This Is Job For…?

With a meteorite heading to earth and no one to help, you might here the phrase, “This is a job for Superman!”  Then ‘faster than a speeding bullet’, and out from behind the clouds comes the DC comic hero to save the day.  But even supermanwithout an asteroid heading our way, we still have troubles to deal with and issues we must face.  Who comes to the rescue then?  Here ‘in the real world’ we have things that need to get done.  We say, this is a job for ____________.  When the job (big or small) needs to be done and the only ‘super man’ around isn’t able to ‘leap tall buildings’…what do you do?

Some might say, ‘Anybody can do that, it’s not too hard,’ but when it comes time to do the job we are often looking around for Superman.  Some have been heard to say, “I would but…”  The fact of the matter remains, there is work to be done and a worker needs to do it.  It’s almost as if folks are afraid they’ll be asked to save the planet.  In reality, we just need workers.  Letting the Bible speak (I Cor. 6;9), we can hear God calling us to work “…for we are God’s fellow workers…”.  Also Matthew and Mark both refer to labors in the kingdom (vineyard).  We have work to do, no doubt.  The question remains, who will do the work?

Keith Lancaster’s, Acappella made famous a song that epitomizes many in today’s society.  When a task is to be done you might hear someone say, ‘Anybody could do that…somebody should do that…will anybody do it?’  Unfortunately the response is usually, ‘I would but I’m too busy.’

‘Everybody Said (But Nobody Did)’

CHORUS:
Everybody said that anybody could do The important things somebody should do Everybody knows that anybody could do All the good things that nobody did

1) Well the preacher came to me and said what I ought to do If I wanted to make my religion true He’d do it himself but he really didn’t have the time He said that the duty was mine

 CHORUS:

2) Well the deacon came by and said give me a hand If you want to be going to the promised land Here is something that I don’t have time to do So I better give it to you
CHORUS:

Well I’m too busy so I tell everybody The work’s got to get done by somebody It could be done by anybody But nobody, nobody, nobody didBe Your Best

 

Earth hangs in the balance, between life and death.  There’s no rocket of destruction or asteroid headed our way, but we do hang in the balance between good and evil.  Imagine if Clark Kent had observed the threat and said, “That looks like trouble, maybe somebody should do something.”  You might not be a ‘super man’, but you are somebody who can make a difference.  Besides, it just might be that the next task is a job for you.

 

Lessons from a Pulpit

Pedestal PulpitFor those ‘church going’ folks, you know what the pulpit is.  You’ve seen one almost every Sunday morning, and you know the preacher (most of the time) stands behind it to deliver a message for the word of God.

But sadly enough there are times when the message (the sermon) fails to live up to the position the pulpit represents.   There are some who preach without the strength of understand and the conviction of word.  Too many ‘softballs’ are lobbed out to the congregation making them feel secure, pacified and justified in their day-to-day activities.  (Waterview church of Christ is the exception; Robert Oglesby’s Bible strong lessons challenge the status quo.)  Still ask yourself, are the sermons you hear each week solid or soft.  Will you hear a forward condemnation toward drunkenness, or quiet acceptance to social drinking?  Do the sermons admonish the ladies to practice modesty, or are we fine with short skirts and tight tops?  Are we concerned about the activities that accompany Prom Night?  Or is that just ‘a right of passage’ for our young men and women?  Are these activities (and others like them) discouraged from the pulpit?

Maybe, if we could have ‘seen’ the sermon 2000 years ago that held a crowd spell-bound for more than 6-hours we would understand what’s important in the walk with Christ.  (Mark 15:25 we read, “It was about the third hour (9:00AM) when they crucified Him.”  Then again in Luke 23:44-46 we notice, “It was about the sixth hour (noon), and darkness fell over the whole land until the ninth hour (3:00PM), because the sun was obscured; and the crucifixion of Jesusveil of the temple was torn in two.  And Jesus, crying out in a loud voice, said, “Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit.”  Having said this, He breathed His last.”)

For six hours (9:00 in the morning till 3:00 in the afternoon) people stood and watched the Savior die.  Some passed by shaking their heads (Mark 15:29) while others, rulers and soldiers included, stood looking and listen to the lesson from our Lord.  We remember the short statements He made while on the cross; “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.”, “Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise.”, “Woman, behold your son.”, “I thirst.” , “It is finished!” and several other short proclamations.  But what lesson was taught on this dark day in Jerusalem over 2000 years ago?  What life altering lesson can I learn from this sermon of all sermons?

The group Acapella recorded a song entitle, There Never was a Pulpit Like the Cross.  As you listen to this song consider the message that came on Calvary.  What was the crowd hearing on that dread day as Jesus was crucified for the sins of all mankind?  If it’s been a while since you’ve read the account of Christ death, burial and resurrection I encourage you to read it again.  Listen to the sermon that Jesus preaches as He hangs on the cross for man’s redemption.

1) Jesus climbed the hill of Calvary
And they nailed Him on a cross
Though He had no sin my friend, like me and you
He submitted like a gentle lamb and let them nail Him there
And prayed “Forgive them, for they know not what they do”
Chorus:
Oh, there never was a pulpit like the old rugged cross
And there never was such a meeting place as Calvary
There never was a greater lesson preached on love by mortal man
And there never was a pulpit like the cross

2) What a crowd was gathered on the hill of Calvary that day
Not long before Christ’s victory was won
As His own mother watched and wept beside a friend whom Jesus loved
Christ said, “Dear mother, when I’m gone, he’ll be your son”
Chorus

3) A guilty man was hanging on another cross that daytheif on the cross
Convicted of some thievery, his sin
And suff’ring Jesus saw some good in him and he forgave that man
And said, “Today, into My Heaven enter in”
Chorus

4) As you sit and pray in comfort, and in finery adorned
Without a thought of shame, regret, or loss
Just think of Jesus on that hill in pain, to awful to be born
And remember that old pulpit called the cross
Chorus

No, there never was a pulpit like the cross

Growing Up…in the Lord!

Daddys-shoesPerhaps you’ve been asked the question, “What do you want to be when you grow up?”  Little children are often asked this question and the response can be interesting…if not a little comical.

Some little boys might reply with, “When I grow up I want to be a fireman.”  In the 70’s it was not uncommon to hear younger boys say they wanted to be an astronaut or a policeman or maybe even president.  Actually, growing up in my ‘neck of the woods’, we all wanted to be cowboys when we grew up.  If you were to ask the ladies, their response might not be much different.  They too have dream of tomorrow with aspirations of what their life will be like.  One little girl once told her parents, “When I grow up I want to be a mommy.”  We consider our future and wonder what we’ll do tomorrow.  As we plan for the unknown, most truly wonder what they will do as they reach that level of accountability.  Where will I work, where will I live, what will I become when… ‘I grow up.’

As a junior in college (many years ago), I had my mind set on teaching.  I loved every aspect of working with younger minds and imparting some obscure nugget of reason.  The responsibility of molding and directing the hearts and minds of children was a challenge I eagerly embraced.  However, almost 30 years later, time and circumstances have had a way of altering my path.  Though I’m no longer an ‘educator’ by trade, my profession remains the same.  I love working with people as they mature and grow stronger.  Only today, it’s more of a spiritual growth that I seek to inspire in those who come into my ‘classroom’ of life.

But what about you?  As you read this you may be a long time business man (or woman) who has been in the work force for years.  Or you might be a young college student still trying to settle your mind on a degree.  Some reading this might be retired and still wondering, “What will I be when I grow up?”  What ever your station in life, however far you have gone or still have to go, think about making your life more than just a career, a ‘job’, that you do.  The apostle Paul wrote an admonition to the young preacher Timothy, “…be sober in all things, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.” II Tim. 4:5  Could you really be an evangelist?  Is ministry really your calling? Let me encourage you to do more than just consider it…make that your priority.  Know that I am not promoting that you quit your job or drop out of school, but I do think we all need to change our thinking when it comes to what is most important in life.  You work to make a living, so you can pay the bills, so you can live your life.  But life won’t be worth the living if you don’t live it for God.  Where does He fit into your career and your future plans? Does God figure into life at all?

Regardless your degree (college students) or your career I hope we will all realize that in the Lord’s church, we are all called to ‘minister’ to a lost and dying world (Matthew 28).  Everything else is temporary.  Classes, projects, responsibilities to your employer are important, but God’s desire for you to work in the fold should supersede all that.  Work hard and fulfill your obligations for the task at hand, but ask yourself…what will I really be when I grow up?

A Cappella, directed by Keith Lancaster, sings a song about this every issue.  Would that we make God our number one objective and teach that to our children.  Does the world know who you are or are they still waiting to see what you’ll be ‘when you grow up.’ Trusting like a Child

“Growing up in the Lord” [LINK]

Chorus:
I’m growin’ up in the Lord.
Oh I’m gettin’ stronger; turnin’ back no longer:

I’m growin’ up in the Lord…I’m growin’ up in the Lord.

I make mistakes but that’s part of growin’ up.
Part of growin’ up in the Lord.
His understanding is what I need the most,
I am staying close to His word.

Sheltered from harm when I am safe in his arms
And I am learning to do His will.
Hearing his call although I stumble and fall. I can get up and keep growing still.

Repeat Chorus

Now as I’m growin’ I’m learning what to say, Learning how to walk in the light.
I’m made aware of the devil every day Learning how to handle the fight.

Tempted by wrong, He keeps me ready and strong So I can handle the Tempter’s snare.
Jesus is mine and since he’s there all the time I am protected within His care

Repeat Chorus