THE POUND
PROCLAIMER
Volume V
May 2010
Number 3
Sing
to the Lord, bless His name; proclaim the good news of His salvation from day
to day. Psalms 96:2
WHAT IS PEACE?
Can peace be
defined? Can you say what brings you peace? What is a peaceful setting for you?
One man may say
watching and listening to a small brook is peaceful. Another may say hearing
the sounds of a mountain stream are calming and peaceful. Then another may find
watching a large river flow mile after mile to be very relaxing. Yet another
may follow that same river as it turns into a raging waterfall, dropping
hundreds of feet and to him it is peaceful.
Peace is a
relative term. To each person it is different. But there is one peace that
should be the same to everyone. It is the peace that comes from God through
Jesus Christ his Son. Jesus conveys this thought in John 14. He tells the
disciples that he is going away to prepare a place for them. In Verse
27 He say’s “Peace I leave
with you.”
When the Jews
said goodbye they used the word shalom, meaning “peace”. Jesus said “My peace I give to you.” He places
emphasis on ‘My’, because he wanted them to know this was not an ordinary
goodbye. This was a special “Shalom”.
After the death
and resurrection of Jesus, we find the apostle Paul writing in Romans
5:1 “therefore, having been
justified by faith, we have peace through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Also in Philippians
4:6-7 Paul writes, “Be anxious
for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving,
let your requests be made known to God and the peace of God which surpasses all
understanding will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” This
is the peace we all should be looking for and this is the peace we all need.
Unfortunately,
this is the peace that we sometimes try to find in ways that do not involve
Jesus. Sometimes these way’s are sinful and can bring peace for a short period
of time, but never long lasting and never will they bring us eternal peace.
Other times we might find peace in doing good and wholesome things, but we get
too involved and get wrapped up to the point it takes us away from the true
source of peace. In the songbook Hymns for Worship there are several songs that
pertain to Jesus and peace. Read the lyrics to some of these songs. It Is Well With My Soul (626), Jesus I Come (321) and Master The Tempest Is Raging (689).
Only in Christ and only through putting our full trust in Christ can we say we
have Peace, Perfect Peace (626).
mullins_rick@yahoo.com
The Editor’s
Page
Many local
churches are facing decline. The Christians at these churches seem to be at a
loss to identify their problem. The common refrain heard among them is ‘Why
aren’t we growing’? I am sure if we were able to examine each church we could
find a myriad of reasons. Many of the reasons would no doubt be indigenous to
the particular church. However, there are some reasons that would fit many
churches.
One such reason
is sin. There is a very interesting account in Devine history that addresses
this phenomenon. It is found in Joshua chapter seven.
Joshua and
As
Joshua went
before God complaining and questioning Him as to why He let it happen. God’s
answer is one that we all should take to heart. Hear His words. “
All of
There are
lessons to be learned from this historical account. One lesson is that God will
not bless or allow success to those who will not abide by His commandments. I
am persuaded that some churches do not grow because there is sin in their
midst.
When the message
of the church is weak on identifying sin it will create a loose attitude toward
sin. Do not forget, “For the wages of sin
is death, …” (Romans 6:23a).
When local
churches are negligent in dealing with those of its members who continue in
sin, they should not expect to grow. Paul instructed the church at
The local church
that will grow and be the shining light it should be,
is the one that will look among themselves and remove any and all sin present.
Then and only then will it grow.
WORKING FOR THE
MASTER
WHAT KIND OF PERSON ARE YOU?
What kind of
person are you? This question is often asked by someone who has been hurt by
another. In a moment of anguish, the offended party may evaluate the actions of
another as being incomprehensible. They cry out; what kind of person are you
that you would do such a horrible thing to me?! When moments like this occur,
one is made to face the inner most truth about self. It would serve us all well
to face this truth before we blunder into doing or saying something that hurts
others.
Character is
what life is all about. The strong inner character has its own particular
beauty. It is a beauty that is developed during times of difficulty. The type
of character that should characterize the child of God comes to those who use
difficulty to become strong. I once read about a science class in which the
students were studying metamorphosis. They obtained a caterpillar cocoon to
observe and study. The caterpillar had been in its cocoon for months. Then one
day, with the aid of a stethoscope, the students heard the thumping of the
butterfly struggling for its freedom.
The students,
with excitement and meticulous care, cut open the end of the cocoon, allowing
the caterpillar to crawl out. Sluggishly, it began to unfold misshapen wings
that could not flutter as butterfly wings should. Oh, it attempted to move them
many times, but they just wouldn't function properly. After some time, the poor
butterfly died the death of a pathetic and paralyzed creature without the
strength to survive.
What the
students didn’t realize was that in their effort to help, they caused
irreparable harm. When they freed the butterfly painlessly from its cocoon,
they deprived it of the necessary struggle that would give force and cadence to
its wings. They took away the very thing which would have developed its
respiratory and circulatory systems and kindle its will to live. Their aid had
caused the creature’s demise.
Not only do
hardships in life develop strong character, continued hardships demonstrate the
beauty of a strong inner character. It is for this reason that the apostle Paul
wrote to the Colossian brethren, “And so,
from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may
be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and
understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to
him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.
May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for
all endurance and patience with joy, giving thanks to the Father, who has
qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light” (Colossians
1:9-12).
The Christian
who honestly desires a closer walk with God is one who welcomes the feedback
that comes from life’s hardships. It tells us whether we are persevering or
quitting; whether we are maturing or remaining childish; whether we are
complete or incomplete in our spiritual life. (See James 1:2-4).
The desire of
the Christian should be to acquire the strong inner character that comes by
making the proper choices. Proper choices are those made when circumstances
demand of us to think, say or do that which is honorable as opposed to what is
easy or popular. In times of these circumstances, Christians expose their inner
character for all to see by the extra effort they give “for all endurance and patience with joy” to “be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might”.
In view of the
above, it behooves the Christian to recognize the hardships that test us. It is
of interest to note that we do not always recognize which tests are the ones
that build strong inner character. It may be the trials we consider
‘insignificant’ that are the most significant to developing strong character.
The ‘little’ decisions we make, may very well be the ones that give us either a
passing or failing grade. Jesus taught this in the parable of the talents when
He said, “His master said to him, ‘Well
done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will
set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master’” (Matthew
25:21).
There is a
lesson to be learned about difficulties i.e. tests that come to the Christian.
Not all tests are negative by nature. Some tests are positive by nature.
Consider the fact that we live in a time of relative ease compared to previous
history. I do not speak only of the times when Christians were persecuted unto
death, although that would be included. I speak of the standard of living we
enjoy in these
This standard of
living is both a blessing and a curse. It takes a strong inner character to
deal honorably with plenty as it does with poverty. The apostle Paul wrote the Philippian brethren “I
know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every
circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance
and need” (Philippians
Is life worth
living?
Aye, with the
best of us,
Heights of us,
depths of us,
Life is the test
of us!
(Corinne
Roosevelt Robinson)
Life is a
precious gift that God has given each of us. What we do with it not only
reveals what we think of God, but what we think of ourselves. Those who face
life’s tests with a strong inner character view themselves as made in the image
of God. God does not make mistakes, and he did not make a mistake when He made
you and me. Determine to face Life’s tests by exemplifying the strong inner
character that pleases God.
THE LAST WORD
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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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The Pound Proclaimer
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All articles by the editor unless
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Editor: Glen Young
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