Stumbling

Posted on by korgrocker

“Yes, each of us will give a personal account to God. So let’s stop condemning each other. Decide instead to live in such a way that you will not cause another believer to stumble and fall. I know and am convinced on the authority of the Lord Jesus that no food, in and of itself, is wrong to eat. But if someone believes it is wrong, then for that person it is wrong. And if another believer is distressed by what you eat, you are not acting in love if you eat it. Don’t let your eating ruin someone for whom Christ died.”
Romans 14:12-15 NLT

Paul continues to write about basic Christian principles, and he focused on food as being at the heart of a problem in the Roman Christian society. Apparently there was much discussion – it may have become quite heated – amongst those early believers involving the interface between the idolatry so prevalent around them, and the purity of a life devoted to Christ. The problem was about food, especially those items that had been offered to idols. Following some idolatrous ritual they would appear in the market place, perhaps sold at a discount, and Christians then had a dilemma over whether or not they bought it to feed their families. Some Christians in those days said they shouldn’t, and others said it was ok to do so. 

The same problem still exists today, though probably not with the same focus. It boils down to the question – “How do I live in a way that avoids upsetting other Christians?” We still have the interface between secular and Christian societies. It’s not about food, because items are not available after idol worship any more, but there are other issues. Some years ago, I was involved in a discussion within the leadership of an independent Charismatic church about drinking wine, beer or any other alcoholic drink. We agreed that such a practice wasn’t wrong in itself, as long as moderation was involved, but how does it look to a congregation, some of whom have issues with such beverages, having been part of families destroyed by alcoholism. 

Paul wrote that we should “live in such a way that [we] will not cause another believer to stumble and fall”. In Ephesians 4:17-18 he also wrote, “With the Lord’s authority I say this: Live no longer as the Gentiles do, for they are hopelessly confused. Their minds are full of darkness; they wander far from the life God gives because they have closed their minds and hardened their hearts against him”. The Gentile unbelieving life, without any God-knowledge, will always be knocking at the door of a Christian’s heart. It is so hard to resist the ways of the world, particularly when bombarded with secular ideas and practices. The smutty jokes in the workplace. The lunchtime pint. The coarse language at a football match. The TV programmes infused with ideologies that insidiously pollute minds and spirits. The media news reports biased and negatively presented. We must always be on our guards during every waking moment.

At the secular/Christian interface there will be grey areas that vary between Christians. We have mentioned drinking alcoholic beverages. And the question is should I continue to do this if it makes one of my fellow believers “stumble and fall”? There are also other issues that emerge at the margins of our moral universe. I can remember a visiting preacher whose message I think was implying that it was acceptable for a man and woman to live together outside a formal marriage as long as they did so in a way that honoured marriage vows and particularly the one “‘til death us do part”. Most in that congregation were quite upset about what he appeared to be saying, and his unwise comments could have had a devastating effect on some of those present, potentially making them “stumble and fall”. 

We pilgrims have a duty to our fellow believers. In the course of loving one another, we have always to assess what we say and be careful if expressing contentious views. Paul continued to write in Ephesians 4 the following, “Since you have heard about Jesus and have learned the truth that comes from him, throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception. Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. Put on your new nature, created to be like God—truly righteous and holy” (Ephesians 4:21-24). It’s all about the Holy Spirit and allowing him to help us and lead us, renewing us with God-thoughts from within. God knows what is, and isn’t, acceptable in our lives. And by our living we can help others in their daily walk with God.

Dear Father. You love us so much, and You want us to extend that love to others. Please help us to discern Your will over the issues we face today, so that we can do what we should. Please help us to hold our tongues when necessary. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Jars of Clay

Posted on by korgrocker

“No, don’t say that. Who are you, a mere human being, to argue with God? Should the thing that was created say to the one who created it, “Why have you made me like this?” When a potter makes jars out of clay, doesn’t he have a right to use the same lump of clay to make one jar for decoration and another to throw garbage into? In the same way, even though God has the right to show his anger and his power, he is very patient with those on whom his anger falls, who are destined for destruction.”
Romans 9:20-22 NLT

Paul picks up the story of a potter, working with clay, and making a number of different jars. He probably remembered the Scripture we looked at recently – Isaiah 45:9, “What sorrow awaits those who argue with their Creator. Does a clay pot argue with its maker? Does the clay dispute with the one who shapes it, saying, ‘Stop, you’re doing it wrong!’ Does the pot exclaim, ‘How clumsy can you be?’” It may be difficult for us proud people to accept, but we are no different really to a clay jar. God made us, and the potter made a jar. Both very different in complexity and function, but created nevertheless. But the analogy has other implications – a person can end up either a thing of beauty or something else. 

I spent time yesterday with a two-week-old baby boy and his loving parents. Enjoying the marvel of creation, and this perfect new life. A new entry into this world with so much potential. The analogy with the clay pot ends here, because this new life will grow and develop from a baby into an adult. Not so for our clay jar. But we must never forget that God brought the new baby into this world. The go-to Scripture is in Psalm 139:13-16, “You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother’s womb. Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvellous—how well I know it. You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion, as I was woven together in the dark of the womb. You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed”.

Somehow, as I look at myself and who I am, unique in every way, I think of the loving Father who formed me. He put together a design just for me, and brought it to fruition. And looking at myself in this way puts a different complexion on how I live my life. I have only God to thank. He didn’t make a failure. He made a person that started right at the moment of conception, that grew under His careful and watching eye into who I am today. Yes, sin has taken its toll, corrupting and distorting, but He allowed for that through Jesus and His sacrifice at Calvary. And one day God will give me that perfect body we read about in 1 Corinthians 15:53, “For our dying bodies must be transformed into bodies that will never die; our mortal bodies must be transformed into immortal bodies”. 

Let us pilgrims take a fresh look at ourselves today. We thank God for making us just as we are, not as who we would like to be. He had, and has, a plan for each one of us, and put us together in a way that will enable us to fulfil that plan. How amazing is that! We don’t have to fret because other “clay jars” seem better than us. We are just as God wants us to be. After all, he is the Master Creator Potter, perfectly skilled in His craft. And after He made us, He destroyed the moulds. The blueprints were discarded. And yesterday’s new baby is another unique creation, with plans and purposes already set out for him.

Dear Father God. We thank You for new life. There is nothing more exciting than seeing a new baby coming into this world. I pray a blessing on the new baby introduced into my family, through Your grace and design. And in this time of spring, I thank You for making all things new. Amen.

Not Giving In

Posted on by korgrocker

“Do not let sin control the way you live; do not give in to sinful desires. Do not let any part of your body become an instrument of evil to serve sin. Instead, give yourselves completely to God, for you were dead, but now you have new life. So use your whole body as an instrument to do what is right for the glory of God. Sin is no longer your master, for you no longer live under the requirements of the law. Instead, you live under the freedom of God’s grace.”
Romans 6:12-14 NLT

Paul gets down to the nitty-gritties of living a life of faith. He starts to get personal. But how can he, a sinful man as well, tell others how they should and shouldn’t live? What right does he have, perhaps you ask? But what he writes is correct. As Christians, we cannot, must not even, allow sin to be the dominant force in our lives.

Paul starts with our minds. “Sinful desires” start in that space between our ears. We look at something and we lust after it. That cream cake. A new car. Men in particular can have a problem with beautiful women. And before we know it we are in the danger zone, sorely tempted to give into a “sinful desire”. And in case we find ourselves in a safe place, our enemy, the devil, will creep up on us and plant a sinful seed into our minds. A rationalising process can take place, much as it did with Eve in the Garden. Just one more chocolate biscuit won’t hurt. Another glance at that web page won’t really matter. “Did God really say …”. But we must stand firm, always alert for an attack on our minds, on our thoughts. Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 10:3-4, “We are human, but we don’t wage war as humans do. We use God’s mighty weapons, not worldly weapons, to knock down the strongholds of human reasoning and to destroy false arguments.” Someone once said that we can’t stop birds flying over our heads, but we can stop them nesting in our hair. 

Paul then moves onto our bodies. Our physical beings. Those bits of us controlled by our minds. Perhaps he is saying that it is bad enough to think sinful thoughts but to then use our bodies to apply the sin compounds the felony. By so doing they become an “instrument of evil”. Jesus emphatically made this point – we can read His words in Matthew 5:29-30, “So if your eye—even your good eye—causes you to lust, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your hand—even your stronger hand—causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.” Of course, theologians try and rationalise what Jesus said. Perhaps I do as well. But Jesus was deadly serious. If our bodies become an “instrument of evil” then there is only one place where they will end up, probably with the rest of us following close behind.

But now to the positives. Paul wrote, “for you were dead, but now you have new life”. Of course we do. We are a new creation, in transition to becoming the persons God designed us to be. Work in progress, journeying through life. Through Jesus we have an opportunity, breathtaking in its simplicity, profound in its concept, and eternal in its outcome. An opportunity that just cannot be overlooked and missed. Living a life of holiness, because that is what separation from sin is all about, may, in worldly eyes, be dull and boring, but the resulting life to come will be filled with so much incredible joy and excitement that we will never regret it.

Dear Father God. We thank You for these Spirit-inspired words of wisdom from Your servant Paul. Please help us to take note of them and apply them to our lives, day by day. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

A New Year

Posted on by korgrocker

“So we have stopped evaluating others from a human point of view. At one time we thought of Christ merely from a human point of view. How differently we know him now! This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person.  The old life is gone; a new life has begun!”
2 Corinthians 5:16-17 NLT

Strictly speaking these are not Scripture verses specifically about the New Year but they are appropriate none the less. The old year, 2021, has gone. We will never have another year like it (thank goodness I hear you say!). We are today at the start of a New Year, 2022. So what are we going to do with it? Traditionally, people set “New Year’s Resolutions”; a list of good intentions that seem to dissolve into thin air within a few days. But instead do we continue to bumble along in the same old way, tired and weary, trapped in a merry-go-round of drudgery, wishing that some light would penetrate our gloomy lives?

Today’s verses bring the light that we yearn for. For those who don’t know Jesus in a personal way, they highlight the opportunity we have to begin a new life. For those who are Christians, and perhaps have been for a long time, they provide the opportunity to hit the reset button. You see, becoming the “new person” highlighted in verse 17 isn’t a one off occasion that has passed into dimming memories. It is a daily opportunity. Notice the exclamation mark at the end of verse 17. It highlights and emphasises the momentous possibilities that we have when we start a new life in Christ. 

But back to our question – what are we going to do with this New Year? More specifically, what am I going to do with it? I have a few ideas, but are they God-ideas? The amazing thing about this new life in Christ, is that He will help us all as we commit our ways to Him. A life of service to Him is an exciting place to be. The opportunities are endless. Here’s a radical suggestion, which I am going to follow this morning. I’m going to ask Jesus to show me what He wants me to do with this year, 2022. I think I might be surprised at His answer. Try it. He might surprise you as well. But be prepared – God always answers our questioning prayers.