MINGLED WITH OTHERS

Jesus said to His disciples, “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot. You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”  (Matthew 5:13-16 NIV)

It is the nature of the divine savour [salt] which is in you, to spread to whatsoever you touch; to diffuse itself, on every side, to all those among whom you are.  This is the great reason why the providence of God has so mingled you together with [others], that whatever grace you have received of God may through you be communicated to others.  

-- John Wesley, quoted by Robert Schnase in “Five Practices of Fruitful Living”

#6180

LOVE ONE ANOTHER

Our Lord has recommended His love to us as the pattern and the example of our love to one another.  As, therefore, He is continually making intercession for us all, so we ought to intercede and pray for one another.

“A new commandment,” said Jesus, “I give to you, that you love one another, as I have loved you.  By this shall all people know that you are My disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13:34,35)

The newness of this precept did not consist in that people were commanded to love one another, for this was an old precept, both of the law of Moses and of nature.  But it was new in this respect, that it was to initiate a new and, till then, unheard-of example of love; it was to love one another as Christ had loved us.  And if others are to know that we are disciples of Christ, by thus loving one another according to His new example of love, then it is certain that if we are void of this love we make it as plainly known to others that we are not His disciples. 

-- Adapted from William Law (1686-1761) in “A Serious Call to a Devout and Holy Life”

#5926

 

ENCOUNTERING EVIL

In any encounter with evil, we must have love in our hearts and we must absolutely trust in the goodness of God and God's call.  We are enjoined by Christ not only to love God and our neighbors but also to love our enemies. This seems a hard enough task by itself, and it has led a number of people to believe that Christians should be nonresistant or even compliant with injustice in the cause of “turning the other cheek."  But if we are to try to follow Jesus' example as well as His words, it is impossible to remain uninvolved.  Jesus stood up to Satan, threw money changers out of the Temple, and stepped in to stop the unjust stoning of a woman.

Somehow, then, we are asked not only to love our enemies but to resist them while we are loving them.  I would propose that a partial answer to this challenge lies in a radical, absolute, and wordlessly contemplative trust.  It is, I think, something reflected in 1 Peter 1:13 (JB):  "Free your minds, then, of encumbrances: control them, and put your trust in nothing but the grace that will be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed."  It is only in such absolute trust that love can be fully energized for nondestructive action.

-- Gerald May in “Living with Apocalypse” 

#5739

TOUCHING CHRIST

“Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’”  (Matthew 25:37-40 NKJV)

I’ll never forget during the Bangladesh suffering: we had ten million people in and around Calcutta. I asked the government of India to allow a number of other congregations to come to our aid, to help us, because we were working the whole time.

They allowed them to come: about fifteen or sixteen different sisters came to help us, and each one, on leaving Calcutta, said the same thing, “I have received much more than I have given and I can never be the same person again; because I have touched Christ, I have understood what love is. What it is to love and be loved!” 

-- Mother Teresa in “My Life for the Poor” 

#5565

SHOWING GOD’S LOVE BEGINS AT HOME

“This is love: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and His love is made complete in us.”  (1 John 4:10-12 NIV)

In many ways, it's easier to be involved in hit-and-run [social] activism by doing things for people across town or around the world, but showing God's love begins at home. If we can't love the people under our own roofs, then the power and compassion of God isn't real in our hearts. Quite often, we play the blame game with our spouse and kids more than with anybody else. I'm not saying they're perfect. They're not, but neither are we. But amazing things happen when I choose to lower my voice, speak words of affirmation, and see my family members as treasures instead of annoyances. Love indeed, covers a multitude of sins -- theirs and mine. 

-- Pastor Rudy Rasmus in “Touch: Pressing Against the Wounds of a Broken World”

#5554

SPREADING THE GOOD NEWS

What do a disabled woman and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches have in common?  God used them both to reach thousands of kids.  In the summer of 1990, Bea Salazar didn't consider her life a work of art.  She was unemployed with five kids, no money, and little hope.  Then she found a crying boy digging for food in a dumpster.  She took the boy home and made him a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.  Good news about the peanut-butter lady spread through the neighborhood, and more kids showed up on her doorstep.  Today, she influences thousands of kids through her non-profit organization, Bea’s Kids (www.beaskids.org), which offers tutoring, clothes, medical assistance, food, and counseling.  Bea Salazar has received numerous awards for her good deeds.  When Oprah gave Bea the Use Your Life Award, Bea said, "It gives me a purpose to live, it gives me life…There is no greater joy."

There is no greater joy than doing good works for others in the name of the Lord.  Won't you give the gift that keeps on giving, the gift of yourself, for God's honor and glory? 

-- Lenya Heitzig and Penny Pierce Rose in “Pathway to God's Treasure: Ephesians” 

#5165

TOUCHING AND SAVING LIVES

“‘Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’ How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: ‘How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!’”  (Romans 10:13-15 NIV)

All other businesses we do for living, and for leaving good and great footprints, are good! In fact, we must not let our gifts and talents be idle, but in all our endeavors we must not forget that there is one more noble business than any, and that is touching and saving lives for the Kingdom of God, in truth and in spirit, and proclaiming the coming of Jesus Christ with all due diligence, understanding, humility, courage and fortitude! 

-- Ernest Agyemang Yeboah

#5097

PACK YOUR COFFIN

“I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.”  (Galatians 2:19-20 NRSV)

A century ago, a band of brave souls became known as one-way missionaries. They purchased single tickets to the mission field without the return half. And instead of suitcases, they packed their few earthly belongings into coffins. As they sailed out of port, they waved good-bye to everyone they loved, everything they knew. They knew they’d never return home.

A. W. Milne was one of those missionaries. He set sail for the New Hebrides in the South Pacific, knowing full well that the headhunters who lived there had martyred every missionary before him. Milne did not fear for his life, because he had already died to himself. His coffin was packed. For thirty-five years, he lived among that tribe and loved them. When he died, tribe members buried him in the middle of their village and inscribed this epitaph on his tombstone: “When he came there was no light. When he left there was no darkness.” 

-- Mark Batterson in “All In: You Are One Decision Away from a Totally Different Life” 

#4937

A NEW COMMANDMENT

Jesus said, “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are My disciples, if you love one another.”  (John 13:34-35)

In Jesus’ day -- as in our own -- there was no lack of competing social, political, or religious movements, all of them with leaders who were promoting their philosophies and programs in the marketplace of ideas and trying to enlist others to join their particular crusades.

To many observers, Jesus appeared to be just another in a seemingly endless succession of Middle Eastern spiritual teachers or cultural rebels, all of whom sought to recruit their own disciples.

One of the major differences, though, between Jesus and the other teachers was that He preached a radical and life-transforming message based on love, and He backed up His message with His life. “My command is this,” He said, “love each other as I have loved you.” (John 15:12) 

-- Steve & Lois Rabey in “Side by Side: Disciple-Making for a New Century”

#4932

YOU HAVE A WITNESS TO MAKE

"But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."  (Acts 1:8 NIV)

When the word missionary is mentioned, most American Christians think of persons who serve in foreign lands.  Images come to mind of faithful servants of God who go to faraway places with the prayer and with the financial support of Christians back home.  Missionaries go to faraway places to witness for Christ to persons who have not yet embraced Jesus as Savior and Lord.  However we must expand our images of missionaries… What is a missionary?  She or he is a person who has entered into a relationship of love and commitment with Christ.  That relationship compels devoted service and witness to [unchurched] persons wherever they are.  For most American Christians, that mission field is right in their own communities.

If you are a Christian, you are a missionary.  You have a witness to make to the many persons in your realm of influence who have not yet said "yes" to Christ.

-- Harold K. Bates in “Witness for Christ”

#4694