ABRAHAM THE PATRIARCH - PART II

After 10 years of God's promise to Abram about a son, Sarai's desperation reached a peak.  She offered her Egyptian maid Hagar to Abram hoping that she would bear him a child in her place.  This was a common practice in those days.  It is found in the Sumerian law code from around 1800 B.C. and an Old Assyrian Marriage contract from around the same time.  According to their customs, the child born this way would belong to Abram and Sarai and not the servant.  Hagar became pregnant. She began to look with contempt, Genesis 16:4.   It was then that Abram gave Sarai permission to do with Hagar as she wished, "But Abram said to Sarai, behold, your maid is in your power; do to her what is good in your sight.  So Sarai treated her harshly, and she fled from her presence."  Genesis 16:6.  Sarai dealt harshly with Hagar, and she fled from her.  An angel of the LORD appeared to Hagar as she was resting beside a spring in the desert.  Did you know this is the first appearance of an angel in Scripture?  Here, we see a loving God who cares for the weak and helpless.  The angel told Hagar to return to Sarai and SUBMIT to her, but at the same time comforted her with the promise that she would bear a son named Ishmael and his descendants would be too numerous to count.  Hagar gave birth to Abram's first son.  His name was Ishmael, chosen by the Lord, meaning "God hears."  Abram was  86 years old when he was born.

Thirteen years passed and Sarai was still childless.   Abram was 99 yrs. old when an angel of the LORD appeared to him a sixth time.  He commanded Abram to "walk before me and be blameless"  Genesis 17:1 and reaffirmed his covenant with Abram.  He also changes Abram's name to Abraham, which means "father of a multitude of nations."  Sarai's name was changed to Sarah, meaning "princess".  She also received God's blessing.  As a sign of the covenant God commanded Abraham and all the males of his household to be circumcised. Abraham as always obeyed God.  And from that time forward Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac and all Jewish males bore the mark of "circumcision."

In a seventh encounter with God, Abraham and Sarah were visited by three men, Genesis 18. These men were angels who told Abraham that Sarah would have a child.  When Sarah heard this, she laughed, perhaps in both joy and disbelief.  Abraham was 100 years old when Sarah had a son whom they named Isaac, meaning "laughter." Genesis 21:1-7.

Ishmael was 13 years old when Sarah bore Isaac, the true son of God's promise. Although Sarah had born a son to Abraham, he always retained a special place for his first born son, Ishmael. Here jealousy begins to resurface.  Sarah demanded that Abraham send Hagar away so that Ishmael could never share Isaac's inheritance.  Although, Abraham was upset, since he cared for his son Ishmael, God promised that He would take care of Ishmael.  So, he sent both Hagar and Ishmael away with a small supply of food.  When the food supply ran out, Hagar laid Ishmael beside a bush to die. Ishmael cried out, and God heard his cry.  An angel of the LORD spoke words of comfort to Hagar, repeating the promise that a great nation would rise from Ishmael.  What an amazing God we have! God cared for Hagar and Ishmael.  Ishmael grew into manhood becoming an expert archer .

What an awesome God we have!  God's ability to fulfill His promise to Abraham is a great testimony of His power over human life.  He proved that He can do the impossible.

Luci

ABRAHAM THE PATRIARCH - PART I

The following is a summary of what my children and I learned on Ancient History about Abraham:

Abraham's father Terah was from the line of Noah's son Shem.  The name "Terah" was associated with the moon, "yareah" and thus the moon god.  Terah did not have any children until he was 70 years old.  He had 3 sons,  Abram, Nahor and Haran.  Terah's son Haran died early leaving behind his own son, Lot, who was Abram's cousin.  Sarai was the daughter of one of Terah's many wives.  Abram later married Sarai who was his half-sister.  Intermarriage between family members was very common in those days.  Extended families were closer-knit than they are today; husbands often had many wives which meant that half-brothers and half-sisters often grew together;  language barrier was common with people outside the family group.  There were cultural and religious differences outside the circle of family members.  Abram's father, Terah was an idol worshiper and an idol merchant.  We read of this in Joshua 24:2, "And Joshua said to all the people, thus says the LORD , the God of Israel, from ancient times your fathers lived beyond the River, namely, Terah, the father of Abraham and the father of Nahor, and they served other gods."  Abram did not learn about the One True God from his father.  The Sumerian of Ur believed that their purpose on earth was to serve their gods.  They considered their kings to be gods. They made human sacrifices when a king died.  This was their final worship service to their god-king.  This system made the death of a king a terribly sad occasion.

Abram received a call from God about leaving his hometown Ur and set out to Haran, "Now the LORD said to Abram,  go forth from your country, and from your relatives and from your father's house, to the land which I will show you; and I will make you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great; and so shall you be a blessing; and and I will bless those who bless you and the one who curses you I will curse.  And in you ALL the families of the earth shall be blessed."  Genesis 12:1-4; Acts 7:2-4.  It must have been difficult for Abram to leave behind everything that he owned and knew to build a new home in an unknown and unsettled country.  When God called Abram to leave his country, his people and his father, He didn't tell Abram where he was going.  The following are 7 elements of God's call to Abram:

1.  "I will make you into a great nation."  From Abram's seed would come a great nation.
2.  "and I will bless you."  Abram was going to enjoy material prosperity.
3.  "I will make your name great."  Abraham's name would be renowned beyond his lifetime.
4.  "and you will be a blessing."  God was going to bless Abraham and his seed.
5.  "I will bless those who bless you."  God was going to bless those who blessed Abraham and his seed.
6.  "and whoever curses you I will curse."  God was going to punish those who cursed Abraham and his seed.
7.  "and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you."  It was through Abraham's seed that God was going to provide a future blessing to all, the Messiah.

Abram's amazing faith is a great example to us.  He obeyed God by taking his family and his brother's son Lot and set off to an unknown land.  It was at Shechem that God suddenly appeared to him promising him all of the land around him.  There he built an altar for the Lord as worship.  It took a lot of faith for Abram to do what God told him to do.  He did so believing God's promises, "Then he believed in the LORD, and He reckoned it to him as righteousness." Genesis 15:6; Hebrews 11:8-12.


Luci

COURAGEOUS VOYAGE: DYING TO SELF

"Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go."

Joshua 1:9

God commands and expects us to be strong and courageous.  We have no other option because it is a command!  There is no room for cowardice.   The apostle Paul prayed for courage that he might preach the Word of God with all boldness and so must be.  Nevertheless, courage is something that we must have as we walk the path of righteousness with God's help. 

Courage doesn't necessarily involve fighting a battle, climbing the highest mountain peak, or defying the strongest storm.  Courage is the way we walk the path God wants us to walk without straying.

Jesus is our perfect example of walking the path of courage, the path of righteousness.  He modeled it.  He walked the path opposed to the culture of that time when He healed the cast-offs of society.  He touched the lepers, Matthew 8:1-4.  He exposed the Pharisees' adultery, hypocrisy, and neglect of justice, mercy, and faithfulness.  He cried out against their habit of lying and retaliation against their neighbors.  He said,

 "For I say to you, that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you shall not enter the kingdom of heaven"  (Matthew 5:20).  

Jesus spoke against their greed for earthly treasures.  This must have taken a lot of courage!  He told them that what they valued was of no value at all.

"Blessed are you when men hate you, and ostracize you, and cast insults at you, and spurn your name as evil, for the sake of the Son of Man.  Be glad in that day, and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven... "  (Luke 6:22-23). 

• Jesus is our best example of dying to self.  

It takes a great deal of courage to die to self every day.  There was no selfishness in Jesus. Otherwise, we wouldn't have a Savior.  Jesus simply lived a life of sacrifice, dying to Himself for us.   He died to what might have been His own ambitions and earthly desires.  Although He was God and was richer than any of us, He did not use that for His own benefit.  Let us never forget that our Lord Jesus became poor for us! 

"Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men"  (Phil. 2:5-7).   

"For you know the Grace of poverty our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich"  (II Cor. 8:9). 

Jesus always cared for the wellbeing of His flock.  He lived for everyone else but Himself.  He died to Himself! It must have taken lots of courage to die a cruel death on a cross and not run away.  

"And He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed"  (I Peter 2:24).

"Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires" (Gal. 5:24).  

Our selfishness must be crucified with Him when we are baptized into His death.  Let us take a moment and meditate on this.  Through Jesus' blood, we crucify all our selfish desires, ambitions, lusts, greed, and all those things that make us stumble.  Yet, we seem to keep living for self!  This, of course, does not produce in us the good fruit of peace, but rather strife and hypocrisy. 

"For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder and every evil thing.  But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy"  (James 3:16-17).

• Dying to ourselves demands a lot of courage:  

When we die to ourselves, we bear pure, sincere, and merciful fruits.  Life-giving fruits! My question is, how can we live only to ourselves pleasing the desires of our flesh, knowing that this produces only strife and hypocrisy? How much better it is to live for God and the ambitions He has set for us, which reap a bountiful harvest of peace!  The choice is ours.

Lest we forget, Jesus has already walked the path of courage, the path of righteousness for us when He died that cruel death on the cross.  Through His death, we have peace and life-giving things, rather than strife, hypocrisy, and evil things.  Remember that we must live in that same courage and sacrifice all the days of our lives.  Let us not take for granted Jesus' shed blood that we may live in the fullness of life every day!  

"Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains by itself alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit"  (John 12:24). 

"I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me, and delivered Himself up for me"  (Gal. 2:20).

Therefore, let us arm ourselves with the mind and purpose of Christ to bear abundant fruit to His glory as we walk His path of courage and righteousness.

"Since therefore Christ suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves with the same way of thinking, for whoever has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, 2 so as to live for the rest of the time in the flesh no longer for human passions but for the will of God. 3 For the time that is past suffices for doing what the Gentiles want to do, living in sensuality, passions, drunkenness, orgies, drinking parties, and lawless idolatry. 4 With respect to this they are surprised when you do not join them in the same flood of debauchery, and they malign you; 5 but they will give account to him who is ready to judge the living and the dead. 6 For this is why the gospel was preached even to those who are dead, that though judged in the flesh the way people are, they might live in the spirit the way God does."  (I Peter 4:1-6)

To show His love, our Lord Jesus was crucified and died for me. To show my love and gratitude for Him, I must die to self, be crucified with Him, and live for Him daily.

May our Lord give us the courage to die to ourselves so that we may live a rich and abundant life to His glory. 

The following poem expresses the courageous voyage of dying to self, being crucified with Christ in our daily walk.

"Crucified With Christ"

As I look back
On what I thought was living
I'm amazed at the price
I choose to pay
And to think I ignored
What really mattered
'Cause I thought the sacrifice
Would be too great.

But when I finally reached
The point of giving in
I found the cross
Was calling even then
And even though
It took dying to survive
I've never felt so much alive.

For I am crucified with Christ
And yet I live
Not I but Christ
That lives within me
His Cross will never ask for more
Than I can give
For it's not my strength but His
There's no greater sacrifice
For I am crucified with Christ
And yet I live.

As I hear the Savior
Call for daily dying
I will bow beneath The weight of Calvary
Let my hands surrender
To His piercing purpose
That holds me to the cross
Yet sets me free.

I will glory in
The power of the cross
The things I thought were gain
I count as loss
And with His suffering
I identify
And by His resurrection power
I am alive.

And I will offer all I have
So that His cross is not in vain
For I found to live is Christ
And to die is truly gain.

For I am crucified with Christ
And yet I live
Not I but Christ
That lives within me
His Cross will never ask for more
Than I can give
For it's not my strength but His
There's no greater sacrifice
For I am crucified with Christ
And yet I live.

Luci

IN EVERYTHING GIVE THANKS

"In everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."  

I Thessalonians 5:18

Thanksgiving can be careless or a deeply rewarding event. It all depends on what we make of it. Tables across the country will be set for the celebration of Thanksgiving.  Words and prayers of thanksgiving will be offered.  We are grateful for our abundant food, good health, our homes and our children.  It is so easy to give thanks when life is smooth, and everything is going our way.  In fact, in such times we find it easy to thank God for all He has done for us.

We, His children, have an abundance of blessings bestowed on us for which we must be thankful. Consider some of the many blessings:

• Family.
• Good health.
• The freedom to worship God.
• The Gospel of Christ.
• Our redemption.
• The hope of eternal life.
• The freedom to home educate our children.
• Air to breathe.
• Water to drink.
• Food to eat.
• The everlasting Word of God.
• And most of all our Lord and Savior:
• Who redeemed us.
• Who cares for us.
• Who sympathizes with our weaknesses.
• And who has sworn never to forsake us.  

If you have any of these many blessings, then you are more than rich.

“The blessing of Jehovah, it maketh rich; And he addeth no sorrow therewith.”  
Proverbs 10:22.

We must also be thankful for His Son, who gives us victory.

“Who can separate us from the love of Christ?  Can affliction or anguish or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? … No, in all these things we are more than victorious through Him who loved us.  ”Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or anguish, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?  Even as it is written, for thy sake we are killed all the day long; we were accounted as sheep for the slaughter.  Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.”  
Romans 8:35-37

Being grateful is the key to spiritual victory.  Joy is the result of a grateful heart. A thankful heart is the product of a person who chooses always to give thanks no matter what the circumstances.  It is the person who never compares himself to other people but always to Christ.  It is the heart that realizes he is rich beyond measure because he is a child of God and that in Him he finds His portion. It is the heart that is always looking for reasons to be content and give thanks.

Therefore, we must learn to appreciate and be thankful for God's loving kindness.  Notice what David once said:

"Blessed be the Lord, For He has made marvelous His loving kindness to me in a besieged city."  Psalm 31:21

There is nothing more critical than finding oneself in a besieged city.  It is as bad as one's circumstances can get.  Yet David acknowledges God's loving kindness toward him.  God heard his crying prayer for deliverance.  He made David aware of His love and kindness for him.

• Are we aware or do we acknowledge God's loving kindness toward us?  
• Can we fathom the depth of His love for us?  
• Have we forgotten Romans 8:38-39?  

"For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

Sadly, many become anxious when things are tough, and life is difficult.  They lose heart and become discouraged.  In those dark moments, they find it hard to understand the purpose of our trials. They become anxious about the unknown.  They are overwhelmed!  Despair is the opposite of true THANKSGIVING.  When our affections are on earthly things and not on God, we are in danger.  We tend to cling to our immediate circumstances rather than to God.  Only God can fill our hearts with His peace.   It makes us not only anxious but also insecure.

"Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice!  Let your forbearing spirit be known to all men.  The Lord is near."  Philippians 4:5-6

We must always remember that God is in control.  God is already in the future because He stands outside of time.  Let's never forget His beautiful and faithful promises we find in Matthew 6:28-34:  

"And why are you anxious....Do not be anxious then, saying, what shall we eat? or what shall we drink? or with what shall we clothe our selves?  For all these things the Gentiles eagerly seek; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added to you..."

Our God wants us to live in His peace.

"And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, shall guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."  Philippians 4:7.  

He doesn't want us to become weary and anxious.  He wants us to let go of the bondage of anxiety. It doesn't mean that we will escape feeling sorrow or stress, but we will find a satisfying deep calm in our hearts.   Such tranquility can only come from trusting God with all of our hearts.  We must always have the disposition to give thanks to God no matter what our circumstances are.  YES, we must have a heart of thanksgiving even in death, in life, in sickness, in health, in abundance and poverty.  This is what God wants and expects of us. He wants grateful hearts!

Let's consider what Paul tells us:  

"The things you have learned and received  and heard and seen in me, practice these things; and the God of peace shall be with you."  Philippians 4:9.  

Paul makes us aware that it takes practice to accomplish and achieve this peace.   We must dwell in His Truth and guard it in our hearts to have this peace.  A muscle is strengthened with a lot of exercise.  In the same way, our spiritual strength is developed by a lot of practice enabling us to defeat anxiety.  We cannot let Satan lie to our minds and emotions.  This surely will drive us crazy!  We can't afford to walk his pathway of lies and anxiety.   Anxiety is just that—a great, big lie.

"For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God, or give thanks; but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened."  Romans 1:21.

Let's remember that our God is not a God of chaos and anxiety.

"For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline."  2 Timothy 1:7.  

Anxiety is not of God but rather the work of Satan. He, Satan, uses this as a weapon against us; to distract us from the PEACE of God. The only way to defeat him is by dwelling in God's Truth, fixing our eyes on Him.  Dwelling in lies, trusting that we are in control and not God, is of Satan.  We must always know that God holds us in His hands; and that He is the author of time; that we are here temporarily; and that He has control over everything.  So, my question is, What is there to become anxious about?

What did Jesus do before He went to the cross?  Let's read I Corinthians 11:24.  

"And when He had given thanks, He broke it, and said, this is My body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of Me."  

It was just hours away from His painful death on the cross.  Jesus gave thanks!   We have so much to give thanks for:  not so much for material riches, but mainly for God's love for us in sending His only begotten Son to die for our sins so that through Him we could be redeemed and have access to eternal life.  Let's never take for granted God's immeasurable grace.   So, when you find yourself discouraged, remember always that we have all we need in Christ.  He is the fullness that fills all in all.  Why not take a moment to give thanks?

"Saying, Amen, blessings and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might, be to our God forever and ever, Amen."  Revelation 7:12.

May our Lord help us to give thanks always no matter what our circumstances are.  May we live in His peace trusting in Him with all of our hearts, minds, and souls.  May we keep calm and know that He cares for us.  May we never forget that He is near.  To Him be the glory.

Luci

BLAME YOURSELF !

There is a tremendous temptation on the part of both children and adults to shift blame. This can be damaging and overwhelming at times. This rotten behavior of shifting blame has been around since the beginning in the Garden of Eden.  Our first father, Adam, modeled this behavior. Of course, it is so much easier to focus on blaming others than to take full responsibility of our own personal actions. But, this blame shifting is only a sign of living an unrepented life, cowardice, fear, immaturity and why not a combination of all. We must learn to first see the beam in our own eye before focusing on our brother's mote, Matthew 7:1-6. This is vital to restore peace in our homes and the church. We must be willing to take responsibility for our own actions in order to live a life that pleases God and lead others to Him. The only way to victory! Consider the following poem.

Blame Yourself !

There’s a nasty green temptation that afflicts most everyone

To skirt responsibility when we’ve done something that’s wrong.

Instead of ‘fessing up like men to the blackness of our heart,

We focus on the other guy’s fault and emphasize his part.

Here’s a hardy, healthy maxim given long ago by Dad,

With a world of wealthy wisdom which will triumph over fad:

God has given you great mercy; You’ve been spared the very worst.

Be gen’rous to others — Blame yourself first!

The poor response by Adam on the day he broke God’s Law

Was to shift the blame to Eve using an argument of straw,

Thus establishing for Mankind this most unattractive flaw.

Learn from his mistake — Stop and blame yourself!

When you’re feeling kinda fickle ‘bout the pickle that you’re in,

Teary puddles you’re producing, as your noodle cooks the sin,

But complaining while explaining never leads to a win-win.

Take a breath, think again — And blame yourself!

When befuddled and besmirched, without a horse before the cart,

It’s ever so convenient to forget Your own wretched part,

And recount with gory details His worst mistakes from the start.

Bite your tongue, take the hit — Just blame yourself!

There’s a way to say “I’m sorry” that’s clearly not repentance,

Taking some responsibility to minimize your sentence,

While giving him the lion’s share with most self-righteous vengeance.

This is not true contrition — Blame yourself!

When you’re backed against the wall, because you’re in a rotten mess,

Next you feel the pressure mounting, and you’re needing to confess,

But by shifting blame to others, you won’t mitigate the stress,

De-escalate the crisis — Blame yourself!

There’s another type of shifting reminiscent of a snake.

It happens when you twist and turn the other’s words and then take

Advantage of their absence through your sad one-sided remake.

But that’ll really bite you — Just blame yourself!

If you break the Ninth Commandment, just to save your precious skin,

Using just a little half-truth, so it doesn’t seem like sin,

But a half truth is a whole lie, and another form of spin.

Better focus on your part — Blame yourself!

By sustaining all your blaming, as you prosecute and try,

Your convincing is evincing such a self-deceptive high,

Your evasion becomes persuasion: You believe your own lie!

But that doesn’t change the truth — Blame yourself!

If you blame others less, and blame yourself more,

It may rub against the grain, and feel an awful chore,

But by doing you’re subduing pride and opening a door!

For future hope and peace — So blame yourself!

A gentle word assuages wrath, and less fire kills the flame.

Speak to your brother privately, or he may put you to shame.

Don’t accuse him before others, lest your tempted to defame.

And while we’re on the subject — Blame yourself!

When life is looking mighty grave, and your heart hungers for health,

Take a queue from the Word, quickly take the Bible off the shelf.

Stop and ask the living God to help you learn to die to self.

Be a truly humble man and blame yourself!

Anonymous
Luci

COURAGE

It is to be able to face difficulties and dangers boldly, and to trust in God's strength in all the circumstances of life. We need this COURAGE the most when we are facing and fighting our spiritual battles and fighting for our FAITH, I Timothy 6:12.

If we don't fight against Satan boldly, we will surely fall into temptation and let him win. We must fight with COURAGE and God's help to win and come out victorious against our enemy. But, this can ONLY be accomplished IF we obey God's commandments and are willing to submit to HIS authority. What can Satan do if we resist him with the strength of our God? Let's have the COURAGE to do what is right and fight for the LORD ! The wicked flee when no man pursueth, but the RIGHTEOUS are bold as a lion Proverbs 28:1

CASTING INSULTS AT YOU !

Have you ever been accused, insulted, slandered, lied or hated for doing the right thing or taking a stand for the TRUTH? The Lord says rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great, Matthew 5:11-12. By doing this you are blessed! At that moment you may not feel all that blessed, but our Lord Jesus tells us that when we suffer for the sake of righteousness we should count it as an honor He is giving us, knowing that our reward in heaven is GREAT. Blessed are you when men cast insults at you, and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely, on account of Me. Rejoice, and be glad, for your reward in heaven is GREAT, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

When our Lord Jesus is the One that governs our hearts, we are always going to want to do His will and be concerned about pleasing Him instead of men. Our main goal as Christians must be that of being approved before Him instead of the approval of men. It is our God we must fear and not men! If God is for us, we must not be concerned about who is against us. He will fight beside us if we hold fast to His Truth. It doesn't matter what men think of us. It doesn't matter who is attacking us. Their insults and attacks will fall like broken arrows at our feet. I will fear no evil and what man can do to harm me for the cause of Christ and righteousness. And who is there to harm you if you prove zealous for what is good? But even if you shall suffer for the sake of RIGHTEOUSNESS, you are BLESSED. And do not fear their INTIMIDATION, and do not be TROUBLED. But sanctify Christ as Lord in you hearts, ALWAYS being ready to make a DEFFENSE to everyone who asks you to give an account for the HOPE that is in you, yet with GENTLENESS and REVERENCE. I Peter 3:13-15.

In giving a defense of our Hope and the Truth, we must always remember to respond in a Christ-like manner. But, if we respond in an ungodly way, this will not only bring confusion and provocation, but will bring reproach and dishonor to the name of our Lord Jesus. And keep a good conscience, so that in the thing in which you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame. For it is better.... that you suffer for doing what is right rather than for doing what is wrong. I Peter 3:16-17.

Let's always imitate the beauty of Christ, even when we are contending for the Truth. We can be very direct and reproof them severely that the may be sound in the FAITH (Titus 1:13), yet let's answer in a way that glorifies and gives reverence to our God. Don't return reviling for reviling, I Peter 3:8. Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven. Matthew 5:16. Let's fight for the Lord with zeal, but with self-control !

Luci