THE TRENTON BULLETIN

THE TRENTON BULLETIN

Trenton Church of Christ, Trenton, Florida

“And they were bringing children to Him so that He might touch them; but the disciples rebuked them. But when Jesus saw this, He was indignant and said to them, ‘Permit the children to come to Me; do not hinder them; for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Truly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child will not enter it at all.’ And He took them in His arms and began blessing them, laying His hands on them” (Mark 10:13-16).

This is a familiar passage. I've preached, taught and heard numerous lessons from this text. Some lessons focus on the disciples and their lack of foresight and compassion for the little ones. I have no doubt that all of the disciples understood the need to influence, teach and train children. They knew and understood that children were to be considered a blessing from heaven. They knew that children were trained in the way they should go. They would have recognized the need to tell of the glorious works of the Lord to the coming generation. These were family men. They undoubtedly had the same warm feelings toward the little ones in their families that we share.

I do not believe for a moment that these were cold, callous men who had no interest in children. Everything about their lives and character says otherwise. Somehow, they had concluded that the Master had more important things to do. It was a matter of priority and not interest. I understand that. Are there times when we judge that children do not belong? We are trying to take care of "adult problems" or conduct "adult business" and consider it inappropriate to have children running afoot.

I understand why the disciples figured that Jesus could not take time to touch the children. Perhaps the more they came to understand who He was, the more inclined they were to think that the Lord had more important things to do. After all, this is the One who healed the sick, cast out demons, fed multitudes, and even raised the dead. In the previous chapter, James, John and Peter had witnessed the transfiguration of Jesus. They saw Moses and Elijah speaking to Him! They heard the voice of God declare, "This is my beloved Son, listen to Him!"

I think this may be the reason why Jesus is described as being "indignant" toward them. It was not their attitude toward the children so much as their attitude toward Him. They made a decision about Jesus – He has more important things to worry about. Maybe they even thought, "If you knew who He was you wouldn't be bothering Him with such trifling matters. He is the Son of God, after all." Exactly!

I think of Jesus later saying to Phillip, "Have I been so long with you, and yet you have not come to know Me, Philip?" How could you know Me and hinder the children from coming? How could You know Me and not know that I not only want to touch them, I was to take them in My arms and bless them! Ah, there is a sweetness, a tenderness, a warmth that I am unable to adequately express in those words, "And He took them in His arms…” I think of the rest of Jesus' statement to Phillip, "He who has seen Me has seen the Father; how can you say, 'Show us the Father'?" Is it possible that when I think God is too big, too busy, or to whatever to take notice of me, His child, that I am thinking just like the disciples?

Today's Prayer: "Almighty God and Creator may all men hear Your beckoning call to draw near! May they come being filled with the reverence and fear that comes from knowing that You are the Judge of all the earth. But may they also be filled with the encouragement and comfort of knowing that they are approaching the throne of their loving Father who delights in taking His children in His arms."

An atheist is one who believes that there is no God. This is strange because there is so much evidence of the existence of God. One who denies the existence of God cannot deny the existence of the physical universe. Is it a product of chance? "The fool has said in his heart, 'There is no God” (Psalm 14:1).

Was it chance that produced the Empire State Building, the Atom Bomb, a 747 jet liner, and unabridged dictionary? Was it chance that produced the marvelous workings of the human body? A doctor once showed me a book in his library a very large volume all of which was written about a very small part of the human brain. Men may spend a lifetime of study trying to fathom some intricate work of nature, something far too complex to have come into existence by chance.

In view of all the evidence anyone who denies the existence of God is either not very smart, or else is not honest enough to admit the evidence.

There are people now who claim to be atheists. They are a vanishing breed. After awhile there will not be even one left. "For it is written: 'As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to Me, and every tongue shall confess to God” (Romans 14:11).

Most people are familiar with the parable generally referred to as the "good Samaritan" (Luke 10:30-36). We usually refer to it to show what true compassion is, and how we should be willing to respond to the needs of others. The parable certainly does show this. However, the parable, together with its context, teaches more than just how to be compassionate. It teaches us how to be honest in our Bible study.

A lawyer tested Jesus, asking, "Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?" (Luke 10:25). A lawyer, in the Scriptures, was one who was skilled in, and taught, the law of Moses. The man knew the answer to the question. Jesus responded with a question: "What is written in the law? What is your reading of it?" (vs. 26). Whenever we are searching for the truth, the only way to find it is by reading the Scriptures! Today, we might ask, "What does the Bible say?" What better question can be asked when one is searching for truth? Just open the Bible and see what it says.

The lawyer answered correctly by stating the foundation of God's will: Love God with all of your heart, soul, strength and mind, and your neighbor as yourself (vs. 27). Jesus responded, "You have answered rightly; do this and you will live" (vs. 28). Again, the man knew the answer. He quoted what the law said. And Jesus told him, "That's right. Now go and do it." This is the essence of doing God's will. Find out what God says in His word and do it. It's just that simple! There is no complicated process involved. You don't need any specialized clergy to tell you what God says. Just read the Bible and do what He says to do.

But here is where the lawyer began to have problems. He knew what God said, but if he did not know how to apply what was said, then he didn't need to do it. "But he, wanting to justify himself, said to Jesus, 'And who is my neighbor?'" (vs. 29). This is too much of a problem today. Instead of taking what God says and doing it, we want to find ways to justify not doing what He says. The trouble, in these cases, is not that we cannot understand the will of God. The trouble is that we do not want to bring our own will into submission to God's will. So we find a convenient way to justify our inaction.

It is in response to the lawyer's effort to justify himself that Jesus told the parable of the good Samaritan. Jesus' intention was not so much to issue a statement on compassion as it was to illustrate the lawyer's need to be honest with himself and simply do what God says. The parable illustrated the need for honesty when looking into the will of God.

After telling the parable, Jesus asked who the neighbor was. The man said, "He who showed mercy on him." To this Jesus responded, "Go and do likewise" (vs. 37). Again, Jesus was basically saying, "That's right. Now go and do it." He was showing that it is not all that difficult to apply God's will to our lives. We can understand it, and we can do it. It just takes diligence and honesty.

If we are not honest when we study the Bible, then we will not be able to properly do God's will. There have been studies where people refused to open the Bible to a particular verse (such as Acts 2:38). They knew what it said, but they simply did not want to face what it said. In order to justify not being baptized, many will come up with a hypothetical situation to justify their own disobedience. "What about the man who is on his way to be baptized and a rock falls on him and kills him?" This is supposed to negate the fact that they must be baptized. All such efforts are only efforts at self-justification. Wouldn't it be much easier to find out what the Bible teaches and just do it?

Simplified, Luke 10:25-37 teaches us that we need to look into the will of God, find out exactly what is said, and do just that. It takes honest Bible study, as well as honest self-examination (cf. 2 Cor. 13:5). When we know what the Bible says, we need to abandon any efforts at self-justification and submit ourselves completely to the will of God. As we study the Scriptures, we need to hear these words of Jesus: "do this and you will live."

Contrary to what is often taught these days, Christianity is not all about me. It is not about making me happy or prosperous, and it is not even about making sure I get to heaven when I die. It is not about worshipping with a fun church that provides hours of entertainment for my children. It is not about listening to pseudo-spiritual blather designed to make me feel good about myself and boost my self-esteem. It is not about making business contacts in a socially prominent congregation or rubbing shoulders with the “right people.” And Christianity is certainly not about politics in this present world.

Christianity is about God. It is about glorifying Him. It is about honoring Him for His grace and mercy manifested in the gift of His only Son. It is about living in eternity, offering never ending testimony to the riches of His loving kindness. It is about focusing our lives and attention upon service to the Creator and Redeemer.

Christianity is not about us. It is about loving God by serving Him and serving men made in His image. Christianity does not ask, “What can everyone else do for me?” But, “What can I do for somebody else?” Christianity does not wallow in self-pity because others are not paying enough attention to us; Christianity pays attention to others. It does not just talk about being hospitable, but actually practices hospitality. It does not just talk about being close to brethren, but seeks to develop real relationships with brethren. It does not just pay lip service to the importance of worship and Bible study, but actually attends and participate even when the presentation of God’s word is not particularly entertaining. It does not approach worship from the standpoint of “Will I enjoy it?” But, “Will my presence here truly honor God and encourage other disciples?”

True Christianity is selfless. Me-centered Christianity is no Christianity at all. Me-centered Christianity is the spirit of the age, but surely not the spirit of Christ. Selfless Christianity recognizes that God is under no obligation to save us, but desires to save us because of His own incomparable love, grace, and mercy. Any view of Christianity that focuses on self is not a biblical view. The Christian who is consumed with self can never be consumed with God.

At the beginning of a New Year, a high school principal decided to post his teachers' New Year's resolutions on the bulletin board. As the teachers gathered around the bulletin board, a great commotion started. One of the teachers was complaining. "Why weren't my resolutions posted?" She was throwing such a temper tantrum that the principal hurried to his office to see if he had overlooked her resolutions. Sure enough, he had mislaid them on his desk. As he read her resolutions, he was astounded. This teacher's first resolution was not to let little things upset her in the New Year.

Maybe this is a good time to see how you are coming on your New Year's resolutions (if indeed you made any). The above story demonstrates why making resolutions may not be such a good thing and, in fact, may be detrimental to our spiritual growth. What happens when we make resolutions? At some point, the resolution is likely going to be broken. It may be a matter of days, weeks, or months, but eventually we tend to falter.

If your resolution involves dieting, there will likely come a day when you will sneak a piece of fudge. If your resolution is quitting smoking, there will likely come a day when you will reach for that cigarette you have been craving. If your resolution is reading the Bible every day, there will likely come a day when things are so hectic that you miss your reading. And once the resolution is broken, it becomes even easier for it to crumble further. The incentive that kept you going ("I've maintained my commitment to this point") is now gone. One slip leads to two; which quickly leads to three, and before long, we have the attitude, "I've messed up so much that it's not even worth continuing to try." So what is there left to do? For most of us, we set our sights on January 1, 2009 and determine when that day rolls around, we'll try it again ("and NEXT time I'll do it!").

Allow me to suggest an alternative. Instead of yearly resolutions, what if we made daily resolutions? Begin each day with this prayer: "Father, today I want to live for you. I want to dedicate to you my time, my energy, my passion and my resources. Today, I will seek to add one quality that will make me more like You. Today, I will seek to eliminate something in my life that doesn't please you. I will seek to be more conscious of You in my life. I will try to be more appreciative of the blessings I receive from Your hand, and I will look for opportunities to show You glory in the way I deal with people and in the way I react to situations I face."