The Bulletin
of the
Church of Christ at
New Georgia
Tim Johnson, editor
August 14, 2005
In
This Issue:
Sweet
Fruit from Old Trees
by
Steve Klein
According
to the Scriptures
by
Paul Smithson
Sweet Fruit from Old Trees
Long life is a blessing from God. When a faithful child of God receives such a blessing, his life can become a blessing to others. The Bible says that, "Those who are planted in the house of the LORD Shall flourish in the courts of our God. They shall still bear fruit in old age; they shall be fresh and flourishing" (Psalm 92:13-14). Older Christians truly produce a lot of sweet fruit for those who are younger to enjoy. As any bluegrass picker will tell you, "The older the fiddler, the sweeter the tune."
Some of the fruit produced by older Christians includes&ldots;
1) Sharing knowledge and experience. If a person has worked at
learning and applying God's will throughout his life, he has gained
priceless wisdom from which others may benefit. Truly,
"Wisdom is with aged men, and with length of days,
understanding" (Job 12:12). It was George Burns who said
that, "By the time you're eighty years old you've learned
everything. You only have to remember it". And while
memory may indeed fail us as we age, the faithful child of God often
possesses a large storehouse of knowledge that is of benefit to
upcoming generations.
The Psalmist prayed that God would be with him in his old age to allow him to declare the Lord's strength and power. "Now also when I am old and grayheaded, O God, do not forsake me, Until I declare Your strength to this generation, Your power to everyone who is to come" (Psalm 71:18). This should be what all of us desire to do as we mature.
2) An awareness of God's blessings. A long life is a life filled with blessings from God. Being aware of and thankful for those blessings is truly encouraging to others. Again the Psalmist prayed, "Bless the LORD, O my soul, And forget not all His benefits" (Psalm 103:2).
3) Trust in God. As we age, health and strength often fail. The person who experiences this and yet continues to trust God is demonstrating what faith is really all about. Each of us should look forward to aging as a time where we learn to rely on God more and more, and can sincerely appreciate the Psalmists plea: "Do not cast me off in the time of old age; Do not forsake me when my strength fails" (Psalm 71:9).
4) Hope of heaven. Instead of bringing sad and melancholy prospects of decay, old age should give us hope of eternal youth in a better world. "Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day&ldots;while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal" (1 Corinthians 4:16-18). There are few things more encouraging to young Christians than to see older Christians who are finishing their race with joy and looking forward to receiving "the crown of righteousness" (2 Timothy 4:6-8).
The poet wrote, "How beautifully leaves grow old -- how full of light and color are their last days." The wise man wrote, "The silver-haired head is a crown of glory, if it is found in the way of righteousness" (Proverbs 16:31).
--Steve Klein
The fact that Jesus died, was buried, and resurrected is the very foundation of salvation from sin. We can believe in these events even though we were not there to see them happen because of creditable, eyewitness testimony of those who did - men who gave their lives telling the story because they knew it to be the truth. Our assurance is made even stronger when we realize all of the astounding details concerning these events took place according to the divine predictions of God in the Scriptures. As the apostle declared, "For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures" (1Cor. 15:3-4).
The divine predictions given centuries before concerning what would take place were frequently referred to by the apostles when they preached the gospel. These references have been divinely recorded for our assurance and conviction. Let us consider some of the astonishing prophecies of the Messiah's death, burial, and resurrection.
Matthew tells us how Jesus was stripped, beaten, and mistreated (Mt. 27:27-ff). God foretold this over 700 years prior through the prophet Isaiah. "I gave My back to those who strike Me, and My cheeks to those who pluck out the beard; I did not cover My face from humiliation and spitting" (Isa. 50:6). The scourging of Jesus, recorded by John (Jn. 19:1), was foretold in the Psalms. "The plowers plowed upon my back: they lengthened their furrow" (Ps. 129:3).
Crucifixion, the cruel type of death Jesus faced, involved the nailing of the hands and feet to a wooden cross. John tells of this crucifixion and how Jesus was mocked and stripped, lots cast for His garments, sour wine given to Him in His thirst, etc. (Jn. 19). Centuries before Jesus' crucifixion, David by inspiration uttered these Messianic words, "My God, my God, why hast Thou forsaken me?...All who see me sneer at me; They separate with the lip, they wag the head, saying, 'Commit yourself to the Lord; let Him deliver him; Let Him rescue him, because He delights in him'...I am poured out like water, And all my bones are out of joint; My heart is like wax; It is melted within me. My strength is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue cleaves to my jaws...They pierced my hands and my feet. I can count all my bones. They look, they stare at me; They divide my garments among them, and for my clothing they cast lots" (Ps. 22:1-16; cf. Ps. 69:20-21; Zach. 12:10).
The fact that Jesus was crucified as a criminal along with thieves was no accident. The prophet Isaiah foretold how the Messiah would be "numbered with the transgressors" (Isa. 53:12). While on the cross the legs of the criminals were broken to hasten their death. The legs of Jesus, however, were not broken as predicted in the Psalms. "He keeps all his bones; Not one of them is broken" (Ps. 34:20; cf. Jn. 19:33).
Jesus was crucified as a criminal, yet, as God had predicted through the prophet He was buried in a rich man's tomb. "His grave was assigned to be with wicked men, yet with a rich man in His death..." (Isa. 53:9; cf. Jn. 19:38-42).
The Messiah was also resurrected according to what had been predicted centuries before. The apostle Peter made several references to this fact in his sermon on Pentecost. "Brethren, I may confidently say to you regarding the patriarch David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. And so, because he was a prophet, and knew that God had sworn to him with an oath to seat one of His descendants upon his throne, he looked ahead and spoke of the resurrection of the Christ, that He was neither abandoned to Hades, nor did His flesh suffer decay" (Ac. 2:29; cf. Ps. 16:8-10). Peter continued to also explain how David long ago in the psalms spoke of how the Christ was to ascend to the right hand of God, quoting from Psalm 110:1, "The Lord said to My Lord, sit at My right hand until I make Thine enemies a footstool for Thy feet" (Ac. 2:34-35).
The fact that we not only have credible, eyewitness testimony concerning Jesus' death, burial, and resurrection, but also have these and many more amazing detailed prophecies concerning these events leaves no excuse for disbelief (Mk. 16:16).
-- Paul Smithson