June 24, 2001 |
Volume 11, Number 25
|
About sixty
years ago, some said I was small for my age. Others thought I was young for
my size. Maybe I was both. I remember seeing some pictures of Charles Atlas
on the back of some magazine that pictured him as a 98 pound weakling. After
he used the barbells, or whatever it was they were advertising, he had muscles
all over and was attracting all the girls on the beach. Probably this "before
and after" image has been used to sell cereal, shampoo, and a variety of
other things. It even impressed me so much that, although I could not afford
barbells, I did use an old buggy axle, and eventually reached the point where
I could chin myself with one arm.
So, when I
looked at men before and after Christ had touched them, I was impressed with
what Christ can do for a man. When I see Peter in Matthew 14:30, he had a great
fear of sinking. Jesus had said, "Come," and Peter started, "But
when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried,
saying `Save me, Lord'." Many times in home Bible studies, when I invite
a person to come to Christ, they reply, "I would like to be a Christian,
but I am not strong enough." That is sad, but true. We are all in danger
of sinking. The waves are really there, and the wind is really boisterous. And
we can not walk on water! Neither could Peter, and he knew it and was afraid
of sinking. But that sentence above is not complete. It should read, "Neither
could Peter by himself."
But the point is, when Christ finished with Peter many years later, he had been
delivered from the fear of sinking, and no doubt realized that he could do many
things with the help of Jesus, and in obedience to His commands, that he could
not do by himself.
Second, in
Matthew 16:21, we find "From that time began Jesus to show unto His disciples,
that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief
priests and scribes, and be killed, and the third day be raised up." When
Peter heard Him talk about suffering and dying, he began to rebuke Him, saying,
"Be it far from thee, Lord." He did not like the idea of pain and
suffering. Jesus taught, in effect, "If you can't stand the heat, get out
of the kitchen." He said it far better than that in verse 24, "If
any man would come after me, let him deny himself, and take up His cross, and
follow me." As important and painful as self-discipline is, this is not
what Jesus was here talking about. It was something even more radical and painful.
It was self denial. We still have trouble letting that sink in. Even our pronunciation
of the phrase contributes to it. We speak of self-denial instead of self denial.
So the fear of suffering was very real to Peter, but with the help of Jesus
he conquered it.
The third
fear from which Christ delivered him is suggested in the story found in Mark
14:66 where he denied Christ. We may call it the fear of sneering. When I served
in the Air Force in World War II, I was impressed with the fact that there were
some that had the bravery to face the shooting enemy, but not the bravery or
moral courage to face the sneering friends. There are boys and girls who have
lost their lives because they had a greater fear of a sneer than they had of
a speeding car, train or gun. Many have refused to obey the gospel because they
knew they would face the sneers of their friends. It is sad when the sneering
of friends is more real than the cheering of angels, but the basic cause of
that is a lack of faith.
But Peter
also overcame that. In Acts 2:4 we find the answer to how he did it as we read,
"And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit." Being filled with
the Spirit involves two things: 1. Being emptied of self and 2. Being possessed
owned or controlled by another whose power and ability is infinitely greater
than our own.
The reason
why being filled by the Spirit lessens the fear of the sneer (or any other damaging
fear) may be explained in this simple language: There is less of self to be
hurt or afraid. This is about what Paul meant when he said in Galatians 2:20,
"I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I that live, but
Christ liveth in me." Dead men do not hurt, either from sneers or jeers.
So here we
see a man who a few days before had such a fear of the sneer of a little servant
girl that he thought, "I cannot speak for my Lord," now having the
courage to stand up and say in Acts 4:20, "We cannot but speak." That
is, "We cannot keep from speaking." One of the reasons listed is "They
had been with Jesus" (Acts 2:13).
There are
many things Christ can do for a man, but in this lesson it is that he took one
who was afraid of sinking, suffering and sneering and gave him the courage to
stand, speak and live or die for the Lord. The key to doing that is be filled
with the Spirit (Ephesians 5:18). The way to do that is to know, obey and, as
the parallel passage says, "Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly"
(Colossians 3:16).
T. Pierce Brown
Baptism
Our hearts were made to rejoice at the response of Katie Sais, this past Wednesday evening. Katie came forward confessing Christ and asking to be immersed for the remission of sins.
May God grant this young sister the strength to endure and, that we all might be an encouragement to each other.
A draft copy of the new church directory is in the foyer.
Please check your information and initial if correct.
If you need to have your picture taken (or retaken) please see Ted after services.
For
Our Youth
Central Florida Bible Camp
July 22-28, 2001
Eustis, FL
352-357-6316
See Ted or Renee for more information.
Annual Bible Reading Program
This week’s Bible readings are:
Sunday, 24th: ... Mark 7:1-13, 2 Samuel 17, Daniel 11:2-20
Monday, 25th: ... Mark 7:14-37, 2 Samuel 18, Daniel 11:21-45
Tuesday, 26th: ... Mark 8:1-21, 2 Samuel 19, Daniel 12
Wednesday, 27th: ... Mark 8:22-9:1, 2 Samuel 20-21, Hosea 1:1-2:1
Thursday, 28th: ... Mark 9:2-50, 2 Samuel 22, Hosea 2:2-23
Friday, 29th: ... Mark 10:1-31, 2 Samuel 23, Hosea 3
Saturday, 30th: ... Mark 10:32-52, 2 Samuel 24, Hosea 4:1-10
He who forgives ends the quarrel.
African Proverb
Ghana
Campaign
July
2-28, 2001
The May-June newsletter which should be online later this week. To read the latest news, reports from Ghana and find out about the upcoming campaign ... go to www.ghanamissions.com
A Special Welcome to our Visitors
Please fill out a blue visitor card so that we might have a record of your visit. If needed, there is a nursery available at the rear of the auditorium. Bible classes for all ages are available Sundays at 10:00 am and Wednesdays at 6:30 PM. We hope that you will join us for these studies. Please come and worship with us again soon.
Clarence Riggenbach - Jane Bowman
Bill Sherman & Jeanne - Leslie Johnson
Viola Morinier - Virginia Law - Naomi Morton - Lurl Card
Mary Kaupilla
Wednesday Bible Classes:
Sunday’s Lessons:
"Sacred
Trusts" (Luke 16:10-11)
"Song Service"
(6 pm)
Announcements:
|
Wayne Vowell |
Sunday |
||
Ushers:
|
Walt Thompson |
Bible Study: |
10:00
am
|
|
Morning Services |
Worship: |
11:00
am
|
||
Bible
Reading: |
Kerry Keathley |
Evening Worship: |
6:00
pm
|
|
Songs: |
Larry Jenson |
Wednesday |
||
Sermon: |
Ted Wheeler |
Bible Study: |
6:30
pm
|
|
Closing
Prayer: |
Clarence Riggenbach |
|
||
Evening Services |
|
|||
Opening
Prayer: |
Wayne Vowell |
|||
Songs: |
Larry Jenson |
Our Record - Last Week |
||
Sermon: |
Song Service | |||
Closing
Prayer: |
Jim Dougan |
Attendance: |
63
|
|
Communion |
Contribution: |
$
1253.00
|
||
Delbert
Leavens
|
Weekly Budget: |
$
1500.00
|
||
Wayne
Vowell
|
Dick
Navarre
|
|||
Carl Rigney |
||||
Copyright
© 2001 Church of Christ of Venice. All Rights Reserved.
|