Jan 21, 2024 | GPS by Pastor Bob Spicer
SPIRITUAL LESSONS FROM COVID 19 (Part 4)
December 2022 GPS
In the September issue of GPS I began a series I called “Spiritual Lessons from Covid 19.” I am really getting tired of thinking and talking about Covid, so I have decided to change the title of this series to one that more accurately describes the purpose of the studies: “Biblical Lessons about How We Are to Treat One Another.” Since we celebrate Christmas in December, and since it is a joyful month in which we send greetings (Christmas cards) to one another and express our joy as we sing (carols) to one another, we will look at passages that call us to do those very things.
Three passages in the New Testament contain instructions from Paul about greeting one another: (Rom. 16:16; 1 Cor. 16:20; 2 Cor. 13:12). All three say exactly the same thing: “Greet one another with a holy kiss.” (2 Corinthians 13:12, ESV) One other verse is similar: “Greet one another with the kiss of love.” (1 Peter 5:14a, ESV) Regarding the act of a kiss, one New Testament scholar writes: “A kiss appears in the New Testament as a sign of respect and greeting (Luke 7:45), of love and reverence (Luke 7:38, 45), and of reconciliation and family fellowship (Luke 15:20). We find a parting kiss in Acts 20:37. But a “holy kiss” represents something more than a social custom. It is a sign of mutual fellowship among persons of mixed social background, nationality, race, and gender who are joined together as a new family in Christ. The holy kiss becomes a token of the joy, love, reconciliation, peace, and communion that Christians know in Christ and with one another.”1 In our western culture where kissing may have sexual connotations, we can express greetings other ways. The original Living Bible read “Greet each other warmly in the Lord.” I think I recall another paraphrase from many years ago that had the rendering, “Greet one another with a holy handshake.” In any case, the essential idea being conveyed is that believers are to express genuine love and affection for one another flowing out of a heart filled with real agape love. If we recall the bond that we have with one another as brothers and sisters in Christ, causing us to treat one another in a way that reflects that common bond, we will be glad to see one another, and we will express that fact in the way we greet one another. When we see people we really love we show that love by the way we greet them. The way we show it will differ depending upon the relationship but we will show it one way or another. It may be a kiss or a hug or a handshake, but in any case is will express genuine joy at being with the people we are greeting. The greeting may also take the form of something written. Whole churches send greetings to other churches in writing (“All the saints greet you.” 2 Corinthians 13:13, ESV). At Christmas many people send and receive greeting cards. Hopefully, they express the same kind of love and affection. In whatever form the greeting takes, it is important that we take the time and effort to express the love and appreciation we have for one another in the body of Christ. Again I would observe that although written communication or (in our day) electronic communication may be necessary, there is no substitute for greeting one another in person.
We are also instructed to sing to one another. “And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,” (Ephesians 5:18–20, ESV) “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.” (Colossians 3:16, ESV) It is certainly true that when we sing, we are to sing to the Lord, but it is also true that we are to sing to one another. How do we do that? When we, as a congregation sing in the presence of one another, “A mighty fortress is our God,” we remind one another of God’s power and ability to defend us. When we sing, “Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me,” we bear testimony to one another of the grace of God that reached down to save one so undeserving as we are. Even when we sing to the Lord, “Great is Thy Faithfulness,” other people hear and are reminded of that attribute of our Father. Now, it is certainly possible to watch a worship service on television or via our YouTube channel and hear others singing, and in some cases that is the only way people can participate. That only makes it possible for the ministry to be one way, however. If there is a choice, this kind of mutual ministry can be performed most effectively in person. Down through the years I can bear testimony to the fact that on many, many Sundays I arrived at our church discouraged, unhappy, afraid or just miserable but when we began to sing the great hymns of the faith my whole attitude changed as I heard my brothers and sisters sing those great words. They may not realize it but they were singing to me and my heart was blessed in a way that rarely happens when I am not there in person. 1 1 Garland, D. E. (1999). 2 Corinthians (Vol. 29, pp. 554–555). Broadman & Holman Publishers.
Jan 21, 2024 | GPS by Pastor Bob Spicer
This month’s meditation is a continuation of the series I began in September, dealing with lessons we, as believers in Jesus, should learn as a result of the Covid 19 pandemic. Each installment deals with what the Bible says about our responsibilities to one another as believers in Jesus. Although the occasion that started my thinking about these issues was the isolating effect that Covid 19 had on all of us at Grace, the reality is that these lessons deal with the kinds of behaviors and attitudes that should always characterize us as brothers and sisters in Christ. It is important that we review them from time to time because we can so easily slip into the mode of thinking that the value of attending church is only about what we get out of it. The “one another” passages remind us that an ongoing value that is at least as important as that one is our responsibility to minister to others (not to mention the concern for what God receives from our time together).
The responsibilities I would like to address this month are that we are to encourage one another and build each other up. One dictionary defines the Greek verb translated “encourage” as: “To exhort in the way of consolation, encouragement, to console, comfort.”1 Paul refers to this task twice in 1 Thessalonians. The first time is 1 Thessalonians 4:18. It comes at the end of a small paragraph in which Paul teaches his readers about the future for believers who have died. Apparently they were unaware of what lay ahead for their loved ones who had passed and they were mourning their loss not realizing they would see them again. “But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope.” (1 Thessalonians 4:13, ESV) After briefly describing the resurrection of believers at the coming of the Lord and their being united with saints living at that time, Paul concludes chapter 4 with the exhortation of verse 18: “Therefore encourage one another with these words.” (1 Thessalonians 4:18, ESV) Undoubtedly, the knowledge that they would see their departed loved ones again and that in the very presence of Jesus would have been a great source of encouragement to them.
In the immediately following verses, which constitute the first section of chapter 5, we find the second time Paul calls his readers to encourage one another, this time pairing it with the responsibility to build each other up. The verb translated “build up” means: “to build up, establish, confirm.”2 The thrust of the paragraph is that Paul exhorts his readers to live godly lives with the expectancy that the Day of the Lord may begin at any moment. What were the Thessalonians supposed to do in light of this information? The very next verse answers that question. They were to use it to continue to encourage and build up one other. “Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.” (1 Thessalonians 5:11, ESV) The knowledge that we will spend eternity with the One who died to save us should motivate us to live to please Him in this life. All of us go through times of discouragement when we need our brothers and sisters to encourage, console, or comfort us by reminding us of who we are and what the future will be like for us as children of God and joint heirs of Jesus Christ. We also experience times when we are weak or in doubt when we need a brother or sister to build us up, establish, or confirm us in the faith.
I realize that we can encourage or build one another up through phone calls, notes and texts, and we ought to take advantage of these means to do so, but they cannot replace the effectiveness of being physically present with someone. That is why, in the last recorded epistle Paul wrote, he strongly urged Timothy twice to come to him and once to bring someone else with him. “Do your best to come to me soon. … Get Mark and bring him with you, for he is very useful to me for ministry.” (2 Timothy 4:9 & 11, ESV) “Do your best to come before winter.” (2 Timothy 4:21, ESV) I also realize that physical proximity does not guarantee that we will encourage one another or build each other up. It is something we need to be intentional about. A fringe benefit for concentrating on encouraging others or building them up is that as we do so our attention is taken off of ourselves so we have less time to be depressed or focused on our own needs. When was the last time you looked for an opportunity to encourage or build up someone during Grace Café?
1 Zodhiates, S. (2000). In The complete word study dictionary: New Testament (electronic ed.). AMG Publishers.
2 Zodhiates, S. (2000). In The complete word study dictionary: New Testament (electronic ed.). AMG Publishers.
Jan 21, 2024 | GPS by Pastor Bob Spicer
October 2022 GPS
In the September GPS I began a brief series of meditations dealing with lessons we, as believers in Jesus, learned as a result of the Covid 19 pandemic. The thread that binds the parts of the series together is the use of the phrase “one another” in the New Testament. The idea came to mind as I thought about how numbers of people remarked about how good it was to actually be back together again after being separated because of the quarantines. There are ways in which we can only minister effectively when we are with our brothers and sisters in person. Last month we looked at the admonitions to love one another which in a sense covers all the rest of our responsibilities. This month we will begin to look at some ways in which we are called to express that love, specifically in the attitudes we display.
We briefly saw one of them last month when we looked at Romans 12:10 and the commandment to love one another. The second half of that verse was: “Outdo one another in showing honor.” (Romans 12:10b, ESV) Another translation renders that phrase: “showing eagerness in honoring one another.” (Romans 12:10b, NET) One dictionary defines the verb as “take the lead in.” In any case, the idea is that honoring our brothers and sisters is a responsibility that we are to spend genuine effort to fulfill. We are not to think of it as a responsibility of minimal importance that we will fulfill if we have spare time and energy. As to what “honor” means, it might help to think of some synonyms for honor such as “respect, esteem.” The heart attitude that produces this honor is found in Philippians 2:3: “Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.” (ESV) Some translations read “better than” or “more important than” instead of “more significant than.” If we truly count others as more significant, important or better than ourselves, we will naturally treat them with respect, esteem or honor. That simply is the way we treat people we view as more important than we are. Part of our problem in this regard is that we are constantly encouraged to think of ourselves as more important than others and we find it easy and personally gratifying to do so.
Closely related to the responsibility to honor one another is the call to live in harmony with one another. Two passages exhort us to do that very thing. The first is found just a few verses below the previously noted verse in Romans 12: “Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be wise in by your own sight.” (Romans 12:16, ESV) Other translations for “live in harmony” are “be of the same mind” and have a “spirit of unity.” The rest of the verse is an exposition of how that can be accomplished, and it is very similar to what we read in Philippians 2:3. It is by being humble. “Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be wise in by your own sight.” Mutually harmonious living is only possible if we truly honor others more than ourselves. That attitude can only be ours as a result of the work of God in our lives which leads us to the second verse that speaks of living in harmony with one another. It is found later in the book of Romans where Paul prayed: “May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus, that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Romans 15:5–6, ESV) This kind of genuinely living in harmony with others only comes from God. It is insightful that Paul refers to two attributes of God that equip Him to grant this kind of harmony. He is the God of endurance and encouragement. He endures, perseveres, and bears up under a burden. He is also the God who encourages. He does not endure grudgingly. He endures while also encouraging us. As such, He is perfectly qualified to enable us to live in harmony with one another because the ability to live this way simply flows out of His character. He endures, and perseveres with us, and that very endurance is granted in a way that encourages us rather than causes us to give up. The verse goes on to point out that the example we are to follow in living in harmony with one another is Christ Jesus. Returning to Philippians 2, Paul explains how Christ was our example in His humility: “Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” (Philippians 2:5–8, ESV)
The kinds of attitudes and actions seen in the verses above may be expressed to some degree via the internet but they can certainly be more effectively expressed by being physically in the presence of other people.
Jan 21, 2024 | GPS by Pastor Bob Spicer
September 2022 GPS
I doubt that I will ever forget the long months during which our church dealt with the threat of Covid19. For a short time we did not meet in person at all; we only met via technology (which continues to the present day as an option). Then, as time passed we met outside in the parking lot for many weeks. Finally, we met inside wearing masks and being distanced from one another. Now we meet, some with masks, without the large distance between each other. Some, for various reasons, still join us via the internet, but many have said in my hearing, “It’s not the same as being there.” There are a number of reasons why that is so. For example, technology provides a “one way” ministry, but we need more than that. God designed the church to provide “two way” ministries between lots of people. We see this illustrated in various “one another” passages in the New Testament. This month and in the next few months we will look at some passages that identify specific ways in which we are to minister to “one another.” The first way we will consider, in a sense, covers all the rest. It is our responsibility to love one another. Three passages specifically teach this responsibility. The first one talks about the quality of love that we are to express toward one another. The second and third passages talk about what we might call the quantity of love we are to show toward one another. We will look at each passage in order to discover what they teach us about how we are to love one another.
The first passage is Romans 12:9-10. “Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor.” In verse 5 of this chapter, Paul had reminded his readers that, as believers, “we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another.” There is a sense in which all of us are related to one another like different parts of a body are organically connected to one another. With that organic unity in mind, Paul issued his exhortations to love one another. He introduces those exhortations with the admonition, “Let love be genuine.” “In the NT, it [the word behind “genuine”] came to mean one without hypocrisy or pretense, unfeigned, genuine, real, true, sincere.”1 We are not simply to fake it or act like we love one another. Our love is to be real. In the exhortation itself he tells us we ought to love one another with “brotherly affection.” This verse uses all three of the four Greek words for “love” which are found in the New Testament (eros, denoting sexual love, is not found in the New Testament). In some cases in the New Testament the three words are used in a nearly synonymous sense. In this verse they are used in a way in which, although their meanings overlap each other, they demonstrate the different facets of the love we are to show toward one another. When the three words do have somewhat different meanings, storge denotes love for family members. It is the love that wells up in your heart when you hold your newborn child for the first time. The next word, phile, refers to the love of friendship, the connection you have with a “kindred spirit.” The third word, agape, denotes a love that is not motivated by external factors. It is simply a decision to do what is best for the object of your love. It is hard to imagine how we could adequately express these kinds of love if the only contact we have with one another is “virtual.”
The second passage is 1 Thessalonians 3:12-13: “[M]ay the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another and for all, as we do for you, so that he may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints.” In this verse Paul expresses the wish that their love for one another (and for all others) would grow, not diminish or even remain unchanged. Furthermore, he desires that it would increase to the degree that it could be described as “abounding.” That is, “to be in excess, exceed in number or measure. In the NT, to be or have more than enough.”2 What would it look like if our love for each other grew to the point that those we love would have more than enough of it?
The third passage is 1 Thessalonians 4:9-10: “Now concerning brotherly love you have no need for anyone to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another, for that indeed is what you are doing to all the brothers throughout Macedonia. But we urge you, brothers, to do this more and more,” (1 Thessalonians 4:9–10, ESV) For the second time in this brief epistle Paul brings up the topic that our love for one another ought to be growing. Here he says that the Thessalonians do not need further teaching about loving one another because God Himself has taught them to do this and they have been doing it. But, Paul urges them to “do this more and more.” The implication seems to be that we can never completely fulfill all of our responsibility to love one another.
If we meet only via the internet when we have other options, do you believe that we can obey these injunctions to love one another as friends and relatives or simply as people who need love in the way we are intended to? Will our love for one another continue to grow the way these passages call us to love if our connection with each other is solely with a computer or a wide screen TV? I realize that even if we are meeting face to face we still may not love one another as we ought to, but is the solution resorting to technology? Isn’t the right solution meeting together and asking the Holy Spirit to produce more and more love for one another in our hearts? -Pastor Robert Spicer
1 Zodhiates, S. (2000). In The complete word study dictionary: New Testament (electronic ed.). AMG Publishers.
2 Ibid.
Jan 21, 2024 | GPS by Pastor Bob Spicer
August 2022 GPS
A few weeks ago our Wednesday night Bible study was in Psalm 37 and one verse of that Psalm reads: “Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.” (Psalm 37:4, ESV) That verse so captivated my mind that I decided to give it more thought. It occurred to me that the promise in the second half of the verse was amazing. It promises that the LORD will give the desires of the heart to the person who delights in Him. So, I began to think about the concept of delighting in the LORD. What does it mean to “delight yourself in” the LORD as opposed to loving Him or worshipping Him? To get the meaning of “delight oneself in,” I looked at some of the uses of the Hebrew word here translated to “delight.” It is found a second time in the same Psalm: “In just a little while, the wicked will be no more; though you look carefully at his place, he will not be there. But the meek shall inherit the land and delight themselves in abundant peace.” (Psalm 37:10–11, ESV) Throughout this Psalm the writer is comparing the present and future of the godly versus the ungodly. In verse 11, he tells us about some blessings that await the meek (the godly). They will inherit the land and “delight themselves in abundant peace” (Hebrew shalom). I take that to mean that they will be able to find great pleasure and joy in the shalom that will be theirs. Shalom does not mean only the absence of conflict but also the presence of all kinds of good things. So, the Psalmist is promising God’s people that the time will come when they will be able to enjoy, find pleasure in, delight in the blessings God will provide. Furthermore, he describes the future shalom as being “abundant.” There will be lots of it.
The word is also found in the wonderful invitation the LORD extended to His people to repent and return to Him in Isaiah. There we read, ““Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy? Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food. Incline your ear, and come to me; hear, that your soul may live; and I will make with you an everlasting covenant, my steadfast, sure love for David.” (Isaiah 55:1–3, ESV) In this beautiful portrayal of the blessings of forgiveness and cleansing and restoration, the LORD invites His people to return to Him and find pleasure and joy in a loving relationship with Him. In all of these and similar passages the idea seems to be that the person in view is said to find personal enjoyment or pleasure in someone or something. To delight myself in the LORD then means that I find personal enjoyment or pleasure in Him.
In order for one to delight in another person, two conditions must be met. First, that other person must have qualities that merit being admired. Who would want to delight in a despicable, brutal fiend? However, the LORD is “altogether lovely,” so He is completely worthy of being the object of delight. That condition has always existed because of who God is. Second, the observer would need to have the ability to appreciate the positive qualities of the one he is considering. How could a deaf person appreciate the musical ability of even the finest violinist in the world? God can enable His people to appreciate His loveliness. David wrote, “One thing have I asked of the Lord, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in his temple.” (Psalm 27:4, ESV) David was able to appreciate, at least to some degree, the beauty of the LORD. We can too. It is no wonder that the Psalmist wrote, “You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” (Psalm 16:11, ESV)
That being the case, how can we go about delighting in Him? A verse that came to mind as I considered that question was, “Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!” (Psalm 34:8, ESV) For many years I had never tasted pizza. I didn’t like the looks of it or the smell of it. Then, one day, on a date with the girl who became my wife, I was socially forced to try it. (Everyone else in that group ate it and enjoyed it.) I tried not to taste it by drinking a lot of soda with each bite. Today I love pizza! I might even say, “I delight myself in pizza.” I find personal enjoyment or pleasure in various things. One thing is the beauty of the natural world that God has created, especially the mountains. Another is in watching people I love do well. Another is by discovering truth in God’s Word. Another is by observing God’s kindnesses to me and those I love. Perhaps a wise thing to request in prayer would be to ask God to move in our hearts in such a way that we taste and see that the LORD is good and so delight ourselves in Him.
What is the meaning of the promise that concludes this verse which says, “He will give you the desires of your heart”? Is that a promise of an easy life, great wealth, a successful career, or a problem free marriage? Seen in its context of the first half of the verse, that cannot possibly be true. What it does promise is that if we delight ourselves in the LORD, if we discover that we can find in Him alone the satisfaction of our deepest longings for joy, pleasure, meaning and purpose, He will satisfy those desires of our hearts by showing us more and more of His character.
