Belongings Or Belonging?

By Joe Slater        “What do you want for Christmas?” I already have my two front teeth, so my stock reply is, “I don’t know” (shrug). That frustrates the ones asking, but it’s true! I have no pressing needs. Even my wish list is pretty much empty.     Each passing year makes it clearer that the things I really need and want can’t be purchased with money! As our Savior so aptly put it, “One’s life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses” (Luke 12:15). I want the presence of (not presents from) my family. I want their health and safety, and above all their close walk with God.     I don’t need more belongings, but I definitely need a sense of belonging. God Himself said it isn’t good for us to be alone (Genesis 2:18). Family fills that need for belonging in marvelous ways! For that very reason, Satan relentlessly attacks the nuclear family. As early as Eden he pitted Adam and Eve against each other. Today his agents seek to redefine what a family is. Destruction of the family opens the door to finding that sense of belonging in unwholesome places.     As precious as earthly families are, I also need to belong to God’s spiritual family. The love, fellowship, and support of brothers and sisters in Christ surpass anything money can buy. By myself I won’t survive, but as we mutually strive to serve God our Father and Jesus our Elder Brother, we will enjoy certain victory! Satan throws roadblocks the church’s way just as he does with earthly families, tempting us to find our sense of belonging in worldly organizations or even false religious groups. Let us remain steadfast!     I hope you get just what you want and need for Christmas: not mere belongings, but belonging.

- Joe Slater serves as minister of the Church of Christ in Justin, TX. He may be contacted through the congregation's website: http://justinchurchofchrist.com

What Jesus Has Done For Us

By Dan C. Bailey       All of us have been assisted by friends in some way and somewhere along the road of life. With gratitude in our hearts we reflect upon that assistance and we usually express it with our lips by saying, "Thank you." Jesus has done so much for us, yet so few thank him by surrendering their lives to His service and submitting to His blessed will. It is good for us to take the time to think about what Jesus has done for us.     Jesus came down from heaven and left the glory that He had with the Father for our sakes. "And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was" (John 17:5).     Jesus was rich but He became poor for us. "For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich" (II Corinthians 8:9).     Jesus became flesh in order that He might die for all of mankind. "But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man" (Hebrews 2:9). Jesus had no sins but He was reviled and beaten in order that we might be healed. "Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth: Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously: Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed" (I Peter 2:22-24).     Jesus was wounded for our transgressions. "But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed" (Isaiah 53:5).      Jesus was oppressed and afflicted in order to obey the Father and to die for our sins. "He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth" (Isaiah 53:7). "And he went a little further, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt" (Matthew 26:39). "Who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father" (Galatians 1:4).     Jesus was despised and rejected of men in order that we might be acceptable to God. "He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not" (Isaiah 53:3). "In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace" (Ephesians 1:7). "And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby" (Ephesians 2:16). "This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner. Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved" (Acts 4:11-12).     These are just a few of the things that Jesus has done for us. We need to ask ourselves, "What have we done for Jesus?"

- Dan C. Bailey serves as a minister with the State Street Church of Christ in Bristol, VA. He may be contacted through the congregation's website at https://www.thelordsway.com/statestreetchurchofchrist/framedindex.asp?Group=Home

Introduction to 2 John

By Jeff Arnette       All four gospels describe John as a fisherman from Galilee, son of Zebedee and brother of the apostle James. The book of Acts also tells us that he is a leader of the church in Jerusalem.     In 1 John, the apostle dealt with the threat of false teachers troubling a church he loved. He was concerned that some of them might be pulled away from the faith by these slick false teachers. In 2 John, he again writes against the problems caused by some traveling false teachers.     Some have referred to 2 John as more of a “postcard” or “gospel tract” because it contains only 245 words in the Greek. While it does carry the distinction of being the shortest book of the New Testament don’t let that discourage you from studying it. It is full of powerful lessons about love, life, and the truth.     The letter is addressed to an unknown individual called the “elect lady and her children.” While it does could refer to a literal person, it seems like John uses the term as a metaphor for a church and its members. Whichever you chose, his message is clear: love each other, love others well, and hold to the truth of God’s word.     3 themes stand out in 2 John: truth, love, and walking in the faith. Unlike the false teachers real Christians love each other, love others, and love the words of Christ. They take that love into their lives and put it into practice every day. “… this is love that we walk according to his commandments…” (2 John 6).     Truth: John mentions the truth 4 times in the first 3 verses of the letter. He also expresses gratitude that the lady’s children (members of that church) were walking in the truth. With these false teachers trying to sow seeds of doubt about Jesus and the gospel, surrounding themselves with the truth was their greatest weapon against them.     Walking: The Christian faith is not a spectator sport. 3 times in verses 4-6, John refers to walking. The first was walking in the truth and the other two deal with walking in love. From a New Testament perspective, walking refers to your everyday life. So, for the Christian, faith should have a clear effect on everything we do.     Love: Clearly on of John’s favorite topics through all his writings, love plays a significant role in 2 John. Contrary to the false teachers, Christians live to love. They love each other and those outside the church. This is the clearest evidence of a genuine faith and relationship with Jesus.

- Jeff Arnette preaches for the Central Haywood church of Christ, Clyde, NC.  He may be contacted through the congregation's website: https://centralhaywoodcoc.com/

YOLO

By Clifton Angel       A couple decades before Christ was born, Horace penned "Carpe Diem," which in English means, "Seize the Day." More recently, some have said, "Life is short. Live it up." Even more recently, we've developed the acronym Y.O.L.O.—"You Only Live Once". There is a true principle in each of these. Unfortunately, they are often used with reference to worldly endeavors and sinful practices. Rather, we need to use the fact that we only live once to motivate us to live for God.     Paul wrote to the church at Corinth, "For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal" (2 Corinthians 4:17– 18). If only everyone would think this way. Even Christians are tempted to focus on things seen, and not the eternal things invisible (not seen).     Paul continued, "For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven: If so be that being clothed we shall not be found naked. For we that are in this tabernacle do groan, being burdened: not for that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon, that mortality might be swallowed up of life" (2 Corinthians 5:1–4).       Remember, Paul is writing to Christians, not just anyone. Not everyone has reserved their home in heaven. Unfortunately, many will be found spiritually naked when the Lord returns. "Now he that hath wrought us for the selfsame thing is God, who also hath given unto us the earnest of the Spirit. Therefore we are always confident, knowing that, whilst we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord: (For we walk by faith, not by sight:) We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord" (2 Corinthians 5:5–8).       What a mindset! What an encouragement for Christians! What a challenge for us to think on things eternal, and not things temporary!     Finally, we will consider these words of Paul, "Wherefore we labour, that, whether present or absent, we may be accepted of him. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad" (2 Corinthians 5:9–10).

- Clifton Angel preaches for the Coldwater Church of Christ in Coldwater, MS. He may be contacted through that congregation's website: http://www.coldwatercofc.com/

God’s Easy Yoke and Light Burden

By David R. Ferguson       If you have ever found yourself feeling as if the weight of the world was thrust upon your shoulders, then you are certainly in good company, for assuredly that great man of God, Moses, felt this way oftentimes while leading the Israelite people in their Wilderness Wanderings. On one of these occasions, he even despaired to the point where he pleaded with God to take his life. Moses said to the Lord, “Where am I to get meat to give to all this people? For they weep before me, saying, ‘Give us meat that we may eat!’ I alone am not able to carry all this people, because it is too burdensome for me. So if You are going to deal thus with me, please kill me at once, if I have found favor in Your sight, and do not let me see my wretchedness” (Numbers 11:13-15 [NAS]). God heard His servant Moses and He relieved his burden by giving him seventy elders to help him with the people.     Moses didn’t have to feel or be miserable to the point of death. The Israelites had not rejected or despised him, but the Lord. The Lord didn’t expect Moses to do everything, to feel invincible, or to be error-free. Calling in sick, taking a break, or sleeping in late bothered Moses more than it bothered God. Moses didn’t have to be perfect; just to be patient. God didn’t demand Moses to be a saint, but to be a servant.     A servant, by definition, is not his own boss. The Lord is ultimately responsible for all decisions, actions, and troubles. Any complaint or displeasure against His faithful servants is an affront to Him.     Rejecting the Lord is one of the most serious charges the Lord can bring against His people. This was the first time the Lord was accusing Israel of such a serious charge. Later God would accuse them of despising the land (Numbers 14:31). Three times, the Israelites were charged with rejecting the Lord – when they rejected Moses in this passage, when they later rejected Samuel as judge (1 Samuel 8:7), and, ultimately, when they were deported to Assyria for rejecting God’s decrees and for following worthless idols (2 Kings 17:6, 15). The consequence of rejecting the Lord is ruin.     Jesus said, “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me. For I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-29). God is your Father, too, and He longs to help relieve you of your burdens (Matthew 11:28-30). Turn them over to God today! You will find that the Lord will never let you down. He will be with you every step of the way, lending you His Strength.

- David R. Ferguson preaches for the Mentor Church of Christ in Mentor, OH.  He may be contacted through the congregation's website: http://mentorchurchofchrist.com/ or davidferguson61@yahoo.com

Joy to the World

By Joe Chesser       Read on.  It’s probably not about what you think it is. Joy to the World is a world-famous Christmas song.  But I’m not writing about the song; nor am I writing about Christmas.  Well, maybe I am – kind of!     What I am writing about in this article is the joy that was felt when Jesus came to this world, but not from the perspective we usually think.  Although Jesus’ coming to this world does produce a joy in us that is indescribable (Luke 2:10; 2 Cor. 9:15), I’d like for us to consider that when Jesus came to earth, it was joyous to God before it was to us!     In fact, just the thought of Jesus becoming the Redeemer of mankind brought pleasure to God even before the world was created (Eph. 1:5, 9).  Read carefully all of Ephesians 1:3-10 (I don’t have room to include it all in the article).  Such rich and thought provoking verses! If these verses don’t encourage and excite you, I can’t imagine what it would take. Among other things, these verses tell us that …               … if we are in Christ, we have access to every spiritual blessing  vs.3             … if we are in Christ, we were included among the chosen  vs. 4             … if we are in Christ, God sees us as holy and blameless   vs. 4             … in Christ we have redemption   vs. 7             … through the blood of Jesus we will be forgiven    vs. 7             … grace, wisdom and understanding are lavished on us in Christ    vs. 8             … through Christ we have insight into the mystery of God’s will  vs.9             … we will eventually join with the heavenly hosts under Christ as Head vs. 10       Just anticipating all these awesome blessings brought pleasure to God.  It may be compared (in a much lesser way, of course) with the joy we experience when we buy Christmas gifts for our kids and joyfully anticipate the day when they can experience the joy of receiving the gifts.     But when Jesus did become flesh, when He was actually born into this world, the joy and pleasure God had anticipated became tangible for us.  To God, it was a pleasure to send His joy to the world.  It was a pleasure to make His kingdom available to us (Luke 12:32).  It was His pleasure to offer the gospel to save those who believe (1 Cor. 1:21).  God was pleased to have all of His fullness dwell in Jesus (Col. 1:19) so that when we see Jesus, we see God (John 14:9, 1:14).     Since Jesus said “it is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35), I suspect that the joy that we as Christians feel at being saved is nothing compared to the joy God feels at saving us!  (Read Luke 15:7, 10).

- Joe Chesser preaches for the Fruitland Church of Christ, Fruitland, MO.  He may be contacted at joeandareva@yahoo.com

Out Of The Shadows

By Al Behel       Shadows can be scary things for small children. And there were always lots of shadows on the farm. One’s imagination could create anything with the shadows, from huge monsters to angels standing guard. Lights were limited and darkness was abundant.     A lot of people live in the shadows. They see some light but are surrounded by dark images and have no clarity of vision. They look at life differently. They see but don’t connect at the heart level. They are distant observers who just watch as others struggle and feel no sense of involvement.     Such was the case on June 19, 2008 when Esmin Green, 49 years of age, lay helpless on the floor of city-owned Kings County Hospital in New York for an hour as visitors, medical staff, nurses, and even a doctor walked away from her without rendering aid. She had collapsed on the floor with a blood clot after sitting in the hospital waiting room for almost 24 hours awaiting treatment.     And there is the case of a man in Massachusetts who was walking along a dock when he tripped over a rope and fell into the deep, cold water of the bay. Unable to swim he cried out for help. Only a few yards away was a young man, sprawled on a deck chair sunbathing. The drowning man kept shouting, “Help! I can’t swim!” But the young sunbather, who was an excellent swimmer, just turned his head and watched as the man floundered in the water, then disappeared forever. A lawsuit against the young man elicited a ruling from the court that he had the legal right to mind his own business and not become involved. This court would have vindicated Cain who asked God, “Am I my brother’s keeper?”     When people live sub-human lives they walk in darkness and never see the beauty of God’s light. Self-centered, ego-centric, and indifferent to the cries of struggling and lost humanity, they find themselves also lost in the shadows. If we live as children of the Light we cannot bear to turn a deaf or insensitive ear to those who hurt, or to those who are lost. Jesus declared that He is the “Light of the world” (John 8:12), and the apostle John tells us that the darkness of the world could not extinguish the Light (John 1). And Jesus designated us as the “light of the world” (Matthew 5:14) and commissioned us to bring Light into the darkness. The responsibility for the lost in our world is on our shoulders. We cannot sit in the shadows.

- Al Behel served the Great Smoky Mountains Church of Christ in Pigeon Forge, TN, for many years prior to this death in April 2022. The congregation may be contacted through their website - https://gsmchurchofchrist.com/