____________________________________________________ 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). ____________________________________________________ November 20, 2005 ____________________________________________________ Contents: 1) Walking in Wisdom Toward Them That Are Without (Irvin Himmel) 2) Heart-Stopping Moments (Gary Patton) 3) News & Notes ____________________________________________________ -1- Walking in Wisdom Toward Them That Are Without by Irvin Himmel By words and actions, Christians are making some kind of an impression on people around them. Our neighbors who are outside the kingdom of Christ are being influenced, either for good or for bad, by what we say and do. True enough, some may pay little attention to us, but others take more notice of our way of life than we may suppose. Paul admonished the saints at Colosse, "Walk in wisdom toward them that are without..." (Col. 4:5). When the apostle wrote concerning "them that are without" versus "them that are within" (1 Cor. 5:12), he was referring to people out of Christ in contrast to brethren in the Lord. To Christians, "them that are without" means people who have not embraced the truth and, therefore, remain outside the body of our Lord. The following are some of the principles involved in our conducting ourselves wisely toward outsiders: Practice Honesty Honesty should be viewed as a basic law of right conduct, not a matter of mere policy. We should show integrity and freedom from deceit in all our business transactions. Our means of livelihood must be honorable. Writing along this line to the Thessalonians, Paul said, "And that ye study to be quiet, and to do your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you; That ye may walk honestly toward them that are without, and that ye may have need of nothing" (1 Thess. 4:11,12). A Christian quickly kills his influence for good when he acts deceitfully, becomes involved in shady dealings, or pursues a course that is less than honorable. Live Consistently Everything which the Christian does should be consistent with the teaching of Jesus Christ. Some things are so manifestly contrary to right that they should never be named as befitting saints (Eph. 5:3). In doctrine, in worship, in our individual work, in all that we do -- there must be harmony with the will of God. Outsiders may not know much about the Bible, but they soon detect inconsistency between teaching and practice on the part of professed believers in Jesus. Consistency demands constancy. Some members of the church live one way on Sunday and another way on Monday; one way when in the company of other Christians but differently before the worldly. This is plain hypocrisy and is detested by both the Lord and the world. Show Understanding And Sympathy Outsiders need help. Some of them are engulfed in immorality and unbelief. Some have high moral principles but are ignorant of God's positive divine laws. Others are caught up in religious errors -- perhaps Catholicism, Protestant denominationalism, or the false concepts of some cult. True Christians must try to understand their plight. We must teach rather than berate, lift rather than crush, pointing to the Lamb of God as the means of salvation and hope eternal. We can show sympathy without compromise. We need not abandon the truth to defend it in love. Be Distinct Christians are a called-out people. Through the gospel we are called out of Satan's kingdom to serve in the kingdom of Christ. We must keep ourselves unspotted from the world (Jas. 1:27). "This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord, that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind, having the understanding darkened..." (Eph. 4:17). Whatever time we spent in sinful living prior to our conversion to Christ ought to suffice (1 Pet. 4:3). It is sometimes hard to live among outsiders, to work among them, and be sympathetic toward them without partaking of their deeds that are evil. The Christian's watchword is "vigilance." We must be watchful over our own conduct to prevent our losing those distinct qualities that make us God's people. Exercise Good Judgment Wisdom means prudence. James said, "if any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him" (Jas. 1:5). Often sincere attempts to do good end in failure for lack of sound judgment. The Christian needs discernment, practical and well-informed wisdom -- the good sense to apply the word of God. Paul walked with wisdom when he was "made all things to all men" that he might by all means save some (1 Cor. 9:22). Let us pray that God will help us to conduct ourselves prudently toward outsiders that our influence might be to His honor. -- Via Truth Magazine XXIII: 4, p. 75, January 25, 1979 ____________________________________________________ -2- Heart-Stopping Moments By Gary Patton All have had those moments in our lives when a short statement or event seems to make our heart stop. There are various things that can cause such moments. It could be a sudden message of injury or death to a loved one, a message informing us of some terrible disease we have, or the moment our guilt of sin is discovered by others. At such moments not only does our heart seem to stop, but there is that empty feeling in the pit of our stomachs, or a fainting feeling, even a great feeling of fear. Such dramatic moments affect us for the rest of our lives. There are several such heart-stopping moments recorded in the Bible that can teach us important lessons in preparing ourselves to be pleasing in God's sight. In Genesis chapters 37-45, the great life of Joseph is recorded. We are told that he was the first son of Jacob by his beloved wife Rachel and a son of his old age. He became a favorite of his father and as a result became the object of terrible treatment by his jealous older brothers, eventually leading to their selling Joseph into Egyptian slavery. While in Egypt, God caused Joseph eventually to rise to second in power. When the great famine came, Jacob sent his sons to Egypt to buy grain. It was at this time, twenty-two years after they had sold him, that they came into his presence. He recognized them, but they did not recognize Joseph. After some time of testing and trying, Joseph could no longer contain himself and had the room cleared. It was then he said to them, "I am Joseph" (Gen. 45:3). The center column reference says they were "terrified." Can you imagine their fear, shame and guilt? Yet, Joseph treated them with love. How do we treat those who sin against us? Do we treat them with hate and ill will, or with love, forgiveness and a willingness to help? Jesus tells us to "love your enemies, to do good to them that despitefully use you...." Joseph forgave them when he saw their penitent hearts, and God can do the same for us when we sin, if we repent and obey Him. In 2 Samuel 12:7, we read of another heart-stopping moment. David had committed the sin of adultery with Bathsheba, then had her husband killed to cover up the sin and the fact that she was with child by David. After his actions, Nathan the prophet came to David and asked him to make a judgment concerning a specific situation. He said that a certain man had great flocks of sheep and another man had only one little lamb that was such a beloved pet. The scriptures say it was as a daughter to him. When the rich man had a guest to feed, rather than killing a lamb from one of his large flock, he killed the poor man's pet lamb. David said the man that has done this must surely die. Nathan then replied to David, "Thou art the man!" Can you imagine David's feelings at this moment! We find that such a heart-stopping moment as this caused David to repent as he confessed his sins before Nathan and God. The 51st Psalm gives a very moving confession of sin by David to God. A question we must ask ourselves is, how do we react when God's word says to us, "Thou art the man...you have sinned against me!" Do we begin to make excuses as did King Saul in 1 Samuel 15 when he was confronted by Samuel for not utterly destroying the Amalekites? Or, do we just ignore the charge from God's word and become calloused to the conflicting power of His word? We all should react as did David, by confessing our sins, repenting of them and strive to obey God's will. A very powerful heart-stopping moment is recorded in Acts the 9th chapter. Saul of Tarsus was persecuting the Christians with great zeal and determination. Not only was he doing so in the area of Judea, but he was traveling to other areas to continue the ill treatment of God's children. While on the road to Damascus a great light shown upon him and a voice said to him, "Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?" Saul responded by asking, "Who art thou, Lord?" and the Lord said, "I am Jesus whom thou persecutest...." Can you imagine the feelings of Saul? Surely he had that heart-stopping feeling. All this time he thought he was pleasing God and doing what was right, punishing all who believed that Jesus was the Messiah. Now he learns he has been wrong, terribly wrong. The scriptures say he was "trembling and astonished." Paul's reaction was immediate: he became contrite and asked, "What wilt thou have me to do?" When he was told what to do, he obeyed: "Wherefore, O King Agrippa, I was not disobedient..." (Acts 26:19). How do you react when you hear from God's Word, Jesus say to you, "I am Jesus whom thou persecutest; when you sin, you are the one who caused me to be crucified"? Do you answer as did Paul, "What must I do?" or have the attitude of so many today, "So what," or "I don't have time for you." Paul obeyed the Lord's will and served Him the rest of his life and so must we. A final heart-stopping moment we need to consider is pictured to us in several places. It is that moment when we will receive the judgment of God and our sentence for eternity (Rev. 20:11-15). To those who have not been obedient to God's will, the sentence will be, "Depart from me...I never knew you" (Matt. 7:23). "Depart from me...ye cursed, into everlasting fire" (Matt. 25:41). Can you imagine the feeling you will have if He says to you, "Depart from us into hell, I don't know you"? What a terrible feeling -- knowing that the sentence will never be changed! We can avoid such a terrifying moment and turn it into the happiest moment of our existence. We can make it a moment of the greatest JOY we will ever know. We can do so by realizing that God will forgive us as Joseph did his brothers, IF we, like David, will have a penitent heart and confess our sins; and then, like Paul, obey what he tells us to do, when he says, "Arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins." Though we may yet suffer terrifying moments in this life, we can make them only temporary and not eternal by coming to Christ in obedience, both to the plan of salvation and in living faithfully the remaining years of our lives. -- Via The East Florence Contender, Sept. 1996 ____________________________________________________ -3- News & Notes Kevin Cowart (the son of Agnes Shuff's niece, Nina) was in a serious motorcycle accident Saturday morning (Nov. 19). He is now heavily sedated in an intensive care unit, having sustained multiple internal injuries. On the positive side, his condition (as of Monday) has remained stable since his admittance. Let those of us who are Christians pray for his speedy and complete recovery, as well as for those who will be working with him, and for all the concerned. It was just a couple months ago that Kevin had been in a previous motorcycle accident, in which a long-time friend, Bret Boswell (who was riding another motorcycle), was killed. Let us also be praying for all of his family and friends, during their time of sorrow. ____________________________________________________ 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 ____________________________________________________