Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Adding Value To the Local Church Through Serving One Another


One way to put value into the local church is by striving to fulfill the one another commands of Scripture.

Galatians 5:13 gives us yet another of these. It says, “For you were called to freedom only do not turn your freedom to an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.”

Paul writes in Galatians 6:10, “as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially those who are of the household of faith.”   Our service should be extended first and foremost to other believers within our local churches.  These good works can come in many ways as we minister to all types of needs within the body.

Al Broom from Multiplication Ministries said this, “In "serving one another in love” we find true freedom in Christ.  Our deepest needs are met in legitimate ways.  We are not being used by one another.  We are not put on the performance standard.  Our relationships with others can be truly satisfying.  This is true freedom!” (One to One Discipling, pg. 60)

When we trust Christ as Savior we are no longer “prisoners to sin” (Gal. 3:22) but God has set us free we therefore are not slaves to sin but slaves to righteousness. (Rom. 6:18)  As slaves to righteousness we must take time to evaluate how we are “serving one another in love”.  

What becomes obvious to me is that if we are not spending time with other believers we cannot truly get to know their needs and therefore cannot serve them in love as much as if we truly knew them.  If we are not willing to open up and let others know us we cannot expect them to be able to serve us.  Once again, the Christian who believes that he can obey and please God as he meets alone with God in the woods is greatly mistaken.  He in no way can truly fulfill these commands of Scripture.

A second one another command that will help us in our “serving one another in love” is found in I Peter 4:9.  “Be hospitable to one another without grumbling.”  The term “be hospitable” means to love strangers.  To show compassion to those you don’t know very well.  In Heb. 13:2 and Acts 10:23 the idea is to bring people in to entertain.  As there are individuals that we don’t know very well in our church and we invite them into our homes for a meal or some other function.  This will allow us to get to know them better and give us the opportunity to serve them as we see needs in their lives. 

The end of I Peter 4:9 said, “without grumbling”.  I am amazed how many times I have heard individuals refer to having people over in a negative light.  I John 5:3 says, “For this is the love of God that we keep His commandments.  And His commandments are not burdensome.”  We show our love for God even as we serve others through hospitality and other ways as God leads.  Doing this service with a happy face and not grumbling!

To see the video version of this you can visit www.youtube.com/churchoflittleton    FW # 34

Sunday, November 27, 2011

Putting Value in the Local Church part 1


This week’s theme is “Putting Value in the Local Church.”  I believe we can do this by fulfilling the one another commands of Scripture.

Romans 12:4–5 (ESV) 4For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, 5so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another.

When we trust Christ as Savior we become part of the body of Christ.  The apostle Paul uses the similarities between the human body and the body of Christ in I Cor. 12:14-27.

Paul also challenged us in Ephesians that as members of a body we need to be working together to build up the body.  Ephesians 4:16 (ESV) 16from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.

As individuals within the body of Christ, God has given us different abilities and gifts to use to the benefit of the rest of the body.  In doing this we will build up the body and help it to grow into what Jesus expects of it.

This makes clear then that any individual Christian cannot function effectively unto himself.  Though they have certain talents that can benefit the body, for the body to be complete they must be willing to assemble with the rest of the body for the benefit of themselves and the others around them.  If I get a splinter in one of my toes, I need my hand to pull it out.  We should not ever say to another part of Christ’s body I don’t need you.  For it is each individual together that make up the body of Christ.

As we learn to minister to one another with the gifts that God has given we must be careful that we do not become proud.  Romans 12:3 (ESV) 3For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned.
God has given us all gifts so that His body may grow to be what he desires it to be, but we must constantly be reminded that these gifts are directly from Him.  They are not because of our own merit nor is one gift more valuable than another within the body.  Yet in Humility we are to serve one another for the benefit of all. 

These things cannot be done in isolation from other believers.  We are called to gather together to accomplish Christ’s purpose for the body.

So in review, we are to remember that we are all necessary parts of the body of Christ and that we are to function for the benefit of the whole.

The video edition of this is available at www.youtube.com/churchoflittleton   FW #32

God's Rewarding Grace: Titus 2:11-14


Titus 2:11–14 (NKJV) 11For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, 12teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, 13looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, 14who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works.

In this passage there are a few aspects of God’s grace: His redeeming Grace, His reforming Grace, and His rewarding Grace.

In this edition we will take the time to look at God’s rewarding Grace.

God loved us enough to send Jesus Christ to pay the penalty of our sin.  This was God’s redeeming Grace.  Yet he does not just leave us to ourselves after salvation.  He begins to conform us to the image of his son, that is His reforming grace.

13looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ,

For those who know Christ as Savior as who escape physical death their great hope is the reward of Jesus Christ’s return.     This is further explained in 1 Thessalonians 4:14–17 (ESV)  14For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. 15For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.
17Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord.

The privilege of being in the presence of our God and Savior Jesus Christ is only a hope for those who have placed their trust in his shed blood for salvation.  For those who have never asked forgiveness of their sin believing that their sin can be cleansed only by Christ’s blood to see Christ will not be a hope.  It will be a fear as they face the judgment of the king of kings and Lord of Lords.

My hope is that each one who has a chance to hear this will put their faith in Christ that they may one day experience this blessed hope as Jesus Christ returns.

The video version of this is available at www.youtube.com/churchoflitteton  FW #31   

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

God's Reforming Grace


Titus 2:11–14 (NKJV) 11For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, 12teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, 13looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, 14who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works.

In this passage there are a few aspects of God’s grace: His redeeming Grace, His reforming Grace, and His rewarding Grace.

In this edition we will take the time to look at God’s reforming Grace.

God loved us enough to send Jesus Christ to pay the penalty of our sin.  This was God’s redeeming Grace.  Yet he does not just leave us to ourselves after salvation.

Vs. 12 12teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age,

He begins to teach us. Part of this teaching is to deny ungodliness and worldly lusts.
To deny ungodliness means to not let it into our life. When I played basketball in college I often played defense on the other team’s center.  We played denial defense.  We were to get a hand, body, foot or something between the ball and the offensive player to deny that ball from getting to the player.

God shows us how to keep these things out of our lives by showing us how we should live.

To live soberly –means to live with sound judgment, to live by biblical principles.  In the book of proverbs this is referred to as walking the way of wisdom.

Living righteously is living upright.  It is living within God’s direction for life.

To live Godly will attribute to God everything things which rightfully belong to Him, this includes rendering to God the reverence and worship emanating from a holy life.[1]

“In this present age” –is living day to day as we wait for Christ to return.

Too many people today claim Christ as their savior, yet there is no change in their behavior.  According to this passage, after God redeems us with Christ he reforms us and begins to make us into the image of Christ.  Living a life that is worthy of the name Christian.

Let me challenge you today to look at your life.  Is there evidence of God’s reforming grace?  If not you may need to see if you have really trusted in the blood of Christ for salvation and have experienced God’s redeeming Grace.


[1] Spiros Zodhiates, The Complete Word Study Dictionary : New Testament, electronic ed. (Chattanooga, TN: AMG Publishers, 2000).

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

God's Redeeming Grace Titus 2:11-14


Titus 2:11–14 (NKJV) 11For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, 12teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, 13looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ,
14who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works.

In this passage there are a few aspects of God’s grace: His redeeming Grace, His reforming Grace, and His rewarding Grace.

In this edition, we will simply look at God’s redeeming Grace.

Vs. 11 “Grace of God that brings salvation hath appeared to all men.

The grace of God appeared when Jesus Christ came to earth.
John 1 – Word became flesh and dwelled among us…
Galatians 4:4-5 (NKJV)
4But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem them that were under the law..
Jesus Christ came to redeem – He came to pay the penalty of our sin that we might be freed from their eternal consequences.

All sinners – owe the penalty of their sin.   In other words … There is a price to pay for sin.  That price is death.  Romans 6:23 says, “For the wages of sin is death..”  When an individual goes to work, the work they do earns them a wage, a salary.  When we are born, we are sinners.  This sinfulness earns us an eternity separated from God in the Lake of Fire.

Yet, Jesus came to pay that price.  That is redemption.  When we place our faith in His shed blood for our salvation he pays the penalty of our sin.  It was taken upon him when he died on the cross and as far as God is concerned what before said “guilty = you owe one sinless life” that price has been paid as Christ redeemed us.

VS. 14 who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works.
His desire was to pay the price of our sin and to conform us to his image.  When we are bought with the price of Christ’s blood he then begins to purify us as his own special people. 

This will be the focus in the next edition as we take a look at God’s reforming Grace.

Yet, I ask you the question today.  Have you placed your faith in the blood of Jesus Christ that you might be redeemed from your sins?  Ponder this and look to Christ.

The video format of this is available at www.youtube.com/churchoflittleton

Monday, November 21, 2011

John 3:16 The Ignored Part


This week we are striving to get a better understanding of John 3:16.  “For God so loved the world that He gave his only begotten son that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

I am amazed at how many people I meet that want to just quote or at least believe only the first half of the verse.  “For God so loved the world that He gave his only begotten son.”  Some think that salvation is universal that a loving God that can never punish anyone and that he will accept all into his heaven.   What they miss is the idea of “whoever believes”.  They want to believe in their idea of God and do not even listen to what he has to say.

The verse also says those who believe will not perish, so the implication is that those who don’t look to Jesus Christ will perish!  For those who say that they are relying on their works to get them to heaven they need to read Rev. 20:12-15 (NKJV)12 And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books. 13 The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works. 14 Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. 15 And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire. [1]

God’s goal is not to make people perish – that is go to hell, in fact the next verse makes that clear.  Vs. 17  “God did not send his son into the world to condemn the world but that the world through Him might be saved. Vs. 18 “He who does not believe is condemned already because he has not believed in the only begotten Son of God.”

Even John’s teaching at the end of the chapter in verse 36 makes this clear.  “He who believes in the son has everlasting life, and he who does not believe the son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him”

God’s wrath toward those who don’t believe is eternal punishment in hell that is the word “perish”. 

So you must ask yourself the question today have you put your full trust in Jesus Christ for salvation or do you find yourself at odds with a Holy God?  I ask you today to put your faith in Jesus Christ, turn from your sin to obey the good news that Jesus died for you.

The video version of this is available at www.youtube.com/churchoflittleton  FW # 28


[1] The New King James Version. (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982), Re 20:12–15.