God’s Great Investment
Just recently, Tina, our wonderful Church secretary received a fundraiser coupon book in the mail. You know the type. Church youth groups and school clubs purchase discount books that carry coupons for free stuff from businesses in their local community, then sell them for a bit more in order to raise the needed funds for their organization. Parents, other family and friends purchase these discount books and spend the next few months trying to figure out how they are going to utilize said coupons in order to get their monies worth out of them. A great American activity!
Most of these coupons say something like this: “Receive a free (whatever) with the purchase of one (whatever) of equal or greater value.” A good deal to be sure if you dare to use it. Buy one, get one free. It is good to get something free. God’s Word describes a similar deal, only His discount goes so much further. In the book of Romans 8:29, we read, “For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren” (NAS). In other words, God purchased salvation by giving His one and only son, but got so much more than just one other person was saved in return. The blood of Christ was shed that there would be a mammoth return of men and women into the kingdom of God.
The wonderful thing about this deal is that Jesus paid the original price so that salvation would be a gift of God’s grace. We need not pay a thing, only take advantage of what God has already done; as the scripture states in 1 Corinthians 15:21, “For since death came through a man (Adam), the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man (Jesus).” The act of the Savior of the world dying on the cross became the ultimate purchase that makes salvation a free gift for the rest of us; a very good deal if we would but utilize the coupon provided.
Be blessed and be grateful,
Pastor Chris
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Evangelize, Proselytize or Both
This past month, I spent some time reviewing the constitution of Central Christian Church. Within the pages of this document you will find details of how the Church is to operate regarding leadership and committees and the like. What caught my attention, however, could be found on the very first page under Article II regarding our “Purpose.” The first paragraph in this section begins with this statement, “The purpose of this church shall be as revealed in the New Testament: to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ and win people to faith in Him…” The ideas put forth hear is not only completely scriptural, but an accurate description of what we should be about busily doing.
In 2 Timothy 4:2, Paul tells his young protégé to preach the Word of God whether it is convenient or not to do so. We need to preach the Good News of Jesus Christ in times when it is convenient (on Sunday mornings), and in times when it is not (every other day of the week). This preaching the Gospel has come to be known by many as “evangelism.” We evangelize individuals by telling them about Christ and the way to Him. The Apostle later tells Timothy to do the work of an evangelist (2 Tim. 4:5).
In 1 Corinthians 9:22, the writer declares, “To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak; I have become all things to all men, so that I may by all means save some. While this scripture is also describing evangelism, we could also call this proselytizing since Paul is trying to win people to his way of thinking. The word “proselytizing” carries a negative connotation in our culture today which is largely unfair. The word is only negative when you do not approve of the group that people are being drawn to join or the reason for their enlistment.
The word proselytizing simply means to recruit someone to join a group. Everyone does this. Colleges proselytize new students, sports teams proselytize athletes, political pundits continue recruiting others to their side and individuals proselytize others to agree with their interpretation of an issue against someone else in conflict. Proselytizing is not always bad, what can make it bad is the way it is done and the reason for it. Christians should be about evangelizing and proselytizing for the right reasons and in a manner that shows Christ’s love. It is not only God’s will, but should be our desire to see others receive eternal life along with receiving the infinite benefit of being a member of His family.
Be blessed,
Pastor Chris
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How Pleasant To Be In Unity
When I first came to Huntington, I had the wonderful opportunity to be a part of the Encounter 2010 meetings which were held at Kriegbaum Field. Approximately 15 to 20 Churches gathered together as they took their first step in developing a stronger bond between members of the Church community in Huntington County. It was exhilarating to see brothers and sisters from different denominations holding hands around the football field as we worshipped our Lord together without pretense or one group’s agenda getting in the way. The excitement was overwhelming as we prayed for each other and for God’s work to be done in this city/county; starting with us.
The Lord is pleased when we come together as one whether His Spirit is unifying believers in Huntington County or simply those at any individual Church. Pastor’s long to see their Church unified just as Christ longs to see the same in His body. In 1 Corinthians, the 12th chapter, the Apostle Paul lays out the case for unity among Christians much like a lawyer might do before a judge and jury. Paul speaks about the special gifts and administrations given to different members, the need for unity of each member for the edifying of the Church and that there is only one source whereby these gifts and administrations are supplied (the Holy Spirit). He then lays out in detail the fact that each member is gifted from God for His use, that every gift is just as important as another and that every gift is necessary for the operation of the Body. The Lord has apportioned to each member as He will for the edifying of the body of Christ; yes, that includes you and me!
Now, of course, we must never compromise the foundations of our faith to reach some pseudo-unification that is void of any Spiritual depth. There are certainly standards of the Gospel that are not negotiable. However, far too often we allow personal preferences to disrupt the mission that Christ has set before his people. We might be more productive as Christ’s body if we adopted a famous slogan which states, “In essentials, unity; in non-essentials, liberty; in all things, charity.” Psalm 133:1 says that it is absolutely wonderful when brethren dwell together in unity. To the Lord, it is like precious ointment that dowsed Aaron from head to toe (a good thing, not like spilling oil on your new shoes). The third verse of that chapter informs us that when we have such unity, that it is here that God commands His blessing upon us, even life for evermore. Here are two questions we should ask ourselves: What can we do to share your gifts with the body of Christ and in what ways can we join with others in Christian unity within our own congregation as well as the Church universal? As we continue to allow God to bring His people together as one, we will see our own individual ministries grow in spiritual vibrancy. Oh, how wonderful it is when we dwell together united as one!
Be blessed
Pastor Chris
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