The Bulletin
of the
Church of Christ at
New Georgia
Tim Johnson, editor
January 6, 2008
In
This Issue:
Love
without Hypocrisy
by
Steve Klein
The
Inheritance of the Child of God
by
David Cox
Love Without Hypocrisy
Comedian Mel Brooks once said, "Tragedy is when I cut my finger; comedy is when you fall into an open sewer and die." Humans tend to care much more about what happens to them than about what happens to others. In fact, as Brooks' joke illustrates, we tend to be much more concerned about small events in our own lives (or the lives of those close to us) than we are about truly tragic events in the lives of others.
Jesus changes our perspective in this matter. From Him we learn to care more about others than we do about ourselves. He showed us that love sacrifices itself for the wellbeing of others. God's word challenges those of us who are Christians to be Christ-like in this very way. "Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, leading to edification. For even Christ did not please Himself; but as it is written, 'The reproaches of those who reproached you fell on me'" (Romans 15:2-3).
To love one another like Jesus loved us requires that our love be without hypocrisy. Romans 12:9 simply commands, "Let love be without hypocrisy." Hypocrisy is play acting. Love that is pretended, fake or put-on is not really concerned for others. "Sincere love of the brethren" means that we "love one another fervently with a pure heart" (1 Peter 1:22).
How can a person tell if the love they have is genuine? Hypocritical love manifests itself in a number of ways. If you want to know whether you love like Jesus or like a hypocrite, ask yourself the following questions:
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Do I love in deed, not just in word? Just saying that we love others may make both them and us feel better, but it is not all there is to real love. Expressions of concern for the poor, the sick and the shut-in are nice, but our love is fake if we do nothing to help. "My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth" (1 John 3:18). If, when we're sick or experience tragedy we expect fellow Christians to be there for us, we should be there for them when they are in need.
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Do I show partiality? 1 Corinthians 12:25 explains that in the body of Christ "the members should have the same care for one another." Notice, we are to have the "same care" for one another. This means that I'm not to care more about one than the other. 1 Timothy 5:21 commands us to do "nothing with partiality." But too often church members care much more about what happens to themselves or their families than about what others are going through. We value our own opinions and preferences, and those of those close to us, above those of everyone else. Such shows partiality. It is not the kind of love Jesus had. Philippians 2:4 says, "Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others." The "wisdom that is from above" is "without partiality and without hypocrisy" (James 3:17).
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Is my love sacrificial? If we're not giving something up for our brethren, our love is not like Christ's, and it is hypocritical. "Hereby know we love, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren" (1 John 3:16).
"How often love fades like the morning mist....
-
when self is threatened in any way
- when another doesn't measure up to expectations
- when a brother or sister has a need that will
require expense or inconvenience from others
- when a heart is lifted up by self importance and others do not respond as self requires." (Paul Frey)
Love that is without hypocrisy won't fade. Jesus loved us when He was threatened, when we didn't measure up to expectations and when we inconvenienced Him. And although He is the most important Being in the world, and we are sinners made of dust, He "emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being made in the likeness of men; and being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, becoming obedient even unto death, yea, the death of the cross" (Philippians 2:7-8). That's love. That's how I want to love. Don't you?
-- Steve Klein
Christians are referred to as the children of God. John says, "Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God" (1 John 3:1). Paul, writing to the Romans, says, "The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ" (Romans 8:~6, ~7).
We are told that as children of God we are heirs. An heir is one who receives the possessions of someone else. The inheritance of the Christian is special because the inheritance comes from God. The idea of inheritance is interesting because normally to be called an heir, one must have died to make this possible. This is true in the inheritance of a Christian. First, Christ died so we could enjoy the relationship as a child of God. It is our faith in Christ and His sacrifice for us that causes us to humble ourselves in obedience to the will of God and be baptized into Christ. Paul writes about our baptism in Romans 6, "Know ye not that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into his death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life" (vs. 34). Then, in verse 6 Paul writes, "Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin." In Galatians 2:20, Paul refers to the crucifying of the old man of sin as he had done, as he says, "I am crucified with Christ: never-theless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me." Obviously, the inheritance we receive as a child of God is the result of a death, but not of someone else, but our own death to sin (Ro mans 6:2).
As Peter is writing to the children of God scattered throughout Pontos, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia, he reminds them of this inheritance of God as he says, "an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you" (1 Peter 1:4). This inheritance is not subject to decay. It is as beautiful now as it will be a thousand years from now. How do I know this? Because Peter said it is "incorruptible" and "fadeth not away." In verse 3, Peter says the basis of the hope for this inheritance is in the resurrection of Jesus Christ. As the gospel is preached and we obey the commands of God, we then have a living hope of the inheritance "reserved in heaven." It was this assurance that Paul had as he neared the end of his life as he wrote to Timothy, "Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them that love his appearing" (2 Timothy 4:8).
Do you have a hope of this inheritance? The only way to have this inheritance is to be a child of God. If you are not a child of God, why are you waiting? The blessings of the inheritance await God's children.
-- David Cox