DO THAT WHICH IS GOOD AND AVOID THAT WHICH IS EVIL

Proclamation:

“Dear friend, do not imitate what is evil but what is good.  Anyone who does what is good is from God.  Anyone who does what is evil has not seen God.”  3 John 1:11 (NIV)

Explanation:

These words were written by the apostle John, under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God, to his friend and fellow believer, Gaius.  This single chapter letter focuses on John’s pastoral joy in the Christian walk of one of his spiritual children. (3 John 1:3-4)  He has heard about what Gaius was doing for the brothers and sisters, and even for strangers, and he encouraged him to continue to show them Christian hospitality. (3 John 1:5-8)  Then he urged him to do that which is good and not to imitate the evil which was being done by some in the church. (3 John 1:9-10)

Application:

Unfortunately, not every member of a congregation is a child of God.  There are some who are only interested in promoting themselves.  They cause or stir up confusion, spread malicious rumors, and mistreat the believers and visitors. (3 John 1:9-10)  Those who intentionally do evil within the church, and outside of it, are not from God but are under the influence of another spirit. (1 John 3:10 and 3 John 1:11)  We should be careful not to imitate all that we see in church.  We should also examine ourselves to make sure that we are doing whatever we do to serve God and not seeking self glory.  Do only that which is good, Christ-like, and that which gives God glory.

WE ARE ALL CALLED TO SERVE GOD

Proclamation:

"I keep asking that The God of our Lord Jesus Christ, The Glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know Him better.  I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which He has called you ..." Ephesians 1:17-18 (NIV)

Explanation:

The words of this prayer were written under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God by the Apostle Paul to the believers in Ephesus.  Paul prayed that God would bless them to know Him better, and that they would embrace that which The Lord had set forth for them to do for His glory.

Application:
God has a special purpose for each one of us. (Jeremiah 29:11)  We are not all called to preach the gospel or to teach it.  However we are all called by The Lord God to serve Him in some capacity.  We are not all given the same gifts or abilities, but we all have been blessed with at least one gift that we can use in His service. (1 Corinthians 12:7)  We should all pray for ourselves and for each other that we would recognize our gifts that we have been blessed with, and with the wisdom and understanding to know how we can use our gifts for the glory of God. (1 Corinthians 12:27)

WE CANNOT SERVE TWO MASTERS

Proclamation:

"No one can serve two masters.  Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other.  You cannot serve both God and Money." Matthew 6:24 (NIV)

Explanation:
These are the words of Jesus, The Christ, which He spoke as part of the Sermon on the Mount which began in Matthew 5:1 and goes on until 7:29.  As recorded by the Apostle Matthew under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God.  Here Jesus taught that loyalty cannot be divided.  One cannot be totally loyal to God and focus on earthly treasures, possessions, or wealth.  According to Bible scholar Thomas Nelson, "Jesus was not condemning money or possessions in and of themselves, but the improper attitude of enslavement towards wealth."

Application:
We can only be a slave to one master at a time.  Attempting to serve two masters will result in one of them being slighted and receiving less than our best effort.  We are either a slave to God or we are a slave to something or someone else.  We cannot walk with The Lord and hold hands with the devil at the same time.  We should be very careful choosing whom we will serve, for there are eternal consequences to the selection.  There is nothing wrong with having money, it is the love of money that gets us in trouble. (1 Timothy 6:10)

We Cannot Follow God And The Worldly Ways

"No one can serve two masters.  Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other.  You cannot serve both God and Money."  Matthew 6:24 (NIV)

These words of Jesus, as recorded by the Apostle Matthew, were spoken during His Sermon on The Mount.  His point was that they could not follow the ways of God and follow the ways of the things of this world at the same time.  They would either truly follow one and only pretend to follow the other.  They could not follow both of them because they would be going in two different directions.

Our actions speak much louder than our words with regard to whom we follow, serve, and obey.  A lot of us call ourselves "Christians" but our behavior suggests that we are not being truthful.  If there is no difference between us and our worldly friends and associates, then we are not true followers of Christ.  When we accepted Christ into our lives, we became a new creature, and some of that old behavior ceased to exist. (2 Corinthians 5:17)  We did not become perfect, but we did become a new person. (Ephesians 4:24 and Colossians 3:10)  When The Holy Spirit of God indwelt us, we in effect, put on Christ. (Galatians 3:27)  From that moment on we began to exhibit some of the fruit of The Spirit. (Galatians 5:23-24)  Our behavior began to reflect The Christ within us. (Ezekiel 36:27)  We are to grow in the knowledge of Him and His Word, and as we grow in age, we should grow in grace and holiness. (1 Peter 1:16 and 2 Peter 3:18)  We are to grow in The Word of God from the simple milk to being able to digest, and understand, and live by the more meaty principals. (1 Corinthians 3:2 and Hebrews 5:12)  If we are not following, serving, and obeying Christ, then who are we following??? 

Enthusiastic Joyful Patient And Faithful

"Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving The Lord.  Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer."  Romans 12:11-12 (NIV)

After urging the believers in Rome to be living sacrifices unto God, the Apostle Paul told them to love one another, and to never lose their zeal for serving God.  They should praise Him in good times and bad times; the should never lose hope; they should be patient during the trials, the tribulations, and the storms of life; and they should faithfully and regularly pray.

The entirety of chapter twelve of the book of Romans could be entitled, "Guidelines For Christian Living."  These two verses encourage us to love and serve The Lord with gusto, no matter what comes our way.  We ought to communicate with Him regularly and often.  The more that we pray, the better off we will be. (James 5:16)  We need to learn to be patient, and to wait on The Lord.  He does thing in His own time-frame. (Isaiah 40:31)   We should be "on fire" for The Lord, we should be very enthusiastic about our service to Him.  Jesus said that He did not want any "lukewarm" followers. (Revelation 3:15-16)   We should also be joyful as we approach and deal with everything. (James 1:2)  We have already been assured of the victory. (1 Corinthians 15:57 and   1 John 5:4)  With Him, we win; without Him, we lose. (Romans 8:37)

We Can't Please Man And Please God

"Am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God?  Or am I trying to please men?  If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ."  Galatians 1:10 (NIV)

In his letter to the Galatian Christians, the Apostle Paul said that if he were trying to win the approval of men, he would not be a servant of Christ. Paul knew that he could not please God and man at the same time.

Today, we need to know and understand that we cannot please God and please man at the same time.  Paul said the same thing to the Christians in Thessalonica. (1 Thessalonians 2:4)  We can only please, follow, and serve only one or the other.  No man can serve two masters. (Matthew 6:24 and Luke 16:13)  We must choose who we will serve and try to please. (Joshua 24:15)   The carnal mind of man is at enmity with God (Romans 8:7), and anyone who wants to be friends with the world, and please man, is an enemy of God. (James 4:4)  Unless a man submits to God, he is controlled by his sinful nature, and those controlled by their sinful nature cannot please God. (Romans 8:8)

Prosperity And Contentment

"If they obey and serve Him, they will spend the rest of their days in prosperity and their years in contentment.  But if they do not listen, they will perish by the sword and die without knowledge."  Job 36:11-12 (NIV)
This is one of the things that Elihu, one of Job's friends, said to him as he was defending God in light of all of Job's material losses (Job 1:3 & 1:14-19) and his physical suffering. (Job 2:7)  Elihu said those who live by God's commands will be blessed with prosperity and peace.  Those who do not obey God will be punished. 

Job's three friends said that he must have done something wrong for God to punish him so severely.  We know now that Job was just being tested.  (Job 1:8-12 & 2:3-7)   Piety can lead to prosperity and peace.  However, occasionally some evil and wicked people will prosper for a while, but they will soon be cut down.  (Psalms 37:7-10)  If we sincerely seek God, and put Him first in our life, then He will supply all of the other things that we need, (Matthew 6:32-33), and some of the wants that our heart desires.  (Psalms 37:4)

Worship The Lord

"Jesus answered, 'It is written: Worship The Lord your God and serve Him only.' "  Luke 4:8 (NIV)

When Jesus was being tempted by Satan, one of the things that He said was that one should worship and serve only The Lord God. 

Worship is an act of ardent love, devotion, adoration, and reverent honor directed toward God.  While it can involve a physical act or action, it requires the complete involvement of mind, spirit and soul.  (John 4:24)  To worship is to give God glory.  (Psalms 29:2)  To worship we must be humble and prostrate ourselves before God, spiritually, if not also physically.  (Psalms 95:6)  We need to present ourselves as a living sacrifice to God.  (Romans 12:1)  We need to take our worship much more seriously.

Serve And Follow Christ

"Whoever serves Me must follow Me; and where I am, My servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves Me."  John 12:26 (NIV)

Near the end of His three year earthly ministry, after He rode into Jerusalem on a donkey, and after He predicted His death, Jesus then said whoever serves Him must also follow Him, and God will honor them for doing so.

In order to serve The Lord, we must believe in Him and we must follow Him.  We must follow His teaching, His principals, His example, and walk as He walked.  By doing so, we glorify Him, and for doing so, God, The Father, will confer honor upon us.  By serving Him now here on earth, one day we will be with Him in heaven.

Who Are You Trying To Please?

"Am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God?  Or am I trying to please men?  If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ."  Galatians 1:10 (NIV)

In his letter to the Galatians, the Apostle Paul asked the rhetorical question, am I trying to please men or please God?  Acknowledging that he used to try to please men, but he makes it clear that if he were still trying to please men, then he would not be a servant of Christ.

If we are honest with ourselves, we like getting the approval of our fellow man.  We do things for "show" which we feel make us look good in the eyes of men.  The problem is we cannot please man and please God at the same time.  If we would act and speak in such a way as to please God, then pleasing our mate, our boss, and our friends would be taken care of.  People who do not approve of our God pleasing behavior are probable not the kind of people that we should be associating with anyway.  The Bible says that we can't serve two masters; we can't serve God and serve man at the same time. (Matthew 6:24)  It appears that the same it true for pleasing God and man.  We must each choose who will try to please.  My suggestion is please choose wisely.

Guidelines For Christian Living

"Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves. Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving The Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Share with God's people who are in need." Romans 12:10-13 (NIV)

This was the Apostle Paul's advice to the Christians in Rome on demonstrating Christian living and brotherly love.

Paul's discourse on "brotherly love" actually begins with verse 9 and continues through verse 21. It does not matter how "good" we are, we could all improve on our Christ-like behavior. While lengthy, and fairly comprehensive, this list is not exhaustive or complete. However, living as these guidelines suggest, would provide a very good example of Christian living.

Work As If You Were Working For The Lord

"Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from The Lord as a reward. It is The Lord Christ you are serving. Anyone who does wrong will be repaid for his wrong, and there is no favoritism." Colossians 3:23-25 (NIV)

The Apostle Paul told the people that they should do their best at whatever they do, as if they were working for The Lord. His point was that ultimately they were serving The Lord.

As believers we know that non-believers will make judgements about all Christians based upon what they see in our behavior. Therefore, all of our daily activities can be viewed as kingdom building activities. So, we should always do our best at whatever we are doing, because we are a reflection of Him. In the end, He will be the one to reward us.

Continual Daily Repentance

"Therefore this is what The Lord says: 'If you repent, I will restore you that you may serve Me; if you utter worthy, not worthless, words, you will be My spokesman. Let this people turn to you, but you must not turn to them." Jeremiah 15:19 (NIV)

This was what The Lord said to the prophet Jeremiah when he questioned Him during one of his periods of self pity. Repent and I will restore you, and use you as My spokesman, and to be an example to the people.

We need to be in continual repentance daily for our sinful thoughts, words, and deeds. God will forgive us if we pray and ask for forgiveness, and if we repent and turn from our sinful ways. Our idle worthless words and our evil sinful thoughts are an abomination to God. We must repent to restore our fellowship with The Lord so that He can use us to spread His Holy Word and be an example to the people of the world.

Aim To Please God In All That You Do

"Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for The Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from The Lord as a reward. It is The Lord Christ you are serving. Anyone who does wrong will be repaid for his wrong, and there is no favoritism." Colossians 3:23-25 (NIV)

"Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, for in the grave, where you are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom ... The race is not to the swift or the battle to the strong, nor does food come to the wise or wealth to the brilliant or favor to the learned; but time and chance happen to them all. Moreover, no man knows when his hour will come: " Ecclesiastes 9:10-12 (NIV)

These two passages of scripture basically make the same point. As King Solomon wrote to all who would listen and the Apostle Paul wrote to the Christians at Colossae, when you work, "... do it with all your might ..." and "... work at it with all your heart ..." as if you are working for The Lord.

Everyone who is old enough to have even a vague understanding of life knows that they will die, they just don't know when it will happen. There is a purpose for our life, and a purpose for everything that we say and do. However, if that purpose was not to give God glory, then it was a wasted effort. We should do our best at everything that we do, because ultimately we are doing it to please God. Man's abilities do not guarantee good results or a positive outcome during life, or at life's end. In the end, God will judge our efforts, and the reward for our labor will come from God, not from man.

A Doorkeeper In The House Of The Lord

"Better is one day in Your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked. For The Lord God is a sun and shield; The Lord bestows favor and honor; no good thing does He withhold from those whose walk is blameless. O Lord Almighty, blessed is the man who trusts in You." Psalms 84:8-12 (NIV)

This Psalm by the sons of Korah, who were the gatekeepers and musicians of the temple at Jerusalem. They ask God for His favor. They clearly state that it is much better to be in God's house than anywhere else. Better to be an usher in the temple than to be with the wicked. God is their provider and protector. It is He who grants them favor and honor. God will not withhold a blessing from those who walk with Him.

Every usher in every Christian church can quote verse ten. It is an usher's creed. An usher is a humble, low level position of service in the church. Service at the lowest level in God's house is better than any position anywhere else. God provides for and protects all of us. He grants favor and honor to whom He chooses. However, He does not withhold blessings from those who are upright and walk with Him. Those who put their faith and trust in God are blessed. It is better to serve God than to serve anybody else anywhere.

We Cannot Serve Two Masters

"No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money." Matthew 6:24 (NIV)

This is part of the sermon on the mount which began in Matthew 5:1 and goes on until 7:29. Here Jesus taught that loyalty cannot be divided. One cannot be totally loyal to God and focus on earthly treasures, possessions, or wealth. According to Thomas Nelson, "Jesus was not condemning money or possessions in and of themselves, but the improper attitude of enslavement towards wealth."

We can only be a slave to one master at a time. Attempting to serve two masters will result in one of them being slighted and receiving less than our best effort. We are either a slave to God or we are a slave to something or someone else. Be very careful choosing whom you will serve, for there are eternal consequences to the selection. There is nothing wrong with having money, it is the love of money that gets us in trouble.

Be Strong And Do The Good Work

"And you, my son Solomon, acknowledge The God of your father, and serve Him with wholehearted devotion and with a willing mind, for The Lord searches every heart and understands every motive behind the thoughts. If you seek Him, He will be found by you; but if you forsake Him, He will reject you forever. Consider now, for The Lord has chosen you to build a temple as a sanctuary. Be strong and do the work." 1 Chronicles 28:9-10 (NIV)

After his many blessing and victories in the name of The Lord, King David wanted to build a temple to God to house the ark of the covenant (1 Chronicles 28: 2), which contained the stone tablets of the ten commandments. God told David that his son Solomon would build the temple. (1 Chronicles 28:3) Here David is telling Solomon to follow The Lord and do a good work. David was also talking to all of the people, "Hear me, my brethren, and my people ..." 1 Chronicles 28:2

We do not always get to do what we want or what we plan to do. Everything happens according to God's plan. We should acknowledge God and serve Him wholeheartedly and willingly. We need to be honest with ourselves and with Him, for He knows our heart, motives, and thoughts. We need to serve Him and do the good work that He has called each of us to do. We may not be charged with building a temple, but we are all charged with kingdom building here on earth.