THE TRENTON BULLETIN

THE TRENTON BULLETIN

Trenton Church of Christ, Trenton, Florida

A financial crisis occurs when the crisis of man’s soul is dependant upon the financial condition of his heart. Samuel Johnson said, “The love of money has been in all ages, one of the passions that have given great disturbances to the tranquility of the world” (Rambler, October 6, 1750). How remarkable man is as the only creature that puts such worth and value upon printed paper. An animal foraging through a wilderness will pay no attention to shiny pieces of gold to search for food and water; knowing that food and water give life, not gold or silver.

Dee Bowman said recently that more people are upset about their earthly treasure than they are about their heavenly treasure. If people worried as much about their soul as they do their money what a change would take place in the world. Jesus plainly reminds us of the value of both: “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:19-21).

If the focus of our life is only upon the treasures of this life then we are men most miserable. We can gain great wealth one day and lose it the next day. There are no guarantees when it comes to riches. The value of our riches can only be measured by the fear we have of losing them. Riches in heaven can not be taken away by man. Our reward in heaven does not fade away and no one can steal it away. Paul affirms, “I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day” (2 Timothy 1:12).

There is nothing within the arsenal of money that can give you what God can give. The possession of riches is not sinful but securing our hearts to the temptation of riches is what will bring about woe and misery. “But godliness actually is a means of great gain when accompanied by contentment. For we have brought nothing into the world, so we cannot take anything out of it either. If we have food and covering, with these we shall be content. But those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a snare and many foolish and harmful desires which plunge men into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs” (1 Timothy 6:6-10).

How do we survive the financial crisis? Trust in God! “Be ye free from the love of money; content with such things as ye have: for himself hath said, I will in no wise fail thee, neither will I in any wise forsake thee” (Hebrews 13:5). “The image of Caesar is money, the image of God is man. Give money to Caesar, and give thyself to God” (Tertullian, De Idol. 15, c.211 A.D.). Our hopes and dreams should not be gauged by the flow of Wall Street or our local bank. The sure deposit of our hearts within the gates of God’s house will bring about security that is everlasting.

Life is not about riches and certainly in death riches remain. The proverb says, “Shrouds have no pockets.” The man Job lost all his earthly wealth but retained his godly wealth – and died a richer man because of it. Where our heart is will be where we find our treasure.

There was a young woman who had been diagnosed with a terminal illness and had been given three months to live. So as she was getting her things 'in order,' she contacted her preacher and had him come to her house to discuss certain aspects of her final wishes.

She told him which songs she wanted sung at the service, what scriptures she would like read, and what outfit she wanted to be buried in. Everything was in order and the Preacher was preparing to leave when the young woman suddenly remembered something very important to her. 'There's one more thing,' she said excitedly. 'What's that?' the preacher replied.

'This is very important,' the young woman continued. 'I want to be buried with a fork in my right hand.' The preacher stood looking at the young woman, not knowing quite what to say. That surprises you, doesn't it?' the young woman asked. 'Well, to be honest, I'm puzzled by the request,' said the preacher.

The young woman explained. 'My grandmother once told me this story, and from that time on I have always tried to pass along its message to those I love and those who are in need of encouragement. In all my years of attending socials and dinners, I always remember that when the dishes of the main course were being cleared, someone would inevitably lean over and say, 'Keep your fork.' It was my favorite part because I knew that something better was coming ... like velvety chocolate cake or deep-dish apple pie. Something wonderful, and with substance!' So, I just want people to see me there in that casket with a fork in my hand and I want them to wonder 'What's with the fork?' Then I want you to tell them: 'Keep your fork, the best is yet to come.'

The preacher's eyes welled up with tears of joy as he hugged the young woman good-bye. He knew this would be one of the last times he would see her before her death. But he also knew that the young woman had a better grasp of heaven than he did. She had a better grasp of what heaven would be like than many people twice her age, with twice as much experience and knowledge. She knew that something better was coming.

At the funeral people were walking by the young woman's casket, they saw the cloak she was wearing, and the fork placed in her right hand. Over and over, the preacher heard the question, 'What's with the fork?' And over and over he smiled.

During his message, the Preacher told the people of the conversation he had with the young woman shortly before she died. He also told them about the fork and about what it symbolized to her. He told the people how he could not stop thinking about the fork and told them that they probably would not be able to stop thinking about it either. He was right. So the next time you reach down for your fork let it remind you, ever so gently, that the best is yet to come.

I like to be myself, but I can’t stand being alone. I love the dark, but I hate not being able to see. I enjoy meeting new people, but I hate being with strangers. I want my voice to be heard, but I despise talking loud. I want to be in a hall of fame, but I don’t like being the center of attention. I want to have my most complicated problems solved, but I don’t want complicated answers.I want to always be healthy, but not have to take medicine. The answer is . . . God!

With God, I can be away from the world, by myself, but not alone, for He is with me. With God, I can be in the dark, be blind, but see more than people of this world can see. With God, my voice can be heard even when I whisper. With God, I can enter His hall of fame, but not deal with the pressure of earthly fame. With God, I can have even my most complicated problems solved with a simple answer. With God, I can have incurable disease, yet be healthy in what matters most. Without God, I will be with the world, and be totally alone. Without God, I will walk around with my eyes wide open, but not see as much as the Christian blind man sees. Without God, I will meet all the people in the world, but they will always be strangers. Without God, I will have to raise my voice as loud as I can to be heard, but still not be heard when it matters most. Without God, I will work extremely hard to get into a worldly hall of fame, but not get into the highest one. Without God, my most complicated problems can’t be solved, and the attempts will be so complicated that I won’t understand them. Without God, I will have to take pill after pill, but will always be incurably sick. With God I can achieve anything. Without God, I achieve nothing. What’s your choice? (From Biblical Insights Magazine; Kelsey is the fifteen-year-old daughter of brother and sister Simon Harris of Jonesboro, AR. Kelsey is battling cancer.)

What kind of telephone would you expect to get if you paid $2400.00 for it? You would anticipate getting the latest in technology, possibly a video phone. The last thing you would expect would be just a plain old rotary phone that was not cordless; had no call-waiting, caller-ID or speed dialing; and would not even accept touch-tone service. But that is exactly what my parents got. As a matter of fact they had two of them for the same price.

You see, when they moved into their house in June 1958, no one could own their own phone. You had to rent it from the phone company. So they rented two of them -- a desk model for the den and a wall model for the recreation room. Each phone cost them $5.00 per month on their bill. They paid that amount for each phone for 40 years, 480 months. When you multiply it out it comes to $2,400.00 per phone.

Several years ago when the government regulations changed and people could now own their own phone equipment, they just never bothered doing it. Their phones worked and they were happy with them. Anyway, five dollars is such a small amount. So they kept paying that rental fee every month never realizing how expensive those old rotary phones were to them.

The High Price Of Sin - As my parents never realized how costly those phones were, many people are in the same boat when it comes to the wages of sin. Sin seems pleasurable to them (Hebrews 11:24–25) and they don’t seem to suffer much because of it. What they do not realize is that if they continue in sin they will find it to be very costly in the day of judgment. Romans 6:23 states, "For the wages of sin is death..." The "death" in this passage is not the physical death which comes at the end of our lives here upon the earth. Rather, it is the "second death" of eternal separation from God in a place of torment. Revelation 21:8 says, "But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death."

Jesus tells of the high cost of sin in Matthew 16:26 where He says, "For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?" The sinner forfeits his eternal soul when he sins. Because of ignorance, many never realize what a price they are paying for their sins.

There is hope for the sinner, though. Jesus died on the cross to pay the high cost of sin (1 Peter 1:18–19). Sadly, some, knowing of that sacrifice and the saving power of the gospel (Romans 1:16), refuse to obey Christ because they are happy with their lives and possibly even rationalize that "if God is really a loving God, hell won’t be so bad." While God is described as love (1 John 4:8), He is also referred to as a "consuming fire" (Hebrews 12:29).

Never underestimate the high price of sin. Wake up to what it really costs you. Give obedience to the gospel of Christ to have your sins remitted (Acts 2:38) so that you will not have to pay with your soul.

It is better to ask, “to whom can I minister?” Each one of us is called to serve Christ Jesus, “If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also. If anyone serves Me, him My Father will honor” (John 12:26). Christianity, unfortunately, has become a personal-need driven religion. Many look at the church of Christ, and ask, “what can the church do for me?” Following Jesus means ministering to Him. Ministering to Christ involves being a servant to others as He was (Mark 10:43-45).

The apostle Peter wrote, “As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good servants of the manifold grace of God . . . if anyone ministers, let him do it as with the ability God supplies . . . “ (I Peter 4:10,11). First, we need to recognize the gift that God has given us, and second, strive to serve with it. The gifts that God gives are many and varied among His followers. Paul wrote, “Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, let us prophesy in proportion to our faith; or ministry, let us use it in our ministering; he who teaches, in teaching; he who exhorts, in exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness” (Romans 12:6-8).

When we are faithful in our ministering, God promises to not forget our labor of love: “For God is not unjust to forget your work and labor of love which you have shown toward His name, in that you have ministered to the saints, and do minister” (Heb. 6:10). We do not do what we do simply to be rewarded but rather because we love our Savior and our fellow believers.

Ask not who can minister to me, but rather to whom can I minister? We minister then, because Jesus served us, because we have gifts to minister, and because God will remember our work and service of love. Let us be good ministers of the grace of God!