RICH OR POOR?

 

Friday, April 30, 2021

 

RICH OR POOR?

 

Prov 30:8-9

8 Remove far from me vanity and lies: give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with food convenient for me:

9 Lest I be full, and deny thee, and say, Who is the Lord? or lest I be poor, and steal, and take the name of my God in vain.

 

Luke 11:3

3 Give us day by day our daily bread.

 

           If you ask anyone if they would rather be rich of poor their answer would likely be rich. It is, as they say, a no brainer. Why would anyone want to live a life of want, need, and uncertainty? Nevertheless, the Bible has many negative things to say about the rich.

 

           The story of the rich young ruler in Matthew chapter 19 and Mark chapter 10 highlights the one thing that riches cannot buy which is a deep relationship with Jesus. A few memorable comments show up in this story. Jesus said: “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.” The follow-up question of the disciples was “Who then can be saved?” Jesus replied, “With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.”

           Those who must trust God for daily provision lead a storied life. There is a joyous wonder surrounding the many occasions when strange things happen, and needs are miraculously met. The rich know nothing of that.

 

Phil 4:12-13

12 I know how to be abased and live humbly in straitened circumstances, and I know also how to enjoy plenty and live in abundance. I have learned in any and all circumstances the secret of facing every situation, whether well-fed or going hungry, having a sufficiency and enough to spare or going without and being in want.

13 I have strength for all things in Christ Who empowers me.

AMPLIFIED BIBLE

 

Andrae Crouch wrote a song made popular by Bill and Gloria Gaither that says this:

 

I thank God for the mountains,

and I thank Him for the valleys,

I thank Him for the storms He brought me through.

For if I'd never had a problem,

I wouldn't know God could solve them,

I'd never know what faith in God could do.

 

Dear Lord, please give to my friends today … enough. AMEN

FRIENDSHIP!

 

Thursday, April 29, 2021

 

FRIENDSHIP!

 

Luke 23:11-12

11 And Herod with his men of war set him at nought, and mocked him, and arrayed him in a gorgeous robe, and sent him again to Pilate.

12 And the same day Pilate and Herod were made friends together: for before they were at enmity between themselves.

 

Adam Clarke said: “Wicked men cannot love one another: this [genuine and mutual love] belongs to the disciples of Christ. But when Christ, his truth, or his followers are to be persecuted, for this purpose the wicked unite their counsels and their influence.”

 

           I consider myself a loyal friend. When I develop a friendship, it is both a product of my person and my effort. I work at it. Once that friendship is made, I continue to nurture it. I am grieved when it dissolves over some slight or falsehood. In that, I suppose, I am not much different from most men.

 

           Tony Merida said: “In Romans 16, Paul mentions more than 30 names. The whole list oozes with affection; it also magnifies the gospel, demonstrates beautiful diversity (race, rank, gender), and contains moving expressions of honor.” Paul was a friend and loved his friends.

 

Prov 18:24

24 A man that hath friends must shew himself friendly: and there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother. KJV In other words, “even a good friend may occasionally disappoint but there is one, and that is Jesus, who will never disappoint you.”

 

           Again, Adam Clarke comments: “Love begets love; and love requires love as its recompense. If a man does not maintain a friendly carriage, he cannot expect to retain his friends. Friendship is a good plant; but it requires cultivation to make it grow.”

 

Dear Lord, thank you for my many scattered friends. How priceless they are! Thank you for being my steadfast friend. AMEN

ELUSIVE GOODNESS!

 

Wednesday, April 28, 2021

 

ELUSIVE GOODNESS!

 

Rom 7:14-25

14 For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin.

15 For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I.

16 If then I do that which I would not, I consent unto the law that it is good.

17 Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.

18 For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not.

19 For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do.

20 Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.

21 I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me.

22 For I delight in the law of God after the inward man:

23 But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.

24 O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?

25 I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin.

 

           Paul was having a problem with Paul. He masterfully describes the conflict of the two natures. The spiritual nature has a deep desire to do good while the flesh struggles to maintain a lifestyle of sensuality and pleasure. In verse 18 he describes how goodness has eluded him. He admits to personal defeat in the matter.

 

           The Law is incapable of producing good. That is not its function. The Law defines God’s standard of excellence and points out our error. Three times in this passage Paul reminds that Sin dwells in us (vv. 14, 18, 20). Paul was referring to the old nature which he sometimes called the “old man” (Romans 6:6; Ephesians 4:22 and Col. 3:9). The old man fights against the new man (Eph. 4:24) which must be “put on” and renewed day by day.

 

           Paul gives voice to the cry of every believer: “How can I stop doing bad things?” Even in the midst of doing good, Paul found that evil was right there with him waiting for an opportunity to take control. The believer under Law grows tired and discouraged because he is trying to do the impossible. Paul screams: “Who shall deliver me?” Then he answers his own question in verse 25. Now the grace of our Lord has appeared.

 

Titus 2:11-12

11 For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men,

12 Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world.

 

Dear Savior, I know that in my flesh dwelleth no good thing. I do not have the personal power to be good or to do good. Every time I think I have reached the mark I look to see that it has run on ahead of me. I reach out to grab righteousness and it flees from me. Evil is present with me and won’t leave me. But I am forgiven, and I have been given your grace. Thank you for the cross and for your resurrection. AMEN