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Dripping Springs Weekly Bulletins
May Their Tribe Increase!
What if you, in a very dangerous situation, were given assistance that saved you from great danger? Would you feel indebted to that person? Most people would be so full of gratitude that a new, special attachment would exist between you.
What if all your life you were taught about God and you did those things you thought would be pleasing to Him. But what if you did not really know for sure what He expected of you? Let’s say that someone kindly took you aside and made you aware of just what the Bible says about your obligations to God? What if their efforts brought you to the throne of God and resulted in the saving of your soul? Would you not be eternally grateful for what they did for you?
Millions of people fall into this group. Some of you were once “there.” How do you feel about those who had the courage to direct you to the source of truth, God’s word? Gratitude? Of course!
I know someone who now stands before God as a grateful woman, grateful for what her sister and brother-in-law did for her – teaching her the gospel. They did for her just exactly what two Christians in the Bible, Aquila and Priscilla, did for a very talented and well-respected man named Apollos. They “took him unto them, and expounded unto him the way of God more perfectly.” Acts 18:26.
Bob, the brother-in-law previously mentioned, passed from this life just this past week. He and his wife and their teachings were a major factor in converting the woman who, a few years later became my wife. His passing, therefore, leaves a very painful void in her heart, and understandably we appreciated and loved him very much.
How many of us have had similar experiences, being brought to Christ by someone who cared enough about us to teach us “the way of God more perfectly”? What gift could be more grand, more precious, more far-reaching, especially in considering the eternal ramifications of such knowledge? The passing of this man leaves an empty place in our hearts, but his concern shown for my wife will never be forgotten.
These words are not intended to have merely personal implications, but to remind us all of the importance of loving and valuing the souls of others so much that we want to teach them God’s truth.
Even in secular literature and law it is common to read of the obligation individuals have for others. There are even laws that require a degree of care that one person is obligated to have for another. A person who sees a dangerous situation (such as an untended child who might be endangered) is required to make an effort to protect those who cannot protect themselves.
When Jesus left this earth after His resurrection, He commissioned His disciples to take a message of salvation to “all the world,” Mark 16:15-16. It was more than just a moral responsibility, it was a spiritual one. It was not given to preachers only, but to all of us who love God and love others.
Christians who followed up that “commission” faced opposition. In the book of Acts, Christians were persecuted for their faith, and they were severely threatened. Fearful perhaps? Of course, but they did not fail their Lord. Scripture says:
“Therefore they that were scattered abroad went every where preaching the word,” Acts 8:1.
Seldom do Christians today face threats and danger for spreading the gospel. We may be fearful of “bothering” others, though the gospel is the greatest gift we can give anyone. If they reject it that is their business, but giving them the opportunity is our business. Bob did what he needed to do, and what a great series of results came because he did. I have a wife that is a child of God. She has taught our children and others God’s word, and they themselves have continued that powerful cycle, 2 Timothy 2:2. I wonder how many people in the world will enjoy the beauties of heaven because of people like Bob. People who love God and their neighbor enough to show them the way to heaven. People who are doing what God has told them to do, told us to do.
We grieve his passing, but we remember what he did for us and for the Lord. Thank God for the “Bobs” of this world. May their tribe increase!
Carl Garner |
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I Want to Go to Heaven
All of us must realize that a longing for heaven is not enough. Many who claim a yearning for that fair land will never make it. However, a legitimate part of Christianity is a deep desire to walk the golden street of glory. One of my mother’s favorite gospel songs has these grand words:
O land of rest, for thee I sigh!
When will the moment come,
When I shall lay my armor by,
And dwell in peace at home?
Christians can even had boldness in the day of judgment if we fervently live and die in Jesus! Here are the major reasons I really do want to go to heaven: (1) I am tired of this wicked world; (2) I long for the divine and eternal, (3) Blessed associations await us there, (4) We dare not waste this life! (5) We must not disappoint Jesus, (6) The alternative is not acceptable! In assembly worship we sing a challenging hymn that reminds us that this earth is not our home and that as pilgrims here we are just passing through. Many passages document this principle. For example, notice 1 Peter 2:11, “Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul.” Again we read of Abraham in Hebrews 11:10, “For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God.” As shamefully wicked as the world is today, we truly long to be delivered into a far better atmosphere, Rev. 21:1-5 promises a realm where all things are new and all tears have vanished. We often sing about that realm:
Above the bright blue, the beautiful blue,
Jesus is waiting for me and for you;
Heaven is there, not far from our sight, Beautiful city of light.
Just think! We can press on to an eternal city that has no crime, no wars, no malice and no heartache. Sin will have vanished, Satan and his motley crew being banished! Only righteousness, joy and peace will reign, and the redeemed shall worship to the glory of God! What a reunion! What a reward!
We will be able to converse with Noah, Job and Daniel (Ezekiel 14:14). Then we can sit down with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (Matt. 8:11). What a blessing it will be to enjoy the company of Jeremiah, Amos, Stephen, and Paul! We’ll be able to meet gentle women like Hannah, Lois, and Eunice, as well as the mothers of Jesus and John the Immerser. There we will also be able to meet godly elders, sincere Bible teachers, powerful preachers and others who shaped our destinies with their lives of devotion. Parents who sacrificed on earth for children who will make it to heaven, and other unsung spiritual heroes, will make it a blessed arrangement. It is no wonder Paul longed to “depart and be with Christ” (Phil. 1:23). T. S. Teddlie wrote these rich thoughts in song:
Why should I long for the world with its sorrows,
When in that home o’er the sea
Millions are singing the wonderful story!
Heaven holds all to me.
If we miss “the land of fadeless day,” it will mean that we absolutely wasted our lives on earth. Kings, presidents, billionaires, and rulers of political systems who miss heaven will all have lived and died in vain! In the language of Mark 14:21 and Nehemiah 2:20, it would have been far better had they never been born because they have nothing precious to remember! By the grace of a benevolent God, we are given this life to prepare for eternity. To die in sin, outside of Christ, is inexcusable. We can be three-time winners by using our time and opportunity wisely – by missing hell and going to heaven! It will surely be worth every effort as we press on toward that wondrous home of the soul: “For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Or what shall a man given in exchange for his soul?”
If we miss heaven, it will disappoint our Savior, Redeemer, and Friend. He has gone to “prepare a place” for us (John 14:1-3):
Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.
Jesus is now in heaven for us (Heb. 9:24). In fact, Christ is our forerunner, as set forth in Heb. 6. Following His steps all the way to glory should be our magnificent obsession (Rev. 14:4).
He will run to meet us (Luke 15), but we must be on the right road or we will miss our rendezvous with Deity. And sadly, the alternative arrangement is doom, gloom, sadness, separation, sorrow and the environment prepared for the devil and his angels (Matt. 25:37-46). We had better make our reservations now, and keep them current! We must never take a detour from the highway of holiness. If we are bound for the promised land, may we never look back!
Each step I take my Saviour goes before me,
And with His loving hand He leads the way,
And with each breath I whisper, “I adore Thee”;
Oh what joy to walk with Him each day.
Each step I take I know that He will guide me;
To higher ground He ever leads me on,
Until some day the last step will be taken,
Each step I take just leads me closer home.
Truly, heaven will be worth it all!
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