February 12
Read: Numbers 4:1-15
Numbers chapter 4 describes the division of labor among the Levites in relation to the tabernacle. Each of the families of the sons of Levi was given specific responsibilities for part of the work. In our text, we see the portions assigned to Aaron and to the sons of Kohath.
To Aaron and his sons belonged the task of caring for the items associated with worship within the tabernacle. Essentially, they were responsible for everything within the inner sanctuary. When it was time to move, they covered and prepared the table of showbread and the golden altar, cleaned up the ashes and gathered and wrapped all the utensils. When everything was ready, the Kohathites were to come and carry it to the next location.
Continuing in chapter 4, we find that God gave similar instructions to the Gershonites and the Merarites. In each case, God was very specific about what each was to do.
It took everyone doing their part to get the tabernacle pulled down and moved. If any family had neglected or left its work undone, the whole nation would have been delayed. They would have been unable to do what God was directing them to do at the time He intended for them to do it. As a result of a few unwilling to perform their roles, God’s work would be hindered and God’s people denied a blessing.
According to the New Testament, the same thing can be said of the local church. God has gifted every church member for a specific task, and it is one of the Holy Spirit’s functions to guide them to their appointed ministry. In Ephesians 4:16, the Bible says Jesus is the head, “From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.“ The body referenced is the church, and every joint is every member. Jesus has put us together and given every member a gift and a task. We must prayerfully seek out our place and then faithfully perform the assigned ministry. If we do not, then we, like the Levites, would be guilty of hindering the work of God and the progress of God’s people.
Are you busy about the Lord’s work? Are you doing the things you should be doing? Are you still wondering what your job might be? James writes, “If any of you lack wisdom, let Him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.”
Let’s find our spot and get in it.
Just a servant,
Bro. Tom
Showing posts with label servants. Show all posts
Showing posts with label servants. Show all posts
He Shall Be Blessed!
February 11
Read: Genesis 27:1-33
Genesis 27 is the story of the stolen blessing. Isaac had grown old and half-blind, and he recognized the time of his death was near. So he called his oldest son, Esau, and instructed him to go and kill a deer and prepare a meal for his old father, that Isaac might bless his son before he died. Jacob’s mother, Rebekah, overheard Isaac’s instructions and conspired with Jacob to steal the blessing. Preparing a goat stew and wrapping the skins around Jacob’s wrists and neck, she sent Jacob in to his father. Jacob told Isaac a pack of lies and walked out with a blessing.
The tent flap was still waving from Jacob’s exit when Esau came in with his stew. It didn’t take too long for the two of them to figure out what happened, with the result that Isaac trembled and Esau threatened. In spite of the fact the blessing had been stolen, Isaac lamented in verse 33, “…yea, and he shall be blessed.”
Isaac’s faith was strong; strong enough to be certain that a blessing pronounced, stolen or not, would be honored by God. He didn’t try to talk God out of it, and he refused to try to give Esau what he had already given Jacob. He knew he had asked God in good faith to bless Jacob, and that God would answer his prayer.
Many of us have problems with our prayer life. We ask wavering, even though we know that James said a double-minded man would receive nothing. We often pray as though we’re just reciting a liturgy, our prayers essentially no different than the Catholic’s rosary or the Episcopalian’s Book of Common Prayer. Isaac prayed with faith! He had so much faith that having asked God to bless Jacob he could not bring himself to ask the same things for Esau.
In Matthew chapter 17, a young man possessed of a demon is brought to the disciples. They were unable to help the young man, and his father appealed to Jesus directly. After Jesus cast out the demon, the disciples asked Jesus why they had been unable to do so. Jesus answered thus: “Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.”
Today, pray in faith.
Just a servant,
Bro. Tom
Read: Genesis 27:1-33
Genesis 27 is the story of the stolen blessing. Isaac had grown old and half-blind, and he recognized the time of his death was near. So he called his oldest son, Esau, and instructed him to go and kill a deer and prepare a meal for his old father, that Isaac might bless his son before he died. Jacob’s mother, Rebekah, overheard Isaac’s instructions and conspired with Jacob to steal the blessing. Preparing a goat stew and wrapping the skins around Jacob’s wrists and neck, she sent Jacob in to his father. Jacob told Isaac a pack of lies and walked out with a blessing.
The tent flap was still waving from Jacob’s exit when Esau came in with his stew. It didn’t take too long for the two of them to figure out what happened, with the result that Isaac trembled and Esau threatened. In spite of the fact the blessing had been stolen, Isaac lamented in verse 33, “…yea, and he shall be blessed.”
Isaac’s faith was strong; strong enough to be certain that a blessing pronounced, stolen or not, would be honored by God. He didn’t try to talk God out of it, and he refused to try to give Esau what he had already given Jacob. He knew he had asked God in good faith to bless Jacob, and that God would answer his prayer.
Many of us have problems with our prayer life. We ask wavering, even though we know that James said a double-minded man would receive nothing. We often pray as though we’re just reciting a liturgy, our prayers essentially no different than the Catholic’s rosary or the Episcopalian’s Book of Common Prayer. Isaac prayed with faith! He had so much faith that having asked God to bless Jacob he could not bring himself to ask the same things for Esau.
In Matthew chapter 17, a young man possessed of a demon is brought to the disciples. They were unable to help the young man, and his father appealed to Jesus directly. After Jesus cast out the demon, the disciples asked Jesus why they had been unable to do so. Jesus answered thus: “Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.”
Today, pray in faith.
Just a servant,
Bro. Tom
Church Growth Part II
February 8
Read: Acts 6:1-7
Recently I have done a great deal of studying on discipleship. It seems to be a hot topic currently, and there are many, many books out on how we should do it. As they all claim a biblical foundation, let’s cut out the middle man and see what we might glean from the Bible directly concerning this idea of discipleship.
In Acts 6, we see seven men chosen by the congregation for special work. Often, study Bibles will call these men the first deacons. The church had a ministry that was not getting sufficient attention. Concerned church members brought the problem to the apostles. The apostles called the church body together and explained that they did not have the time to personally oversee this business, as it would distract them from their primary duties of Bible study and prayer. So they empowered the congregation to select men who could do the work for them. In Acts 6:3, they gave specific qualifications for the position. They must be men, of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom. Isn’t it fascinating that they didn’t look for successful businessmen, or wealthy merchants, or proven managers? You know, the church may have considered these things in their decision making. The Bible doesn’t tell us one way or another. But first and foremost were the spiritual qualifications.
Rather than call these men the first deacons, I prefer to think of them as simply mature disciples of the Jerusalem church. They had obviously been in the church for some time, as it takes longer than a few weeks to recognize the stated qualifications. These men clearly stood out amongst the congregation as men who serious about their service for God and mature in their faith. In the chapters that follow, we see that at least two of them men, Stephen and Philip, were fervent witnesses for the Lord. George Barna (Growing True Disciples, Waterbrook Press, 2001) defined a disciple as a “person committed to becoming and to reproducing spiritually mature zealots for Christ.” Certainly this group embodied that definition to the utmost degree.
As followers of the Lord Jesus Christ, we too are called to be disciples. If we asked the church about you, would you be described as a man “of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, an evangelist?” And if not, then what are you doing to change that? The most important part of Barna’s definition is in the first few words, “a disciple is a person committed to becoming...”. What you are now is not as important as what you are committed to becoming. Please, Lord, make us all like those men in Acts 6, sold out disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Oh, and by the way, there was an additional significant consequence of these six disciples’ service. Look closely at Acts 6:7. After these disciples assumed ministry responsibilities, “the Word of God increased; and the number of disciples multiplied in Jerusalem greatly; and a great company of the priests were obedient to the faith.” Who’d a thunk it?
Just a servant,
Bro. Tom
Read: Acts 6:1-7
Recently I have done a great deal of studying on discipleship. It seems to be a hot topic currently, and there are many, many books out on how we should do it. As they all claim a biblical foundation, let’s cut out the middle man and see what we might glean from the Bible directly concerning this idea of discipleship.
In Acts 6, we see seven men chosen by the congregation for special work. Often, study Bibles will call these men the first deacons. The church had a ministry that was not getting sufficient attention. Concerned church members brought the problem to the apostles. The apostles called the church body together and explained that they did not have the time to personally oversee this business, as it would distract them from their primary duties of Bible study and prayer. So they empowered the congregation to select men who could do the work for them. In Acts 6:3, they gave specific qualifications for the position. They must be men, of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom. Isn’t it fascinating that they didn’t look for successful businessmen, or wealthy merchants, or proven managers? You know, the church may have considered these things in their decision making. The Bible doesn’t tell us one way or another. But first and foremost were the spiritual qualifications.
Rather than call these men the first deacons, I prefer to think of them as simply mature disciples of the Jerusalem church. They had obviously been in the church for some time, as it takes longer than a few weeks to recognize the stated qualifications. These men clearly stood out amongst the congregation as men who serious about their service for God and mature in their faith. In the chapters that follow, we see that at least two of them men, Stephen and Philip, were fervent witnesses for the Lord. George Barna (Growing True Disciples, Waterbrook Press, 2001) defined a disciple as a “person committed to becoming and to reproducing spiritually mature zealots for Christ.” Certainly this group embodied that definition to the utmost degree.
As followers of the Lord Jesus Christ, we too are called to be disciples. If we asked the church about you, would you be described as a man “of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, an evangelist?” And if not, then what are you doing to change that? The most important part of Barna’s definition is in the first few words, “a disciple is a person committed to becoming...”. What you are now is not as important as what you are committed to becoming. Please, Lord, make us all like those men in Acts 6, sold out disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Oh, and by the way, there was an additional significant consequence of these six disciples’ service. Look closely at Acts 6:7. After these disciples assumed ministry responsibilities, “the Word of God increased; and the number of disciples multiplied in Jerusalem greatly; and a great company of the priests were obedient to the faith.” Who’d a thunk it?
Just a servant,
Bro. Tom
Right Hand, Left hand
February 1
Read: Matthew 6:1-8
When I arrived at church this evening, I noticed immediately someone had repaired a broken swing in the playground. It has been broken for about five weeks, and I intended to get to it, but it just hadn’t happened yet.
Well, apparently I was not the only one concerned, and sometime today a very kind and caring person took the initiative to buy a part and repair the chain. I praise the Lord for their diligence and their faithfulness, and I thank the Lord for caring church members. In our next service, if I remember it, I may mention it. I will say I don’t know who did the repair, but God does, and He never forgets a cold drink of water given in His name. I will not mention Matthew 6:1-8, but I’ll be thinking about it.
In this passage, the Bible talks about doing alms. Alms are good works of any kind. They almost always include giving of some sort but the subject is not limited to giving. The Word says, “...when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, they have their reward.” Jesus’ teaching here is that we can do the right thing for the wrong reason. If we do what we do to be seen of and receive glory from men, we will get what we want. But...that’s all the reward we can expect. In the other hand, in verses 3 and 4, we are told: “...when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth: that thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly.” If no one knows who did the deed, then who gets the glory? God alone. And that’s the point. We have nothing that He did not provide, and why should we be rewarded for using God’s stuff?
It will be interesting to see if the person who did the repairs makes sure that others know it. If they do, then they will have gotten what they seek. How much better to receive our reward of our Father which seeth in secret?
Just a servant,
Bro. Tom
Truth is Eternal - Balthasar Hubmaier
Read: Matthew 6:1-8
When I arrived at church this evening, I noticed immediately someone had repaired a broken swing in the playground. It has been broken for about five weeks, and I intended to get to it, but it just hadn’t happened yet.
Well, apparently I was not the only one concerned, and sometime today a very kind and caring person took the initiative to buy a part and repair the chain. I praise the Lord for their diligence and their faithfulness, and I thank the Lord for caring church members. In our next service, if I remember it, I may mention it. I will say I don’t know who did the repair, but God does, and He never forgets a cold drink of water given in His name. I will not mention Matthew 6:1-8, but I’ll be thinking about it.
In this passage, the Bible talks about doing alms. Alms are good works of any kind. They almost always include giving of some sort but the subject is not limited to giving. The Word says, “...when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, they have their reward.” Jesus’ teaching here is that we can do the right thing for the wrong reason. If we do what we do to be seen of and receive glory from men, we will get what we want. But...that’s all the reward we can expect. In the other hand, in verses 3 and 4, we are told: “...when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth: that thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly.” If no one knows who did the deed, then who gets the glory? God alone. And that’s the point. We have nothing that He did not provide, and why should we be rewarded for using God’s stuff?
It will be interesting to see if the person who did the repairs makes sure that others know it. If they do, then they will have gotten what they seek. How much better to receive our reward of our Father which seeth in secret?
Just a servant,
Bro. Tom
Truth is Eternal - Balthasar Hubmaier
More Than Enough
January 31
Read: Exodus 36:1-7
“For the stuff they had was sufficient for all the work to make it, and too much.” - Exodus 36:7
Sometimes, the cultural, time, and language distances between us and the Bible are almost too far to span. As residents in an incredibly materialistic society, Biblical statements on riches and money seem to bounce off us like Styrofoam pellets off plexiglass. We read about how God’s people gave, allow any principles involved to be diluted by our cultural filters, and learn nothing. In an effort to make some of it stick, let’s dig a little deeper.
First, notice who is doing the giving. This is the nation of Israel, fresh out of Egypt, wandering from place to place with no more than they could carry on their backs or on pack animals. Yes, they had spoiled the Egyptians (Exodus 12:35-36), but they still couldn’t have had much. In spite of it, when it came time to build the tabernacle and its furnishings, God simply told Moses to ask the people to give. Exodus 25:1-8 tells what they are to give, and how they are to give. Notice also, God was only interested in the one who would give “willingly of his heart” (v. 2).
Moses repeated God’s command in Exodus 35:5, “Take ye from among you an offering unto the Lord: whosoever is of a willing heart, let him bring it, an offering of the Lord: gold, and silver, and brass...” In verse 21, we see the response, “And they came, every one whose heart stirred him up, and every one whom his spirit made willing, and they brought the Lord’s offering to the work of the tabernacle of the congregation, and for all his service, and for the holy garments.” Wow. No strident pleas, no offers of special prizes or blessings, no slick advertising campaigns, just a simple appeal to the Lord’s people. Notice there was no compulsion involved. You simply had to have a willing heart and something to give.
And the people gave. By our standards, these people had nothing. Most of us have enough clothes in our closets to cloth 100 of these people. We spend more on our pets than they ever saw in their entire lives. And still, the word of God says, “they gave.” And how they gave. In chapter 36 and verse 3 it says they gave, and they gave, and they gave, until, in verses 4 and 5, we read:
“And all the wise men, that wrought all the work of the sanctuary, came every man from his work which they made; and they spake unto Moses, saying, The people bring much more than enough for the service of the work, which the Lord commanded to make. And Moses gave commandment and they caused it to be proclaimed throughout the camp, saying, Let neither man nor woman make any more work for the offering of the sanctuary. So the people were restrained from bringing. For the stuff they had was sufficient for all the work to make it, and too much.”
The people gave, and gave, and gave. They dug through all the saddlebags, they searched the chests and purses. They dug through the jewelry boxes, and they gave. They gave so much that the workers came to Moses and said, “Tell them to stop.”
I look forward to the day when I hear a Christian worker stand up and say to God’s people, “Stop giving, it is more than enough.”
God’s work done in God’s way will never lack God’s supply. - Hudson Taylor
Just a servant,
Bro. Tom
Truth is Eternal - Balthasar Hubmaier
Read: Exodus 36:1-7
“For the stuff they had was sufficient for all the work to make it, and too much.” - Exodus 36:7
Sometimes, the cultural, time, and language distances between us and the Bible are almost too far to span. As residents in an incredibly materialistic society, Biblical statements on riches and money seem to bounce off us like Styrofoam pellets off plexiglass. We read about how God’s people gave, allow any principles involved to be diluted by our cultural filters, and learn nothing. In an effort to make some of it stick, let’s dig a little deeper.
First, notice who is doing the giving. This is the nation of Israel, fresh out of Egypt, wandering from place to place with no more than they could carry on their backs or on pack animals. Yes, they had spoiled the Egyptians (Exodus 12:35-36), but they still couldn’t have had much. In spite of it, when it came time to build the tabernacle and its furnishings, God simply told Moses to ask the people to give. Exodus 25:1-8 tells what they are to give, and how they are to give. Notice also, God was only interested in the one who would give “willingly of his heart” (v. 2).
Moses repeated God’s command in Exodus 35:5, “Take ye from among you an offering unto the Lord: whosoever is of a willing heart, let him bring it, an offering of the Lord: gold, and silver, and brass...” In verse 21, we see the response, “And they came, every one whose heart stirred him up, and every one whom his spirit made willing, and they brought the Lord’s offering to the work of the tabernacle of the congregation, and for all his service, and for the holy garments.” Wow. No strident pleas, no offers of special prizes or blessings, no slick advertising campaigns, just a simple appeal to the Lord’s people. Notice there was no compulsion involved. You simply had to have a willing heart and something to give.
And the people gave. By our standards, these people had nothing. Most of us have enough clothes in our closets to cloth 100 of these people. We spend more on our pets than they ever saw in their entire lives. And still, the word of God says, “they gave.” And how they gave. In chapter 36 and verse 3 it says they gave, and they gave, and they gave, until, in verses 4 and 5, we read:
“And all the wise men, that wrought all the work of the sanctuary, came every man from his work which they made; and they spake unto Moses, saying, The people bring much more than enough for the service of the work, which the Lord commanded to make. And Moses gave commandment and they caused it to be proclaimed throughout the camp, saying, Let neither man nor woman make any more work for the offering of the sanctuary. So the people were restrained from bringing. For the stuff they had was sufficient for all the work to make it, and too much.”
The people gave, and gave, and gave. They dug through all the saddlebags, they searched the chests and purses. They dug through the jewelry boxes, and they gave. They gave so much that the workers came to Moses and said, “Tell them to stop.”
I look forward to the day when I hear a Christian worker stand up and say to God’s people, “Stop giving, it is more than enough.”
God’s work done in God’s way will never lack God’s supply. - Hudson Taylor
Just a servant,
Bro. Tom
Truth is Eternal - Balthasar Hubmaier
Sharpening Your Shovel
January 24
Text: Galatians 1:15-18
In the letter to the Galatians, the apostle Paul gives some light on how he became the great missionary we see in the Scriptures. Add to this the information found in Acts 9, and we can see that Paul didn't simply come to Christ and begin his ministry. Rather, he came to Christ, began to witness for him, and in short order found himself in the Arabian desert, where he stayed for three years. During those three years, God trained Paul for his ministry to the Gentiles. In later years, Paul would refer to that time, saying in Galatians 1:11, "...the gospel which was preached of me is not after man. For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ." The gospel that we see so clearly in Paul's letters was learned at the feet of Jesus in the Arabian wilderness.
Clearly, God was preparing Paul for his ministry. A couple of friends of ours got together one day to dig up a piece of drain line to check for obstructions. One friend, along with two of his sons, arrived on the scene, jumped out of the truck and started digging. The other man, considerably older, got out of his truck, took out his shovel and a file and began to methodically hone the edge of his shovel, making it clean and sharp. After watching the others for a while, he commented, "You boys are working hard, and you're making progress. But I'm going to accomplish more faster because I took time to sharpen my shovel." A few minutes later, satisfied with the condition of his shovel, the man began to dig. And sure enough, he dug faster with less effort, accomplishing a great deal more than the other three. After a few minutes he turned to the others and said, "This is a lesson for you. Time spent sharpening your shovel is never wasted."
An affliction commonly found among Christians is impatience. This is true no matter what the ministry. Whether the nursery, the Sunday school or the mission field, there is some shovel sharpening that will help you be more effective and efficient. Paul, when talking about his time in Arabia, recognized that God had used it for a training ground to prepare him. He spent three years sharpening his shovel.
God has a work for each of us, and He will get us to it in His time. In the meantime, always remember that time spent sharpening your shovel is never wasted.
Just a servant,
Bro. Tom
"It is not the will to win that's important, but rather the will to prepare to win." - Bobby Knight
Text: Galatians 1:15-18
In the letter to the Galatians, the apostle Paul gives some light on how he became the great missionary we see in the Scriptures. Add to this the information found in Acts 9, and we can see that Paul didn't simply come to Christ and begin his ministry. Rather, he came to Christ, began to witness for him, and in short order found himself in the Arabian desert, where he stayed for three years. During those three years, God trained Paul for his ministry to the Gentiles. In later years, Paul would refer to that time, saying in Galatians 1:11, "...the gospel which was preached of me is not after man. For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ." The gospel that we see so clearly in Paul's letters was learned at the feet of Jesus in the Arabian wilderness.
Clearly, God was preparing Paul for his ministry. A couple of friends of ours got together one day to dig up a piece of drain line to check for obstructions. One friend, along with two of his sons, arrived on the scene, jumped out of the truck and started digging. The other man, considerably older, got out of his truck, took out his shovel and a file and began to methodically hone the edge of his shovel, making it clean and sharp. After watching the others for a while, he commented, "You boys are working hard, and you're making progress. But I'm going to accomplish more faster because I took time to sharpen my shovel." A few minutes later, satisfied with the condition of his shovel, the man began to dig. And sure enough, he dug faster with less effort, accomplishing a great deal more than the other three. After a few minutes he turned to the others and said, "This is a lesson for you. Time spent sharpening your shovel is never wasted."
An affliction commonly found among Christians is impatience. This is true no matter what the ministry. Whether the nursery, the Sunday school or the mission field, there is some shovel sharpening that will help you be more effective and efficient. Paul, when talking about his time in Arabia, recognized that God had used it for a training ground to prepare him. He spent three years sharpening his shovel.
God has a work for each of us, and He will get us to it in His time. In the meantime, always remember that time spent sharpening your shovel is never wasted.
Just a servant,
Bro. Tom
"It is not the will to win that's important, but rather the will to prepare to win." - Bobby Knight
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