows and loves His sheep fully. Only He is worthy to be followed. Only He can claim the place of our Good Shepherd.

 

Thank you Charles,

God Bless you

Sheila

 

Monday, 14th March, 2005

This is St Patrick's Week. I thought this might be a good chance for us to get to know the real Patrick. Since we only have two of his works, I thought it best to go right to the source. This weeks thoughts will be taken from the first section of his Confessio, an essay written, as he put it, "I pray those who believe and fear God, whosoever deigns to look at or receive this writing which Patrick, a sinner, unlearned, has composed in Ireland, that no one should ever say that it was my ignorance if I did or showed forth anything however small according to God's good pleasure; but let this be your conclusion and let it so be thought, that - as is the perfect truth - it was the gift of God. This is my confession before I die."

With these three words Patrick begins the account of his life, notice that he begins by acknowledging his status as a transgressor. This attitude is an attitude which shaped his life and ministry. Sadly, within a hundred years after his death his biographers had begun to attribute to him qualities of almost Christ-like proportion, crediting him with calling down fire from heaven, and walking on water, and even running the snakes out of Ireland.

Yet, at the very end, Patrick considers himself a sinner. Following those words above we read the following from his pen:

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• most unlearned</font>

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• least of the faithful</font>

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• utterly despised by many</font>

Our first challenge from Patrick this week is his humility. Like Paul, he did not see himself as a great missionary, but the chiefest of sinners. May our hearts be challenged by his humility. As we serve the Lord may we see ourselves as sinners saved by the grace of God and truly be willing to serve Him. Our life is one of service. We may never receive the plaudits of men, our service may be difficult, and may we always acknowledge that all that we do, "is the gift of God."

[ March 14, 2005, 08:15 AM: Message edited by: DHK ]