The Will of God

By Gerald Cowan

God’s will can be discussed in terms of His

* PURPOSE. Eph. 1:9-11
* PLAN. Psalm 19, 1 Thess. 4:1-8
* PROMISE. 2 Pet. 1:4, Jas. 1:12
* PREFERENCE. 2 Pet. 3:9
* PLEASURE. Phil. 2:13
* PERMISSION. Acts 17:24-26
* PREVENTION. 2 Thess. 2:6-7
* POWER. Eph. 1:11, Gen. 18:4

We must know several aspects of God’s will to apply it properly in regard to the human soul. God’s will is a broad not narrow, subject. It is:

* ULTIMATE and ABSOLUTE. Mt. 25:36-46, Rev. 20:12-15, Rom. 6:23
* INTENTIONAL and INSTRUCTIVE. 1 John 1:5, Rom. 1:16-17, 2 Th. 1:8
* PERMISSIVE and at the same time RESTRICTIVE. Job 1:12, James 1:2 and 12-15, 1 Pet. 4:12-19, 1 John 3:4 and 7, James 4:17.
* CIRCUMSTANTIAL AND, RESPONSIVE. Is. 59:1-2, Heb. 5:9, 1 Cor. 10:13, Rom. 8:28, Phil. 2:12-13
* EMOTIVE. Love is part of it, but so is wrath. Rom. 5:1-8, Rom. 2:6-11

We certainly must consider GOD’S RELATIONSHIP TO BOTH GOOD AND EVIL. God is not the direct author or source of anything evil, and He will not send into our lives anything that is not essentially, potentially, or eventually good. James 1:17. Good is anything that helps one see his need for God, brings him into a right relationship with God, and enables him to continue in God’s fellowship. Evil can be defined as anything that keeps one away from God, prevents him receiving and maintaining fellowship with Him.

God’s response to human sin and human need shows:

* OMNISCIENCE. Heb. 4:12-13
* GOODNESS. Rom. 2:4
* POWER. Rom. 8:37-39

One of the greatest questions we have is about the will of God and our personal prayers.

* Pray only according to His will in all things. James 4:15-17
* We can be sure God hears, and He answers all our prayers according to what He knows is good.
* Sometimes the answer must be no.

- Gerald Cowan preaches for the Dongola church of Christ in Dongola, IL. He may be contacted at Geraldcowan1931@aol.com

There Was a Man

More than nineteen hundred years ago there was a Man born contrary to the laws of life. This Man lived in poverty and was reared in obscurity. He did not travel extensively. Only once did He cross the boundary of the country in which he lived; that was during His exile in childhood.

He possessed no wealth. His relatives were inconspicuous, uninfluential, and uneducated. In infancy He startled a king; in childhood He puzzled the doctors; in manhood He ruled the course of nature, walked upon billows as if pavements, and hushed the sea to sleep. He healed the multitudes without medicine and made no charge for His service. He never wrote a book, yet all the libraries of the country could not hold the books that have been written about Him.

He never wrote a song, and yet He has furnished the theme for more songs than all the song writers combined. He never founded a college, but all the schools put together cannot boast of having as many students. He never practiced medicine, and yet He has healed more broken hearts that all the doctors far and near. He never marshaled an army, nor drafted a soldier, nor fired a gun, and yet no leader ever had more volunteers who have, under His orders, made more rebels stack arms and surrender without a shot being fired.

The names of the past proud statesmen of Greece and Rome have come and gone; but the name of this Man abounds more and more. Though time has spread almost two thousand years between the people of this generation and the scene of His crucifixion...HE STILL LIVES!

Herod could not kill Him, Satan could not seduce Him, death could not destroy Him, and the grave could not hold Him! He stands forth upon the highest pinnacle of heavenly glory, proclaimed of God, acknowledged by angels, adored by saints, feared by demons, as the living, personal Christ, our Lord and Savior.

“Truly this Man was the Son of God!” (Mark. 15:39). Truly He is!

Christ died on the cross for our sins, and His blood will cover our sins if we will believe and trust Him (Acts 16:31), repent of our sins (Acts 17:30-31), confess His deity before others (Romans 10:9-10), be baptized (immersed) in His name (Acts 2:38), and follow Him for the rest of our lives (1 John 1:7).

There was a Man - He is Savior and Lord. Will you trust and obey Him?

- from the Crystal Lake Church of Christ Bulletin (adapted); via the weekly bulletin of the Harrisburg church of Christ in Harrisburg, IL.

Extra Quotes

"If I have seen farther than others, it is because I was standing on the shoulders of giants," Sir Isaac Newton observed.

- Count Your Blessings, Gregory Alan Tidwell, Gospel Advocate, February 2010, 14 (http://gospeladvocate.com)

"In films murders are always very clean. I show how difficult it is and what a messy thing it is to kill a man." -- Alfred Hitchcock (1899 - 1980)

It is said that power corrupts, but actually it's more true that power attracts the corruptible. The sane are usually attracted by other things than power. David Brin

Everyone is a prisoner of his own experiences. No one can eliminate prejudices - just recognize them. (Edward R. Muggow).

The only limit to our realization of tomorrow will be our doubts of today. Let us move forward with strong and active faith. (Franklin Delano Roosevelt).

But what happiness except the simple harmony between a man and the life he leads? (Albert Camus).

Your success and happiness lie in you ... Resolve to keep happy, and your joy and you shall form an invincible host against difficulties. (Helen Keller).

Cherish all your happy moments: they make a fine cushion for old age. (Booth Tarkington).

Everything is funny as long as it is happening to somebody else. (Will Rogers).

There are no grades of vanity, there are only grades of ability in concealing it. (Mark Twain).

Conscience is the inner voice that warns us somebody may be looking. (Henry Louis Mencken)

My Soul…

By Trevor Tattersall

I once wondered why I seemed to have not much at all
even though I had answered the gospel call.
The things which others had, seemed so nice and good;
they told me what I had to do was get it any way I could.
I then asked God to give me something that was better than all that;
He said “Your soul’s already been saved” - which was a gracious act.
I then realized that my soul was truly of more worth
than all the things which you can get while you are on this earth.
I thanked God for my soul and that I am saved,
and the path to heaven is already paved.
Then the things of the earth seemed to fade away;
and I looked forward (when it comes) to that Judgment Day.
And I know that finally when death takes its toll;
that the thing that will live on is my saved soul.

- Trevor Tattersall (fourteen-year-old son of Glen and Kuin Tattersall, missionaries in Tasmania; via The Central Message, the weekly bulletin of the Central church of Christ in Paducah KY. Jim Faughn serves as an elder and preacher for the congregation. He may be contacted through the congregation's website at : http://www.centralchurchofchrist.org

The Blessing of Faithfulness

By Derrick Coble

"One stormy night an elderly couple entered the lobby of a small hotel and asked for a room. The clerk said they were filled, as were all the hotels in town. 'But I can't send a fine couple like you out in the rain,' he said. 'Would you be willing to sleep in my room?' The couple hesitated, but the clerk insisted. The next morning when the man paid his bill, he said, 'You're the kind of man who should be managing the best hotel in the United States. Someday I'll build you one.' The clerk smiled politely. A few years later the clerk received a letter from the elderly man, recalling that stormy night and asking him to come to New York. A round-trip ticket was enclosed. When the clerk arrived, his host took him to the corner of 5th Avenue and 34th Street, where stood a magnificent new building. 'That,' explained the man, 'is the hotel I have built for you to manage.' The man was William Waldorf Astor, and the hotel was the original Waldorf-Astoria. The young clerk, George C. Boldt, became its first manager."

Faithfulness in the smallest things leads to rewards beyond the imagination. Note the promises of the Scriptures: "A faithful man shall abound with blessings" (Proverbs 28:20a) . . ."He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much" (Luke 16:10) . . . "His lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord" (Matthew25:23). Faithfulness is moral fidelity, trustworthiness, and firm belief. God is faithful in all things (Hebrews 10:23) and expects no less from His saints (Revelation 2:10).

In other words, God wants everyone to live RIGHT. Dan Winkler has observed that means one must live by God's Revelation (2 Tim. 3:16,17), minding one's Influence (Matthew 5:16), giving God Glory (1 Corinthians 10:31), looking forward to Heaven (Philippians 3:14), and Trusting God by acting in obedient faith (Hebrews 11:6). Of course, the blessings that result from the "right" life are numerous. This is evidenced clearly in the life of "faithful Abraham" (Galatians 3:9).

First, he lived faithfully by God's revelation in leaving his home behind in search of a better country (Genesis 12:1-3; Hebrews 11:16). Can we honestly say that we are fully obedient to God's revealed will? The attitude of the bumper sticker should stick with us, "God said it, I believe it, that settles it." Second, he thought of his influence as he was circumcised at ninety-nine years old and kept the covenant with God by enforcing this command for all males in his house (Genesis 17:23-27; 21:4). Our influence in faithfulness is a great blessing to others in leading them to righteousness (Proverbs 4:11). Third, Abraham glorified God by respecting Him, magnifying, Him and honoring Him. He did not receive the glory but he gave it all to God (Romans 4:1-3).

Likewise, faithfulness will cause us to glorify God with our minds, attitudes, worship, and good works (Psalm 29:2). Fourth, Abraham "looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God" (Hebrews 11:10). Every Christian who walks in faithfulness knows that there is a home awaiting beyond this life (2 Corinthians 5:1).

Finally, faithful Abraham trusted God in one of the most trying moments in his life. "By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, Of whom it was said, That in Isaac shall thy seed be called: Accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead; from whence also he received him in a figure" (Hebrews 11:17-19). Faithfulness demands a firm belief that God is able to perform what He says (Romans 4:21). God has promised a crown of life to all the faithful that love Him even through difficult times (James 1:12). With all this in mind, let us consider our own faithfulness in comparison to Abraham. Let us consider the blessings that will be ours if only we endure to the end (Revelation 2:10)!

- via The Contender, the weekly bulletin published by the Walnut Grove church of Christ in Benton, KY. Kevin Williams preaches for the congregation. He may be contacted at wgcoc@bellsouth.net

An Inheritance Awaits!

By David A. Sargent

An old legend tells of an old lonely man who, one cold dark night, wandered along the Rhine River. Thinly dressed and half-starved, he noticed a huge mansion brightly lit. As he came nearer, he could see the warm fire burning in the fireplace, the table laden with food, and he could hear the music as it floated out on the breezes of the night. Driven by hunger and cold, he knocked upon the door to beg for shelter for the night. An old servant answered the door and through the weathered face recognized the long lost heir to the mansion and estate. Here was a man wandering without any idea that he would be warmed, filled with food, and comfortable because he suddenly became quite wealthy. *

Similarly, many wander through life not realizing that each of us can become an heir to an ETERNAL inheritance that is more valuable than anything on earth!

Unfortunately, due to our sin we are unfit and unqualified to receive the inheritance. In fact, our sin condemns us to eternal destruction (Matthew 7:13-14).

But God loves us so much that He gave His only Son to die on the cross for our sins so that we might have forgiveness of our sins (Colossians 1:14) and be made “heirs having the hope of eternal life” (Titus 3:7).

The Apostle Peter wrote about this inheritance that awaits Christians:
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you.” 1 Peter 1:3-4

YOU can become a child of God and a co-heir with Christ (Romans 8:16-17), if you will place your faith and trust in Jesus (Acts 16:30-31), turn from sin in repentance (Acts 17:30-31), confess Jesus before men (Romans 10:9-10), and be born again in baptism (immersion) for the forgiveness of sins (Acts 2:38; cf. John 3:3-5). Then, if you will follow Him faithfully (Revelation 2:10), one day you will receive the inheritance that He longs to give to you.

Because of Jesus, YOU can become a heir to an ETERNAL inheritance “that can never perish, spoil or fade.” God has something wonderful FOR YOU –IF- you will only accept it on His terms.

Won’t YOU?

- David A. Sargent, minister for the church of Christ at Creekwood in Mobile, Alabama, is also the editor of an electronic devotional entitled Living Water." To learn more about this excellent resource contact David via their website: http://www.creekwoodcc.org

* Gene Cloer, BibleCourses.com

"Good Gossip"

By Dan Williams

"It gave me great joy to have some brothers come and tell about your faithfulness to the truth and how you continue to walk in the truth. I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth" - 3 John 1:3-4

While attending a conference at Harding University last March I ran into someone from another city who recognized me, came over, and made a point of telling me about a young lady who grew up in this church family who was now a member of his congregation. He could not say enough good things about this young lady and her faithful service to God.

When I returned to El Dorado I promptly passed along his comments to the young lady's parents, who were understandably gratified to receive this positive report.

Not long after that two of our members separately came to me to relay comments that were made about our congregation by people in our community. One of our members told me she was working in a shop downtown when one of her customers asked:

"Do they teach about loving one another out of the pulpit there at College Avenue? That is one of the most loving churches I know anywhere. And another thing: you always have so many people there on Wednesday nights. What are you folks doing?"

Another of our members passed along this comment she heard from one of our worship guests:

"I have visited a lot of churches, and your church shows more love than any other place I have ever visited. I can tell you really are a family here."

In both cases these individuals were eager to pass on what they had heard. Receiving those positive reports caused me to reflect. There is a saying, "Bad news travels fast," but why only bad? Why can't we be as eager to pass along, and to receive, positive comments we have overheard? Can there be such a thing as "good gossip"?

Some Christians may be reluctant to repeat good reports about their brothers because they are afraid of making them proud or of causing others to be jealous. The apostle John, however, was glad to brag on Demetrius, saying he "is well spoken of by everyone - and even by the truth itself. We also speak well of him, and you know that our testimony is true" – 3 John 1:12

The Bible urges us to speak an encouraging word to our brothers and sisters (Ephesians 4:29; Proverbs 12:25) and yet all too often we wait until someone is dead before we openly commend their good qualities. I am reminded of the wry observation of humorist Garrison Keillor: "They say such nice things about people at their funerals that it makes me sad to realize that I'm going to miss mine by just a few days."

So go ahead and "gossip" – good gossip! When you know something good about your
brother, pass it along. If you appreciate someone, tell them so. As the old poem says:

If with pleasure you are viewing
Any work a brother's doing;
If you like him or you love him,
Tell him now!

Don't withhold your approbation
Till the parson's grave oration
As he lies with snowy lilies
O'er his brow.

Makes no matter how you shout it
He won't really care about it -
He won't know how many teardrops
You have shed.

More than fame and more than money
Is the comment, kind and sunny,
And the unmistaken handshake
Of a friend.

If you think some praise is due him
Now's the time to tell it to him -
For he cannot read his tombstone
Once he's dead.

- Dan Williams, El Dorado, Arkansas; via The Encourager, the weekly bulletin for the Calvert City church of Christ, Calvert City, KY. Lance Cordle preaches for the congregation. He may be contacted through the congregation's website: http://www.calvertchurchofchrist.com