The Bulletin
of the
Church of Christ at
New Georgia
Tim Johnson, editor
May 22, 2005
In
This Issue:
Veneer
by
Steve Klein
Heart
Stopping Moments
by
Gary Patton
Veneer
We have a piece of furniture that is made out of pine and particleboard, but it doesn't look like it. It is covered with a thin layer of veneer to make it appear as if it is made out of oak.
People sometimes have a thin veneer covering them. They appear to be good, moral, and righteous, but inwardly they do not possess these qualities. It reminds me a little of the old saying that, "Beauty is only skin deep, but ugly goes clean to the bone." What we appear to be on the surface may or may not reflect what we are inside.
Jesus saw through the veneer of the scribes and Pharisees. These men were supposedly the most religious people of their time, yet seven times in Matthew 23:13-29 Jesus calls them hypocrites. In verses twenty-seven and twenty-eight He says, "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men's bones and all uncleanness. Even so you also outwardly appear righteous to men, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness (Matthew 23:27-28). In Luke 11:39, Jesus told a certain Pharisee, "Now you Pharisees make the outside of the cup and dish clean, but your inward part is full of greed and wickedness."
But the Pharisees did not have a corner on the hypocrisy market. The Bible is full of descriptions of people who appeared to be something they were not. The Psalmist wrote of those who had "no faithfulness in their mouth; their inward part is destruction; their throat is an open tomb; they flatter with their tongue" (Psalm 5:9). Paul described sinful brethren "who boast in appearance and not in heart." (2 Corinthians 5:12). Sadly, hypocrisy is every bit as big a problem today as it was in Bible times.
The thing about veneer furniture is that it looks pretty and serves the same purpose as "solid oak," but it is just not the same quality. Jesus paid the price for you and me. He purchased more than just our surface; He paid the price for our souls. Did He get what He paid for? Are you genuine? Are you the same on the inside as you appear to be on the outside? Others may not be able to tell, but God can. "God tests the heart and minds" (Psalm 7:9). Our veneer may fool some, but it will not fool Him. He sees through us.
-- Steve Klein
All have had those moments in our lives when a short statement or event seems to make our heart stop. 'There are various things that can cause such moments. It could be a sudden message of injury or death to a loved one, a message informing us of some terrible disease we have, or the moment our guilt of sin is discovered by others. At such moments not only does our heart seem to stop, but there is that empty feeling in the pit of our stomachs, or a fainting feeling, even a great feeling of fear. Such dramatic moments affect us for the rest of our lives. There are several such heart stopping moments recorded in the Bible that can teach us important lessons in preparing ourselves to be pleasing in God's sight.
In Genesis chapters 37-45, the great life of Joseph is recorded. We are told that he was the first son of Jacob by his beloved wife Rachel and a son of his old age. He became a favorite of his father and as a result became the object of terrible treatment by his jealous older brothers, eventually leading to their selling Joseph into Egyptian slavery. While in Egypt, God caused Joseph eventually to rise to second in power. When the great famine came, Jacob sent his sons to Egypt to buy grain. It was at this time, twenty-two years after they had sold him, that they came into his presence. He recognized them, but they did not recognize Joseph. After some time of testing and trying, Joseph could no longer contain himself and had the room cleared. It was then he said to them, "I am Joseph" (Gen. 45:3). The center column reference says they were "terrified." Can you imagine their fear, shame and guilt? Yet, Joseph treated them with love. How do we treat those who sin against us? Do we treat them with hate and ill will, or with love, forgiveness and a willingness to help? Jesus tells us to "love your enemies, to do good to them that despitefully use you . ..." Joseph forgave them when he saw their penitent hearts, and God can do the same for us when we sin, if we repent and obey Him.
In 2 Samuel 12:7, we read of another heart stopping moment. David had committed the sin of adultery with Bathsheba, then had her husband killed to cover up the sin and the fact that she was with child by David. After his actions, Nathan the prophet came to David and asked him to make a judgment concerning a specific situation. He said that a certain man had great flocks of sheep and another man had only one little lamb that was such a beloved pet. The scriptures say it was as a daughter to him. When the rich man had a guest to feed, rather than killing a lamb from one of his large flock, he killed the poor man's pet lamb. David said the man that has done this must surely die. Nathan then replied to David, "Thou art the man!" Can you imagine David's feelings at this moment! We find that such a heart stopping moment as this caused David to repent as he confessed his sins before Nathan and God. The 51st Psalm gives a very moving confession of sin by David to God. A question we must ask ourselves is, how do we react when God's word says to us, "Thou art the man ... you have sinned against me!" Do we begin to make excuses as did King Saul in 1 Samuel 15 when he was confronted by Samuel for not utterly destroying the Amalekites? Or, do we just ignore the charge from God's word and become calloused to the conflicting power of His word? We all should react as did David, by confessing our sins, repenting of them and strive to obey God's will.
A very powerful heart stopping moment is recorded in Acts the 9th chapter. Saul of Tarsus was persecuting the Christians with great zeal and determination. Not only was he doing so in the area of Judea, but he was traveling to other areas to continue the ill treatment of God's children. While on the road to Damascus a great light shown upon him and a voice said to him, "Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?" Saul responded by asking, "Who art thou, Lord?" and the Lord said, "I am Jesus whom thou persecutest...." Can you imagine the feelings of Saul? Surely he had that heart stopping feeling. All this time he thought he was pleasing God and doing what was right, punishing all who believed that Jesus was the Messiah. Now he learns he has been wrong, terribly wrong. The scriptures say he was "trembling and astonished." Paul's reaction was immediate: he became contrite and asked, "What wilt thou have me to do?" When he was told what to do, he obeyed: "Wherefore, O King Agrippa, I was not disobedient ..." (Acts 26:19). How do you react when you hear from God's Word, Jesus say to you, "I am Jesus whom thou persecutest; when you sin, you are the one who caused me to be crucified"? Do you answer as did Paul, "What must I do?" or have the attitude of so many today, "So what," or "I don't have time for you." Paul obeyed the Lord's will and served Him the rest of his life and so must we.
A final heart stopping moment we need to consider is pictured to us in several places. It is that moment when we will receive the judgment of God and our sentence for eternity (Rev. 20:11-15). To those who have not been obedient to God's will, the sentence will be, "Depart from me...I never knew you." (Matt. 7:23). "Depart from me ... ye cursed, into everlasting fire." (Matt. 25:41). Can you imagine the feeling you will have if He says to you - "Depart from us into hell, I don't know you"? What a terrible feeling - knowing that the sentence will never be changed!
We can avoid such a terrifying moment and turn it into the happiest moment of our existence. We can make it a moment of the greatest JOY we will ever know. We can do so by realizing that God will forgive us as Joseph did his brothers, IF we like David will have a penitent heart and confess our sins, and then, like Paul, obey what he tells us to do, when he says, "Arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins." Though we may yet suffer terrifying moments in this life, we can make them only temporary and not eternal by coming to Christ in obedience, both to the plan of salvation and in living faithfully the remaining years of our lives.
- Gary Patton
Via The East Florence Contender, Sept. 1996