Word for Today, Tue, 18 Nov 2003: Anonymous No More!

#1 · November 18, 2003, 9:15 pm

Quote from Forum Archives on November 18, 2003, 9:15 pm
Posted by: masinick <masinick@...>

Dear friends,

Today's message is about experiencing unity and expressing love
in through our church communities. I take a personal interest in
this because I see that this is one of the things most missing,
even in churches that want to make a difference in the lives of
their people. Of course, the church leadership can only do so
much - the rest is up to you and me as not only worshippers, but
followers and people who actually practice (and do) what we read
and hear.

The first chapter of James, beginning in verse 22, says it
well. This quotation comes from the New Living Translation: "22
And remember, it is a message to obey, not just to listen to. If
you don't obey, you are only fooling yourself. 23 For if you
just listen and don't obey, it is like looking at your face in a
mirror but doing nothing to improve your appearance. 24 You see
yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like. 25 But if
you keep looking steadily into God's perfect law--the law that
sets you free--and if you do what it says and don't forget what
you heard, then God will bless you for doing it."

So let's not simply remain anonymous, soaking in the Word, then
doing little, if anything, about it in our personal lives.
Instead, let's follow, not only what James says, but also heed
the words of Hebrews 10:23-25, as clearly shared in "The
Message": "23 Let's keep a firm grip on the promises that keep
us going. He always keeps his word. 24 Let's see how inventive
we can be in encouraging love and helping out, 25 not avoiding
worshipping together as some do but spurring each other on,
especially as we see the big Day approaching."

Yours in Christ,
Brian
_____________________________

Devotional from purposedrivenlife.com.
Lost, or Loved?
(Acts 2:22-47)

"Oh, I slip out of church during the last hymn. I just come for
the preaching."

Lots of Christians feel something like this. They want to
attend on Sunday. After all, it's the right thing to do. But
they want to remain anonymous.

I suspect that this is part of the appeal of some of the
super churches of our day. They're big enough for people to get
lost in. You can go to church. But you don't have to get to
know anyone.

Personally, I'm fascinated by the pattern I see here in Acts 2.
Big? You bet. Some 3,000 people were converted by Peter's
first sermon. That a pretty good start on what you'd call a big
church!

But lost in the crowd? Never! Because that big First Church of
Jerusalem immediately divided those converts up into small
groups, got them to meeting in houses, and before you knew it,
each of these folks found he or she was loved - and loved
others.

Luke described the result. They experienced unity in their
house fellowships (v. 42). They expressed their love for each
other in the most practical ways (v. 44). They got together in
larger groups to worship with enthusiasm (v. 46). They became
such friends they spent a lot of time with each other's families
(v. 46) They felt so glad that praise kept welling up out of
their lives (v. 47). And, oh, yes, everyone was favorably
impressed - and more people kept on being converted daily.

Of course, we're lucky in our day. We don't have to meet in
homes. We just put up a church building on some corner, pack it
with a few hundred (or thousand) people once or twice a week,
and get on with our daily lives. It's not like first-century
Jerusalem. Here you can get lost in the crowd - even in a small
crowd. But if you're one of those folks who's been lost in a
large church, you've also lost out on a vital ingredient of real
Christianity. You've lost out on love - on being loved, and
loving, in intimate, truly Christian ways.

Personal Application
Go to a big church if you want. But please, not to get lost.

Quotable
"One thing about the New Testament church. There's a climate of
loving relationships. A sense of warmth and care permeates the
whole, and fondness for individuals breaks through repeatedly.
People knew how to love and be loved by each other." - Norm
Wakefield

a~1990 by Lawrence O. Richards
The 365 Day Devotional Commentary
Copied with permission by Cook Communications Ministries.
May not be further reproduced. All rights reserved.

=====
--
Brian Masinick, mailto:masinick@yahoo.com
Home page: www.geocities.com/masinick/

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Posted by: masinick <masinick@...>

Dear friends,

Today's message is about experiencing unity and expressing love
in through our church communities. I take a personal interest in
this because I see that this is one of the things most missing,
even in churches that want to make a difference in the lives of
their people. Of course, the church leadership can only do so
much - the rest is up to you and me as not only worshippers, but
followers and people who actually practice (and do) what we read
and hear.

The first chapter of James, beginning in verse 22, says it
well. This quotation comes from the New Living Translation: "22
And remember, it is a message to obey, not just to listen to. If
you don't obey, you are only fooling yourself. 23 For if you
just listen and don't obey, it is like looking at your face in a
mirror but doing nothing to improve your appearance. 24 You see
yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like. 25 But if
you keep looking steadily into God's perfect law--the law that
sets you free--and if you do what it says and don't forget what
you heard, then God will bless you for doing it."

So let's not simply remain anonymous, soaking in the Word, then
doing little, if anything, about it in our personal lives.
Instead, let's follow, not only what James says, but also heed
the words of Hebrews 10:23-25, as clearly shared in "The
Message": "23 Let's keep a firm grip on the promises that keep
us going. He always keeps his word. 24 Let's see how inventive
we can be in encouraging love and helping out, 25 not avoiding
worshipping together as some do but spurring each other on,
especially as we see the big Day approaching."

Yours in Christ,
Brian
_____________________________

Devotional from purposedrivenlife.com.
Lost, or Loved?
(Acts 2:22-47)

"Oh, I slip out of church during the last hymn. I just come for
the preaching."

Lots of Christians feel something like this. They want to
attend on Sunday. After all, it's the right thing to do. But
they want to remain anonymous.

I suspect that this is part of the appeal of some of the
super churches of our day. They're big enough for people to get
lost in. You can go to church. But you don't have to get to
know anyone.

Personally, I'm fascinated by the pattern I see here in Acts 2.
Big? You bet. Some 3,000 people were converted by Peter's
first sermon. That a pretty good start on what you'd call a big
church!

But lost in the crowd? Never! Because that big First Church of
Jerusalem immediately divided those converts up into small
groups, got them to meeting in houses, and before you knew it,
each of these folks found he or she was loved - and loved
others.

Luke described the result. They experienced unity in their
house fellowships (v. 42). They expressed their love for each
other in the most practical ways (v. 44). They got together in
larger groups to worship with enthusiasm (v. 46). They became
such friends they spent a lot of time with each other's families
(v. 46) They felt so glad that praise kept welling up out of
their lives (v. 47). And, oh, yes, everyone was favorably
impressed - and more people kept on being converted daily.

Of course, we're lucky in our day. We don't have to meet in
homes. We just put up a church building on some corner, pack it
with a few hundred (or thousand) people once or twice a week,
and get on with our daily lives. It's not like first-century
Jerusalem. Here you can get lost in the crowd - even in a small
crowd. But if you're one of those folks who's been lost in a
large church, you've also lost out on a vital ingredient of real
Christianity. You've lost out on love - on being loved, and
loving, in intimate, truly Christian ways.

Personal Application
Go to a big church if you want. But please, not to get lost.

Quotable
"One thing about the New Testament church. There's a climate of
loving relationships. A sense of warmth and care permeates the
whole, and fondness for individuals breaks through repeatedly.
People knew how to love and be loved by each other." - Norm
Wakefield

=====
--
Brian Masinick, mailto:masinick@yahoo.com
Home page: http://www.geocities.com/masinick/

__________________________________
Do you Yahoo!?
Protect your identity with Yahoo! Mail AddressGuard
antispam.yahoo.com/whatsnewfree