The Bulletin
of the
Church of Christ at
New Georgia
Tim Johnson, editor
May 20, 2007
In
This Issue:
Being
a Helper
by
Steve Klein
The
Booing Spectators
by
Bill Hall
Being a Helper
Parents and teachers often encourage little children to be helpers. Usually children respond well to this encouragement. They enjoy helping to fix meals, wash the car and rake leaves, at least at first. But after awhile, most begin to view helping as something negative. They no longer get any satisfaction out of completing helpful tasks, and parents wind up nagging them to do their chores. Helping, after all, requires effort, takes time, and doesn't allow us to stay focused on our own selfish needs and wants. Somewhere along the way, a lot of us lose the desire to help.
We are thankful that the Lord is not tired of being our Helper. "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble" (Psalm 46:1). He expects us to be helpers as well. God's word says, "Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, leading to edification" (Romans 15:2). While there are many things that we can do to help our brothers and sisters in Christ, consider these three:
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We can help by praying. The apostle Paul commended the Corinthians for "helping together in prayer for us" (2 Corinthians 1:11). As Christians, we have the right to "come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need" (Hebrews 4:16). God expects us to use this power to help others. "Intercessions" are to be made "for all men" (1 Timothy 2:1). There may be no better way to help our fellow human beings than to pray for them.
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We can help by making peace. Occasionally, brothers and sisters get crossways with one another. Words are said, feelings are hurt and offence is taken. Too often, the response of onlookers is to take sides, encouraging a deeper division instead of reconciliation. Friends, when our brethren are at odds, our first obligation is to help them reconcile. This is exactly what Paul was getting at in Philippians 4:2-3 when he said, "I implore Euodia and I implore Syntyche to be of the same mind in the Lord. 3And I urge you also, true companion, help these women who labored with me in the gospel, with Clement also, and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the Book of Life." Helping others make peace is not easy. It takes effort and involves emotional risk, but it is what God expects of His children. Jesus said, "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God" (Matthew 5:9).
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We can help by respecting the consciences of others. Paul recognized that just because an action is lawful, doesn't mean that you should do it. If my lawful action encourages someone else to do something sinful or violate his conscience, I have harmed, not helped, that person. Paul said, "All things are lawful for me, but not all things are helpful; all things are lawful for me, but not all things edify. Let no one seek his own, but each one the other's well-being" (1 Corinthians 10:23-24). If I love my brethren, I will do nothing to cause them to stumble. "He who loves his brother abides in the light, and there is no cause for stumbling in him" (1 John 2:10).
Phoebe was commended for being "a helper of many" (Romans 16:1-2). As we think about our own lives, let's ask, "Have I been a helper of many?" "Of any?" Let's make it our goal to help many.
-- Steve
Klein
Have you ever noticed who does the booing at a ball game? It is not the players on the field. They have made their own mistakes, and they are not inclined to boo their fellow-player when he makes his. They are pulling FOR one another, encouraging, helpful. They play as a team, win or lose as a team, suffer together as a team, and rejoice together as a team. It is the spectators who boo. So it is in every walk of life: it is the spectators who, as a rule, do the criticizing, NOT the participants.
Unfortunately, in every congregation, there are the spectators and the participants. The spectators never teach a Bible class, preach, lead singing, preside at the table, or encourage those who do those public works; they really don't get that much involved in the worship itself. But, more often than not, they are the very ones who are found criticizing the preacher or the song leader or the Bible class teacher. They are the ones who are so embarrassed and incensed when someone commits an "error" in his efforts to lead the group. They come wanting to hear something interesting and that will make the time fly. If they hear, they "cheer"; if not, they "boo."
Not so with the true participants, those who are really involved in the lord's work. They are the ones "cheering on" that "rookie" who is preaching his first sermon or leading his first song. When a brother attempts to teach his first Bible class, they are looking for ways to be helpful. They are sympathetic; they rejoice in the success of others; they mourn over the sorrows of others; they feel for the one who has failed, make allowance for him to try again, and assure him that he will do better next time. They rejoice especially in the development of the young men and women in the Lord's work. They are just as nervous and excited when the young people make their first attempt at presiding at the table or teaching a class as they would be if they were their own children.
How many preachers have decided to move because of the booing spectators right at the time when the participants were enjoying their greatest spiritual growth? How many elders have planned a work around the demands of the spectators rather than the needs of the participants?
Spectators need to become participants and find out what it's like out there "on the field". Participants need to keep on doing their best, ignoring the "boos" while looking to their all-seeing and understanding "Manager" for approval. All need to be preparing for judgment, where it will be the "doers of the word", not the critics, who will be saved. "Finally, all of you be of one mind, having compassion for one another; love as brothers, be tenderhearted, be courteous" (I Peter 3:8).
Christians, like ball-players, make a sad mistake when they listen too closely to the "boo-birds".
-- Bill Hall