"For By Your Words You Will Be Justified, and By Your Words You Will Be Condemned."

“But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment. For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned." ~Matt 12:36-37

Brothers,

During a talk with a friend this week, this verse was brought to my attention. That night, I was trying to figure out what it meant. I had said that the verse doesn’t mean we have to talk theology all the time, but then I got to thinking: what can we talk about? By the time I was done looking at the passage, I realized that I was trying to make the verse mean what I wanted it to mean. I’m sure neither of us can say we always have wholesome speech. I sometimes find myself go through a whole day with only a few scattered things that could possibly be called edifying, but which are spoken in an un-edifying tone. That night, I was trying to justify my speech by adding meanings to this verse. So, as I mentioned earlier, I asked myself what can we talk about? Or conversely, what can’t we talk about? In other words, what is idle speech? The answer: idle speech is speech that is idle. It does not edify, encourage, or strengthen. It is not wholesome, nor pure, nor good. Though it may not be bad, per say, it is not good. In this passage, Jesus doesn’t give us a choice between mediocre and good; He commands us to reject the mediocre and embrace the good. In Isaiah 50:4, when speaking of Jesus it says, “The Lord God has given Me the tongue of the learned, that I should know how to speak a word in season to him who is weary.” That is what we are to be speaking. We are to encourage, to strengthen, and to bear each other’s burdens. A joyful heart brings joy to the Lord, but be careful that it is not foolishness you are laughing at. As you may know, I have a strange sense of humor that leads to obscure and odd jokes that often result in making me laugh (though no one else usually does). Is this merely idle speech? Honestly, I don’t know. I don’t know where to draw the line on many things, therefore I can only give you the general guidelines laid out in Scripture: let your speech be wholesome and make sure what you say is worthy of being said. Can we talk about the weather, events, humorous stories, non-Christian literature, movies, meals, music, plants, or any of the other vast array of conversational topics? As far as my understanding reaches, there are times when we can speak of all these topics, for through them we can build relationships and bring joy to others. Yet in all this we are to keep the focus of our speech on that which brings God glory. So we are not to let a focus of strengthening relationships lead us to frivolous talk. As bearers of the image and name of Christ, we are to constantly bear witness of Him through our words and actions. Thus we have so many commands in Scripture to guard our tongues diligently. So my encouragement to you is this: “be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath” (James 1:19). Meditate on what you are going to say. Before you talk, run a quick test and see if it meets the criteria. If you let yourself slip, an apology to the one you are talking to may be necessary. It is better to be humbled before man, than to lay up condemnation before God. May the Lord help us both in that task!

Your brother in Christ,

Corey

The Lord is in Control

“Therefore do not be anxious, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.” ~Matt 6:31-34

Brothers,

This week at the dinner table, my family went over the Lord’s Prayer and talked about each of the different components of it. One of those parts was Matt. 6:11: “Give us this day our daily bread.” In other words, we pray that the Lord would give us what is necessary for that day. Some people take this to mean that we should work to provide for our families just for the day, or even in some cases, not at all, taking this to mean the Lord will provide all our needs. Now I don’t mean to give the impression that they don’t do other things with their time. George Müller, a man who ran several orphanages in England, did so by prayer. He did not work outside of the orphanage; his work was training up the children under his care, making decisions for what repairs were to be made and what tasks were to be taken up. Yet he never asked for money and didn’t work in a job that paid money. But God provided for his needs and gave him all that he needed. Sometimes they didn’t have breakfast to serve the children until God providentially provided milk and bread in the form of a milkman and baker who both were having trouble with their wares and so gave them to the orphanages. This was a noble attitude, but the Bible also talks about a man providing for his family and suggests that preparing for the future is a good thing. So what is right? Should we work and save for the future? Should we work only for a day’s wages? Should we work at all, trusting instead on God to provide for our needs? Let’s look at the last one first: Should we work at all? My answer: yes. George Müller had the job of training up children and providing for their needs. Like the disciples described in Luke 10:7 who preached the Word without pay, yet were given food and shelter by Christians, Müller was also a “laborer…worthy of his wages.” He had a job working for the Lord and the Lord provided for his needs. Should we work for the Lord only and not for man? No, for the Law holds many rules centered around business. We also have a clearer example: Paul was a tentmaker who worked while ministering and Jesus was a carpenter who worked for all but the last several years of His earthly incarnation, at which time He devoted Himself fully to ministry. So it is Biblical to work. Should we work for a day’s wage only? No; Solomon tells us to take a lesson from the ant which stores up food for the winter. Throughout the Old Testament we see inheritances where the firstborn is given a double portion, but all the rest is divided between the remaining sons. Dowries also are given for daughters. So it is not only Biblical to save for your future, but the futures of your children. The essence of the passage is not to become John the Baptists who live in the desert on locusts and honey, but to trust the Lord for our provision, however great or small. We are not to worry when finances grow thin, for the Lord will provide. We are not to hoard money or resources, for to do so would put them on a higher pedestal than God. We are not to let our focus be towards what we will do with our resources, for when it becomes our primary focus, again we have placed it higher than God. This passage is a warning: Don’t let material possessions become your worry or god. Save, provide for your family, but do not let money become your focus. The Lord will provide when circumstances seem grim. When our goal is to show His love by blessing others, He Himself will bless us. Therefore, prepare for tomorrow, but do not be anxious or worried about what tomorrow holds. The Lord has all things under control.

Your brother in Christ,

Corey

Avoiding a Divided House

“‘Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand.’” ~Matt 12:25

Brothers,

Today, many people have the strange idea that in order to share the gospel, one has to become like one’s audience. Most of the time, this entails dressing in all the latest fashions, speaking the common slang, and listening to the music that’s at the top of the charts for the month. Of course, other evangelizers have the opposing idea that in order to get the full message into people’s heads, one must only talk of the fire and brimstone to come in order to scare people into repentance. Still others merely say, “Jesus loves you” and treat that as sharing the gospel. Sadly, all these ways are wrong. Yes we are to be in the world, but not of the world. But we are not to just speak fire and brimstone either. The message of the Cross is about resurrection and though they need to first know that they were dead in their sins, we bring hope, not fear. Finally, the message of the Cross is much deeper and needs much more attention than just “Jesus loves you.” I bring this all up to make a point from the verse above: “Every city or house divided against itself will not stand.” Most of the time we think about the clearer meaning of this passage: that we shouldn’t fight or argue, but as with all Scripture, there is, I believe, another layer of meaning.

Psalm 119 is a meditation that has a central recurring theme: how precious God’s law is to His sheep. Over and over, the verses speak of a longing and desire for God’s righteous judgments and precepts. This should be our focus as well. However, the moment we add the foolishness of the world and the sins of the flesh to our “evangelistic methods,” or incorporate mistruths or partial truths to our faith, our house begins to waver. Just like the parable of the man who builds his house on the rock, when we make Christ our Cornerstone and the Word our foundation, we will not be overcome no matter how fierce the waters rage. Yet the moment we replace Him with a block of worldly wisdom and foolish philosophy and make the base of our house out of sinful behavior and thoughts, the Lord will send the waters our way and our house will crumble to the ground. Hide God’s Word in your heart; reject all that is ungodly. I do not say reject the world, for to do so would be to reject the field that is waiting to be harvested. But do not desire to become one of those unharvested stalks. Rather rejoice that you have been beaten and sifted out and look instead to the Lord and desire to become like Him. Live in the world, minister to the world, and even do some of the same things as the world. For it is not that things here on earth are all sinful and worthy of our reproach, but that when our focus is linked to those things and not to the Lord, then it is sinful. We can dress in the latest fashions, but we must dress modestly and not make our looks our idol or even a “tool” to reach others. We can speak the common slang as long as it is God honoring speech. We can listen to popular music as long as it is redeeming and directs us to focus more on the Lord. Always ask yourself these two questions: “Does this add to my witness for Christ?” and “Does this add to the spiritual growth of both myself and others?” I apologize if this is a little unclear, but I hope you understand the point I am trying to make. Make the Word your foundation and do not mix it with the sinful ways of the flesh, or your house will assuredly be divided.

Your brother in Christ,

Corey

An Encouragement to Share the Gospel

"Go Therefore and Make Disciples of all the Nations..." Matthew 28:19

We have often heard this passage spoken on, we have read it, and we know what it basically means. I say basically because we cannot always fully draw out all the meaning from it for a long time. Think about this passage: we are to go and make disciples. Of who? All Nations. Does this mean we have to move to a different continent and be missionaries? Of Course not. Evangelism takes place anywhere and everywhere. No matter the time or place, you can share the gospel.

When do we start evangelizing? Hudson Taylor told a story of a Chinese Pastor he had met who encouraged people to witness as soon as they were Christians. This is how the story goes:

"Once upon meeting a young convert, the pastor inquired, 'Brother, how long have you been saved?' the man answered that he had been saved for about three months. 'And how many have you won to the savior?' 'Oh, I'm only a learner.' the convert responded. Shaking his head in disapproval, the pastor said, 'Young man, the Lord doesn't expect you to be a full-fledged pastor, but He does expect you to be a faithful witness. Tell me, when does a candle begin to shine-when it's already half burned up?' 'No, as soon as it's lit.' came the reply. 'That's right, so let your light shine right away.'"

This somewhat lengthy illustration shares a good point: it is never to soon to start sharing the Good News. Constant excuses fill our minds however. "I'm not a good speaker." " I get too nervous doing those things." "That's what other people are paid to do." "I wouldn't know where to start" "I don't know enough about theology to say anything important." These, as I said, are merely excuses. But, as with all excuses, there is a solution. Starting with the first question, I will give some ideas as to how to solve each dilemma: "You don't have to be outstanding, pray for help and God will give you strength." "Again, God will give you strength to conquer all fear." "True, a few are paid to, but that does not exclude you. All Christians are commanded to share teh gospel, regardless of who else is. If you are the only witness, how much more harvest will the Lord bring to You." "Start with Prayer and then go up to someone and ask a simple question such as, Are you Saved?" "If you don't know the answer to a question go to the Bible or to someone who does know."

I Personally have a lot of trouble going up to a stranger to ask them a question, especially if it is about faith. I cannot say or claim that I have harvested one grain of wheat for saved. The disciples were sent out to be fishers of men immediately after Jesus called them. How much more willing should we be, who have been disciples most of our lives.

Your Brother in Christ
Corey