November 30, 2024

I Timothy 5.8 (NIV)

If anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for his immediate family, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.

It is possible to deny the faith by conduct as well as by words; and that a neglect of doing our duty is as real a denial of Christianity as it would be openly to renounce it.*

You know people who have rearranged their lives for loved ones. (You may be one of those people!) I have friends who have cared for aging parents in their home, and friends who adopted their grandchild because the child’s mother – their own daughter – was unfit to care for him. Two different friends relocated to other states to care for an aging uncle. And get this story: After my friend’s mother died, her father, in his 70s, remarried. Then her father died and her stepmother remarried. After her stepmother died, my friend helped care for her stepmother’s elderly widower until his children moved him out of state to be with them. Was she just doing her duty?

In John 19.26 and 27, all our excuses for not caring for loved ones are put to shame. Jesus, from his vantage point on the cross, is not too busy or in too much pain, to make arrangements for John to take care of his mother after his death. John (who is not related to her at all), from that time on, “took her into his home.”

How far does our obligation to family go? Parents, children, grandchildren, siblings . . . or beyond? If we as Christians are to be superior to the unbelievers, should not our duty extend as far as our love can take us? I can’t answer the question for you and your family. Only you and the Holy Spirit can.

Charity begins at home, and so do all other obligations of the Christian life.*

November 29, 2024

I Timothy 1.5 (NIV)

The goal of this command is love, which comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.

Impressive gifts, extensive knowledge, and great faith mean nothing without love.*

Paul was very astute when it comes to human nature. He knew that we can get caught up in doing the right thing and forget why we are doing it, so he reminds us that we are to go further than just correcting the false teachers he refers to in verses 3 and 4. Knowledge and obedience are critical but they are not enough. You can “deprogram” someone who has been fed a diet of bad information; you can replace the false doctrine with the truth – but Paul says that God wants more. Our ultimate goal is not to generate debate and controversy; our purpose is to produce an environment where love is exhibited in daily living.*

The English language is inadequate when it comes to love. We have abused this poor weary word until it is almost meaningless. “I love your new dress!” “For God so loved the world . . .” We fall in and out of love. We love as long as it feels good, remains convenient, and meets our expectations. We love things that can’t love us back. Can all of these uses of the word really mean the same thing?

But sometimes we get it right: Spouses who remain true to each other long after the romance has faded. Parents who love children who have rejected everything they believe in. Children who love parents who no longer recognize them. . . When we do love even when we don’t feel love. And especially when we are teaching others from a pure heart, a good conscience, and a sincere faith.

One cannot command the emotional type of love, but the kind of love that represents God can be commanded.*

November 28, 2024

II Thessalonians 3.13 (NIV)
Never tire of doing what is right. [alt. translation: Be not weary in well-doing.]

The character of our Savior is compassion.*

Our church used to have a small food pantry. When I worked in the church office, I was blessed to help distribute the food occasionally. Some of our “clients” took advantage of us (read: abused our generosity). I watched from the window as one man was leaving with the supplies we had just given him. He drank the whole, family-size bottle of juice; met up with another man and gave him a few of the items; then left everything else under a tree in the parking lot.  Makes you weary of well-doing . . .

But then there was the woman who looked in her bags, expecting only food, and exclaimed, “Toilet paper! Oh, thank you! I’ve been praying about this because I didn’t have enough money to buy toilet paper and food!” At first, this made me smile, happy to be able to help someone in need, but suddenly (after she had left) I burst into tears as I realized just how much our God cares about the details of our lives.

Yes, there are people who will take advantage of us; people who “work the system;” who are unappreciative. But better to help 100 who don’t deserve it than to “pass by one who is a real object of charity.”*  

Not everyone in the church at Thessalonica was doing what he or she should be doing. And some were using the idleness of others as an excuse for their own lack of charity. But we follow the example of Jesus who fed the hungry and healed the sick. “Not some of [the] . . . sick. Not the righteous among the sick. Not the deserving among the sick. But ‘the sick.’”*

While works do not justify us, they do identify us.*

November 27, 2024

II Thessalonians 3.3 (NIV)

But the Lord is faithful.

A trustworthy God is more than a match for untrustworthy men.*

We may have faith but we are often lacking in faithfulness. Unreliability is part of our human-ness!  People let us down; we let other people down. Most of us have good intentions but at times we misunderstand what is expected of us. Maybe the other person didn’t make his expectations clear. Sometimes people think we are capable of accomplishing more than we actually can.

Paul reminds us of whom we should – and can – trust. God keeps his promises – he can’t not keep his promises! He never abandons us when things aren’t going well. He will never belittle us or remind us of all the times we have let him down. Best of all, we will never have to live in the fear that we might do something to make him stop loving us. He has too much invested in us to forsake us.

Confidence in prayer comes from knowing the faithfulness of God.*

November 26, 2024

II Thessalonians 3.1, 2 (NIV)

Pray for us that the message of the Lord may spread rapidly and be honored. . .  And pray that we may be delivered from wicked and evil men, for not everyone has faith.

Prayer is the most essential part of all ministries.*

How many times have you endured an agonizing prayer request time in a Sunday school class or other church-related gathering? I have heard requests for healing for celebrities (okay, sick or injured celebrities can benefit from prayer, too); that the hurricane not hit us (but it should hit someone else instead?); for lost and sick pets. And then there’s the very personal, too-much-information-for-this-setting sharing of real and serious needs.

There’s nothing wrong with making our requests known – to God and to our fellow pray-ers. God is interested in the details of our lives. But Paul shows us here how our prayer life can reach a new level of maturity. He doesn’t ask for deliverance from hardships and danger (I would); he just doesn’t want the work to be hindered. He wasn’t praying for rescue from the unreasonable and the wicked – he just wanted to be free to preach the message.

The next time you are asked to voice your prayer requests, why not ask for the “success of the gospel ministry” and for the “safety of gospel ministers”?*

God . . . has made   . . . the success of his Gospel dependent, in a certain measure, on the prayers of his followers.*

November 25, 2024

I Thessalonians 5.25 (NIV)

Brothers, pray for us.

We can do a great deal for people after we pray for them but little of lasting value until we pray for them.*

I am guilty of thinking – and even saying – that prayer is the least I can do. Really? Is there something else I can do that is more powerful than praying? Paul doesn’t seem to think so – he ends his letter to the Thessalonians with this request for prayer and nothing more.

There are reasons why we get a little judgmental when someone says, “I’ll pray for you.” One reason is we don’t believe he will actually do it. Sometimes it’s just something to say because we are socially awkward and don’t know what else to say. Often, offering to pray for someone is a way to avoid offering to do something for him.

When my dad was dying, I had many friends who were praying for me. There was nothing that they could do. I don’t know what their exact requests were. Perhaps some prayed for my dad to get well (he was 86 years old, had lived an exemplary life of faith and service, and only a miracle was going to make his body start working again); but most were praying for my comfort and strength. Their prayers were so effective that I knew that God’s power had been released on my behalf. I stress “knew” because it was not a feeling. I didn’t feel God’s presence – I knew God’s presence.

The next time someone offers to pray for you, don’t sneer at how little she is willing to do for you. Thank her and wait for the Holy Spirit to be set loose in your life. Everyone should know what that is like!

Prayer is our powerful first resort, not our last!*

November 24, 2024

I Thessalonians 5.11, 13, 15 (NIV)

Therefore encourage one another and build each other up. . . . Live in peace with each other . . . always try to be kind to each other.

We should seize every opportunity to give encouragement. It is oxygen to the soul.*

Movies are often based on actual events. Once that disclaimer is delivered, they are free to take liberties with history. So picture with me a scenario between Paul and the Thessalonian Christians – based very loosely on actual events – in which Paul informs them that Jesus said that the second greatest commandment is to love your neighbor as you love yourself. And they reply, “Really? How do we do that?” And Paul says, “Well, you could start by encouraging one another . . .”

Perhaps it didn't happen exactly like that but something motivated Paul to include this admonition in his letter to the Thessalonians. Do you suppose Paul ever got frustrated with having to squander so much of his papyrus on telling Christians what loving each other looks like? Someone has said that the church is more than just a group of people who agree in their beliefs.* That’s for sure. We don’t always even agree on what we believe!

You can’t escape your biological family - your weird cousin is still your cousin even if you manage to avoid him. Our church family is not always made up of the easy-to-love, either. But if we follow Paul’s instructions to encourage, build up, live in peace, and be kind, we might find that the family of God is a more inviting place for the lost.

Misfits have always been included in God’s family tree, and we are no exceptions.*

November 23, 2024

I Thessalonians 4.11, 12 (NIV)

Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business and to work with your hands, just as we told you, so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody.

Sloth and general demoralization are as invidious and debilitating as many a more open sin.*

Some of the church members in Thessalonica were convinced that Christ’s return was imminent so they had quit going to work. With time on their hands, they were stirring up and getting into trouble. They weren’t wrong to be preparing for the Lord’s return, but Paul’s reprimand is as true for us as it was for them. We, too, should zealously seek a quiet life; tend to our own responsibilities; and work with our hands. Not all of us actually “work with our hands,” but we would be within the scope of Paul’s requirements if we work with what we have “at hand,” whether our work is mental or physical. Today, he might say to us, “Just do it!”

When we say, “Mind your own business,” we are implying that the other person is meddling. Paul would probably disapprove of meddling, but in this passage he is exhorting us to tend to our actual business – our homes, our jobs, our own responsibilities. He doesn’t intend that we shouldn’t care for or get involved with other people; we just need to be careful that that our “helpfulness” isn’t just a sneaky way of butting in. It is a fact that “brotherly love has been known to degenerate into unbrotherly interference with one’s brethren.”*

And why do these things matter? First, to present an honorable appearance to those outside the church. To outsiders, our manner of living is seen as more important than what we teach.* They aren’t wrong. And the second reason it matters: so that we lack none of the necessities of life.* While “God helps those who help themselves” is not in the Bible, it is not completely unscriptural. It is one of Paul’s rules that if a man won’t work, he shall not eat (II Thessalonians 3.10).  And in II Timothy 5.8, he says that anyone who doesn’t provide for his own family has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.

There is no shame in being poor and there is no guarantee that hard work will make us prosperous; nevertheless, we are to set an example to the world with our diligence and willingness to be productive citizens. And perhaps they will also be impressed with our ability to mind our own business!

They aren’t going to glorify God because . . . we finally convince them they are wrong. They will glorify God when we start acting like Jesus and show them what right looks like.*

November 22, 2024

I Thessalonians 4.3 (NIV)

It is God’s will that you should be sanctified; that you should avoid sexual immorality.

God’s moral will is that we reflect the character of Christ.*

Sexual immorality is “especially heinous” (as the television show says) for several reasons, some of which are: 1) it involves us on such a personal level; 2) it is easy to rationalize (“It’s between two consenting adults.” “We’re not hurting anyone.” “God would want me to be happy.”); 3) sex has been hijacked by Satan and distorted from its intended function.

While our society is becoming more jaded by the minute, we have no idea how foreign the idea of sexual purity was to the people of Thessalonica. Other forms of immorality – lying, cheating, stealing, murder – weren’t so acceptable in their culture so Paul begins his lesson where they need it most.

I am reminded of a friend, a “young” Christian, who confided in me that she was in love with a married man. She knew it was wrong to want to be with him and she knew I did not approve of her pursuing a relationship with him. There wasn’t much left for me to say on that subject. But, in the course of our conversation, she casually mentioned some money she had that she was hiding from the IRS. She was genuinely astonished when I made her aware that this behavior was wrong, too. As a new Christian, my friend had a lot to learn about what it means to be sanctified. There was no point in my going on about what she already knew about sexual immorality, but she had something new to learn about other types of sin. 

When we are in a position to teach others, it is important to know where they are in their walk with the Lord. Don’t waste the moment on what they already know.

Most people make talking about Christ harder than it really is. Just start where the person is.*

November 21, 2024

Colossians 4.6 (NIV)

Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.

While we’re concerned about being fresh and creative in teaching, it’s wiser to make the Bible simple and clear because it’s so powerful in itself.*

Knowing how to answer is not the same as knowing the answer. This conversation that Paul says should be full of grace – that is the answer: the Good News. 

By adding some salt, we make a dish tastier.  The salt does not change the essence of the dish; it merely serves to make it more palatable. Some people like more salt than others. We have to know how much salt to add to suit each person’s tastes – that is, we have to know how to answer them.

While we should season the message with salt to suit the person’s taste and the occasion,* we must not compromise on the rest of the ingredients. We must remain true to the recipe.

If we aspire to get a person to change his mind about anything, we have a responsibility to understand at least where he has come from or what has made him what he is.*