Comments on: Talk Among Yourselves

By: On doing as you would want--

On doing as you would want-- — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 09:45:27 +0000

When I read that sentence spoken by Jesus, “Whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them” – when I read that command, I need to know that there’s grace available to obey that command. Don’t you? I need to know there’s grace available. I mean think about it. This text sets for us a seemingly impossible standard. This is a seemingly impossible standard: “Whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them.” In other words, treat everyone in your life – everyone – friend or foe, acquaintance or stranger – always treat them all the way you want to be treated yourself. --some guy Bloomington, Minnesota. March 12, 2006.

By: On divine punishment---

On divine punishment--- — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 08:55:34 +0000

We look to other people’s sinfulness, other people’s flaws, and point over there, or there, or there, and say, “Ptth. Look at those sinners. What’s wrong with them? If only they would be like me, be as holy as me, or go to church at the same place that I do.” Or, whatever.

You see, people were asking Jesus on the way, “Does God punish people because they were sinners?” You see these were terrible disasters and they were trying to make sense of what we often struggle with in our world. Why do natural disasters happen? Why does God let that kind of stuff happen?

And Jesus is trying to make the point, you know, it’s not because they were somehow worse than you, that God is up there with some kind of scale, and says, “Okay, these sinners are really bad, I better take them out with a big, giant column that is going to fall on them.” Now maybe it sounds silly to us, but maybe not so silly. We still have little bit of that economy somewhere in the back of our heads, don’t we? That if we are really, really bad, God will zap us or punish us somehow in this life. And we certainly do believe in an ultimate judgment, and that’s what Jesus is talking about.

But we don’t believe that God is up there doing bad things to people who sin, because you know what? The point that Jesus is making is, that’s all of us.

–some guy
Long Island, New York. March 11, 2007.

By: On our weakness--

On our weakness-- — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 09:21:44 +0000

While Jesus was preparing for the cross in the garden of Gethsemane, He taught His sleepy disciples in Matthew 26:41 to Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. Oh, we must hear this instruction this morning friends. We do not know when or how our enemy will attack us next. We only know that we are weak and frail creatures who stand powerless against Him. Therefore, we must pray humbly our Father, who is very capable of caging the roaring lion for us or of giving us the wisdom and strength to stand against him by other means.

God has promised in 1 Corinthians 10:13 that No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it. Brothers and sisters, God has planned and provided for His people to stand strong against sin and Satan, yet we must heed the warnings and prepare ahead of time for the contest.

–some guy
Madison, Indiana. March 10, 2008.

By: On growing up, finally--

On growing up, finally-- — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 08:09:16 +0000

And to anyone here who might not know Jesus Christ as Savior, anyone here who maybe just recently accepted Jesus Christ as Savior, let me give you an encouragement: you don’t have to start the Christian life fully mature.

Paul assumes that when you accept Jesus Christ as Savior in spiritual terms, you’ll be an infant. If you accept that free gift of salvation, that you were a sinner, that Jesus came fully God, came in the form of a man, lived a perfect life, perfectly righteous while he was on earth, walked to a Roman cross, died for you and that that’s the only way that you can be reconciled to God. There’s no way for you to make up for your sins. There’s no way for you to earn your way God. There are no other paths or options – Jesus is the only way. And if you accept Jesus Christ as your Savior, your mind will not become perfect on that day. Your motivations will not be perfectly pure that day. Your actions will not become perfect, and the rest of your life you will be growing.

–some guy
Prescott, Arizona. March 9, 2008.

By: On slave trade--

On slave trade-- — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 11:37:15 +0000

Such arguments ill become us, since the time of reformation came, under Gospel light. All distinctions of nations and privileges of one above others, are ceased; Christians are taught to account all men their neighbors; and love their neighbors as themselves; and do to all men as they would be done by; to do good to all men; and Man-stealing is ranked with enormous crimes. Is the barbarous enslaving our inoffensive neighbors, and treating them like wild beasts subdued by force, reconcilable with the Divine precepts! Is this doing to them as we would desire they should do to us? If they could carry off and enslave some thousands of us, would we think it just? – One would almost wish they could for once; it might convince more than reason, or the Bible.

As much in vain, perhaps, will they search ancient history for examples of the modern Slave-Trade. Too many nations enslaved the prisoners they took in war. But to go to nations with whom there is no war, who have no way provoked, without farther design of conquest, purely to catch inoffensive people, like wild beasts, for slaves, is an height of outrage against humanity and justice, that seems left by heathen nations to be practised by pretended Christian. How shameful are all attempts to color and excuse it!

As these people are not convicted of forfeiting freedom, they have still a natural, perfect right to it; and the governments whenever they come should, in justice set them free, and punish those who hold them in slavery.

So monstrous is the making and keeping them slaves at all, abstracted from the barbarous usage they suffer, and the many evils attending the practice; as selling husbands away from wives, children from parents, and from each other, in violation of sacred and natural ties; and opening the way for adulteries, incests, and many shocking consequences, for all of which the guilty Masters must answer to the final Judge.

–some guy
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. March 8, 1775.

By: On a day of contrasts--

On a day of contrasts-- — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 09:32:22 +0000

Now, sir, upon the general nature, and character, and influence of slavery there exists a wide difference between the northern portion of this country and the southern. It is said, on the one side, that if not the subject of any injunction or direct prohibition in the New Testament, slavery is a wrong; that it is founded merely in the right of the strongest; and that is an oppression, like unjust wars – like all those conflicts by which a mighty nation subjects a weaker to its will; and that slavery, in its nature, whatever may be said of it in the modifications which have taken place, is not in fact according to the meek spirit of the Gospel. It is not kindly affectioned; it does not “seek another’s, and not its own.” It does not “let the oppressed go free”. These are sentiments that are cherished, and recently with greatly augmented force, among the people of the northern states. It has taken hold of the religious sentiment of that part of the country, as it has more or less taken hold of the religious feelings of a considerable portion of mankind. The South, upon the other side, having been accustomed to this relation between two races all their lives, from their birth; having been taught, in general, to treat the subjects of this bondage with care and kindness – and I believe, in general, feeling for them great care and kindness – have yet not taken this view of the subject which I have mentioned.

–some guy
Washington, DC. March 7, 1850

Turn around and go back to your church.

–some other guy
Selma, Alabama. March 7, 1965

By: On learnng about your faith--

On learnng about your faith-- — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 05:03:46 +0000

Lay people have the duty and the right to acquire the knowledge of Christian teachings so that they may be able to live according to His teachings.

–some guy
Ozamiz City, Philippines. March 6, 2006.

By: On obedience to his still small voice--

On obedience to his still small voice-- — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 05:06:07 +0000

There will always be people in your life who think that they know what God’s will for you is. They’ll tell you what ministry you ought to be involved in, how much time you ought to donate to a cause, or how much money you ought to give to charity, what books you ought to read, or what Sunday school class you should attend.

But remember this: they – me – are not the Holy Spirit. When it comes right down to it, this is what you are to be: a student of the Holy Spirit. He is to be your teacher. He will lead you into all truth. That’s why hopefully, prayfully you’ll never hear just say you should should give more money to missions, you should attend one more program. I think most of the time what you hear me say is this: when you pray about it, and ask God what He would have you do, when you pray about it and ask God which small group he would have you go to, when you proay about it and ask God how much money he would have you give to missions or deficit reduction, I’d far rather – far rather – that we all learn to be obedient to his still small voice, than that we finish a financial goal or a campaign in the black.

–some guy
Cape Elizabeth, Maine. March 5, 2006

By: On redeeming the evil season--

On redeeming the evil season-- — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 09:18:06 +0000

He’s just told us in the first part of chapter 5 that one of the characteristics of this evil season is sexual immorality: people using this good gift of God to their own selfish, self-exalting, self-satisfying ends. And now Paul says that you can redeem – make most of – this opportunity. And how? He’s going to go on in chapter 5 verses 21 through 23 and say, husbands and wives living together in a covenant relationship, giving of themselves to one another – this is how you redeem marriage. This is how you redeem sex. This is how you redeem such things.

That you are wise in Christ, that you have this opportunity to redeem the three things that he listed in the first part of chapter 5: sex, money and words. To not use them for selfish destructive ends, but for redemptive constructive ends in this world. You no longer have to be ruled by the foolishness of the darkness, that you have the opportunity to redeem these things.

You have the opportunity to redeem money, not by giving yourselves over to greed, but by viewing money no longer as a god to be served, but viewing it as a good to be shared.

You have the opportunity to redeem words, not by making the most of every opportunity to exalt yourself with them, but by what he says, seasoning them with grace – thinking about my words with a view to other people. And so Paul says, what does wise living look like? It looks like people who are sowing the seed of redemption, even when evil is in season. That they are able to redeem – to make the most of – and to literally buy back things that have been in the grips of evil, to buy them back for wise, glorifying purposes.

–some guy
Cary, North Carolina. March 4, 2007

By: On temptations of the flesh--

On temptations of the flesh-- — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 05:07:52 +0000

Let’s pray. Lord, cause us to love all those persons who feel the pull of homosexual desire. Help those of us who do not feel that particular sinful desire to be humbled by the awareness of the sinful desires which we do feel and against which we must battle. Cause us not to demonize homosexual sin while sanitizing our own sins. And Lord, please cause us to realize that the person who feels homosexual desire needs your power to be transformed as do we all. Help us know how to facilitate Your transformation so that lives can shine to Your glory. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

I believe that the power of the Holy Spirit can change the materialist into a person who embraces the eternal life of God. I believe that the power of the Holy Spirit can transform any sinner into a person who shines to the glory of God. So I do not just preach prohibition this morning; I do not just preach that God opposes homosexual behavior. I stand here and also preach that God wants to transform you from the inside out. Whatever sin has you ensnared, God wants you free. The gospel says you can be free. Come accept the freedom that God holds out to you! Come now as we stand and sing.

–some guy
Lubbock, Texas. March 3, 2002.