Do You Talk About Christ With Christians?

Do you talk about Christ with Christians?

That seems like a funny question but think about it.   Outside of church or bible study do you talk about Christ?

Some of us are really good about bringing up God when there are clearly opportunities to witness but many times we don’t utilize all the opportunities we are given.  Here are two examples:

Recently I was at a collector’s show of western memorabilia.  Among the dealers  was a gentleman who didn’t just collect and sell but actually created the spurs and many accessories and jewelry items that he sold.  As I was visiting with him about his products I noticed a couple items with crosses on them including a money clip.  Now I don’t remember many of the details of our conversation because it was mostly one sided, that being mine.  I mentioned the cross on a couple of the items and made some comments about being a Christian and what I did.   I sent out a couple more “feelers” but nothing developed and I moved on.  About a month later the individual contacted me via email about one of his products and in looking at his website I found scripture quoted on the site.  Fellow Christian?  I wouldn’t have known it based on our conversation and it was a weekend for me that would have given me a little nourishment when I needed it.

The next example was also related to collectibles as I had answered an ad on Craigslist and after arriving at terms we started to arrange a meeting for the viewing of the item and I said I couldn’t make it until a certain time because of church.  This opened the opportunity for this individual to discuss with me his ministry.

With the first example I needed to be fed by what turned out to be a fellow Christian and wasn’t.  With the second example I purposely used the opportunity to mention church though it really didn’t matter.  I could have said I can’t be there until noon but I wanted to mention church to see if it led anywhere and it did.  By going there I allowed a fellow Christian to discuss with passion the ministry that he provided others and I will do so again when I meet him.  I can tell he needed it and it did me good as well.

Many of us as Christians need to exercise our indwelling with our brothers and sisters.  We need to talk about what we are doing in our Christian work and how the Holy Spirit is active in our lives.  Much of our time in church were we gather with other Christians is spent listening to sermons and other teachers.  After that we mingle and talk about our golf game, our kids and our vacations.  There isn’t enough of what most of us know of as koinonia.  I like the Wikipedia definition as it says it is, “communion by intimate participation.”  I am afraid most of us don’t get that where we worship.

What I would encourage is to mention church, bible study, God, Christ, being a Christian and so on whenever it makes sense.  I think you will have more opportunities to witness to non-Christians and have more opportunities to encourage and be encouraged when you encounter fellow Christians.

We need this intimate participation and by being aware of that we can be a benefit to more outside the church but what about inside?  If you are in a position to do so consider starting a group or groups that meet informally not to teach and listen but to share how the Holy Spirit is working in the lives of individuals from your church.  If you can’t start it maybe you can be one to plant the seed.

It isn’t surprising when we feel empty when we are in the world but we sure shouldn’t feel that way after we leave church. 

Blessings,

Jed

HOPE!

1 Peter 3:15a says in part, “always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.”

What we are obviously talking about there is sharing the gospel and as you may have reasoned by the name of this blog and in reading my posts both here and at my main blog http://theadultsundayschool.blogspot.com/ I am passionate about the gospel and I got to thinking about that verse and this sharing of the reason for our hope.  I did however come to a realization that I know I have tended to overlook and that is that it is not that easy for everyone.

When we become Christians we receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.  That gift is manifested in us in many different ways.  For those of us that are gifted to preach or teach it should be fairly easy to share the reason for our hope but for those of us who are gifted in a different way such as encouraging others or giving generously it might not be so easy.

For those with these and other gifts though you love Christ and you want others to as well,  sharing your faith is more difficult but the Apostle Peter wasn’t leaving you out just because the calling you have is different from someone who is gifted in a different way. 

For you I would suggest underlining and then committing to memory a short passage of scripture that would make it a matter of habit.  As an example I would give you the following scripture from Romans 5:8a, “While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”…..  “While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

I can’t tell you in words how that touches me as I am sure it touches you that though we were undeserving, unrighteous sinners, Christ died for us anyway.  Moving back in Romans 5 a few to verse 2, “And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.  Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance, perseverance, character, and character----what hope.  And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out His love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom He has given us.  You see at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly.  Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die.  But God demonstrates His own love for us in this:  While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

8 short but powerful words that are just one example of how all of us can find a small, short verse or passage of scripture that we can make through repetition a part of our very fabric so that when asked, all of us regardless of our spiritual gifts can give a reason for the hope that we have.  Is this the only way to do it?  By no means!  Being prepared is something all of us can do if we care about what we are preparing for and practice makes for confidence.  Once you have that confidence start praying for opportunities to share the gospel and start listening to the Holy Spirit when it says that opportunity is now!

Adapt, for the Sake of the Gospel!

Adaptability, it is something that I have never been very good at and in fact as I age it is something that I am becoming worse about.  One thing I will say is that I recognize this as being true about myself and having pondered it I thought it important to share these thoughts with you as I think it important that all Christians prepare for change.

As I write this, seven weeks ago I severely broke my fifth finger (pinkie) on my right hand and so much of what was a part of my daily life came to a screeching halt.  If you have ever sustained an injury like that you learned as I have that you have taken something for granted.  Everything from brushing your teeth to taking a shower or eating or reaching in a pocket is affected and you have to learn how to do things differently.

Normally my day begins at 4 a.m. and I use the extra time so that I can write mostly for my International Sunday School Lesson commentary at http://theadultsundayschool.blogspot.com/ but alas that too was affected as I found the action too painful.  I have continued to get out of bed at the same time but I have just mourned by ability to type instead of adapting.  Until today I hadn’t even thought much of how I could change and do the work of the gospel in a different manner.  I know now that I might have put just some notes down for future lessons or maybe some verbal recordings.  I might have read more but I wasted my time instead of adapting.

Today the pain and lack of mobility is still there and I am making a lot of mistakes but I can type with nine fingers and remind you that we have in store for us a great deal of change.  Change that will bring much pain and disorder for us as Christians but we must not stop the work that we are to be about in the sharing of the gospel as we wait for good times to return.  Instead we must adapt and think of new ways to share the good news.

If you aren’t about the work you should be as a Christian then now is a good time to start before the times become harder.  By learning to type long ago I can adapt to one less finger for the process.  Christ told us that as the end nears we will face very dark and perilous times as followers of His.  By learning the ways of sharing the gospel now you will more readily adapt as persecution rises and your daily life becomes more strained but the need for the gospel more urgent.

I pray you are a quicker learner than I have been!

Do you think God wants you to be timid when it comes to the gospel? Be bold!

A recent sermon that I heard has caused me to ponder something both during the sermon and now days later.  My hope in sharing this with you is less that it will result in your asking yourself something but more that through you others will ask themselves something.

This sermon was based for the most part on that often overlooked book of Philippians where the sermon concentrated on the third chapter taking from it the apparent joy that Paul felt in the life he now lived of struggle.

The life that Paul lived before would have been considered by a Jew as a successful one.  He was a student and zealous follower of the law but in looking back at that life Paul considered it all a waste, a loss.  All the things he accomplished and all the life he lived before, Paul considered rubbish.

First let me say that due to the constraints of a sermon or even a blog format not all aspects of an issue can be presented.  And quite often the giver of a sermon or the writer of a lesson must measure his words but in so doing the ones that most need to be convicted in their hearts are not awakened from their slumber.  Whether that should be the case is a question for another day but let’s make these that follow ones for today.

I would like you to broach with boldness all those with whom you associate who are Christians these questions because I think it will serve to strengthen the message of the gospel and therefore glorify the Father.

After referencing this idea of the conflict that those who are being sanctified experience, ask these questions: Do you feel the struggle, the conflict and feel the joy to which Paul refers?  Do you consider all the life you lived before becoming a Christian as rubbish?

My fear, brothers and sisters, is that you will be greeted for the most part with blank stares of non-comprehension.  This is as if to say, “Why should I be in a struggle or struggling with what?” or “How can I feel joy from something that is causing me pain?”

Paul said in the previous chapter that we as Christians should shine as stars in a crooked and depraved generation.  Just as this depravity existed then so does it now and just as then, these to whom Paul spoke were advised to work out their salvation with fear and trembling.

If those you ask for the most part were not aware of this and of the conflict they should be experiencing on the road of sanctification then I can only pray that your reminding them will eventually result in the conviction you desire.

Your church might be stacking up the numbers of new members or it might only occur once in a while, but please have in place within your church the fertile soil of mature Christian teachers and solid Biblical education not the curriculum that you must purchase.  Spend your thousands on those who have yet to hear the good news, those who are risking all to deliver it and on those who are in need, first within your midst and then without.

For our part, as those more mature in the faith, we must be like Paul who himself in Philippians 3:12-17 acknowledges that in this struggle that is sanctification he had not obtained all that he should be or been made perfect.  But let us be examples like Paul and strain toward that goal.

We serve as examples but so do all those who surround us.  We should hate the life we lived before Christ and the life that we live now should not resemble that life.  If we still look the same to the world we cannot effectively strengthen the gospel and bring glory to God.

Blessings,

Jed

Are We Building Towards a Perfect Storm?

By

Jed Greenough

Solar flares

Tsunamis

Earthquakes

Dying forests

Dying economies

Revolutions

Riots

Churches with a form of godliness only

Technology

Acceptance of deviant lifestyles

Famine

Inequality

Weakening good and strengthening evil

Increasing persecution

Increasing deceit

Where I live I have often had the opportunity to watch as massive powerful storm clouds build up with frightening rapidity and billow and spread thousands and thousands of feet into the sky. 

The sight is awe inspiring and it has a way of making you feel small as you know the power being created before your very eyes can cause terrible destruction. 

Usually the storms travel upon a fairly predictable track but sometimes the storms descend with a fury in an unpredictable manner as do any that come upon you as you sleep unaware of their approach.  Occasionally the storm is visited upon you or a neighbor in the form of terrible tornadoes, damaging winds, hail or torrential downpours.

I wonder about that list above and I liken it to one of those storms.  Will the track that is taken be one where some will suffer damage and then repair and rebuild?  Or could this be the one perfect storm that descends upon us all as we are all caught “sleeping”?

In Matthew 24 Christ said that no one will know about the day or hour and I am not being that specific as some have done recently but He also said here are the signs of the end of the age.  As with most prophecies we won’t know until after the fact if they were a literal list or a figurative one.  Some think they are literal but as for me, I can go either way.

When I read that there will be famine, war, revolution and that these are the so-called birth pains I know we have seen those.  When I read that we will be handed over for persecution I know it is happening in mild forms here where I live but in the most extreme way in other countries.  The deceit is here as are the false prophets.

Are the signs in the heavens just a way of writing for the form of this type of literature seen elsewhere in the Bible or a literal list?  Are the signs in heaven something yet to happen or was it the Solar eclipse of January 1^st, June 1st, or July 1st this year?  Is it the lunar eclipse of June 15^th or December 10^th?  Are the falling stars the meteor showers of any eight that will happen in 2011? Are these the ones Christ was referring to?

My point is we won’t know and He tells us that.  He said people will still be eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage just as they were the day Noah entered the ark.  And that is why He ends with the story of the faithful and wise servant left in charge of His fellow servants.  That servant in charge whether you want the position or not is you the Christian.  You have been given a charge and He will descend as a Perfect Storm at a time you do not expect. 

Share the Gospel!

Blessings,

Jed

But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect….(from 1 Corinthians 15:10)

If we are to all be about the work of the gospel as the scriptures say we are, how do we go about doing that work?  For some the work is obvious as they stand on street corners or at pulpits preaching the good news.  For others their work is not obvious as they work in professions just the same as non-Christians do but they give with unfailing support to ministries that do the field work.  Another encourages through emails, notes, or in person people such as me or the preacher or teacher in their church.  Not one of these is more or less important but both just as necessary in order for the work to be accomplished.

My prayer for each of us is that the following occurs: 

1.      We read the scriptures such as 1 Corinthians 15 that tell and remind us of this work.

2.      We read the scriptures such as 1 Corinthians 12, Romans 12, Ephesians 4 and 1 Peter 4 that show us that God gives to each of us different gifts that will suit our roles in this work.

3.      We determine through what is obvious, what others see in us or from what we are passionate about what our gift or gifts are.

4.      We utilize those gifts of teaching, giving, encouraging and so on in this work whole heartedly for the rest of our lives.

5.      We take every opportunity to remind other Christians that they are to do the same as well.

As Paul said, God’s gift of grace to Him was not without effect, make sure the world sees the effect God had on you!

The Latest Rage, Fad or Phase

What will it take to mobilize Christians into action to do their work of the gospel?  Will it be ever increasing cataclysmic events of global significance?  Perhaps what will do it will be a true financial meltdown or something that even Hollywood hasn’t invented yet.

Stop a moment and think about individual roles.  First think of your own role in the church.  Are you a student or a teacher?  We cannot all be the latter, but we are all the former.  Remember that no matter the role, no matter the age, we all are students who through the working of the Holy Spirit within us, should be growing in our resemblance to Christ.

Since Christ was a servant at His core, then we should all be ever growing in our servant attitude.  This need to serve our brothers and sisters both in Christ and those that might be, should be growing ever stronger within us.

Very few will read this, but I am encouraged that you are, but I ask, are you convicted in your heart to do more?  Do you ache that more be done in the fulfillment of the work of the gospel?

What does it take to convict people now days?  What does it take to get people’s attention and keep it, to motivate them into action?

Today, some see those that suffer after a natural disaster and they follow the events religiously for a few days or even several and they give of their resources.  Others follow with anticipation the ranting of a mad celebrity throughout days perhaps weeks of reporting by the media. 

Many take up and grasp onto the latest rage, fad or phase and then discard it days or weeks later.  Perhaps you are one of these people.  Such people are clearly demonstrating to me their need for THE work in their life.  That is the working of the Holy Spirit and the outward manifestation of that through the work that they are to be about in doing the work of the Holy Spirit.  Without it they are empty and they will continue to search about aimlessly and for a time pick up the latest greatest thing.

I pray daily that I could convict you of your need for this work, a work whose desire for it does not fade like a passing fad.  I am happy for your visit here just as I am for those who visit my weekly commentary: http://theadultsundayschool.blogspot.com/  I am grateful for all who study God’s word and grateful for any opportunity to serve, but what I want more than anything is to convict one of them, again, to convict you (and truthfully many, many more) to want to do the same and have a fire lit amongst us to share the gospel.

As we see Easter approaching and after it has passed, how many will go through the motions, and how many will feel Christ’s Spirit grow within them and burn to have others glorify Him?  To borrow the words of Paul from 1 Corinthians 15, the grace of God’s gift to me was not without effect and I have so much I need to do, but how about you?  What effect is showing in you from God’s gift of grace to you?