MarkD
September 29th, 2003, 02:47 PM
Romans 1:1 (NAS)
Paul, a bond-servant of Christ Jesus, called as an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God
I read this passage a few days ago in my daily reading, and there was a cross reference in my bible to Deut 15:12-17.
This is what it said (Deut 15:12-17):
"If your kinsman, a Hebrew man or woman, is sold to you, then he shall serve you six years, but in the seventh year you shall set him free. "When you set him free, you shall not send him away empty-handed. "You shall furnish him liberally from your flock and from your threshing floor and from your wine vat; you shall give to him as the LORD your God has blessed you. "You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the LORD your God redeemed you; therefore I command you this today. "It shall come about if he says to you, 'I will not go out from you,' because he loves you and your household, since he fares well with you; then you shall take an awl and pierce it through his ear into the door, and he shall be your servant forever. Also you shall do likewise to your maidservant.
==
How many people would accept the Gospel if you equated it to Jesus punching a hole in your ear?
Ouch! That has got to hurt!
But Jesus never said it would be easy, did He?
Matthew 10:34
"Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword.
Matthew 16:24
Then Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me.
How many of us actually looked forward to Jesus punching a sharp object through our ear? Much less offering ourselves up for it because we had it so good being His servant?
Now I'm not saying that Jesus is literally going to punch a hole in our ears, but we do go through trials and tribulations. Our trials have a purpose:
Proverbs 25:4
Take away the dross from the silver,
And there comes out a vessel for the smith;
How does one take away the dross from silver or gold? Through a thorough burning, that's how. The silver is boiled or burned so that the "garbage" in it rises to the top and can be skimmed off.
What remains is a more purified silver or gold that the smith can work with.
Who is the smith? God is the smith.
Too many people profess faith in Christ because they have been told that it will make their lives happier only to wither away when they encounter persecution and difficulties. Not very many people present the Gospel and include Matt 10:34 and Matt 16:24 (or others for that matter). And it is a shame.
I'll be honest with you, my "worldly happiness" quotient has taken a major nosedive since I accepted the Lord as my King and Savior just over two years ago.
My "spiritual happiness" quotient, however, has paid dividends beyond measure!
I do not say the following to glorify myself, but to clarify my walk with the Lord (to myself and others). This is also a call to evangelism. For others, but mostly for myself. By writing this down, I can come back to this and steel my resolve when I get nervous or feel like I can't do it.
Have I put my head up against the doorpost (willingly?).... YES! I have accepted Christ as my Lord and Savior
Have I felt the tip of the awl pressed against my ear (without flinching?).... Well, maybe a little flinching.
Have I felt the sting as the hammer blow forced the awl through my ear and affixed it to the doorpost (all the while praising Him and saying how this is better than the alternative).... Yes. The world can make a young christian feel like they've been stung. Also sometimes, you have to let the old self go in order to let Jesus carry the new you. It can be hard to let go of the old, comfortable self.
Imagine this also - He'd have to pull the awl out of the doorpost (wiggle, wiggle, wiggle - until it comes out).... I'm still working on this one. I equate the "wiggle, wiggle, wiggle" to trials and tribulations.
The world sees christianity as a "restrictive force". A set of rules of do's and don'ts.
Closed minded.
Narrow thinking.
Stupid, even.
I see Christianity as the ultimate liberation. Even if I do face difficulties and possibly even persecution today, my life is but a vapor compared to eternity, and the ultimate freedom that eternity with Christ entails.
Yes, I am a bond-servant of Christ, and I will gladly let people know that they would be better off putting their ear up against the doorpost.
I'll even hold their hand to help them not flinch as much as I did.
Paul, a bond-servant of Christ Jesus, called as an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God
I read this passage a few days ago in my daily reading, and there was a cross reference in my bible to Deut 15:12-17.
This is what it said (Deut 15:12-17):
"If your kinsman, a Hebrew man or woman, is sold to you, then he shall serve you six years, but in the seventh year you shall set him free. "When you set him free, you shall not send him away empty-handed. "You shall furnish him liberally from your flock and from your threshing floor and from your wine vat; you shall give to him as the LORD your God has blessed you. "You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the LORD your God redeemed you; therefore I command you this today. "It shall come about if he says to you, 'I will not go out from you,' because he loves you and your household, since he fares well with you; then you shall take an awl and pierce it through his ear into the door, and he shall be your servant forever. Also you shall do likewise to your maidservant.
==
How many people would accept the Gospel if you equated it to Jesus punching a hole in your ear?
Ouch! That has got to hurt!
But Jesus never said it would be easy, did He?
Matthew 10:34
"Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword.
Matthew 16:24
Then Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me.
How many of us actually looked forward to Jesus punching a sharp object through our ear? Much less offering ourselves up for it because we had it so good being His servant?
Now I'm not saying that Jesus is literally going to punch a hole in our ears, but we do go through trials and tribulations. Our trials have a purpose:
Proverbs 25:4
Take away the dross from the silver,
And there comes out a vessel for the smith;
How does one take away the dross from silver or gold? Through a thorough burning, that's how. The silver is boiled or burned so that the "garbage" in it rises to the top and can be skimmed off.
What remains is a more purified silver or gold that the smith can work with.
Who is the smith? God is the smith.
Too many people profess faith in Christ because they have been told that it will make their lives happier only to wither away when they encounter persecution and difficulties. Not very many people present the Gospel and include Matt 10:34 and Matt 16:24 (or others for that matter). And it is a shame.
I'll be honest with you, my "worldly happiness" quotient has taken a major nosedive since I accepted the Lord as my King and Savior just over two years ago.
My "spiritual happiness" quotient, however, has paid dividends beyond measure!
I do not say the following to glorify myself, but to clarify my walk with the Lord (to myself and others). This is also a call to evangelism. For others, but mostly for myself. By writing this down, I can come back to this and steel my resolve when I get nervous or feel like I can't do it.
Have I put my head up against the doorpost (willingly?).... YES! I have accepted Christ as my Lord and Savior
Have I felt the tip of the awl pressed against my ear (without flinching?).... Well, maybe a little flinching.
Have I felt the sting as the hammer blow forced the awl through my ear and affixed it to the doorpost (all the while praising Him and saying how this is better than the alternative).... Yes. The world can make a young christian feel like they've been stung. Also sometimes, you have to let the old self go in order to let Jesus carry the new you. It can be hard to let go of the old, comfortable self.
Imagine this also - He'd have to pull the awl out of the doorpost (wiggle, wiggle, wiggle - until it comes out).... I'm still working on this one. I equate the "wiggle, wiggle, wiggle" to trials and tribulations.
The world sees christianity as a "restrictive force". A set of rules of do's and don'ts.
Closed minded.
Narrow thinking.
Stupid, even.
I see Christianity as the ultimate liberation. Even if I do face difficulties and possibly even persecution today, my life is but a vapor compared to eternity, and the ultimate freedom that eternity with Christ entails.
Yes, I am a bond-servant of Christ, and I will gladly let people know that they would be better off putting their ear up against the doorpost.
I'll even hold their hand to help them not flinch as much as I did.