WORK OUT YOUR OWN SALVATION

I grew up thinking that these verses taught that we were to work for our salvation. I am sure that it was partly because of my ignorance, but in recent years I have learned differently. All we need to do is read Romans, chapter five, to learn that salvation or our justification is a gift; something that we do not earn, but rather accept. So what does our text in Philippians 2:12 mean when it says, “Work out your own salvation?” Historically, there were three ways that the Greek word that is translated as “work out” was used in the writings of the time.

• One was that when a mathematician was given a stiff math problem, he continued working until he had the right answer — he had worked it out.
• The second was when – e.g., a miner was mining for gold. After he had continued to work in the mine until all the gold was gone – he had worked it out.
• The third way that this word was used was when a farmer plowed his field, fertilized, planted the seed and cared for it until he harvested his crop –he had worked it out. In much the same way, it is true in our Christian life also.

The mathematician honed and educated his God-given intellectual abilities to be able to work out the math problem. The miner used his strength and talents to mine what God had provided. Although the farmer worked with the ground and the seed, yet it was God that made it grow.

In the same way, it is God working in and through us that enables us to obtain our salvation. This is made very clear in verse 13, where Paul said, “For it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.”

The Pharisees of old thought that the keeping of laws was the way to please God and earn salvation. That same “law keeping concept” was part of my upbringing. Thank God that I have learned something better. There is no amount of law keeping that can justify us with God. The Bible makes it very plain that salvation is a gift. Justification comes by grace through faith (Romans, chapters 4-6).Ephesians 2:8-9 sums up all three things that I have just mentioned when Paul said, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast” (NIV).

So to “work out” our salvation is simply to do all that we can to be the person that God wants us to be, and then leave our salvation to God’s grace and His working in and through us.

Just something to think about!

Harvey

“YOU ARE TWICE MINE”!

There is a story of a young man who lovingly built a little sailboat. Having finished it, he took it to a stream behind his house and put it in the water. The little boat sailed perfectly! But the wind blew hard and his boat was taken away and he could not find it. After he searched for a long time he sadly returned home.

One day he was walking downtown and saw his boat in a store window. Having found out from the store-owner how much the boat would cost he returned home and got all the money he had. After paying for the boat, he was walking home and said to his boat, “you are twice mine, I made you and I bought you”.

This beautiful little story teaches a very valuable lesson for us.

• Jesus Christ lovingly created or made us in the beginning (John 1:1-2).
• Then we sinned and separated ourselves from God. (Isaiah 59:1-2)
• However God loved us so much that He gave His only son, His greatest gift, and bought us back (John 3: 16).
• Jesus, on the other hand, gave His life freely in order to buy us back (John 10:1`5-18).

Just as the boy in our story loved his boat so much that he gave all the money he had in order to buy it back, Jesus and God loved us so much that they gave the most precious gift they had in order to buy us back. There is a song that explains just how much God loves us, called, “If that isn’t love”.

“He left the splendor of Heaven, knowing His destiny was the lonely hill of Golgotha, there to lay down His life for me! Even in death He remembered the thief hanging by His side; He spoke with love and compassion then He took him to paradise. If that isn’t love the ocean is dry, there’s no stars in the sky, and the sparrow can’t fly! If that isn’t love then Heaven’s a myth, there’s no feeling like this if that isn’t love.”

I have talked to people that did not think that God could or would love and save them. And I know Christians that are saved, but are not assured of their salvation. But knowing what God’s love has done for us through Christ, how can we doubt that God will save us eternally?

Just something to think about!

Harvey Schultz (hschultz2@yahoo.com)

THE COMFORT OF FEELING SAFE WITH A FRIEND!

There is a poem by Dinah Marie Mulock Craik that, although brief, has a great message. The poem says,

“Oh, the comfort-the inexpressible comfort of feeling safe with a person, having neither to weigh thoughts, nor measure words-but pouring them all right out-just as they are-chaff and grain together-certain that a faithful hand will take and sift them-keep what is worth keeping-and with the breath of kindness blow the rest away.”

There is no better feeling than having a friend that knows you, warts and all, and will still not condemn or embarrass you for your weaknesses. My wife, son and daughter are three such persons. They know me nearly as well as I know myself and yet I feel comfortably safe with them. In a similar way my heavenly father not only knows my every weakness, but he knows the thoughts and intents of my heart as well. Yet my father loves me as a son and forgives me despite my being unworthy of such treatment. I have just described a “true friend” and they are hard if not impossible at times to find.

 

Will Rogers made two statements that I truly love. One is “I have never met a man I didn’t like.” The other is, “A stranger is just a friend you haven’t met yet.” So many times we have this turned around. We distrust people we meet until they prove themselves worthy of our friendship. Please do not misunderstand a friend from a true friend. It has been said “If we have one or two true friends in a life time, we are blessed.” Some people never find a “true friend” in their lifetime and that is sad indeed.

Would it not be better to greet others with friendship until their character proves them unworthy of our friendship? But even if proven unworthy of our being their friend, we can and must always still be friendly. Folks do not have to be perfect for us to like them. If so some of us would never have a friend. David was a man that God loved and considered him as a friend, yet David made many mistakes. Abraham was a friend of God, yet he had weaknesses as well.

So since we are all human and thus imperfect, should we not treat each other with friendship and as the poem suggest, be that person that others can feel safe and comfortable being around knowing that we would not criticize or condemn them for weaknesses we all possess?

 

Just something to think about!

 

Harvey Schultz hschultz2@yahoo.com

THEY SMELL LIKE SHEEP!

While reading the book, They Smell Like Sheep, by Lynn Anderson, I started thinking about how the shepherds of the first century tended their sheep.

 They had to lead and care for the sheep every day, and on many occasions, even sleep and live with their sheep. Because of their living closely with the sheep they could not help but begin to smell like the sheep. When they had to pick foreign objects such as burrs out of their wool, care for any wounds or put salve on them to protect against flies or other bothersome insects, sheer them at certain times of the year, and even carry weak, sick, or infant sheep, they would of necessity begin to smell like them.

In John 10, Jesus describes himself as the “Good Shepherd”. At night the shepherd would lead the sheep to an enclosure that was built to keep the sheep safe at night and often the shepherd would sleep in the doorway and would literally become “the door of the sheep”. Because of the shepherd’s love, care and protection the sheep would feel safe and follow the shepherd anywhere. Each sheep would have a name and would feel uniquely close to his or her shepherd.

This gives me comfort knowing that as a spiritual sheep I have a loving, caring and protective Shepherd in our Lord. One who looks out for our good and one who smells like his sheep, that is he is not distant but is near to everyone of us. Just prior to Jesus’ ascension he promised in Matthew 28:20 “…I will be with you always, even to the end of the world”.

Just as the shepherds of the first century wanted the very best for their sheep, to provide and protect them from as many problems as possible, in the same way our “Good Shepherd” wants the very best for us. In fact in John 10:10 Jesus says, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”

Just something to think about!

Harvey Schultz hschultz2@yahoo.com

A NECESSARY TRANSFORMATION!

As the second of a two-part study of Romans 12: verse 2, today’s thoughts will be on the word “transformation”.

A larva or worm will attach itself to a weed or limb of a tree, then encase itself in a cocoon. Having accomplished this, it will lie dormant until spring at which time it will chew a small hole in the bottom of the cocoon and with much struggling, work its way out. Then it slowly moves its wings until they are completely formed and dry. The larva has been transformed from a worm — to a butterfly! 

This is the meaning of the Greek word that is translated “transformed”, that Paul uses to describe how the newly converted Christian is to change. It is opposite of being “conformed”, which was the topic of last week’s article. 

      

There is a story of a father whose son was terribly deformed and was stooped over and could not straighten up. When the father asked the son if there was anything he wanted, he ask for a statue of himself standing straight and tall in the back yard. To this the father agreed and soon the statue was erected as the young man requested. Each day for months and months the young man would approach the statue and stretch himself as much as he could to look like the statue. After a long time, one day he stretched himself to be as straight and tall as his statue. 

   

Unlike the larva that acts from natural instinct, we can make choices, or fail to make choices, that will affect either our being conformed or being transformed. But we can no more make ourselves new, perfect, forgiven, etc. than the larva can make itself a butterfly. It is only by our submission to God’s transforming power that we can be changed into the image of Christ.

      

Romans 8:29 tells us to become like Christ. If we set Christ up as our example to follow trying every day to become like the image or likeness of Christ and at the same time allowing God to work in us, then we like the young man in our story may someday look like the image we aspire to emulate. 

  

Once we actively make a conscience decision to serve Christ, we then are passively transformed by God working in and through us. God wants to and will transform or change each of us, but will not do so against our will. My encouragement to each of us is to make the decision that the spiritual and eternal things will be our goals in life!

   

Just something to think about! 

                

Harvey Schultz (hschultz2@yahoo.com)     

DO NOT BE CONFORMED TO THIS WORLD

This will be the first of a two-part article that is taken from Romans 12, verse 2 that reads in part:

“Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind…”

The two words that we will look at in these two articles are “conform” and “transform.”    

As a boy one of my jobs was to milk the family cow. This was not my first choice of things to do, but my choice was usually overruled. So I set off with warm water in a bucket to clean the milk source and to insure that we had clean milk. It normally was not a bad job unless the donor was reluctant to share her milk with my family, sometimes violently so. Our cow was of the opinion that the milk rightfully belonged to her and her baby calf, but I held the opposite view. After the struggle and the disagreement I usually walked away with at least some of the milk.     

Once the milk was ready and Mama prepared the churn, on many occasions I would get the nod to do the churning. It also was not my favorite thing to do, but it was better than dealing with a kicking, angry cow. After the butter came to the top, Mama would wash and prepare the Butter and press in into a mold, which would have the design of a flower or butterfly or something else pretty.     

Once the butter had hardened and Mama dumped it out, the butter had conformed to the image and the design of the Mold. This is how the word in our text is used.  We are not to allow ourselves to be conformed to the image of the world. We are to be different from the world.      In order for us to conform to the world, it happens both actively, (something that we do), and passively (something that is done to, through or for us).

    We actively conform when we make a conscious decision not to become a Christian or to live by the standards that we read about in the Bible. Having made that choice, we then conform passively by a negative influence from those who have made similar choices and Satan working in our lives.    

In part two of this article, we will see how we can avoid being conformed and how we can be transformed to the image and likeness of Christ.

Just something to think about!             

Harvey Schultz (hschultz2@yahoo.com)                  

WHAT WE HOPE TO ACCOMPLISH THROUGH THIS “BLOG.”

When my good friend, Shannon Spears, and I sat down and began plans to start a new blog together, I was apprehensive and felt like I was diving into deep water without knowing how to swim! I am very inexperienced and am a computer ignoramus; however he has another blog and is much more experienced, so I thought that with his assistance that I could at least hobble along while I learned enough to contribute to the cause!

After the new blog had been set up, we retired to our bedrooms to get some sleep. I woke up early and could not go back to sleep, thinking of all the things we could do, and how I could help. One of the things that I thought about doing was to write and introductory article to explain what we would like to accomplish and what we would like to offer to anyone who was brave enough to choose, or perhaps simply stumble on to our blog. So here is an attempt to explain what we would offer to those who read what we have written or at least posted on “SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT!”

When I started writing articles for the “Baytown Sun” almost three years ago, I had certain things that I wanted to accomplish and I made a commitment to write things that would encourage, uplift, build up and edify. I think I understand what the apostle Paul meant in First Corinthians chapter 14 when he over and over told them to edify and encourage each other, and then his conclusion in verse 26 was,” All of these things must be done for the strengthening of the church.” So we should never do, write or say anything that would in any way weaken or discourage anyone.

Another thing we would like to stress is that the eternal principles in the Bible that never change are more important than the rules and regulations that we try to bind on ourselves. Jesus made this very clear when He said in Matthew 23:23, “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cummin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former.” NIV

Of the many principles in the Bible, the principle of love is the greatest. Jesus in Matthew 22:34-40 and Matthew 7:12 and others make it plain that the law and the prophets are fulfilled by simply loving God and others. Yet another thing we would like to do is to challenge and encourage our thinking so that we can broaden our present horizons to consider new ideas and concepts. Our hope also is that as a result of the contents of our blog that some healing can occur in the rift of disagreement between sincere and honest folks that have come to different stages of faith and convictions as a result of their background and culture and the teaching they have received. While we should never change for the sake of change, however we should be open to change when change is needed.

We never want to write or post anything that is in anyway untactful or offensive. Since I have never had any experience with a blog, some understanding and patience will be necessary from the readers while I am learning. And as always I want to write things that will give us “something to think about!”

How to Prevent Arguments

When our first child (Paul) was a baby, my wife (Pat) and I argued a lot. One day I turned to Proverbs 15:1, where it says, “A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.” From the moment that I read that verse, our life changed. The principle that Solomon was teaching made a difference in the way that I treated my relationships with Pat and everyone else with whom I came in contact.

After reading that scripture, I went through Proverbs looking at the principle that I had discovered and realized that so much was said on how we can prevent arguments, but very little is said that actually tells us what to do once an argument is started, which we will cover in another article. Briefly I want to look at a few scriptures in Proverbs that deal with this subject.

We need to exercise self control in our anger. Proverbs 16:32, “Better a patient man than a warrior, a man who controls his temper than one who takes a city.”

Be a good listener before we speak. Proverbs 18:13, “He, who answers before listening—that is his folly and his shame.”

We can damage a relationship with an unguarded tongue that we may never recover. Proverbs 18:19, “An offended brother is more unyielding than a fortified city, and disputes are like the barred gates of a castle.”

Be slow to speak. Proverbs 21:23, “He who guards his mouth and his tongue keeps himself from calamity.”

Choose our friends wisely. Proverbs 22:24 “Do not make friends with a hot-tempered man; do not associate with one easily angered.”

Don’t over—stay our welcome. Good friends, or even a man and his wife, can see too much of each other. Proverbs 25:17, “Seldom set foot in your neighbor’s house—too much of you, and he will hate you.”

Just a few bits of wisdom from Proverbs to give us something to think about!

Harvey Schultz