The Lord blessed us with a wonderful Wednesday
Evening gathering of sweet fellowship and thought provoking Bible Study. We had
some torrential rains in the evening, but several vegetable plants in our garden
are loving the rain. The tomatoes are blossoming already. We have several
peppers almost ready to be harvested. The fruit trees, such as pears, peaches,
and plums, are luxuriant. The Church grounds look extreme green and luscious.
Praise be to Jesus. He makes all things glorious and beautiful in His
time.
Praise the Lord for the World Cup. Almost
half of the world is watching. Our son-in-law Andy is an ardent fan of soccer.
He is watching the world cup religiously. Paul frequently illustrated the
Christian life with references to first-century athletic events. He talked
about "fighting the good fight." He referred to himself as one who had "run the
race" and was close to finishing the course. He lived in a world of chariot
racing, boxing matches, and even gladiatorial fights. He knew what was involved
in the Olympic Games, and was familiar with the long-distance run known as the
marathon. Paul never used images of the race to tell people how to be saved
but, rather, used athletic analogy to encourage Christians as to how to live the
Christian life. In order to be a contestant in the Greek games, one first had
to be a citizen. As citizens of heaven, through our faith in Jesus Christ, we
are set on our course, and we run to win the prize of the upward calling of God
in Christ Jesus. We are not running in order to be saved. We run because we
are already saved.
Paul's analogy is not only that of the
long-distance marathon; it also refers to the shorter races within the arena, in
which each runner was to stay in his assigned lane. Occasionally, runners would
cut in on their competitors to try to get them off course. Then he shifted analogies to the culinary world as he
referred to yeast. Throughout the Old Testament, yeast is used as a symbol of
evil. A little bit of yeast grows and ultimately takes over, in a positive way,
the baking of certain kinds of bread. Passover bread was to be unleavened,
containing no yeast. Paul was saying that a little bit of wickedness can
grow very quickly.
Hebrews 12:1-3 gives encouragement and
inspiration to us: "Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of
witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily
entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us
fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy
set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right
hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful
men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart."
In Christ,
Brown
http://youtu.be/CSav51fVlKU
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