Romans 13:8a: “Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another. . .”
Throughout the course of life in the USA, we have many financial deadlines, don't we? April 15 is one we all understand . . . but so is every month when those phone bills, car payments, house payments, etc., come piling in. Bills are a part of life in our country. But are you getting so inundated with your spending habits that you can't cover your bills?
Meditate On This!
Debt - financial as well as relational - is Satan's news! Have you been lax in paying what is your fair share of a loan in any way? God wants you to be clean in His service. Financial debt is pretty easy to understand. . .and if you are in debt - you need to do your best to get the “noose” off your neck. If your material or fleshly wants have outgrown your monthly income. . .honor God by stepping back and paying off what is needed.
Or perhaps you have promised something to someone that really was outside the realm of what God would want. Think it through. . .take the noose off. . .is there anything you owe that you need to repay or rethink?
Titus 2:3-4: "Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to much wine, but to teach what is good. Then they can train the youngerwomen to love their husbands and children. . ."
During the baseball strike some years back, players would occasionally get upset with the media and responded with "this is my private life". As much as we understand the pain of that comment, we realize that once in the public spotlight, there are very few "private" times. People want to know how you live and how you think.
The Christian life is the same way. Once we proclaim the fact that we are Christians, people will look at us. This makes it hard because we are not perfect. People have expectations of us that we cannot meet. However, we should not waiver in the way we run our lives.
Meditate On This!
Although the above scripture talks about older and younger women, it is worthy to note that Paul,s contention is that domestic behavior in the Christian community is looked upon by a pagan society! A failure of a mature, spiritual person to take responsibilities and privileges of Christendom may result in ridicule of the Word of God. Are you involved in activities that would make people question if you are a Christian? Are you involved in activities that would keep you from being a teacher of younger men or women because they don,t really believe what you say? It is a matter of integrity, men. Meditate on that one. God wants to use you in the most honoring way.
Galatians 3:24: "So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith."
In an unforgettable sermon, evangelist Fred Brown used three images to describe the purpose of a law.
1) He likened it to the dentists little mirror, which he sticks into the patients mouth. With the mirror he can detect any cavities. But he doesnt drill with it or use it to pull teeth. It can show him the decay areas or other abnormalities, but it cant provide the solution.
2) He said the law is like a flashlight. If suddenly at night the lights go out, you use it to guide you down the darkened basement stairs to the electrical box. When you point it toward the fuses, it helps you see the one that is burnt out. But after you have removed the bad fuse, you dont try to Insert the flashlight in its place. You put a new fuse to restore the electricity.
3) Brown likened the law to a plumb line. When a builder wants to check his work, he uses a weighted string to see if it is true to the vertical. But if he finds that he has made a mistake, he doesnt use the plumb line to correct it. He gets out his hammer and saw.
Meditate On This!
Although we live in an age of grace, realize that the law was put there for a reason. There is not much else I can add to what was said by Fred Brown above. This week, meditate on what the Ten Commandments in particular mean in your life. Are they really something that you are using as a tool to understand Gods will, or are you afraid of them? They are there as a guide.
