Comfort in Times of Trouble

August 3, 2014 Background Scripture: 2 Corinthians 1:3 – 11 Lesson Passage: 2 Corinthians 1:3 – 11 I don’t know any sane person who wants to suffer whether it is physical or emotional pain. In fact, many of the people I know will seek to get along with everybody in order to avoid confusion and disagreement. Most will quickly assert: I don’t like mess or confusion! The saying is true that “You don’t have to trouble trouble for trouble to trouble you.” This is all too familiar for Christians. When we are saved, we are recreated spiritually and are made enemies of the world. When we seek to walk or live as we once did, we become carnal Christians and weaken the witness of Christ which is in us. However, when we seek to walk as God has called us to walk, then we become enemies of the world. The evil forces of the world do not avoid Christians. We face constant attack when we dare to minister to the spiritual needs of others. Sometimes these attacks cause great pain and suffering. The Apostle Paul had much to say about suffering for the sake of Christ and his information was not based on hearsay but it was experiential. In one of Jesus’ most noted teachings, The Sermon on the Mount, he said “Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.” We mourn because we suffer pain whether it is emotional or physical. Knowing the promises of Jesus, we seek to be comforted in our times of trouble. In our lesson today, the Apostle Paul speaks of comfort as a progressive grace. Put another way, comfort is not given to anyone as a final resting place for it. No Christian will always be in a state of comfort in this world. We don’t receive comfort that we might always have it on tap to access at our convenience. But rather, comfort is given to us that it might be multiplied in the recipient and then passed on to others who are in need of comforting. Ultimately all comfort comes from the Holy Ghost who is our Comforter. The Holy Ghost often uses people in the process as agents of comfort. Those who receive comfort are then enlisted as agents of comfort by God. When Christians suffer for the cause of Christ, Jesus provides an abounding comfort to help us bear the tribulation. Sometimes affliction and comfort occur in the servants of God for the sake of consoling others who we minister to. When Paul and Timothy suffered in Asia to the point of death, then God’s deliverance of them strengthened their faith. They had no other options if they were to live except to depend totally upon the Lord to sustain them. Paul’s ministry work in Asia—especially in Ephesus—had placed the sentence of death upon him and the other followers of Christ who were there. The evil forces of this world seek to destroy or severely punish those who engage in the work of Jesus Christ. The work of Jesus Christ is in direct opposition to the world’s systems. The world responds by inflicting pain in an attempt to stop or discourage Christians. We are not always in comfort but we do always have the Comforter with us. We give thanks to God that Jesus promised that he would send the Comforter that He might abide with us forever. Therefore, having the witness in us, let us receive comfort in our time of need and in turn comfort others with the same comfort whereby we have been comforted of God. Robert C. Hudson July 28, 2014

Seek the Good of Others

July 27, 2014 Background Scripture: 1 Corinthians 14:13 – 26 Lesson Passage: 1 Corinthians 14:13 – 26 The Holy Ghost provides many gifts to the body of Christ by giving those gifts to the individual members of the body. This should be evident within local churches where born-again people have joined themselves together for the sake of the gospel. This “should be” evident within our local churches but it is not always so. Spiritual gifts are there to build up the body by building up the individual members. We are not forced to use these gifts but we feel the unction or movement of the Holy Ghost within us urging us to exercise those gifts when they are needed the most. It is unfortunate but we don’t always seek the Lord’s desire for us but instead we ask the Lord to fulfill what we desire of Him. When spiritual gifts are not used to build up the body, then the body suffers from that lack. The greatest gifts are those that benefit other people rather than the person who has the gift. When the individual members are exercising their gifts to benefit others and being benefitted by the free exercise of gifts by the other members, then the local church walks in obedience to God. It is a constant refrain within the New Testament writings that Christians should seek to help others. It is evident, because of these writings, that salvation does not take away our selfishness. We are encouraged to grow in grace by serving others. We have been given spiritual gifts to equip us for greater service than was previously possible. So where is the problem? Christians are consumed too often with self-serving activities. We sometimes employ the spiritual gifts we have received to benefit ourselves and minimize the use of those gifts we have that will build up others. It was because of a similar attitude within the church at Corinth that Paul addressed the issue of speaking in tongues during gatherings of the congregation. It seems obvious today that some of the Corinthians felt enthusiastic about having the gift of speaking in tongues and esteemed it above the other spiritual gifts. They were freely exercising the gift within the congregation while they met. The problem with this was threefold. First, in the absence of a person with the gift to interpret the tongues, the congregation could hear the speaker but not understand what was being said. The speaker might have felt good because of the presence of the gift within him but the congregation was not being helped by listening and not understanding. The second problem would occur if a stranger came in among them while members were speaking in tongues with no interpreter. The stranger would think that they were unlearned foreigners rather than purveyors of the gospel. The third problem appears to have been that those with the gift of speaking in tongues felt that they were superior because of it. Paul did not instruct the church to cease allowing the display of this gift but rather ensure that someone was present who could interpret the tongues that the congregation could benefit from the revelation knowledge being made available by the Spirit of God. If no interpreter was present, then Paul’s instruction was for the speaker to keep silent so that no confusion would result. Paul boasted about the gift of speaking in tongues because he had it himself. On the other hand, he encouraged them to seek to build up each other by exercising the gift of prophesy which needed no interpreter for the congregation to benefit. Robert C. Hudson July 5, 2014

Overcome Temptation

July 20, 2014 Background Scripture: 1 Corinthians 10:1 – 22 Lesson Passage: 1 Corinthians 10:6 – 22 As children of God, we are joined spiritually to others who have received immersion in the Spirit as we have. It is this joining within and by the Spirit that makes us one body in Christ. Our struggles of the mind and flesh are not removed after we are made alive spiritually. This struggle intensifies within us as a reminder that we belong to God and the world, of which our bodies are a part, is at war against God. We face many temptations on a daily basis. These temptations take place in our minds and in our bodies. The end of these temptations is to bring our minds and bodies into compliance with the world and against the will of God. The temptations come to us in the form of various thoughts and cravings of the mind and the flesh. As Christians, we are more aware of this struggle than ever before. Before we were saved, we obeyed our sinful cravings and thoughts without considering that they were against the will of God. We did what came naturally to us to do. Selfishness did not deter us or make us feel bad because of the corruption that was in us and we were not even aware of its existence. Salvation through Jesus Christ gave us spiritual minds and the struggle began. Through the word of God, we learn that the corruption in us is against God and godliness. When we attempt to overcome these ungodly desires by having a “made up” mind, we discover that we are too weak to consistently withstand them. Even though we are children of God and we have socially joined ourselves with other followers and worshipers of God, we still find that our struggles are personal and not corporate. The Apostle Paul used the early history of Israel after their deliverance from Egypt to teach the Christians at Corinth that their struggles were nothing new. But Paul also used Israel’s history to serve as a warning for the Corinthians to not ignore the struggle and succumb to it. To do so would not be pleasing to God. When individuals within Israel decided to walk in ways that were contrary to the will and purpose of God, God destroyed them in the wilderness rather than bring them into the land of promise. They were all given a spiritual union as followers of Moses. They shared in spiritual food and drink as one congregation. But when individuals in the group failed to yield to God’s way and chose to walk in opposition to it, God destroyed them and made an example out of them. Paul reminded the Corinthians that what Israel struggled with in their past is no different than what professed children of God struggle with on a daily basis throughout the ages. We have struggles that are not impacted or lessened by the passage of time. Our issues are human issues and these are not time-dependent. The good news is that God knows all about these age-old struggles. Further, God does not leave us to struggle hopelessly on our own to our own demise. When struggles come, God provides an escape route for His children to use to keep them from being overcome by the sin that lives in our bodies. The way we overcome temptation is by trusting God, looking for the way of escape He always provides, and then following God’s plan for us. We need help to overcome temptation and God provides the help we need. Robert C. Hudson July 7, 2014

Exercise Freedom with Caution

July 13, 2014 Background Scripture: 1 Corinthians 8, 9 Lesson Passage: 1 Corinthians 8 WARNING: Your Behavior might affect the Spiritual Health of Others (Many sinners continue to suffer as a result of second-hand sin!) Christians are free from the world and the laws of mankind as long as we live as Christians. We are free also from the Law of Moses which condemns to death anyone who attempts to be made right with God (justified) by living according to the letter of its precepts. This condemnation occurs because of sin in our members. Life in Jesus Christ brings this glorious freedom to all who trust in Jesus for salvation. However, the word of God admonishes us to be careful how we live out this liberty because of the damaging effects it can have on others who are spiritually immature in Christ or non-Christians. We must be careful that our freedom doesn’t become a stumbling block for others who are not strong in the faith. Paul gives two examples of this to the church at Corinth. The first example concerns the consumption of food that has been ceremonially offered to idol gods. Mature Christians understand that idols are nothing but the product of man’s imagination and therefore they have no power. Idols are manmade, manipulated by man, and they have no power within them even to exist. Food that is supposedly offered as a sacrifice to idols is not transformed into anything. It is still food that is good for consumption. However, for those who are weak in the faith, eating this food joins them ceremonially with the idol god and their minds are corrupted as a result of it. They are not free to worship God because they believe that they are in fellowship with some idol. Because of their spiritual immaturity, they are religiously confused because they believe that the religion of the idol is something valid. If they act against what they believe, it will become sin to them. Paul’s other example concerns the right of spiritual leaders to be compensated for their work. Paul uses examples of military personnel, farmers and shepherds to defend his argument. All of these laborers avail themselves of the fruit and benefits of their labor. Paul argues that religious leaders have a right to partake of the fruit of their labor that is bestowed on others for the sake of Christ. Then Paul takes a different course altogether. Paul acknowledged that he willingly gave up his rights or freedom for the sake of others. Since others who were weak could be mentally damaged by consuming the food, Paul gave up the privilege of eating it so that others would not be led astray by his actions. Likewise, he refused the material support of the churches in his circuit so that no one could hold him accountable or indebted to them other than as a minister sent to them by Jesus Christ. Paul summarized his decision by stating that he kept himself available to gain more of them for Christ. He did not overstate the Law for Gentiles who did not embrace the Law and yet he did not deny or disrespect the Law in the presence of Jews who were strict adherents of it. Paul thoroughly recognized the great freedom he had in Christ yet he restrained himself for the sake of furthering the gospel’s impact in the world. Yes, Christians have liberty but let us not use our freedom in Christ in a way that can hurt others. Robert C. Hudson July 5, 2014