Impartial Love

November 29, 2020 Background Scripture: James 2 Lesson Passage: James 2:1 – 13 I am guilty of calling people out for being religious but not exhibiting any signs of Christianity. James, on the other hand, called people out for being Christians but exhibiting no signs of being religious. Admittedly, it is much easier to identify and prove James’ point. Religion is the outward actions of the person. Oftentimes, there is no mistaking the actions one observes of someone. I believe the Apostle James and I both desire Christian character in ourselves and others. Likewise, we both desire actions that are commensurate with the person’s profession of faith. Perfection is not assumed in either case for that is beyond the human capacity. It is enough for a person to move in the direction of perfection while knowing it is not attainable in this life. How we express benevolent love to others should be without favoritism, or partiality. In the political environment in which we live, being impartial is a tall order for many. We have grown up with heroes, heroines, and charismatic leaders we wish to emulate and follow; some we even attempt to emulate. A problem can arise in how we relate to people we see in one of these categories. Will we show them preferential treatment as opposed to those we don’t see this way? Sadly, we probably will. This is where James sounded the alarm. James declared that that type of behavior does not go well with being a Christian. To show preferential treatment is an indication of evil thoughts and judgment between one person and the other. James pointed out the hypocrisy in looking down at the poor and looking up at the rich. God has made choice of the poor to be heirs of the kingdom. With that being the case, how dare we look down on the heirs of God’s kingdom as being unworthy of our respect. On the other hand, it is the rich in this world—who we tend to respect and even want to emulate—who often abuse people and take advantage of them. We are not ignorant of this; we observe it, or hear about it, on a regular basis. Yet, we continue to extend preferential treatment towards the rich over and above that extended to the poor. So, what causes a person to show partiality based on a person’s financial status in life or worldly position? It could be because we seek to establish our values based on external quantities rather than internal qualities. When we are externally focused, we look for standards we can use as a gauge. When a Christian is internally focused, the Spirit of Christ in us is the standard. That makes it easier to respond to others by simply asking (pardon the cliché): What would Jesus do? If we rely on the examples Jesus demonstrated in his earthly ministry, we will always show impartial love. Jesus dined and fellowshipped with the elite of his society as well as with the rejects of his society. Ironically, the elite were often critical of Jesus for receiving and eating with sinners and tax collectors. Jesus handled their criticism well: The well don’t need a doctor, but the sick do. Likewise, when Jesus was with the elite, he did not hesitate to reprimand them for their acts of favoritism and hypocrisy. He criticized their clamoring for position among themselves. He even criticized them for the partiality they showed based on who they would invite to their banquets. Jesus is our example and he demonstrated how we can show impartial love. Robert C. Hudson

Responsive Love

November 22, 2020 Background Scripture: Acts 4:32 – 5:11 Lesson Passage: Acts 4:32 – 37; 5:1 – 11 The first congregation of Christians believed that Jesus was coming back for the church in their lifetime. As a result of their belief, they made many decisions that had very bad long-term consequences. However, the short-term results were welcomed and created a special closeness within the group. Our lesson text presents one of those decisions. The believers who owned houses and land sold them and brought the money to the Apostles to be used for the welfare of the congregation. If you don’t expect to be in the world much longer, houses and land are unimportant to you. For the impoverished Christian in that congregation, having all their needs met without having to beg for the necessities of life was a godsend. Surely this must have felt like unconditional love to the recipients and the answer to the question “What would Jesus do?” to the benefactors. Some Christians were in need and Christians with assets were responding to those needs by divesting themselves of the assets and turning the proceeds over to the leaders of the congregation. It should be noted that because Jesus did not return in their lifetime, this led to the entire Jerusalem congregation becoming impoverished and dependent on other congregations for benevolence. Today, we understand it is not a good idea to get rid of one’s means of economic support and depend on a religious body for daily necessities. Those persons who do this today are called cults. There is a middle ground here that should not be overlooked. Christians can still support the local church financially without bringing poverty upon themselves. With the proper priorities, the local church can assist the poor among them with the donations received from its membership. Local churches are rarely able to sustain a standard of living for its members, but it can provide enough food to prevent starvation, and provide periodic support to help defray the costs of utilities—or housing. In short, the local church can still exhibit responsive love to those in need. Again, we are talking about a benevolent love, motivated by the need of another, that the benefactor delights in meeting. The tithe system, that was part of the Levitical law God gave Moses, is still a financially powerful method that the congregation can use to assist the most needed among them. Congregations today have many different modes of operating from a financial perspective. Some believe in having millions of dollars in the bank and not responding to individual needs among them or in the surrounding community. Others manage to spend everything on frivolous matters and can never respond to a person who comes in need because the church’s storehouse is always empty. Responsive love requires a local church to look at how it prioritizes finance so that it can be responsive to assisting those in need. The geography of the Holy Land provides a physical representation of the proper balance. The Dead Sea is fed by the Jordan River, but it only receives and is therefore dead. It cannot sustain life. The Jordan River runs by continuously receiving and passing along everything it gets. It has limited opportunity to be of extensive commercial use. The Sea of Galilee is fed by tributaries and then it feeds the Jordan River. As a result of receiving from many, maintaining a reservoir, and feeding others, the Sea of Galilee has sustained life in and around it for thousands of years and continues to do so today. The reservoir, the sea itself, is of great commercial value. If the Sea of Galilee were a person, it would be a perfect model of responsive love. Robert C. Hudson November 2, 2020

Confident Love

November 15, 2020 Background Scripture: 1 John 3:11 – 24; 2 John 4:4 – 11; 3 John 5 – 8 Lesson Passage: 1 John 3:11 – 24 I don’t always “feel” saved. I don’t always feel confident in my ability to live as a Christian. That is a very difficult place to be emotionally and mentally. Emotionally it is difficult because Christians want to feel the assurance of salvation. Assurance is the sense of well-being that comes with knowing that you have been saved and that Christ is keeping you. Anyone who looks at salvation as being “fire insurance” to keep them from the flames of hell is missing out on the true blessing of being saved in a world that is suffering from moral bankruptcy. The blessed assurance that only comes from God is far beyond that. So, what do I do when I have those moments where I don’t always “feel” saved? I thank God for the letters He inspired and instructed John to write to the church. John tackles the challenge of a Christian being confident in their salvation. He offers concrete reminders that help us get back on track with our emotional state. John wrote, “We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love the brethren.” That’s where my confidence kicks in. I am reminded that I did not always feel the way I do about Christians. As an unsaved person, I was more critical and condemning of Christians for their shortcomings and slip-ups than I was understanding and supportive of their sincere efforts to get it right. As a Christian, I am all too familiar with the struggle. We have been regenerated on the inside, but we still live in these earthen vessels that are marred by sin. This does not cause a onetime fight or an every now and then struggle. The struggle between the Spirit of God in us and our flesh is a daily fight. Paul was resigned to the fact that he had to die daily to sin. It is the moral and ethical struggle that can cause fluctuations in our feelings. Admittedly, some worldly fights seem easier to wage in the flesh than in the spirit. Those are the times when some Christians think they can “lay down their religion” and deal with the situation at hand in a very comfortable way. However, it never works that way. Any attempt to resolve worldly matters in a worldly way will lead to the Christian being heavily convicted later for the failure to depend on God and His way. It seems at times that Christians suffer in silence waiting to be avenged by God—sadly, we sometimes hope for vengeance more than for God to save the unsaved or convict the saved. Again, this is where John helps us. We must look at all people as being created in the image and likeness of God. As Christians, we get off track; we should accept that other Christians do as well. The same God sustaining us is also sustaining them. We were not born saved. We had to accept Jesus as our personal Savior to be regenerated. God will do the same for others who turn to Him. This should be our prayer rather than a worldly reaction to being wronged. If we can allow ourselves to look at others as God looks at mankind, we will be motivated to meet whatever need we know they have. That’s agape, or benevolent love. God is motivated to meet my needs and He is delighted to do it as I submit to Him and seek Him. As I am motivated to meet the needs of others and delight in the times when I can, or call upon God to do it, then I express a similar love as I have received of God. That is a confident love. Because "He who does not love his brother abides in death.” Then I recall who I am in Christ. The assurance of salvation is a byproduct of a Christian walking in love. It is not spiritual arrogance. It is confident love. Robert C. Hudson October 31, 2020

Abiding Love

November 8, 2020 Background Scripture: John 15:4 – 17 Lesson Passage: John 15:4 – 17 Abiding love, simply put, is a benevolent love that remains or perseveres—no matter what happens. On the night before his crucifixion, Jesus encouraged his disciples to remain connected to him and to persevere in the coming years. Jesus was about to leave the world, and they would no longer have his physical presence with them. Jesus knew that their ability to overcome what they would be confronted with was dependent on their willingness to stay connected with him. He would give them the instructions and the strength to persevere, but they had to willingly submit to his lordship. This would allow them to be spiritually fruitful. Likewise, a Christian today can be spiritually fruitful by allowing Jesus to guide and direct them through his word. The only way to be spiritually fruitful is to allow Jesus to lead. No fruit means nothing spiritual can be accomplished without Jesus. Jesus used the analogy of the grapevine to help his disciples understand what he was teaching them. Jesus is the vine and believers in Jesus are branches on the vine. All grapes grow on the branches—none grow on the vine. Everything needed for grapes to grow and mature comes through the branch, but it must come from the vine! Branches can only provide what they receive from the vine. If a branch becomes disconnected from the vine, it cannot stay alive or produce any fruit. Jesus also enlighten them by telling them that bearing fruit glorifies God. God is not glorified by lip-service or empty rhetoric. Souls being saved and Christians coming to spiritual maturity glorify God through Jesus. Jesus’ entire ministry unfolded because he was connected to the Father. Jesus submitted himself to the Father and depended on Him for everything. Jesus’ ministry was spiritually fruitful, and God was glorified in him and well-pleased. Therefore, Jesus’ life glorified the Father. Because of his fruitful ministry, God gave Jesus everything he needed to be fruitful. Today, Jesus continues to glorify the Father through his followers that are connected to him. Jesus extends the same to his followers that God gave him. If you are fruitful, you can ask for and receive everything you need to be more fruitful. God did not deny Jesus anything he requested that would allow him to continue to bear fruit to God’s glory. Jesus always abided in the love of the Father. Jesus makes the same request of his followers. Christians should abide in Jesus’ love. Abiding in Jesus’ love means to listen to and follow his instructions. This is how Jesus was able to abide in the Father’s love. Jesus’ principal instruction/command is for his followers to love each other as Jesus had loved them. Jesus’ love is demonstrated in Calvary—no greater love has anyone than to lay down his life for another. Jesus died physically as a sacrificial offering for the sins of his followers. Jesus asks his followers to love each other as he loves us. This is not asking that we physically die for each other, but rather that we die spiritually to the world so we can better serve each other. The world will perceive a distinguishing sign, or mark, that will readily identify Christians. That mark will not be in the jewelry we put on or the clothes we wear. A Christian’s speech will not be enough to identify them. Our love for each other is the only sign the world will have to identify us. And it must be an abiding love. Robert C. Hudson October 26, 2020