Unity in Harmony

“May God who gives this patience and encouragement, help you live in complete harmony with each other, as is fitting for followers of Christ Jesus.   Then all of you can join together with one voice, giving praise and glory to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ”  (Romans 15:5,6  NLT). 

   I enjoy music, all kinds of music, but my favorite is four-part harmony.   One of my most enjoyable musical experiences was singing with the Tucson Christian Men’s Chorus many years ago.   We sang in four-part harmony, and even rehearsals were enjoyable.  We got to sing praises to our Lord in many churches across the physical and Christian landscape of Tucson.  The group ranged from 20 to 25 men from churches across the Christian spectrum in Tucson.  We may have been from a wide range of Christian churches, but we sang in harmony with no regard to denominational or non-denominational ties.  Our beginning song in each church was a rousing version of “Rise Up, O Men of God,” and it was well received everywhere.

   So why did I spend so much time describing my experience with this special singing group?   I did it to show how a group of men from various churches in Tucson could fulfill the verse quoted above.  We sang in harmony musically, and we talked together freely in harmony with each other no matter the differences in our individual church’s doctrine.  

   Participating in and listening to four-part harmony singing groups is a special treat for me.  Hearing a good quartet singing a worship or praise song brings joy to my soul.   Sometimes I close my eyes and it sounds like one voice bringing glory to our Lord, and my spirit rejoices.  

   I would that our churches would exhibit this harmony and one voice in bringing praise and glory to our Lord Jesus Christ. 

Let Your Light Shine

“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 5:14-16 NIV).

   This is a very familiar Scripture, and it has many important things to say.  The most obvious is that we are to let our light shine everywhere so everyone can see it.  It is our mission, our duty, to do that.  We are told to do that in the Great Commissions given in Matthew 28:19,20.   If we don’t do that, how will others get to know Jesus? Someone did that for you, so now it is time to pass it on.    It is our privilege, our duty, to help increase the population of heaven. 

    Sometimes we tend to skip over the importance of the first sentence of these verses, “You are the light of the world.”  Jesus has told us that we are the “light of the world.”  The reason that we are is that we have come to know Jesus as Lord and Savior.  We are enjoying great blessings because of that, and don’t we want our friends to experience the same?  Each of us has a unique voice and a unique way of saying things.  There may well be someone who will not “hear” the message of salvation unless he hears it from you.  That’s a big responsibility—one that we all share.  

   The middle part of these three verses tells us that a lit light is not hidden but is put on a place where it can be seen by all, where it can provide illumination to everyone.  You and I do not have the same set of friends or of acquaintances, so you can reach people that I cannot, and I can reach people that you cannot.   

   So how do we fulfill this responsibility?  The obvious answer is to speak to someone about Jesus, and that finally is the answer, but that is not always, or maybe not usually, the way that a person is introduced to our Lord.  Oftentimes the first step is to do something thoughtful or kind to someone, and maybe we need to do that several times.  When we do that often enough, the person will ask why we are different or why we treat them kindly.  That’s the opening to begin the discussion of Jesus.  It may be rejected the first time we mention His name, but we need to persist and mention Him again at a later date.  Perhaps the person will never allow the name of Jesus in a conversation.   That is a sad moment, but that may not mean that all is lost.  If we pray for the person, someone else may be able to speak to them about Jesus.  It is hard to accept the fact that some people will never be willing to hear about Jesus.  Each person has been given free will, and each one must decide for himself whether to accept Jesus or not.         

   

 

What a Joy

“Shout  aloud and sing for joy, people of Zion, for great is the Holy One of Israel among you”   (Isaiah 12:6 NIV).

What a joy it is to see beautiful wildflowers in the spring.

What a joy it is to hear the songs of the birds.

What a joy it is to see the grandeur of a mountain.

What a joy it is to be loved by God.

What a joy it is to know Jesus.

What at joy it is to hear the Word of the Lord preached.

What a joy it is to worship and praise the Lord with a congregation.

What a joy it is to live in the United States of America.

What a joy it is to have Christian friends. 

What a joy it is to share a meal with Christian friends.

What a joy it is to fellowship with a group of Christian men.

What a joy it is to worship God in churches across this nation.

What joy it is to have a Christian wife who loves me.

What a joy it is to know that our three sons love the Lord.

What a joy it is to know that our sons have all found amazing Christian women to be their wives.

What a joy it is to know that our seven grandchildren all love the Lord,

What a joy it is to love the Lord.

What a joy it is to read the Word.

What a joy it is to talk to the creator of the universe in prayer anytime, anywhere.

What a joy it is to know where I will be 3,297,374 years from now.

What a joy it is to know that one of our grandaughters has found a Christian man to be her husband.

What a joy it is to know that one of our grandsons has found a Christian woman to be his fiancé.

What a joy it is to have a Christian heritage.

What at joy it is to experience in sight and sound a magnificent waterfall.

What a joy it is to hear and sing Handel’s Messiah.

What a joy it is to watch the trees and flowers grow and bloom in the spring.

What a joy it is to watch the trees change hues in the fall.

What a joy it is to experience the progression of a sunrise or sunset. 

What a joy it is to wake to a new day in the Lord each morning.

What a joy it is to work on a task assigned by God.

What a joy it is to (I’m sure I have missed a thousand things).   You fill in this blank.

God is good all the time, and He fills our lives with blessings and challenges every day.

Thank you, Lord, for all the things that bring us joy!

Humility

“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit.  Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the  interests of the others”  (Philippians 2:3,4  NIV).

   No selfish ambition.  Think of the interests of others first.  Not just “Think of others first,” but “think of the interests of others first.”  Paul is telling us to think of what will be best for others before we think of ourselves.   He is not telling us to have no thought for our interests, but don’t make them the first priority.  If the two interests conflict, then work on others behalf first.  This is an echoing of what Jesus said in Matthew 7:12, “Here is simple rule-of-thumb guide for behavior:  Ask yourself what you want people to do for you, then grab the initiative and do it for them.  Add up God’s Law and Prophets and this is what you get.”  (MSG)  I really like the way the Message translation states it: “grab the initiative and do it for them.”  If we do that, then the world’s shout of “ME FIRST!” will go by the wayside.  “But if I do that, somebody might take advantage of me.”  That’s true, but real humility is willing to accept that. 

   So, how do we do this?  Colossians 3:12,13 give us a good start.  “Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.   Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone.  Forgive as the Lord forgave you.” (NIV)  Compassion, kindness, gentleness, patience, and forgiveness—If we do these, or even some of these, we will be exhibiting humility and making the world around us a better place.  

   Jesus spoke in Matthew 23:11,12: “The greatest among you will be your servant.   For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” (NIV)  And then, He later washed His disciples’ feet to demonstrate the behavior He expected of those who follow Him.  Jesus, the most powerful of men, the most intelligent of men, the creator of the universe, humbled Himself to bear the scorn, the whipping, and the crucifixion of men.  He did so in humble obedience to God the Father.  Jesus, the greatest man who ever lived, showed us how to be humble.   He certainly thought of the interests of you and me before He thought of His own physical well-being.  He thought of our interests when He agreed to descend into hell.  And once He was there in hell, He still thought of us as He proceeded to defeat satan and his cohorts on our behalf.  He also fulfilled His own words, “…those who humble themselves will be exalted” when He ascended to heaven to sit at the right hand of Father God, where He continues to intercede for us individually.  

   C. S. Lewis, the noted author, said, “True humility isn’t thinking less of yourself; it is thinking of yourself less.”  That certainly describes what Jesus did.  He thought of us first.