Love

By Garrett Best

I HAVE BEEN to youth rallies, gospel meetings, seminars, lectureships, and so many other church venues, when the topic of evangelism has been discussed...

I have spent hours listening and reading articles from gospel preachers about how we can get people to the building. However, the answer is so simple -- by love. "By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another" (John 13:35). If we want people to know that we are Christ's disciples, then we must have love for one another, and not just any love. We must have the kind of love that edifies; a kind of love described by the inspired Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 13:4-6. We must be people who love one another patiently, kindly, and without jealousy. We cannot brag or act arrogantly toward our brothers and sisters. We must always act righteously and not seek our own. We must never provoke and never take into account wrong doing. We must only rejoice with our brothers in the truth and never in unrighteousness. Living love-filled lives that edify others will not only change the church, but it will change the world!

KneEmail: "Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God." 1 John 4:7

- Garrett Best, "Love Is Edifying," Freed-Hardeman University 2010 Lectures, 39; Mike Benson edits an on-line devotional entitled KneEmail. To subscribe, send ANY message to: kneemail-subscribe@welovegod.org Mike may be contacted atmlbenson@wowway.com

A Matter Of Time

By Steve Higginbotham

I don't mean to be a wet-blanket, but the streak will end. It's inevitable. For those who may not know what I'm talking about, on Tuesday of last week, the University of Connecticut Women's Basketball program won their 89th consecutive game. That's the longest winning streak in history. The legendary John Wooden, coach of the UCLA Bruins held the former record with 88 wins, spanning from 1971-1974. The UConn ladies began their streak on November 16, 2008, and there's really no end in sight.

However, the streak will end. It doesn't matter how good this basketball program is, the night is coming when they will have an "off" night, or when they will match up against a better team, or a luckier team, and their streak will come to an end.

Now, I don't want to take anything away from their monumental winning streak. I just want to make a point of comparison. Their winning streak reminds me of our Christian life. No matter how good we are or have been, we're going to have a bad day; we're going to meet a stronger opponent, and we're going to lose a contest.

If we had to keep a "streak" going in order to make it to Heaven, how hopeless we would all be. But thanks be to God for making provision for our inevitable imperfection! We can still be crowned as victors over sin and death without a flawless record!

- Steve Higginbotham preaches for the Karns Church of Christ in Knoxville, TN. He may be contacted through the congregation's website at http://www.karnschurch.org. Copyright 2010, Steve Higginbotham. Permission is granted to copy these articles.

Grace and Peace

By Curtis L. E. Graves

“To all that be in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ” (Rom. 1:7). Grace and peace were common expressions of greeting used by Paul. Paul, himself, was well acquainted with the grace and peace of God. Having an atmosphere of grace and peace within the church enables it to face a world of conflict, social problems, frustrations, and friction.

Without that sense of grace and peace the church would lose its effectiveness in its task of taking the gospel to the world and being lights to the world. Our Lord prayed for peace and we must seek it in Him.

The child of God cannot win with hatred and strife. We must be spiritually minded, and walk as Christ and not as man. We can escape the hatred and strife of the world in the kingdom of peace, the one church that Jesus built! Not only can we have grace and peace ourselves but we can also share with others how they may have it. “For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace” (Rom. 8:6). “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith” (Gal. 5:22). “For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost” (Rom. 14:17). “Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord” (Heb. 12:14).

- Curtis L. E. Graves, Chesapeake, VA; via the Belvedere Beacon, the weekly bulletin of the Belvedere church of Christ, Belvedere, SC. Ken Chumbley preaches for this congregation, and he may be contacted at their website: http://www.belvederechurchofchrist.org

You Shall Not Steal

By Bryan Kirby

Are we under the Ten Commandments today?

The eighth commandment seems pretty straightforward: “You shall not steal.” (Exodus 20:15 ESV). No person is to take property that does not belong to him or her. Other passages in the Old Law expand upon this initial prohibition to include a variety of other actions that could be defined as “stealing.” Leviticus 19:11-13 reads: “You shall not steal; you shall not deal falsely; you shall not lie to one another. You shall not swear by my name falsely, and so profane the name of your God: I am the LORD. You shall not oppress your neighbor or rob him. The wages of a hired servant shall not remain with you all night until the morning.”

It is plain that lying in business transactions is also considered under the Law to be stealing. There were also many who would use the name of God as a promise that their business dealings were on the up-and-up, when in fact they were making false promises. This is a clear violation of both commandment one and commandment eight. It was also considered theft to withhold the wages of a worker until the next day.

In a society where we regularly expect to be paid for our labor either weekly or every two weeks, we don’t fully understand why this prohibition was so important. Ancient Israel was an agrarian society that depended on manual labor and farm production. Each one of these laborers did not likely have any other money aside from what he or she earned that day. If they were not paid, they might not be able to purchase food for themselves or their families. A worker simply MUST be paid.

The New Testament also has many prohibitions against such thievery. In Ephesians 4:28, the Apostle Paul writes: “Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need.” This was not just a command for a thief to stop being a thief, but instead for him to become something more. Each person is encouraged to become a productive member of the society around them so that he or she can not only provide for his or her own needs, but that they might also give back to those who cannot do for themselves.

Paul also points out in Romans 13:9-11 that if we follow the idea of loving our neighbor, we don’t have to worry about being in violation of the Law. When we love our neighbor, we are not going to seek to take things that belong to them away from them. Love will prevent us from cheating someone in a business dealing or withholding what a worker deserves to be paid. Love also calls us to be productive and not take advantage of those who may be tender hearted, if a little naive, and give to those who would not work even though they could.

Let us all live lives of love and seek to do what is right for our neighbor and in the eyes of God.

- Bryan Kirby preaches for the Goodwood Boulevard church of Christ in Baton Rouge, LA. He may be contacted through the congregation's website at http://www.goodwoodchurch.org

Love

By Wade Webster

ROBERT THORTON RELATED the following incident from his childhood...
"In the middle of one of my parents' more memorable disagreements, my father jumped up from the table, grabbed two sheets of paper, and said to my mother, 'Let's make a list of everything we don't like about each other.' Mom started writing. Dad glowered at her for a few minutes, and then wrote on his paper. She wrote again. He watched her, and every time she stopped, he would start writing again. They finally finished. 'Lets exchange complaints,' dad said. They gave each other their lists. 'Give mine back,' mom pleaded when she glanced at his sheet. All down the page dad had written: 'I love you, I love you, I love you.'"

In the the long ago, Peter prayed,
"But the end of all things is at hand; therefore be serious and watchful in your prayers. And above all things have fervent love for one another, for “love will cover a multitude of sins.”] Be hospitable to one another without grumbling. As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. If anyone speaks, let him speak as the oracles of God. If anyone ministers, let him do it as with the ability which God supplies, that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belong the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen." 1 Peter 4:7-11

Please pay special attention to what Peter said about love. We are to have love above all things. It is to be first. Furthermore, please note that it is to be fervent. It is not to be lukewarm. Finally, please note that it is to be flourishing. It must cover a multitude of sins. Perhaps, it must cover them on many occasions.

How easy it would be to make a list of things that we do not like about one another. However, what we really need is to give love its proper place in our relationships one with another. [Wade Webster, "I Love You, I Love You, I Love You," The Searcher, August 15, 2010, 1]

KneEmail: "Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things." 1 Corinthians 13:4-7

- Mike Benson edits an on-line devotional entitled KneEmail. To subscribe, send ANY message to: kneemail-subscribe@welovegod.org Mike may be contacted at mlbenson@wowway.com

A Dog's Purpose - from a 4 year old

Being a veterinarian, I was called to examine a ten year old Irish wolfhound named Belker. The dog's owners, Ron, his wife Lisa and their little boy, Shane, were all very attached to Belker and they were hoping for a miracle.

I examined Belker and found he was dying of cancer. I told the family we couldn't do anything for Belker, and offered to perform the euthanasia procedure for the old dog in their home.

As we made arrangements, Ron and Lisa told me they thought it would be good for the four-year-old Shane to observe the procedure. They felt as though Shane might learn something from the experience.

The next day, I felt the familiar catch in my throat as Belker's family surrounded him. Shane seemed so calm, petting the old dog for the last time,that I wondered if he understood what was going on. Within a few minutes, Belker slipped peacefully away. The little boy seemed to accept Belker's transition without any difficulty or confusion.

We sat together for a while after Belker's death, wondering aloud about the sad fact that animal lives are shorter than human lives. Shane, who had been listening quietly, piped up, "I know why."

Startled, we all turned to him. What came out of his mouth next stunned me. I'd never heard a more comforting explanation.

He said, "People are born so that they can learn how to live a good life -- like loving everybody all the time and being nice, right?" The four-year-old continued, "Well, dogs already know how to do that, so
they don't have to stay as long."

Live simply. Love generously. Care deeply. Speak kindly. Leave the rest to God.

- Source Unknown

Joy

By Ron Bartanen

We are given an amazing picture in Acts 22:25 of two men—the apostle Paul and his fellow-laborer, Silas, as they “prayed and sang praises unto God.” What is so amazing about it is that they had been unmercifully scourged, put in chains and then thrown into a prison cell. Who would expect to see a joyful prayer-and-praise service in such an environment and under such circumstances! Paul and Silas had found what everybody desires—JOY. As a result, Luke records God’s response: an earthquake that sets them free, and a jailor and his household believed in Christ and were baptized.

Part of my ministry as a preacher of the Gospel is to point people to the true source of joy—Jesus Christ. Paul wrote the church at Philippi , “I shall continue with you all for your…joy of faith: that your rejoicing may be more abundant in Jesus Christ…” (Philippians 1:25-26), and encouraged them to “rejoice in the Lord always; and again I say, rejoice” (Phil. 4:4). He had found joy in Christ, and shared that joy with others.

True joy is not found in the passing pleasures of this world, but in Him who said, “These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full” (John 15:11). As someone once observed, “Joy grows on the Christian tree.” Have you found this joy?

- via THE SOWER, a weekly publication of the Arthur church of Christ, Arthur, IL. Ron Bartanen, who serves as minister and editor, may be contacted through the congregation's website: http://www.arthurchurchofchrist.com