THE POUND
PROCLAIMER
Volume V
April 2010
Number 2
Sing
to the Lord, bless His name; proclaim the good news of His salvation from day
to day. Psalms 96:2
A QUESTION OF
INTEGRITY
Here’s the
story. Moses had answered God’s call to lead the people of
Does the Bible really say God wanted to kill Moses and changed his mind when Moses’ wife circumcised her son? What in the world is going on in this passage of scripture?
Many of the stories in the Bible reflect a cultural mindset that is different than ours. Some aspects of this story seem primitive, or even barbaric. Remember, this happened 4000 years ago. Sometimes we make the mistake of expecting all Bible characters to act like “enlightened,” politically-correct, 21st century middle-class Americans, but that simply isn’t what they were.
This story is about INTEGRITY. Plain and simple, this story shows us how Moses compromised his integrity and what he had to do to get it back.
Consider these steps to building or even regaining a position of integrity in your life.
1) Realize all the rules apply to you!
This is how it
happened. The people of
Really, it’s a question of integrity. It’s a question of Moses’ ability to realize that all the rules that apply to everyone else apply to him as well. The rules still apply to you. If you want to maintain your integrity, or regain your integrity, you have to realize that the same rules which apply to everyone else also apply to you, or else the gap between the way things are and the way things ought to be will continue to get wider.
2) Your private life must match your public life.
We manage to make everything look great on the surface, but the view from behind the scenes reveals a different story. Have you ever visited a church, or interviewed for a job with a company, or joined a club that gave all appearances of being “one big happy family” — and then as you became more involved you found out that things weren’t what they appeared to be?
So, finally, what did Moses do to regain his integrity? He put his house in order, both publicly and privately.
Maintaining or regaining your integrity requires that we take a stand on truth and say with determination, “This is it. The buck stops here. I will play by the rules, I will stop making excuses, and I will make my private life consistent with my public life.”
By David Thacker
thackerdavid@att.net
The Editor’s
Page
“THESE are the
times that try men’s souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will,
in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands by
it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. Tyranny, like hell, is
not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the
conflict, the more glorious the triumph. What we obtain too cheap, we esteem
too lightly: it is dearness only that gives every thing its value. Heaven knows
how to put a proper price upon its goods; and it would be strange indeed if so
celestial an article as FREEDOM should not be highly rated.
The previous
paragraph is the first paragraph in the first article of a collection of essays
written by Thomas Paine under the title of The Crises. It was published
It is not the
work of the Lord’s church to intervene in the politics of the world. However,
Christians live in the world. While we are not of the world, we are confronted
daily with “… all that is in the
world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride in
possessions …” (1 John
The apostle John
writes in his first epistle, “And the
world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God
abides forever” (1 John
When we are
tempted to hate, we must not forget to love, even our enemies (Matthew
I do not know
what the future holds, no man does. Because we are not privy to what may happen
to our beloved country, “... it is my eager
expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full
courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by
death” (Philippians 1:20). I am a citizen of these
Whatever may
occur in the future, Christians must maintain their integrity before God. The
only way that can happen is by having our priorities in order. Regardless of
the difficulty, God is with those who trust in Him (Matthew
Indeed, these
are times that try men’s souls. It is times like these that separate the
faithful from the unfaithful. Which are you?!
WORKING FOR THE
MASTER
An old fable that has been passed down for generations tells about an elderly man who was traveling with a boy and a donkey. As they walked through a village, the man was leading the donkey and the boy was walking behind. The townspeople said the old man was a fool for not riding, so to please them he climbed up on the animal’s back. When they came to the next village, the people said the old man was cruel to let the child walk while he enjoyed the ride. So, to please them, he got off and set the boy on the animal’s back and continued on his way. In the third village, people accused the child of being lazy for making the old man walk, and the suggestion was made that they both ride. So the man climbed on and they set off again. In the fourth village, the townspeople were indignant at the cruelty to the donkey because he was made to carry two people. The frustrated man was last seen carrying the donkey down the road.
Have you tried to please everyone? Trying to please everyone is very frustrating, because it’s physically impossible. The reason for this is because, “Every way of a man is right in his own eyes, …” Proverbs 21:2. Listen to the conversations men have with one another and you will hear how true are the words of this proverb.
It is not uncommon for men to spend hours debating which idea for accomplishing a task is best suited for the job. Each man believes that his way of doing it is the best. Should you have any doubts about my statement, I suggest that you tune in the CSPAN TV network when it broadcasts the House or Senate secessions. You will observe the epitome of those men who think their way is the best way.
It is not a sin for men to have a thought or idea about how best to accomplish an end when it comes to the work of a local church. Actually, nothing would ever get done unless someone thought of a way it could be done. Neither is it a sin to have an exchange of ideas in the context of a collective forum. However, problems arise when we try to accommodate every proposal.
How often do we ‘table’ a matter because we cannot come to a meeting of the minds on how best to proceed? How often does a matter remain unresolved because we don’t want to hurt someone’s feelings by rejecting their proposal? After all, they might become unfaithful if we go against their wishes.
The truth is, even if we could please everyone, we shouldn’t. Trying to please others can distract from our pleasing of God the Father.
Paul understood this principle for he wrote, “For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ” Galatians 1:10.
The number one priority for the Christian is to please God by obeying Him. I know of no Christian who enjoys conflict, especially conflict with loved ones. But, as Christians, we know that our choices will not always please others.
Christians know
they should become all things to all men that they may win some to Christ (1
Corinthians
Christians know that others, even other Christians, will not always agree with them in matters of personal faith (Romans 14). Problems arise when matters of personal faith are treated with more scrutiny than they deserve, even to the point of treating them as sin. If sin has occurred, it should be dealt with as such. If no sin has occurred, then don’t criticize the effort.
Christians know
that everyone isn’t pleased with the decisions they make. While it may give
them concern, they won’t lose sleep over it, for they can say as did Paul, “… through the appearing of our Savior
Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light
through the gospel, for which I was appointed a preacher and apostle and
teacher, which is why I suffer as I do. But I am not ashamed, for I know whom I
have believed, and I am convinced that he is able to guard until that Day what
has been entrusted to me” 2 Timothy 1:10-12.
THE LAST WORD
UNDERSTANDING WISDOM
“O ye simple understand wisdom: and, ye fools be
ye of an understanding heart.” (Proverbs 8:5)
Allow me to draw your
attention to a simple passage of scripture. Nearly everyone is familiar with
it. Parents teach it to their children. Children often sing a song about it.
This message is one of importance for older folk too. Listen to Jesus.
“All who listen to my instructions and follow them
are wise, like a man who builds his house on solid rock. Though the rain comes
in torrents, and the floods rise and the storm winds beat against his house, it
won't collapse, for it is built on rock. But those who hear my instructions and
ignore them are foolish, like a man who builds his house on sand. For when the
rains and floods come, and storm winds beat against his house, it will fall
with a mighty crash.” (Matthew 7:24-28)
These verses powerfully
illustrate the wisdom and authority behind all the things Jesus has been
talking about in what we know as the ‘SERMON ON THE MOUNT’. They have to do
with authority, teaching and obedience.
Jesus contrasts a wise man
to a foolish man. A wise man will find out what Jesus says, just as a wise man
will build his house upon a safe foundation. A wise man will hear, which means
he understands the teaching, and then he will DO what Jesus teaches. He will
obey.
In contrast the man, who
hears and understands but does NOT obey what Jesus instructs, is likened to a
foolish man. Friends, none of us want to be identified as fools, now do we? We
all want to show ourselves to be wise people. This teaching of Jesus is the
very essence of our purpose for being upon the earth.
A wise man named Solomon
also came to a conclusion of living a wise life upon this earth. His conclusion
is very much like the conclusion of Jesus. He says, “After all this, there is only one thing to say: Have reverence for
God, and obey his commands, because this is all that man was created for. God
is going to judge everything we do, whether good or bad, even things done in
secret.” (Ecclesiastes 12:13-14)
What about it friend, do
you have a wise and understanding heart? Are you DOING what Jesus teaches?
By Wendell Ward
ward909393@bellsouth.net
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WHAT MUST
I DO
Hear: Rom
Believe: Heb 11:6
Repent: Lk 13:5; Ac 17:30
Confess: Matt
Be Baptized: Ac
TO BE
SAVED?
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FAMILY
MATTERS
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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The Pound Proclaimer
is published monthly by the Pound
All articles by the editor unless
otherwise stated
Editor: Glen Young
Phone: 276-796-5767=Office
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