____________________________________________________ THE GOSPEL OBSERVER ____________________________________________________ "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations...teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age" (Matthew 28:19,20). ____________________________________________________ June 20, 2004 ____________________________________________________ Contents: 1) My Breath is Offensive to My Wife (J. S. Smith) 2) Immersed in Jesus (Steve Klein) 3) Look at Bad News as Good News (W. Frank Walton) ____________________________________________________ -1- My Breath is Offensive to My Wife by J. S. Smith "My breath is offensive to my wife." Sounds like a commentary on oral hygiene, but (thankfully) it is the observation of Job about the consequences of his plight at the hands of Satan. Job wrestled with his emotions and questions about God throughout the book that bears his name, but it was the wicked counsel of his visitors and the indignation of his own wife that exacerbated his isolation and agony. "My breath is offensive to my wife, And I am loathsome to my own brothers. Even young children despise me; I rise up and they speak against me. All my associates abhor me, And those I love have turned against me" (Job 19:17-19). The attack by Satan on Job is well known. A wealthy, faithful man, Job became the object of the tempter's derision, for the father of lies decided that Job's faith only persisted because of the hedge of riches God had built around him (Job 1:9-10). Satan does not believe in faith -- not Job's, not Peter's, not yours and not mine. He is so corrupted and carnal that he figures everyone must be operating according to the same pattern of self-interest that motivates him. Like the creeds of Calvinism, he believes that nothing good can exist in man and that he can have no altruistic impulses. God does believe in faith and he believed in Job's. He permitted Satan to test Job by cutting down that alleged hedge, and suddenly the rich man was robbed of his livestock and his children. Job, now bare before God and Satan, responded not with self-pity or an exhaustion of his faith, but with strong resignation. "Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked I shall return there. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord" (Job 1:21). The Lord had given in every sense, but had taken away only in the sense of permitting Satan to do it. Still, Job neither sinned nor blamed God for these tragedies, much to the consternation of Satan. A word of explanation is required here. Satan does believe in God, but it is the kind of belief that cripples the potential of many human believers today. Like the demons who believe and tremble (James 2:19), their assent to the reality of God does not create within them a submissive response. So, instead, Satan, the demons and apathetic believers press on in their daily pursuits, giving scant attention to the will of the Almighty. James warns us against becoming like them: "But be doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves" (1:22). In this doctrine, he finds inspiration in the words of his brother in the sermon on the mount (Matt. 7:21-27). An idle or apathetic faith will no more save a man today than it could save Satan or his demons (James 2:14). When Satan saw that Job would not lose his faith in the face of tragedy, he was disappointed, but not yet defeated. God announced that Job still held fast his integrity, but Satan countered that faith could not withstand an assault on one's health. So God permitted him to curse Job's flesh and to make the man miserable and offensive to be around. Once wealthy Job was now reduced to scratching himself all day long with a piece of broken pottery. Satan figures that now Job will curse God and abandon faith in the one who allowed such hardship to come. Job's wife helps the tempter's cause: "Do you still hold fast your integrity? Curse God and die!" His friends come along and mourn for a week before enlisting in the devil's plot. They surmise that Job must have committed some grave sin to deserve a fate like this. In the midst of an onslaught from Satan, a tired wife and unhelpful friends, Job keeps the faith. Oh, he cries and begs for answers, but he begs for them from God, for he yet believes. When tragedy strikes, the temptation is to blame God either for causing it or failing to prevent it. It is as if the lessons from the book of Job have been torn out of the Bible. Satan gets twin victories, in that he destroys your faith and gets you to blame God for it. Our Bibles tell us that "God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he himself tempt anyone" (James 1:13). Job's very presence became objectionable to his wife and everyone else, but Satan was to blame, not God. If God prevented every temptation and tragedy, he would create a universe of heartless servants by building a hedge around them. He would prove Satan correct and erase the meaning of faith. Instead, the devil is given a limited period of time and capability to test and try men, but the faith that perseveres claims victory over him (1 John 5:4). Every life will contain its share of disappointments and even tragedies. If they did not prove the extinction of God in Job's day, they do not in ours. To the contrary, they provide opportunities for proving faith and disproving the devil's weak contention. Peter writes the early saints a word of comfort: "In this you greatly rejoice, even though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been distressed by various trials, that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which is perishable, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ" (1 Peter 1:6-7). James says, "You have heard of the endurance of Job and have seen the outcome of the Lord's dealings, that the Lord is full of compassion and is merciful" (5:11). If we cast these burdens on the Lord, we prove that our faith is enduring Satan's best efforts. Even when those around us lose their faith or are offended that ours persists, we stand firm in the faith, act mature and are strong (1 Cor. 16:13). -- Via The Southside Seeker, Oct. 27, 2002 ____________________________________________________ -2- Immersed in Jesus by Steve Klein When a person immerses himself in something, he totally surrounds himself with it. He spends time thinking about it and making plans around it. It occupies his mind, utilizes his energy and expends his resources. People can immerse themselves in many different things. Some are immersed in hobbies, recreation or sports such as hunting, fishing, college football, baseball, golf, racing, collecting, or gardening. Others are immersed in their work or school. Some are immersed in their children or grandchildren. When a person is seriously sick, it is easy to become immersed with health concerns. As Christians, "we were all baptized into one body" (1 Corinthians 12:13). Most of us understand that the word "baptized" means "immersed." But what we may not have thought much about is the connection between being immersed in water and being immersed in Jesus. The apostle Paul puts it this way in Galatians 3:27: "For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ." Those of us who have been "baptized into Christ" are to have put Him on like a garment. We are to be covered with Him -- immersed in Him. By itself, immersion in water does nothing to change a person's life. But when that immersion is the beginning of being overwhelmed with Jesus Christ, lives are truly changed. Baptism into Christ results in a person being raised to "walk in newness of life" (Romans 6:4). "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation" (2 Corinthians 5:17). This new life is one that is immersed in Jesus. Every sinner needs to be immersed in water for the remission of sins (Acts 2:38; 22:16). But every one who is immersed in water is thus obligated to live a new life immersed in Jesus. Are you immersed in Him? "But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts" (Romans 13:14). -- Via The Bulletin of the Church of Christ at New Georgia, May 23, 2004 ____________________________________________________ -3- Look at Bad News as Good News by W. Frank Walton "It is good for me that I was afflicted, that I may learn Your statutes" (Psa. 119:71). Nobody enjoys pain. Yet the psalmist has a positive attitude of faith that empowered him to cope with painful circumstances. He didn't sugarcoat reality but optimistically saw the positive good that came from facing his problems. The bad news of having to endure trouble gave him an opportunity for learning God's truth. We need to cultivate this attitude in these troublesome times. Things that are hard to bear can be profitable to remember. The good news of the Bible is, despite this world's problems and man's failures, is the encouraging truth that God can bring good out of bad. "We know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose" (Rom. 8:28). If we love God supremely, pleasant or repugnant, His will is to bring His faithful children to Himself in heaven. There eternal joy and bliss await us. All tears and disappointments are forever forgotten (Rev. 21:3-7; 22:3-5)! 1. The Reality Of Hell Can Awaken Us. How can hell be good news? John the Baptist preached about the final judgment of the Christ: "His winnowing fork is in His hand to thoroughly clean His threshing floor and to gather the wheat into His barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire. So with many other exhortations he preached the gospel to the people" (Lk. 3:17,18). The saved are kept like good wheat. The lost are separated and punished like burned, worthless chaff. The Bible clearly teaches the reality of hell's horrible punishment (Mk. 9:43-48). The bad news of hell's reality is part of the gospel (the good news of salvation from sin)! If there were no sin, there could be no salvation (deliverance from sin). We truly appreciate the saving grace of God in light of the awful wrath of God's justice! Conviction of sin and realization of God's wrath can motivate the lost's yet sensitive soul to seek out God's mercy in Christ (Acts 2:36-38; 8:20-24). Man must realize there is bad news without Christ in order to appreciate the good news of Christ. 2. The Power Of Christ Can Help Us. "These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world" (Jno. 16:33). Jesus encouraged His disheartened disciples, upset about His departure, with words of hope and comfort. Jesus our Lord is greater than any problem we face. We can make it, because He made it! The world lies in darkness. Instead of cursing the darkness or feeling sorry for ourselves, we can be a light to others for the transforming power of the gospel (Phil. 2:14-16). Divine truth is stronger than error. The decline and decay of the world around us is a great opportunity for the light of Christ to shine through us. Those seeking souls around us, burdened with life's problems and sin's futility, will ask us why we have such an uplifting hope (1 Pet. 3:15) People would be more interested in the gospel if we were more interesting. The lost can be won to Christ! 3. The Opportunity For Faith To Strengthen Us. "Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing" (Jas. 1:2-4). The prophet James tells us to not whine about our problems as a curse. We should see all sorts of vexing problems that try our soul as an opportunity to strengthen our faith! We only get stronger by exercising our faith muscles. Someone called problems as opportunities in work clothes. Rightly facing our trials is simply applying what we say, we believe. The bad news of our tribulation is God's quality control. He has a positive purpose for our long-term good. It tests the depth and strength of our faith. God allows Satan to try us. His hostile aim is to defeat us. God's refining aim for allowing our testing is so we might overcome them! How we respond to problems tells us something about ourselves. Our reaction is God's mirror into the condition of our soul. We become better, stronger and nearer to God by rightly facing trials. If there were no trials, there could be no triumphs (Jas. 1:12)! With God's help, the bad news of worldly trials can become the good news of God's triumph in any believer. Faith is thereby proven genuine and God is glorified! Now, don't you feel better already? ____________________________________________________ MYRTLE STREET CHURCH OF CHRIST 1022 Myrtle Street Denham Springs, LA 70726 (225) 664-8208 Sunday: 9:15 AM, 10:00 AM, 4:00 PM Wednesday: 7:00 PM evangelist/editor: Tom Edwards (225) 667-4520 e-mail: tedwards@onemain.com web site: http://home.onemain.com/~tedwards/go ____________________________________________________