Month: July 2021

Satan must love the teeter-totter theology of the Christian churches today.  I remember a day last year at Camas when I had to go to the gym and on the way I passed the playground. Two of the little kids were sitting on the teeter-totter trying to balance perfectly.  One would scoot up a little while the other would scoot back.  Try as they might, they just couldn’t get it right.  One of the kids was quite a bit larger and the teeter tottered that direction most of the time.  Watching them try to get the board balanced just right was somewhat comical.  Unfortunately, watching churches trying to get to a balanced theology is not quite as humorous.

The  balance we should be trying to seek is somewhere between essential and non-essential doctrines.  Unfortunately, we have liberal churches that are light on the essentials and conservative churches that are heavy on the non-essentials.  Somewhere between those extremes is the balancing point that Satan hates.  Unfortunately, because churches tend toward theology on far ends of the spectrum, Christians are hard-pressed to find places to worship that are theologically balanced.  

Many churches water down essentials to fill the pews and others wield unessentials like a club to force unnecessary behavior.  Satan gleefully roots for both sides to continue their off-balance teetering and tottering. In Proverbs 11:1 we read,  “A false balance is an abomination to the LORD, But a just weight is His delight.”  In ancient times stones of perfect weight were used on scales to get precise measurements.  When someone would slip a larger stone on the scales it would throw off the legitimacy of the measurement. Churches which add unnecessary weight to the Christian life or ones who take necessary weight away, do an injustice to the gospel.  It is exhausting for most people trying to reach a balance. Those two boys on the playground were pretty tired by the time they were finished and they never did get it right.

There is an old story that has Satan walking with one of his own demons and they see a man stoop down and pick up a shiny object.  The demon asked what it was.  Satan told him that it was a piece of truth.  “Doesn’t that bother you?” the demon asked.

“No,” answered Satan.  I will let him keep it and he will make a religion out of it.”

There are so many religions in the world and all of them pull some truth out of the hat to draw a crowd, but we can set them aside in this discussion.  The real concern is with churches which purport to have the truth and it have muddled it up by building their membership on non-essentials or doctrine-light. There are some essentials that every Christian church needs to embrace and other tenants we need to approach with mercy.  Churches cannot be built on hairstyles any more than they can be built on a wishy-washy Word that stands for little and accepts everything.  In this day and age there is pushback against anyone who sides with truth.  Relativism is becoming a religion on its own and as believers, we need to stand against it.  There are some parts of doctrine that cannot be compromised.  But how do we know what they are?

There is a statement that almost all Christians agree on- “Essentials, unity; non-essentials, liberty; and in all things charity.”  Where they do not agree on is what is essential and non-essential.  Lists of the essentials vary from two to fourteen, so how are we to know what is truly essential?  

First of all,  the essentials must be predicated on salvation.  Many beliefs might be essential for sanctification, but not for salvation.  First Corinthians 10:23 says “Everything is permissible, but not everything is helpful. Everything is permissible, but not everything builds up.”  Although we are positionally sanctified (sometimes called justification) when we accept Christ, we go through the process of sanctification or maturing in the Lord through obedience to the Word. There may be room to move on what many think are the essentials for maturity, but all churches should agree on the essentials for salvation. If they waver there they will waver everywhere.

As Christians we need to know the foundations of our faith.  Unfortunately, we cannot just thumb through the yellow pages and just look under churches any more.  We need to be cautious about churches today and must check into their practices and statements of faith.  If we see a church called the Supernatural Church of the Light or Whole Body Believers or Church of the Mind, we can guess that they are not scriptural.  But even a church as innocent sounding as First Baptist needs to be tested.  More and more often churches are weighing down the teeter-totter with their own agendas.  Before we can tell whether a church is being truthful, we need to know the truth.  That can only come through a study of God’s Word.

So what are the essential doctrines?  We will go into the specific ones next week.  In writer-speak this is called a “cliffhanger.”  I hope your will be able to sleep past the anticipation, but here is a clue to give you some rest.  Romans 10:9-10 “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”

I listened to the well-known apologist Norman Geisler on the radio, and he had a really interesting testimony.  He was raised in a home that was not only god-neutral, but god-opposed.  His father was an ex-catholic and his mom was an ex-Lutheran, and both had very adverse feelings toward anything religious due to bad experiences.  As a matter of fact, they refused to be married in a church, due to their negative attitudes toward anything smacking of God.

At the age of nine Norman was invited to a local vacation Bible school and his mom allowed him to go, probably expecting him to get enough negative religion to inoculate him for life.  That was not the case.  It began four hundred straight rides to Sunday school in a van piloted by a husband and wife team who talked about Jesus every single trip.  At the age of 17 he made a decision to follow Christ and when he made his decision known to his mother she told him if he talked any more about Jesus in her house she would kill him.  He quoted  Philippians 1:12: “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.”  His mother realized he was serious about his faith and said no more that day.

His mother could see the inevitable and though neither of his parents agreed with his decision, he went onto Bible college.  He went to college because his church had a strong evangelistic bent and he realized he did not understand his faith well enough to support it.  He graduated from college and his mother’s pride came out when she baked him a cake with  Philippians 1:12 on it.  She wasn’t on board, but she was at least not trying to throw him overboard.

Norman went on to earn two BAs, a PHD, a doctorate and to author over 70 books.  What makes this more amazing was  that he could not read when he left high school.  What is even more amazing was that his mother accepted Christ over 30 years later and his father shortly after.  They were both in their early 80s.

As I listened to these stories something jumped out at me.  Sticktoitiveness.  First of all, I love that word.  Sticktoitiveness (sometimes written stick-to-it-ive-ness)  is defined as dogged perseverance; resolute tenacity.  What a great way to describe the main people in Norman Geisler’s  testimony.  Two Sunday school teachers drove a young man to Sunday school over 400 times in a eight-year period.  A young man who couldn’t read eventually earned four degrees and became a well-known pastor and author.  Finally, a son prayed for unbelieving parents for over 30 years and eventually saw them come to the Lord late in life.  This kind of perseverance and tenacity runs contrary to the milquetoast image that many people have of Christians.  It speaks of the kind of attitudes we should have as believers in the risen Christ.

Paul appeals to us in Colossians 1:11-12 to “be strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience and joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified (us) to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light.”   We have power to endure and the power to be patient and the power to be joyfully giving thanks throughout it all. We have this power because of the power which resides within us.  God never asks us to do what he has not equipped us to do and we have been equipped to do what this verse asks us to do.

Ray Kroc, the late founder of McDonalds, knew all about perseverance. “Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence” he once said. “Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with great talent. Genius will not. Un-rewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not. The world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence, determination and love are omnipotent.”  Knowing that, there is no one who can equip us with persistence, determination, and love more than the author of these traits.

In 2 Thessalonians 3:13 we are told to “not grow weary in doing right.”  It was right for a couple to give a ride to a young man and for that young man to spend almost 20 years studying the Word of God and for that same young man to pray his parents into the body of Christ.  We need to realize that some things take time.  I have been been praying for certain friends for years.  I have one particular name on my list that has been there for more than 20 years.  If he comes to know the Lord will a few minutes a day for 20 years be worth it.  Certainly.  It was the perseverance of my younger brother’s witness that led me to the Lord.  I will be forever grateful for his persistence.

I do so much less than I should for God’s kingdom, but even in my weakness, God blesses sticktoitiveness.  He says to us “Stick with it.  I see you and I hear you.  Do not grow weary.  Do what is right. I will remain with you.”  Norman Geisler’s life in the Lord began with two tenacious people giving him rides and resulted in two loved ones accepting Christ late in life.  Had anyone given up along the way, who knows how lives would have been different.   God is patient with us and He never gives up.  That is His nature.  His nature should become ours.  As Winston Churchill said in one of his shorter speeches.  “Never, ever, ever, give up.”  I think he stole that line from God.

“I am not writing these things to shame you, but to warn you as my beloved children. For even if you had ten thousand others to teach you about Christ, you have only one spiritual father. For I became your father in Christ Jesus when I preached the Good News to you.   “I urge you, then, be imitators of me. That is why I sent you Timothy, my beloved and faithful child in the Lord, to remind you of my ways in Christ, as I teach them everywhere in every church.”      1 Corinthians 4:14-17

Last week I interrupted a three-part series on fatherly compassion, authenticity, and godly discipline.   Today we will be finishing up the series.  Thank for be patient with me taking the time to write about our late dog Buddy.  I think I had to reflect just a little bit about him after his passing. 

We have seen how important living by example is to Paul, it is not at all surprising then to see what he says in verse 17:  “…For this reason I am sending to you Timothy, my son whom I love, who is faithful in the Lord. He will remind you of my way of life in Christ Jesus, which agrees with what I teach everywhere in every church…”

Paul not only says, “imitate me” but to help them do that, since he can’t personally be there, he sends Timothy because Timothy was a living, breathing example of someone who was already doing what Paul was now instructing the Corinthians to do.  He was imitating Paul. 

God sent Paul as an imitation of Christ and Paul sent Timothy as an imitation of him.  Sometimes we will be sent as well.

One father had a three-year-old daughter who was having trouble sleeping through the night. She’d often wake up several times in the night because she was afraid. Each time as he re-tucked her into bed, he would remind her that Jesus was with her and he would keep her safe.

Several nights in a row, she did this over and over again. Finally, one night, the dad asked her if she had prayed to Jesus to take her fear away and help her fall asleep.   Oh, yes,” she assured him. “I prayed to Jesus… and He told me to go and get you!” 

As imitators of Christ we will be called on often because sometimes people will need someone with skin on.

The third and final thing we are covering today is not only a fatherly compassion, and a fatherly authenticity, but also a father’s loving discipline:

“Some of you have become arrogant, as if I were not coming to you. But I will come to you very soon, if the Lord is willing, and then I will find out not only how these arrogant people are talking, but what power they have. For the kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power. What do you prefer? Shall I come to you with a rod, or in love and with a gentle spirit?”

You notice here that Paul is displaying some righteous anger.  Some people don’t understand what that means.  It means being angry at what makes God angry. Not just what makes us angry.   And “righteous anger” is the right word order, because God is not fundamentally angry. He is fundamentally righteous. God’s anger is a byproduct of his righteousness.  Righteousness must precede anger to fulfill the admonition to “Be Angry, but sin not”.   Here Paul, expressing his disappointment and showing that he is not afraid to say and do some hard things – if that becomes necessary.

There is a story about a man is being tailgated by a woman who is in a hurry.  He comes to an intersection, and when the light turns yellow, he hits the brakes.  The woman behind him goes ballistic.  She honks her horn at him; she yells her frustration in no uncertain terms; she rants and gestures.

While she is in mid-rant, someone taps on her window.  She looks up and sees a policeman.  He invites her out of the car and takes her to the station where she is searched and fingerprinted and put in a cell.   After a couple of hours, she is released, and the arresting officer gives her her personal effects, saying, “I’m very sorry for the mistake ma’am.  I pulled up behind your car while you were blowing your horn, using bad gestures and bad language.  

I noticed the ‘What Would Jesus Do?’ bumper sticker, the ‘Choose Life’ license plate holder, the ‘Follow Me to Sunday School’ window sign, the Christian fish emblem on your trunk, and I naturally assumed you had stolen the car.”

The world gets pretty tired of people who have Christian bumper stickers on their cars, Christian fish signs on their trunks, Christian books on their shelves, Christian stations on their radios, Christian jewelry around their necks, Christian videos for their kids, and Christian magazines for their coffee tables but don’t actually have Jesus in their home or the love of Jesus in their hearts.

A person who is angry on the right grounds, against the right persons, in the right manner, at the right moment, and for the right length of time understands righteous anger.

Ephesians 6:4 warns: “Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.”  And. Colossians 3:21 says Fathers, do not embitter your children, or they will become discouraged.

Anger in itself is not bad, but it should be kept in the back pocket and hard to reach. There is a reason the phrase “slow to anger” is in the Bible 22 times.

Years ago I wrote a devotional entitled “Every home needs a woodshed.” It was not that I was necessarily writing about spanking, but the idea was that parents should not spank at the scene of the crime. If a child does something that requires discipline, if the punishment is handed out right on the spot, emotion not discernment may determine the harshness of the of punishment.  A prayer walk to another location can often bring everything into prospective and maybe the spanking board of education may not even be necessary. 

When I was coaching I would tell my assistants that they must pat a player on the back 10 times before the coach could get into the player’s face.   The coach needed to purchase the right to chastise with  caring currency. 

In these last verses Paul shows his teeth a little bit. He is calling their bluff, by promising that he will come to see them soon. ”I will find out”, says Paul, “not only how these arrogant people are talking, but what power they have.”  You know that old phrase, “Just wait till your father gets home.”  That doesn’t usually mean, “because he has a half-gallon of ice cream for you.”  

Well, some the godly leaders in Corinth might have said after this letter, “Wait until your father Paul get home.”  Paul would be coming to them was to see if they had traded transforming Gospel power for poor worldly substitutes of Gospel power.  If they have, he is prepared to take harsh measures with them. And he is prepared to do that precisely because his love for the Corinthians was real and he was prepared to show it in ways that might cause them pain.

But that’s what love does.  When that time comes, Paul will have prayed himself into a greater understanding of what discipline is needed.  We can tell by the tone of this letter and all the others Paul wrote that his words were based on love.  

There was a young boy who had to go through some excruciating treatments to save his life and his parents and doctors explained that to the little boy.  At the end of the treatment the whimpering boy looked up at the doctor and said, “Thank you, doctor, for the hurting.”

Maybe many of the Corinthians said that to Paul, maybe many of our children will say that to us someday, and maybe many of us will say that to God someday.  Thank you for the hurting.

So, because Paul has a real relationship with the Corinthians, he threatens the “rod” – that is, harsh words and disciplinary actions, but hopes all the while that he will not have to use it.  He knows and we should know that a relationship that cannot endure rebuke is not a relationship, it’s merely an acquaintance, masquerading as a relationship. 

So he gives them the choice between harsh or gentle.  We have a choice as well.  Can we expect that God, who is a more loving Father than Paul, will sit idly by and watch as you and I continue down a wrong path?

Because he loves us, and has sent his son to save us, He will do whatever is necessary to bring us back when we stray.   Sometimes it is with the rod of discipline that brings us back.  And sometimes it is with the mere prospect of discipline, that calls us back. 

And if we respond, we can expect that He will receive us in a spirit of gentleness. 

As we disciple others, whether it is our children or someone else’s, we must partner with our heavenly Father to show compassion, authenticity, and godly discipline.

A LETTER TO DAD (author unknown)

There are so many things I’d like To tell you face to face;  I either lack the words or fail To find the time and place. 

But in this special letter, Dad, You’ll find, at least in part,  The feelings that the passing years Have left within my heart. 

The memories of childhood days And all that you have done,  To make our home a happy place And growing up such fun! 

I still recall the walks we took, The games we often played; Those confidential chats we had While resting in the shade. 

This letter comes to thank you, and, For needed words of praise; The counsel and the guidance, too, That shaped my grown-up days. 

No words of mine can tell you, Dad, The things I really feel;  But you must know my love for you Is lasting, warm and real. 

You made my world a better place, And through the coming years;  I’ll keep these memories of you  As cherished souvenirs. …

If we want to be fathers or mothers or mentors or disciple-makers we must model ourselves after our father in heaven.

I was supposed to give you the final  installment on 1 Corinthians 4:14-21 today, but I think I will  pick that up next week so that I can do something that is a bit different today.   I hope this is okay.

I am writing this at 4:00 in the morning (so pardon the mistakes) and I don’t think I will be going back to bed so I thought I could just get some feelings down on paper.  At about 2:30 this morning our beloved Buddy left us.  He was, of course, more than a dog.  He was family.   He was part of our kids and grandkids lives.   He was with us in good times and rough times and his love was always a comfort to us.   Buddy’s sweet nature was a constant in the swirling changes of our lives.  I can honestly say, Buddy never caused us any grief.  He was the kind of dog that everyone would want to have. 

We never had a fence, but he never left the yard unless he left with us.  He would sit on the deck or in the grass or by the garage and would stay there or somewhere close until  we called him.  He seldom barked at other dogs and was protective but polite to those who visited the house.   He gave a us a loving greeting every time we returned home.   Every one of the grandkids had accidental  falls, tugs, or rides on Buddy and he never gave it a thought.  He just got ready for the next time.

Before Buddy’s legs succumb to old age and cancer, he use to race back and forth with the neighbor dogs on the other side of the fence.  Long after Buddy wasn’t in racing form any more, if those dogs would bark, Elaine would say, “There’s your friends” and Buddy would always look longingly their way as if he was thinking of the wild runs of the past.  One of our granddaughters has a dog named Tucker who would visit once in awhile.  Even when Tucker wasn’t around Elaine would try to get Buddy to eat his food by saying,  “Better eat your food, Tucker will get it.”  It always worked, but I am pretty sure Buddy was actually training Elaine to say that!  (Buddy and Tucker)

We got Buddy when I was teaching in North Bend and Elaine split some of her time between  there and Winston.   Elaine did not want another dog after our shepherd-mutt Barkley passed away finally losing a battle with cancer.  But a little over a year later I went to Saving Grace (a dog rescue mission) on Christmas Eve to look for another companion protector for us- instead  I found a family member.  I walked into Saving Grace and all the dogs were loudly pleading their case but one.   Buster (that was his name then) just quietly sat there and drew me over to him with his polite manner, perked up ears, and  proud stance.

I knew this was the guy for us.   I told the girl who was in charge that I would like to take “Buster” home with me, but she informed me that he had not had his shots yet and I would have to wait until after Christmas.  That was so disappointing because I really wanted him to be a Christmas surprise for Elaine.  While I was standing there trying to figure out my next step, the back door swung open and in walked one of my previous students.   She said that when she was leaving work early to do some last minute shopping she passed me on the road and recognized my truck.  She then said that she was the one that gave the shots and she thought I might need her help if I picked out unvaccinated dog, so she turned around.  Her “hunch” was right.   At that time I did not understand how much God’s good providence would change our lives.

I loaded Buddy in the front seat and he sat there as though he had ridden there a hundred times. When I drove up to the house there was an instant that I saw in Elaine’s face the “I told you I did not want another dog”  expression, but her face quickly changed to, “this is a perfect dog for us.”  And he was.  He checked all the boxes.  Loving, obedient, good with  kids, protective but not scary, energetic but not out of control.  He was perfect.  Elaine forgave me faster than she ever had for one of my wrongdoings. 

Over the years Buddy (we changed his name on his arrival to the family) shared in every part of our lives.  He would go camping with us, he would travel to see the grandkids, he stayed in motels with us, he would go to my school on work days, he would travel with Elaine, he would take me on walks, and he would keep Elaine company when I was in North Bend and she was here.  He loved to ride in the back of the truck and would go with me to the dump, to Lowe’s, to Home Depot, and any other place he could coax me into.   He loved to have the wind blow in his face and when we got to our destination he would get so excited he would strain his chain to the breaking point! If I just touched the leash in the house he would jump up and down like a young pup.  He loved going places.

Buddy loved his treats and being called Bud-Dog and Bud-boy and Dork-dog by Elaine who had a special bond with him.  She would brush him time and time again and must have taken off hundreds of bags of fur through the years.   She would rub his ears and cool him down with wet towels if he got too hot.  The mission told us that Buddy had separation anxiety and from the day we got him he liked to keep one of the two of us in sight.  If Elaine was watering flowers Buddy would  move to stay close to her.  If I left the garage to cut wood, Buddy would be right behind me.  Even  when Buddy was on his death bed, he would turn his head to make sure he could see at least one of us. His love for us was as real as ours was for him.    

I could write a book on Buddy and maybe someday I will.   Buddy was a special dog not just for us, but for anyone who met him.  He loved everyone and everyone loved him.  When I took him to town he was a celebrity and had as many fans as a new-born baby.    There was not a time when I took him somewhere that someone didn’t remark  on his good looks and manners. 

Buddy was also a battler.  A little over a year ago he had cancer surgery and fought back from that.  It slowed him down, but he kept his Buddiness and was still the same dog we had known and loved for over twelve years.  A couple of months ago he had a stroke and was amazingly recovering from that.  He walked like he was on the deck of ship in high winds, but he got to where he needed to go. Occasionally, he would “fall” (more a slow sit down) but could usually get back up on his own with just a little bit of coaxing or the promise of a treat .  Unfortunately his health took a sudden downturn over the past four days and he became very weak.

Last night I was sleeping on a little bed next to Buddy and I suddenly woke up.  I sensed there was something  different .  I reached over and started to pet Buddy and he turned to look at me.  His eyes had a different look.   I stroked him a few times, told him I loved him, and he went to sleep for the final time.  I think he waited for me to wake up, so he would not be going alone.   I got Elaine and we spent time crying over a loss that will take a long time to get over.    Buddy taught Elaine and me a lot, but maybe most importantly was how to love unconditionally.  From that Christmas Eve night to his last night with us he was the same lovable, loyal, and loving dog.   If people could overlook mistakes by others the way Buddy overlooked our mistakes, this world would be a much better place.  

We buried him this morning at the end of the fence where he used to chase “his friends.”    He spent his life giving us joy.   Now it’s time for him to rest.

“I urge you, then, be imitators of me. That is why I sent you Timothy, my beloved and faithful child in the Lord, to remind you of my ways in Christ, as I teach them everywhere in every church.”   1 Corinthians 4:16-17

Today I am continuing to use my Father’s Day sermon from two weeks ago as a framework for this week’s devotion. Our text is 1 Corinthians 4:14-21. Last week I spoke of the fatherly trait of compassion that all of us should illustrate to those under our care. This week we are not only reminded of a father’s compassion, but also a father’s authentic example – the testimony of Paul’s life was that he lived openly before them. He was what they saw.

Paul lived so transparently that he has the confidence to ask the Corinthians to use his life as a model for their own: “Therefore I urge you to imitate me….” Now, you may find those words to be pretty bold, even stunning. Imagine saying to somebody, “I want you to model your life on mine.” Could we say that to somebody? Would we? Why would Paul say something like this? Wouldn’t it be safer to say, “Imitate Christ”? Why does Paul take the risk? Why does he use himself as the primary example?

We need to remember that the epistle to the Corinthians was one of the earliest books written. People could not go to the local bookstore and read about Christ. The gospels were not even written yet. That is why the example of the apostles was so important at that time. God know that people need examples in their lives. That is why He sent Christ. That is why He sent Paul. That is why he sends us.

Every year I was coaching I gave my football or softball players a poem. I would read it to them and explain to them how impactful they were in the lives of they young kids who watched them. I would read it aloud mentioning some things along the way and I would change the boy to girl for my softball teams. Here is that poem:

There are little eyes upon you and they’re watching night and day.
There are little ears that quickly take in every word you say.
There are little hands all eager to do anything you do;
And a little boy who’s dreaming of the day he’ll be like you.

You’re the little fellow’s idol, you’re the wisest of the wise.
In his little mind about you no suspicions ever rise.
He believes in you devoutly, holds all you say and do;
He will say and do, in your way when he’s grown up just like you.

There’s a wide-eyed little fellow who believes you’re always right;
and his eyes are always opened, and he watches day and night.
You are setting an example every day in all you do;
For the little boy who’s waiting to grow up to be just like you.

Author Unknown

If was very important to me that the players understood their influence on youngsters and I even extended the poem beyond athletics. I would talk about parenting and mentoring and modeling in their future. I would reflect back when I would watch Grants Pass Cavemen athletes when I was young and tried to be like them. I would stand by the gate when the football players would go into the game, come out at halftime, and after the game with the hope that one of them would slap my hand. Many did.

We had an all-league quarterback that was pigeon-toed. I can’t tell you the number of kids I saw that actually tried walking that way thinking it would improve their play. I looked up to players when I was young and surprisingly as I got older some kids looked up to me. We don’t have to tell others to imitate us, if they look up to us, they just will.

One day a father looked out his window to see his son trying to build a small shed in the back yard. It suddenly collapsed and the boy let out with a string of cuss words. The father ran out into the back yard and started demanding who had taught him those words. The boy looked at his father and said, “I learned them from you.” The old saying, “Do as I say, not as I do” is a formula for failure. What we do will always have more influence than what we say.

Do we have the confidence to ask others to imitate us. In fact, let each of us ask this question of ourselves. If everyone around us imitated us would your church be a better place. If they imitated our Bible reading, our prayer life, our service to others, our speech, our use of time, our dedication, our thought life… would your church a better place. It is something for all of us to think about.

Paul and the Apostles were the first copy of the New Testament that others had the chance to read, If our lives were the first glimpse of the Bible people around guys would they want to read further or say, “That book doesn’t interest me.”

The reason Jesus was the most influential man to walk the earth was because He was totally and completely authentic. He was everything that He said He was and He illustrated that in His every action. That is why He could say that anyone who believes He was who He said He was would have everlasting life. When we believe in Christ we believe He was the Messiah, God in the flesh, our Savior, our Redeemer and the only one Who can bring everlasting life. His realness gives us hope.

That is why it is important that we are genuine, authentic, and real. If we are fathers, mothers, grandfathers, grandmothers, uncles, aunts, coaches, teachers, neighbors, or friends someone is looking up to us. We are all role models to someone. We should take that role seriously.