"Beware of the dogs, beware of the evil workers, beware of the false circumcision."
Phillipians 3:2
"Beware of the dogs.." What on earth, you might ask, is Paul trying to convey to the church at Phillipi? Should they have concern about Rover? - or Spot, the next door terrier?? Not hardly. As you are doubtless aware, the original texts were written in Green and Hebrew. The word "dog" here could be interpreted in one of two ways. In its original Greek, it would look like this: κύων
(pronounced koo'-ohn)..
Paul was most assuredly not speaking about the domesticated animals that you and I know about - and many of us love and treat as part of our family. No, Paul was issuing a very stern warning to church members and comparing them to the "dogs" of his time. In that day, these creatures would roam around in packs - very mean and vicious creatures looking for food to pillage through. They were doubtless very dangerous, dangerous animals; types of animals that might be dangerous to cross paths with if you were alone and they were in a pack. The closest modern day comparison might be a hyena, which makes a very loud barking, almost a laughing sound - the stuff of which nightmares are made.
Paul was referring, I believe, not only to people, who could be vicious like this, but issues and baggage, if you please, that could nip at the heals of the Phillipians and do damage to them, hinder their ministry, or worse, make them ineffective totally. So: here are my top several attack dogs for the year 2010 (in no particular order - you will be able to think of many, many more):
1. Racism - It is still absolutely incipient in our country. No Christian - be he black, white or any other color, can have full fellowship with God if he has animosity in his heart toward a man of another color
2. Legalism -
3. Liberalism
4. Ritualism -
5. Moralism - "I plan on going to heaven because of the good I've done helping in poor and starving children in Africa. I've given millions!"
6. Traditionalism - "Pastor, I don't think you understand!, my grandmama gave the money for the ground that this church was built on!"
Be aware of Satan's devices my friends. We are warned by the Lord Jesus that Satan prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour (I Peter 5:8). He is not ignorant. Nor is he impatient.
"Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand." (Ephisians 6:13)
Men and women, let us stand and fight. Rest well after you've prayed tonight.
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Monday, September 27, 2010
Joseph
2 This is the account of Jacob.
Joseph, a young man of seventeen, was tending the flocks with his brothers, the sons of Bilhah and the sons of Zilpah, his father's wives, and he brought their father a bad report about them.
3 Now Israel loved Joseph more than any of his other sons, because he had been born to him in his old age; and he made a richly ornamented [a] robe for him. 4 When his brothers saw that their father loved him more than any of them, they hated him and could not speak a kind word to him.
Many of you have heard the story of Joseph. The Bible gives account of many men and women of the Bible who had great endings and whose lives bore testimony to the remarkable good they did in serving the Lord Jesus. In fact, the eleventh chapter of Hebrews, often referred to as the "Hall of Faith" speaks about Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, the Israelites (and the great faith they demonstrated passing through the Red Sea), Rahab. All of these lived a life of faith that resulted in remarkable, uncommon service to the Lord Jesus - and there are many, many more that are worth mentioning. There are precious, precious few men and women of the Bible whose lives lack significant moral failure of one kind or another.
But one could read from Old Testament to New Testament, book to book, chapter to chapter and verse to verse and see precious few who lived a life as righteous and upstanding as Joseph. Sinless? Absolutely not. The Bible tells us that all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). Only one who walked the earth was without sin, and He is the one we place our trust in.
The story goes on. Because his brothers hated him so much, because Joseph loved the Lord and was interested in serving the Lord, they threw him into the bottom of a pit and then sold him into slavery for twenty shekels of silver. Surely they never could have imagined how things would evolve from there. There's a long journey that unfolds that results in Pharoh's recognition that Joseph is a special, special man: a prophet of God. Before you know it, Joseph is elevated to a lofty position in the Egyptian government and his brothers appear before him, hungry, penniless and at his mercy.
Joseph could have repaid them with the cruelty and brutality that they had so mercilessly inflicted upon him. And so many of us wouldn't have thought twice about doing that. What did Joseph say, though? "You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives." (Genesis 50:20) What remarkable wisdom, patience and forgiveness Joseph demonstrates to us all. God surely demonstrates through this picture that through it all, he was working all along - through their evil - to elevate Joseph to this lofty position to save the lives of many.
What can we learn from this? So much. We must learn to repay the evil that others do to us with patience and love. We must also remember with each moment that - according to Romans 8:28 - "we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose."
God is working for GOOD in ALL things if you love him. If you love him tonight, then you have been called according to his purpose. Pray and seek his will for your life. God bless you.
Joseph, a young man of seventeen, was tending the flocks with his brothers, the sons of Bilhah and the sons of Zilpah, his father's wives, and he brought their father a bad report about them.
3 Now Israel loved Joseph more than any of his other sons, because he had been born to him in his old age; and he made a richly ornamented [a] robe for him. 4 When his brothers saw that their father loved him more than any of them, they hated him and could not speak a kind word to him.
Many of you have heard the story of Joseph. The Bible gives account of many men and women of the Bible who had great endings and whose lives bore testimony to the remarkable good they did in serving the Lord Jesus. In fact, the eleventh chapter of Hebrews, often referred to as the "Hall of Faith" speaks about Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, the Israelites (and the great faith they demonstrated passing through the Red Sea), Rahab. All of these lived a life of faith that resulted in remarkable, uncommon service to the Lord Jesus - and there are many, many more that are worth mentioning. There are precious, precious few men and women of the Bible whose lives lack significant moral failure of one kind or another.
But one could read from Old Testament to New Testament, book to book, chapter to chapter and verse to verse and see precious few who lived a life as righteous and upstanding as Joseph. Sinless? Absolutely not. The Bible tells us that all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). Only one who walked the earth was without sin, and He is the one we place our trust in.
The story goes on. Because his brothers hated him so much, because Joseph loved the Lord and was interested in serving the Lord, they threw him into the bottom of a pit and then sold him into slavery for twenty shekels of silver. Surely they never could have imagined how things would evolve from there. There's a long journey that unfolds that results in Pharoh's recognition that Joseph is a special, special man: a prophet of God. Before you know it, Joseph is elevated to a lofty position in the Egyptian government and his brothers appear before him, hungry, penniless and at his mercy.
Joseph could have repaid them with the cruelty and brutality that they had so mercilessly inflicted upon him. And so many of us wouldn't have thought twice about doing that. What did Joseph say, though? "You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives." (Genesis 50:20) What remarkable wisdom, patience and forgiveness Joseph demonstrates to us all. God surely demonstrates through this picture that through it all, he was working all along - through their evil - to elevate Joseph to this lofty position to save the lives of many.
What can we learn from this? So much. We must learn to repay the evil that others do to us with patience and love. We must also remember with each moment that - according to Romans 8:28 - "we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose."
God is working for GOOD in ALL things if you love him. If you love him tonight, then you have been called according to his purpose. Pray and seek his will for your life. God bless you.
Sunday, September 26, 2010
A New Blogger
Well, I never imagined that I would be a blogger. But today, September 26th, I'll enter a first and give it a crack. Not exactly sure what my intentions are - but perhaps they include keeping loved ones and friends apprised of my comings and goings - but most certainly they include pointing anyone who reads these lines toward the one who has made such a difference in my life: Jesus Christ.
And I suppose the beginning of this blog is well timed, in that it marks the beginning of a new life in Heaven for my dear uncle Pastor Robert Lee Shotts, who reported for new duty this past Friday, September 24th. Following is his obituary:
Pastor Shotts (Uncle Bob) made an indelible impact on my life. While preaching on one occasion at Fremont Street Baptist Church (probably the last time he did), I recall his encouraging people that they could always, always look to God for help in times of temptation.
He quoted I Corinthians 10:13: "There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful; who will not suffer you to be tempted above that you are able, but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bare it."
He talked about the many things contained in just that one verse - about the fact that there's nothing new under the sun - that, at some point in the history of mankind, men and women have experienced the very same thing you have (and experienced victory with God's help!). In fact, even Jesus himself experienced temptation and looked to God for help and did not yield to Satan's wooings.
He talked about the fact that God is faithful - always.
He talked about the fact that God knows your breaking point. He allows Satan (just as he did with Job) to shape you and and make you stronger and conform you to the image of his dear Son. But he never, ever allows Satan to put more on you than you can handle.
He talked about the fact that he also gives an escape route: every time. Look for it. God gives it.
Finally, at the end of the verse, it says "that ye MAY be able to bare it"... Implication: "MAY" be able to bare it. There is choice here. There is a matter of will. God will not force himself on you. You will choose his way or yours.
I don't know about you, but I have been in moments of temptation and seen God's hand at work where that route of escape was very clearly in front of me. Thankfully, there have been times when I took God's escape route. But regretably, there have been many that I didn't.
Well, that's it for my first blog post. I pray for you tonight that God might bless you and give you a good night's rest.
And I suppose the beginning of this blog is well timed, in that it marks the beginning of a new life in Heaven for my dear uncle Pastor Robert Lee Shotts, who reported for new duty this past Friday, September 24th. Following is his obituary:
Robert Lee Shotts
After a sixteen-year illness, Rev. Robert Lee Shotts went home to meet the Lord on Friday, September 24, 2010. He died at the Battle Creek Health System in Battle Creek, Michigan.
Born April 29, 1926, in Vina, Alabama, he was the son of Robert Paul Shotts and Lula Floy Thorn Shotts. At age 8, his family moved to Detroit, MI, to find work following the Great Depression.
On September 2, 1948, he was married to Dorothy Jane Pettit in Detroit, Michigan. Immediately following their marriage, they departed for Greenville, South Carolina, for him to attend Bob Jones University as a ministerial student. During his time as a student at BJU, he was called to serve his country in the Korean Conflict.
On September 13, 1950, Robert Lee was ordained to the ministry by Temple Baptist Church in Detroit, Michigan. During his life, he was the pastor of churches in Statesville, GA; Bedford, IN; Crawfordsville, IN; Goldsboro, NC; Monroe, NC; Battle Creek, MI; and Holland, MI. While living in Bedford, IN, he also taught high school at Williams High School; while living in Crawfordsville, IN, he taught at Linden High School.
He spent seventeen years in Crawfordsville Indiana as pastor of the Fremont Street Baptist Church. During this time, he started a Christian School as part of the church ministry. His entire life was spent serving others in need. The impact of his selfless life was felt by hundreds of people with whom he came in contact.
Robert Lee graduated from Detroit Cass Technical High School as an ROTC graduate. He served in the United States Navy and Reserves for twelve years, ending his Navy career as a Lieutenant. During his early years in the USN, he received a Bachelor or Naval Science degree from the University of Notre Dame. In addition, he held a Masters in Education from Indiana University in Bloomington, IN., and two theology degrees from Bob Jones University.
He is survived by his wife, Dorothy, of sixty-two years; six daughters: Judith Allen of Greenville, SC; Nita North and Lili Cheney, both of Dowling, MI; Robin Bishop and Misty Harley of Columbia, SC; Faith Shotts-Flikkema of Grand Rapids, MI; one son, Jonathan Shotts of Hastings, MI; and one sister, Judith Stewart, currently of Battle Creek, MI. He leaves 18 grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren as well as one daughter-in-law and five sons-in-law.
One daughter, Dr. Ouida Shotts of Concord, NC, predeceased him in February 1998; and one grandson, Peter Scott Shotts, predeceased him in 1987.
The funeral service for Pastor Shotts will be arranged by Deaton Funeral Home of Red Bay, Alabama, and will be held at the Shottsville Community Church, in Shottsville, Alabama, on Wednesday, September 29, 2006 at 2:00 pm. Burial in the adjacent Shottsville Cemetery will follow the service. The family can be contacted at P.O. Box 61, Dowling, MI 49050.
Pastor Shotts (Uncle Bob) made an indelible impact on my life. While preaching on one occasion at Fremont Street Baptist Church (probably the last time he did), I recall his encouraging people that they could always, always look to God for help in times of temptation.
He quoted I Corinthians 10:13: "There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful; who will not suffer you to be tempted above that you are able, but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bare it."
He talked about the many things contained in just that one verse - about the fact that there's nothing new under the sun - that, at some point in the history of mankind, men and women have experienced the very same thing you have (and experienced victory with God's help!). In fact, even Jesus himself experienced temptation and looked to God for help and did not yield to Satan's wooings.
He talked about the fact that God is faithful - always.
He talked about the fact that God knows your breaking point. He allows Satan (just as he did with Job) to shape you and and make you stronger and conform you to the image of his dear Son. But he never, ever allows Satan to put more on you than you can handle.
He talked about the fact that he also gives an escape route: every time. Look for it. God gives it.
Finally, at the end of the verse, it says "that ye MAY be able to bare it"... Implication: "MAY" be able to bare it. There is choice here. There is a matter of will. God will not force himself on you. You will choose his way or yours.
I don't know about you, but I have been in moments of temptation and seen God's hand at work where that route of escape was very clearly in front of me. Thankfully, there have been times when I took God's escape route. But regretably, there have been many that I didn't.
Well, that's it for my first blog post. I pray for you tonight that God might bless you and give you a good night's rest.
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