Morning Musings-Singleness

Morning Musings at Breakfast With the Boys... 


Was the Apostle Paul a woman hater?  Not really.  Look at Scripture in context, even 1 Corinthians 7:25-28.  The epistle to the Corinthians was partly written due to incest and other possible sexual immorality and bad morals such as greed that was among them.   He was trying to admonish and exhort and tell them to stop it as that is NOT God's way.

He's telling them ways to be pure and holy in God's sight.  Helping them distinguish what is right in God's eyes and what is not.  To get all this sorted out he tells them it's good to remain single (if they are).  Better to remain single and moral than married and immoral.

Another advantage of singleness was so the follower of Jesus Christ could concentrate on serving the Lord.

So saying, as to the full interpretation and application of 1 Cor 7:29-30 one knows it wouldn't be license for immorality and excesses.   Rather for a concentrated effort on proclaiming the gospel and perfecting of God's people.

Compare this singleness to what the married person's time management needs to be.  Read 1 Corinthians 7: 32-35 for starters.  Look specifically at the married Christian man's work.  It is as equally important as is his service to the Lord and the church he is in.  This in turn is as equally important as his 'home work'; this is, to his wife and children-family life.  His interests will be divided:  1/3   +   1/3   +   1/3   =   3/3

His time will be divided yet not separated; they will often overlap as he develops himself as a spiritual man and a spiritual leader.  In essence he is a spiritual man who is "in Christ".  This can be seen as follows:

HOME (FAMILY)                                            
Spiritual leader at home  n before God first then in the church.  Pray for unsaved family members: straying ones or for those in the path to stay on the path (in God's will). 

 GOD (CHURCH)
Spiritual life before God, then can function in this leader capacity:  at home first then among the people of God.  
Pray for church members for their physical as well as spiritual welfare.

WORK/SCHOOL      
Transform your workplace; have integrity on the job.  Pray for co-workers and your boss.  Pray for teachers and fellow students.  Our spiritual condition will help/hinder our own witness for our Lord and Master Jesus Christ.    Singles, start now.                                                               

 IN many ways this is like having 3 careers yet each area overlaps and feeds into each other.  Deuteronomy 6:4-9  mandates that the spiritual leader of the home be ever vigilant to speak of God and His ways at every opportunity such as "when walking along the way; sitting down or rising up; and even "writing them on the door frames of the houses" and so on.   

Malachi 4:6 wants the "heart of the father to turn towards the son and the heart of the son to turn towards the father".   A relationship that takes time and effort and energy.  God our Heavenly Father wants the same with each and every one of us.  This is first and foremost so that we can then be of service to our family, to our fellow believers in Christ and among our work mates.  The single man (or woman) has fewer responsibilities.

However, we see Paul mentored so many other brothers in Christ.  He was a single man yet "father" to many.  He was "father" to Timothy, Titus, Ephroditis, Silas, Sosthenes, to name a few.  They in turn each became spiritual leaders under his mentoring and became leaders in various churches.  (Just read the New Testament and you will see.)

It is not known (by me, at least)  if any of those became husbands/fathers or even what their vocations were yet they took their spiritual leadership seriously and did not shirk those responsibilities.  We know from Scripture that Paul did keep at his tent-making career to support himself in order not to be a burden on others to support him financially.

It is good to note though that for married Christian men that order in the home is of first priority and of utmost importance over the other two spheres.  Look at the requirements for elders and deacons that Paul gave to Timothy and Titus when helping to establish the assemblies under their respective care.  Such instructions as:  "husbands of one wife; children in order at home" otherwise how would they know how to manage leadership within the church?   

I suppose that is somewhat ironic seeing as Paul was single and likely so were Timothy and Titus.  However they were to set up overseers in those assemblies for local leadership and thus the various criteria. 

So singles, while you are young and free of family responsibility use the extra time you have to build up not only your career but of  that which is of eternal value.  Build up your knowledge of God and of God's Word; your understanding of God and God's Word; of God's will and ways.  As you gain more of this knowledge and understanding, then obey.  In so doing you will come alive spiritually and in turn become a spiritual leader which is the brothers' great responsibility.  People will know, recognize and respect the power of God in you.

BUT, married brothers, make sure you are a spiritual leader in your own home first and foremost.  This cannot be said enough.  You are the "priest" of the family, to your wife and children.  Be not proud but humbly serve the Lord at home, at work and when He calls, at church.  When you are faithful in 'little' our Heavenly Father will then help you to be faithful in much.

Single Christian men, you have a slight advantage over the married ones  as you can concentrate more fully on building up and establishing your spiritual life without the distraction of family responsibilities.  Take advantage of your time to treasure God's Word and to make treasure in Heaven.  Be ready for that day, should it come, to be husband, father and "priest"--that all important spiritual leader in the home and beyond.

Even if a person has no spiritual leadership role model as Timothy and Titus did in Paul, they are still responsible before God to be spiritually alive in Christ and able to lead others.

Timothy had his mother and grandmother and then the Apostle Paul took over.  The twelve disciples had Jesus.  BUT there will be times when those who could, and SHOULD be the role model do not take up the baton.  Sad.  Sad.  Sad.  However, each person will come before God in the end and are responsible to answer to Him.  People of Christ, let's make a good report!

Don't be a disappointment to your parents, wife, children, church, workplace, nor to God Himself!  Wake up!  Rise up to the challenge oh men of God!!  

Listen to this:   

Rise Up Oh Men of God  

                                                                ~ERC  2015~ 

P.S.  Do feel free to comment constructively.  TQ.



                                    




                                                           

Morning Musings--Mastered

Who or What is your master?

Don't be mastered by anything or anyone EXCEPT by Jesus Christ through His Holy Spirit alone.  Whoever or whatever masters you will be your god.  In Jesus Christ we can have the victory over sin, over addictions such as computer games, smoking, eating disorders or even over making a loved one your focal point of life before God.  Let Him help.  Let Him be your Master.

Please read 1 Corinthians 6:12;  19-20
                    1 Corinthians 7:23
                     Genesis 4:7

                                                                   ~ERC 2015~

Testing God

Do you really dare!?  Dare to test God, that is?  

Hmmmm.

It's good to have faith in God but we need to balance our faith by not putting God to the test.  When people of the Bible tested God or His Holy Spirit there were dire consequences.

There is need to examine our faith...is it really faith or is it willfulness to persist in something in the name of faith?  Do we persist even when God sends many advisers and folks of wisdom into our path who would lead and guide us in a better direction?

This is where

"testing the spirits to see if they be of God" (1 John 4:1-3) 

or not, comes in.  This is definitely a subtle thing with our human minds, thoughts, hearts, and nature.  However God has given us the Holy Spirit to help lead and guide us.  We also have God's Word, the Bible, plus our brother's and sister's in Christ who have earthly knowledge and expertise in the area in which we are purportedly engaging our faith.  Seek Him and them out and be in prayer.

This brings us back to, is it true faith or has it been misguided?

Speakers often give the example of the guy sitting in his armchair in his living room whilst his house is burning down around him.  He's praying that God will come in and make the situation right.

We obviously shout at him, "GET OUT of the house!!"

But he blithely replies, "I have faith in God that He'll help me out of this situation without me being harmed."

God did not send a rainstorm or miraculously spirit the man out of the house.  The dire consequences of the man's misguided faith was to be burnt to death.  Foolishness.

A friend in Canada once quoted to me, "God helps those who help themselves".  Another saying, an Arabic one I believe, is, "Trust God and tie your camel."  God does His part but we must also do ours.  He's given us brains and earthly wisdom; we must use them wisely.   He'll partner with us if we'll partner with Him.  He is so gracious and kind.

In an area in which I once lived there was a well known story of a Christian lady who had breast cancer.  In the middle of one of her chemo sessions she pulled out the IV and declared herself miraculously healed by God.  This was well published about and boasted of in Christian circles, and I'm not sure of, in how many non-Christian circles.

She was not healed.  Her misguided faith killed her and left behind a heartbroken husband and two very young, then motherless, children.  Chemo treatments despite the aggressiveness of some of them, may well have bought her time to see those young children mature into the teen years and/or beyond.

God's reputation was besmirched and the Christians made to look like fools.  Can we spread the message of Jesus with the consequences of misguided faith in our listeners' minds?

God's Word is quick and powerful but we Christians will have to overcome the negativity towards us and Jesus and God due to the bumblings of fellow believers (and of our own selves).  Let us live wisely and not be one of the bumblers.

Again, God gives human beings good brains so that doctors can use their knowledge and experience to help heal and/or give "borrowed" time for our general good and benefit.  We balance these things with our prayers and faith in God that He will bring the best result for us when we act on the earthly wisdom He's allowed us to have.  We then can leave the results of the combined teamwork: faith in God plus our human action, to God.

God treats this as a very serious matter.  Look at His dealings with the children of Israel time and again.  (Read the Old Testament.)  He warned, 

"Do not test the Lord your God..." (Deuteronomy 6:16-18).  

Psalm 78:18-20 shows that they 

"willfully put God to the test by demanding the food they craved..."  

Another time they got themselves into trouble with snakes because of their grumbling.  1 Corinthians 10:9 reiterates, 

"We should not test the Lord as some of them did...and were killed by snakes...grumbling."  

Even grumbling was considered as "testing God"!

Ananias and Sapphira in Acts 5:9 were asked,  

"How could you agree to test the Spirit of the Lord?"  

How could they dare?!  

How could we?! 

Jesus is our ultimate perfect example of NOT putting God to the test.  In Luke 4:12 Jesus answered Satan, 

"It says (in the Old Testament):  "Do not put the Lord your God to the test..." 

 Jesus said this in His answer to Satan's asking Him to throw Himself down from the highest pinnacle of the temple.  Jesus did not kowtow to Satan one tiny little bit and neither should we.  Memorize and remember Deuteronomy 6:16 as your 'weapon' and shield against compromising your faith in a misguided manner.

Another small example from my own jungle trekking experience while helping with some charity work.  Minor surgery was done on several villagers.  One of the surgery sites began to bleed and bleed during a sharing session.  The speaker interrupted his talk and all prayed that the bleeding would stop.  It did.  But that also didn't stop us from calling the doctor to come and have a look.  The doc redressed the areas, restated the do's and don'ts of post op care and then left the results to God.  Action as well as prayer and reliance upon God our Healer.  He delights in our partnership.  I delight in His, for that matter.

Yes, we've all heard miraculous stories from the Bible times and also from our own time.  I do have faith in our God.  Think of the case of my husband and my own daughter Hannah.  She had leukemia.  We took her for treatment.  We prayed for healing.  We believed that God can and does heal.  But God had other plans.   Our faith did have action...we took her for treatment.  Yes, we were disappointed and maybe even angry that God didn't bring the desired healing but we had to leave those results up to Him knowing He was (and still is) working for our good.

Other times, God does heal as we ask but, again, we need to put feet to our faith.  And when in very deep rural areas of the world (are there still some of those left?---yes), far from human expertise, I believe that God does do more work "on His own" in His miraculous ways.   His human workers are, sadly, not yet available to 'help' Him so God is His own witness.  He loves, He cares.  He wants relationship even with those not yet modernized.

Those places where workers of medical or engineering, etc expertise are lacking or are only 'a few', the faith and prayer of those who do "GO," combined with those of those who "SEND" the workers, in alliance with God, may see God's mighty acts more readily in those more interior regions.  These act as a display of God's power over sickness and death and evil spirits for the people to be astounded and "arrested" by God to "bring many sons to glory".

So the mission worker prays.  The mission worker places his or her faith in God.  God does the work in the hearts.  BUT...But when His people of knowledge and skillfulness are present  God often lets them do the work.  Our faith must have action.

Act on the knowledge and wisdom given from the earthly experts and counselors God places in our lives.  Have faith that God will also do His part but whatever you do, 

"Do not put the Lord your God to the test." (Deut 6:16) 

 Let God get the glory through our properly guided faith evidenced in appropriate action.  Amen.

                                                               


 Working in tandem with God creates a beautiful picture.

                                                                                                                                            

                                                            ~ERC 2015~

Morning Musings-Who's Better?

 Mornings' musings for my sons' breakfast times...

 READ 1 Corinthians 4:14, 18-21 (esp 20, 21) and connect with 2 Corinthians 1:12-24 (esp 23, 24) and connect again with James 4:1-3
 
 
Re:  quarrels and fights among the recipients of the letters "Who's better?" they ask.   Whom?  All are servants of the Lord, are they not equal in God's eyes?  Each must do his/her God-given responsibility.  Don't criticize those in places of authority.  We can appeal to the wrongs in their life that don't line up with God's Word.  My own parents upon occasion told us that if we ever saw something in their life that did not add up according to Scripture that we could bring it up to their attention.


In Exodus 16:4-8 The Israelites were not grumbling against Moses and Aaron but against the Lord God Almighty Himself.

Leaders of the church will be judged two times as much as those under their authority but we must always remember that God puts those people in authority over us so if we criticize them we are criticizing the Lord.  Again, appeal to authority directly through proper channels.  Don't grumble, grumble to everyone and anyone who will listen and twitter it on to others.

Let us not take sides with one leader over another for whatever reason.  Each is God's servant and put in place for God's purposes to be achieved. 

                                                                ~ERC~Oct 2015~