But that’s the opposite of what happens in the church realm. Jesus told the disciples to be witnesses — “Let the whole world know,” or, as the chorus goes, “I’ll Tell It Wherever I Go.”
@:What happens in the church should not stay in the church, but spread over the whole earth.
Or shall we be like the farmer who prayed for his wife and two children: “We come to thee, O Lord; God, bless us four and no more.”
We do pretty good with fellow Christians — we love those who love us and bless those who bless us. But what about that person who doesn’t fit our idea of propriety and the unlovable?
Jesus gave us the two commandments — the laws which cover every aspect of our living. Asked which was the greatest commandment, our Lord answered, “The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord: And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment. And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these” (Mark 12:30, 31).
Read Romans 5. After talking about being justified by faith, having peace with God and access into this grace, and taking the route of tribulation through patience, experience and hope, Paul says in verse 5, “And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.”
And in verses 6-8, “... Christ died for the ungodly ... But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”
“And such were some of you:” Paul says in 1 Corinthians 6:11, “but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.”
And what about the wonderful knowledge and blessings we receive?
In a local church, I saw a motto that read, “Enter to worship — leave to serve.” Those six words say it all.
What happens in church should not stay in church.
“You are the finger of God, don’t you see?
You know somebody who is in need;
Point them to Calvary, show them the way;
You are the finger of God today.”
