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We Fall Down, We Get Up

Job 22-26

Guys, it’s late and I’m worn out.  I am going to try and keep it short today.  The following verse really stood out to me today.

Job 24:15

“The eye of the adulterer also waits for the twilight,
saying, ‘No eye will see me’;
and he veils his face.”

When we think of adultery we think of a married man having sexual intercourse with a woman who is not his wife.  This is physical adultery but adultery doesn’t stop there.  Jesus made it clear that adultery included ones thought life.

Matthew 5:27-28

“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’  But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart.”

We are not only judged by our actions but by our thoughts as well.  Guys, let’s get real here.  A pretty woman can turn our heads.  Our thoughts can often turn to sex and when it does targets of opportunity present themselves even if only targets for our thoughts.  Many of us give ourselves a pass on these little passing thoughts; there was a time when I did.  Men, it is not easy to keep tight control over our thoughts.  In fact I believe it takes a strong man, a spiritually mature man, to succeed in this task.

One of my favorite songs is by Bob Carlisle entitled “We Fall Down”.  At the heart of the song is the refrain of a monk who, when asked what the monks do behind the monetary walls, says “we fall down, we get up”.  Guys, just because we fail from time to time to reign in our wandering eyes and minds, it is no reason to throw in the towel and surrender to sin.  The battle must continually be fought.  This is because we will improve our self-discipline in the process.  If we surrender we are likely to find ourselves wandering ever further from God.

Pornography is an epidemic.  It is claiming many a man who might otherwise be godly.  Pornography sinks its hooks into us when we surrender the battle.  This is why we must never give up, we must never surrender.  When we fall down we must get back up.  Understand that sneaking down to the computer in the middle of the night or sneaking a peak at filth on your cell phone or at a library or office computer is a high risk low reward gamble.  Even if your wife, your kids, your friends, co-workers, and fellow Christians have no idea, God knows it all and He calls it adultery.

Brothers, I implore you, don’t stay down.  When you fall, don’t give yourself a pass; don’t make excuses.  Acknowledge the fall to the Father and ask for His forgiveness.  Then, pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and go and sin no more.  Real men get back up!

Have a blessed day brothers!

Your brother and servant in Christ,

Bill

Dying to self, living to serve!

A Ready Defense

James 5 – 1 Peter 3

We begin 1 Peter today after a short final chapter in James.  I’ll provide an outline below.  I have desired this year to find guidance on being a Godly man as we read through the Bible together.  Here is a passage by Peter that addresses our role as husband.

1 Peter 3:7

“Likewise, husbands, live with your wives in an understanding way, showing honor to the woman as the weaker vessel, since they are heirs with you of the grace of life, so that your prayers may not be hindered.”

What is your attitude toward your spouse?  What I find interesting in this passage is the connection to treating our wives well and unhindered prayers.  Do we ever see a connection between our walk in Christ and our relationship with our wives?  Actually there is a connection not simply where our wives are concerned but with all people, even the lost.  Bottom line, do you live with your wife in an understanding way?  To live with anyone in an understanding way is to put yourself into their shoes as it were; or put another way – do unto others as you would have done unto you.

No doubt you want respect and understanding from your wife.  Do you give her respect and understanding?  Or, have you ever felt your prayer life dry and yourself distant from God?  How have you been treating your wife?  The sin that has been handed down generation upon generation from Adam and Eve to you and me is self-centeredness.  Even in our practice of faith we often times become self-centered.  We want to be in right relationship with God but we don’t seem to understand that to do so we must be in right relationship with others.

As a child of the living God, a Man of God as it were, you have a mission field.  Your mission field is where ever God has planted you.  Your field gets bigger as you show yourself faithful.  Your first mission field is your marriage.  Your second mission field is your household.  It is only after we have these fields under proper development that we will find God enlarging our field.  These two fields are the “kiddie” fields.  It is not enough to simply take care of these two fields.  You must continue in your growth to other fields as God directs but there is no moving on in God’s will until you take care of fields one and two.

When you are ready to move on to other mission fields, and that should be right away, Peter gives you guidance.

1 Peter 3:15

“ but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect,”

Are you today prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you?  Wait a minute!  Back the truck up!  They can’t ask you about the hope that is in you unless they SEE the hope that is in you.  Can they see the hope that is in you?  Are you living a life that would make others say “I want what he has”?  You’ve got to get that working first.  Then you need to be ready to make a defense.  This is all rather elementary for a Christian you know.

I think at some point I will list some resources and methods for sharing your faith.  You need to be ready; we all do.

OUTLINE

1 Peter

As the early decades of the church’s expansion through the Roman Empire passed, it grew explosively in numbers. Christians were increasingly viewed as a distinct people—and were seriously misunderstood. Their fierce allegiance to Christ, that kept them from participating in worship of the Emperor and state gods was viewed as a lack of patriotism. Their strict morality, their private meetings for worship, all engendered suspicion, rumors, and a growing hostility. Jewish Christians were often slandered by their old communities, Gentile Christians by their old companions. And in various parts of the empire official persecution developed, to the extent that in some places individuals were executed merely for admitting that they worshiped Jesus Christ.

Against this background of increasing misunderstanding and cruelty by the majority, Peter writes a warmly pastoral letter. He understands their struggle and speaks encouragingly of the hope that will sustain them. And he reminds the scattered communities of believers to which this letter is addressed that living in pagan society calls for humility and submission.

Early tradition tells us that the Apostle Peter wrote this letter from “Babylon,” understood as an early Christian code designation for “Rome.” Peter had been the leading disciple during Christ’s life on earth. He clearly took the lead in the emerging church in Jerusalem and Judea as well. His later years were spent in evangelistic travel, with a special focus on reaching members of the worldwide Jewish community for Christ. Tradition tells us that both Peter and Paul were martyred in Rome in the mid to late a.d. 60s.

Suffering in Scripture

The Hebrew language contains many different words for pain and suffering. Some express intensity, others are synonyms with slightly different shades of meaning. These may focus on physical pain, on sadness or sorrow, on mental anguish, grief, troubles, or general stress. The New Testament vocabulary is more limited. In general words for suffering in the New as in the Old Testament tend to focus more on mental distress than the physical pain.

In Greek culture suffering was viewed as an evil afflicting humanity that was beyond mankind’s ability to control. Thus suffering is a matter of fate, and Greek tragedies typically portray individuals who are victims of life’s blind injustice. The New Testament, however, takes a radically different approach. Key words for suffering in the New Testament are frequently used in descriptions of the death of Christ. There the strongest possible language is used to remind us that Jesus suffered by God’s express will (cf. Matt. 16:21; Mark 8:31; Luke 17:25; 24:26; Acts 3:18; 17:3; 1 Peter 1:11). In Jesus we learn that suffering, though painful, is not an unmixed evil.

Peter particularly picks up and emphasizes this thought. A person who suffers for doing wrong has no comfort: He has brought his suffering on himself. But whenever a Christian suffers despite doing what is good he or she becomes a companion of Jesus, who also suffered despite doing nothing but good. In this case the believer can be sure that God is actively involved in his situation, permitting injustice and suffering for a good purpose of His own. We may not understand that purpose. But looking at the wondrous good God accomplished through the suffering of our Lord and His glorification, we can be sure that when we suffer as Christians both good and glory will result.

THEOLOGICAL OUTLINE OF 1 PETER

I.       LIVING IN HOPE                        1

II.      LIVING IN SUBMISSION          2

III.    LIVING WITH SUFFERING      3–4

IV.    CLOSING EXHORTATIONS     5

CONTENT OUTLINE OF 1 PETER

Salutation (1:1–2)

I. Hope and Holiness (1:3–2:12)

A. God’s Salvation (1:3–12)

B. Our Lifestyle (1:13–2:12)

1. Hope and holiness (1:13–16)

2. Reverence (1:17–21)

3. Love (1:22–25)

4. Quest for maturity (2:1–12)

II. Submission to Others (2:13–3:7)

A. To Rulers (2:13–17)

B. To Masters (2:18–19)

C. Christ’s Example (2:20–25)

D. In Marriage (3:1–7)

III. Suffering Unjustly (3:8–4:19)

A. God’s Supervision (3:8–13)

B. Suffering for Doing Good (3:14–17)

C. Christ’s Example (3:18–22)

D. Abandoning the Old Life (4:1–6)

E. Call to the New Life (4:7–11)

F. Consolations in Suffering (4:12–19)

IV. Final Exhortations (5:1–11)

A. To Elders (5:1–4)

B. To Younger (5:5–9)

C. A Doxology (5:10–11)

Final Greetings (5:12–14)

Richards, L. O. (1991). The Bible readers companion (electronic ed.). Wheaton: Victor Books.

Have a defensive day brothers!

Your brother and servant in Christ,

Bill

Dying to self, living to serve!

I am looking forward to reading through the Bible with everyone over this next year.  Below I have given you a basic outline of the first two chapters of Genesis.  I have found it helps my mind to work through the text if I have an outline.  This outline comes from “The Outline Bible”

Genesis 1–2:25 (The Outline Bible)

God’s Working Schedule (1:1–2:19)

A. First day: creation of light (1:3–5): “Then God said, ‘Let there be light.’ ” He then divides the light from the darkness.

B. Second day: creation of space and water (1:6–8): He separates the atmospheric, upper water from the earthly, lower water.

C. Third day: creation of plant life (1:9–13): First he separates the water from the land. The earth then brings forth green grass, plants, trees, and vegetation of every kind.

D. Fourth day: creation of sun, moon, and stars (1:14–19)

E. Fifth day: creation of fish and fowl (1:20–23)

F. Sixth day: creation of land animals and people (1:24–31; 2:7–20)

1. The brute creatures: livestock and all wild beasts (1:24–25)

2. The blessed creature, who is given two things:

a. The image of God (1:26–27)

b. The instructions from God (1:26–31; 2:15–19)

(1) People are to rule over all nature (1:26, 28),

(2) to fill the earth with their own kind (1:28),

(3) to cultivate and care for their beautiful home, the Garden of Eden (2:15),

(4) to eat from any tree except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (2:16–17),

(5) and to provide names for all the other creatures (2:19–20).

G. Seventh day: God rests (2:1–6): His creative work is complete and is pronounced good. God blesses and sets apart the seventh day.

II. God’s Wedding Schedule (2:20–25)

A. The making of Eve (2:20–22): Eve, the first woman, is formed from the flesh and bone of Adam’s side.

B. The marriage of Eve (2:23–25): Eve is returned to Adam’s side. “This explains why a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one.” This marks history’s first marriage.

Willmington, H. L. The Outline Bible, Ge 1–5. Wheaton, Ill.: Tyndale House Publishers, 1999.