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Tag Archives: loyalty

The Uprooted Plant

05 Monday Oct 2015

Posted by Ron Thomas in Uncategorized

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

blind, faithfulness, house, loyalty, plant, roots

In last week’s bulletin it was mentioned that if the Lord did not plant the seed of His word into the heart of man, then the seed planted into man’s heart will be rooted up (Matthew 15:13). In Isaiah 30 there is something of the same with the following words, “‘Ah, stubborn children,” declares the LORD, ‘who carry out a plan, but not mine, and who make an alliance, but not of my Spirit, that they may add sin to sin’” (30:1, ESV). The context is the Lord’s rebuke, through Isaiah, to a people determined to align themselves with Egypt, a false strength, but they do so without any counsel from the Lord. Of course, to seek counsel from the Lord in such matters would have been a denial of the request, and the people desiring Egypt simply was not interested in that!

The rebellion of the people was strong; thus, any attempt to dissuade from a disastrous path was going to be mighty difficult. What made it so difficult was the preaching of the false prophets, and the hearing of the falsely-interested-in-the-Lord’s-way people. “For they are a rebellious people, lying children, children unwilling to hear the instruction of the LORD; who say to the seers, ‘Do not see,’ and to the prophets, ‘Do not prophesy to us what is right; speak to us smooth things, prophesy illusions, leave the way, turn aside from the path, let us hear no more about the Holy One of Israel’” (30:9-11, ESV)

In our day it is this way also. So insistent are some at wanting to alter the Lord’s way that they will go to great lengths at manipulation to accomplish their desire. For some, it does not matter what the Holy Spirit said, “It only matter what I think!” Let me give a for instance. The Holy Spirit, through Paul, stated plainly that women are not to teach in a mixed assembly of both Christian men and women (1 Timothy 2:8-15). One brother said this is not the case; all that needs to be done is for her to be trained and taught in matters pertaining to the Lord.

The only way she can be trained and taught to teach is an assembly of the saints gather is for her (or her teacher) to have a higher authority than the Lord! Do you know of one? I do not either. In fact, the One spurned for culture’s sake is the One who judges because of His own sake. Yes, she has to be trained to move away from the Lord and into the arms of Satan.

Brethren, do not associate with those who alter the Lord’s way. The blind that lead the blind – both fall into the ditch (Matthew 15:14). RT

 

Difficult, But Not Difficult

22 Wednesday Apr 2015

Posted by Ron Thomas in Uncategorized

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Tags

choices, loyalty

It is a fact beyond dispute that some people who call themselves Christians have failed to really understand exactly what is expected of them. In some areas of life, this is little difficulty in understanding, but in other areas of life there is no real understanding at all. “For I have come to set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law, and a man’s enemies will be the members of his household. Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. And whoever does not take up his cross and follow me is not worthy of me” (Matthew 10:35-38, NET). There is nothing difficult to understand about what this passage teaches, but there is much that is telling when Christians refuse to choose Christ over one’s family. Do they think, in the end, this will be pleasing to the Lord? It is evident that some do, but therein lays the difficulty.

Pilate’s Tough Spot

20 Thursday Mar 2014

Posted by Ron Thomas in Behavior, history, Jesus, Leadership

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Tags

crucifixion, loyalty, Pilate, politics, Rome, tough spot

The Bible does not paint Pilate in a very good light. There is, of course, good reason for this. He was Rome’s representative in Judea, administering Roman justice to a people in constant turmoil because of Rome’s presence. Moreover, the name “Pilate” has gone down in history as an infamous name, one that will always be tied to the crucifixion of Jesus.

In John 19 the tough spot Pilate was in was how best to deal with a crowd that had the single interest of killing an innocent man (19:6), and for him to maintain loyalty to Rome. The crowd did not originate this desire of theirs to kill Jesus (cf. Acts 19:32); rather, they were complicit with those who did originate the desire (Matthew 27:20; cf. John 12:19; 11:45-50). Pilate knew this (Matthew 27:18), and desiring to satisfy the crowd he gave Jesus over to their will (Mark 15:10-15).

Pilate was in a tough spot, don’t you think? Not really. He knew Jesus was innocent of the charges leveled against him. Knowing this and allowing justice to hold sway meant that he was not in a tough spot at all. Pilate’s way of thinking, however, was not one that allowed justice to hold sway; what did hold sway was his political fortunes. Because that was his priority the Jews had him over a barrel (as the saying goes). Pilate knew this and turned it around on them. Pilate cried out: “What shall I do with your King?” They replied, “We have no king but Caesar!” (John 19:14-16). What Pilate had just accomplished, unbeknownst to the Jews at the time, was to make the Jews succumb (worship) to the emperor of Rome. More than that, however, even in their denial that Jesus was their king, the Roman administrator, made it a point to label Jesus as their king with the sign he nailed on the wood (John 19:17-22). Pilate was in a tough spot; our tough spots don’t have to be so dramatic if we allow God’s justice to hold sway in our lives. Surely, we don’t want “Pilate” to accomplish the same with us, do we?

 

Loyalty Vindicated

23 Thursday Jan 2014

Posted by Ron Thomas in Faithfulness

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Tags

Daniel, loyalty, vindication

In Daniel 6, the prophet Daniel was challenged in his later years. It has been suggested that Daniel would have been over 80 years of age at that time. Daniel was a man in foreign captivity because the Lord placed him there; he had a challenge given to him concerning his loyalty. Whatever difficulty he might have experienced—and you know he did—his loyalty to the local government and to the Lord God was never in doubt. When doubt was thrust before him, the choice was easy, he chose God. God vindicated Daniel for his loyalty.

Religious Loyalty and Commitment

02 Monday Dec 2013

Posted by Ron Thomas in Uncategorized

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Tags

church, commitment, loyalty, persecution, trial

When the apostle Paul was being prosecuted (Acts 23) by those in authority, it did not take long before Paul took advantage of the situation to bring the “trial” to a stand-still. He noticed the divided loyalty that existed amongst those  persecuting him for the cause of Christ. Taking advantage of the situation that he knew was nothing more than a farce he threw the proceedings into confusion by bringing his own religious heritage into the discussion. Those of a similar persuasion then set themselves to defend their own honor by defending Paul against a contrary persuasion (the Sadducees). For many, religious loyalty is still like that today; there is more commitment to one’s own honor than to the Lord’s way of righteousness. RT

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