Epistle for May 7, 2010
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E-pistle
Dr. Dan Hite, President FreeWay Foundation May 7, 2010
How to Be a Friend like jesus
(Luke 12:1-59)
Dr. Curt Scarborough
I. Concentration: on the contents of this chapter
1. Jesus taught the disciples to beware of hypocrisy, vv. 1-3.
2. Jesus taught His disciples ("My friends") to trust in God, vv. 4-7.
3. Jesus emphasized the necessity of confessing Christ before men, vv. 8-12.
4. Jesus told the parable of the rich fool, vv. 13-21.
5. Jesus taught His disciples not to worry, vv. 22-34.
6. Jesus told the parable of the faithful and wicked servants, vv. 35-48.
7. Jesus taught that He would bring family division, vv. 49-53.
8. Jesus taught His disciples to discern the time, vv. 54-56.
9. Jesus taught His disciples to make peace with their adversaries, vv. 57-59.
II. Observations: on Old Testament "friends of God"
1. Moses was a friend of God, Exodus 33:11.
2. Abraham was a friend of God, James 2:23.
III. Meditation: on Jesus' modeling of true friendship (John 15:13-15)
1. He gave sound spiritual advice, Luke 12:4-5. ("Fear not man; fear God."
See Proverbs 27:9.)
2. He sacrificed His life for others, John 15:13. ("Greater love . . . lay down one's
life: See Proverbs 17:17.)
3. He called His disciples to faithfully observe their commitments, John 15:14.
("Do whatever I command you," . . . obey. See I Kings 4:5)
4. Shared intimate, "Family secrets," John 15:15. (Things I heard from father, I
made known to you." See Proverbs 18:24.)
IV. Revelation: on the spiritual implications seen here
1. A true Christian friend gives good advice based upon revealed spiritual
insights and biblical principles.
2. A true Christian friend is willing to make small and large sacrifices to benefit
others.
3. A true Christian friend is faithful to his commitments; is dependable, honorable,
and true to his word.
4. A true Christian friend shares intimate spiritual experiences from his heart . . .
magnifying and glorifying the Father.
V. Applications: as a Christian friend, I need to . . .
1. Cultivate my spiritual walk with the Lord so that I may guide my friend into
a deeper understanding and relationship with God.
2. Be unselfish of my time and of myself . . . willing to sacrifice these for the
well-being of my friend.
3. Be a person of integrity . . . always faithful, honorable, dependable, and true
to my word.
4. Be open-hearted and tender-hearted, freely sharing significant spiritual
experiences with my friend.
Four Strikes and you're out!
(Luke 13:1-35)
Dr. Curt Scarborough
I. Concentration: on the contents of this chapter
1. Jesus taught the necessity to "repent or perish," vv. 1-5.
2. Jesus told the parable of the barren fig tree, vv. 6-9.
3. Jesus healed a crippled woman on the Sabbath, vv. 10-17.
4. Jesus told the parable of the mustard seed, vv. 18-19.
5. Jesus told the parable of the leaven, vv. 20-21.
6. Jesus taught about entering by the narrow gate and about
being the first or last in the kingdom of heaven, vv. 22-23.
7. Jesus lamented over the city of Jerusalem, vv. 34-35.
II. Meditation: on the barren fig tree parable (vv. 6-9)
1. The owner had planted the fig tree in his garden, v. 6.
2. The owner came seeking fruit, but found none, v. 6.
3. The owner commanded his servant to chop down the tree
because it bore no fruit for three years, v. 7.
4. The owner heard the servant's plea to allow one more year
for him to dig and fertilize the tree in the hope that it would
bear fruit, vv. 8-9.
III. Revelation: on how this parable applies to my ministry
1. I am the fig tree which God (the owner) has personally planted
in his vineyard . . . my place of service is God-chosen, not accidental.
2. God continually comes to inspect my service for fruitfulness.
3. According to this parable, only three fruitless years are allowed before
a ministry (program) is to be cut down.
4. If the servant's heart still is convinced that the tree (ministry) will bear
fruit, the owner may be willing to allow one more year. Note that the
servant covenants that during the extra year, he will dig (remove rocks,
weeds, and underbrush) and fertilize (add elements designed to strengthen
the tree and augment productivity.)
IV. Applications: as a Christian, I need to . . .
1. "Bloom where I am planted" . . . where God has planted me.
2. Be always ready to stand inspection from the Lord . . . I'm His "tree."
3. Be sensitive to God's leadership in starting and stopping various personal
activities of service and ministry.
4. With ministry on my heart, pray for more time to redouble my efforts to
eliminate the detrimental parts of my spiritual service and to magnify the
potentially promising fruit-bearing aspects of my ministry . . . to produce
gold, not "corn-shucks!"
"A friend drops their plans when you're in trouble, shares joy in
your accomplishments, feels sad when you're in pain. A
friend encourages your dreams offers advice - - but when
you don't follow it, they still respect and love you."
- Doris Wild Helmering
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