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15 Aloha, Practice these Principals in all of our affairs - Isaiah 61:1 -- 09-22-05
Dear Bernlda and Everyone I Know,
Greetings in the name of Christ Jesus. Thank you for the ecard. Thank you for sharing such a powerful message from God.
Isaiah 61:1 (New Living Translation)
The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is upon me, because the LORD has appointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to comfort the brokenhearted and to announce that captives will be released and prisoners will be freed.
This reminds me of the twelfth step, having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to others and to practice these principles in all our affairs.
A life set free from all addictions by the Lord is a beautiful sight to behold. When we practice these principles and share our experiences, people will see the glory of God in our life and gain hope. We know from experience the depths of suffering, pain of being enslaved to our passions and blinded by our denial. We have endured our seasons of grieving. We can relate to those who struggle to be free. We also know that there is more to life than bondage. In Christ are healing and freedom, clarity and mercy, beauty and joy.
When Jesus came to earth, He had a mission, which was expressed in these words shown above.
This mission has been passed to us. Some people talk about "preaching the gospel" but may alienate those who need the Good News the most. We are in a unique position to share our experiences, our strength, and our hope in a way that broken people can understand and receive it.
As I continue to read this chapter, the Lord leads me to understand that God promised rebuilding, prosperity, ministry, and honor to the people of Israel. God promises these same things, through in different forms, to all His children, Jew or Gentile. He wants to rebuild our broken lives, make us spiritually prosperous, give our life significance through ministry to others, and fill us with honor through His love and grace.
God bless you and your family.
Your brother in Christ,
Bob Erb @ www.liferecoveryministry.org
Hi, benilda albelo frias stopped by my site, VIRTUAL CHRISTIAN CENTER and created a Virtual Card just for you! To pick up your card, simply point your browser at the page listed below. http://www.virtualchristiancenter.com/scripturecards/sep21-3346531920.html The card will remain on the server for about one week, so please print it out or save it as soon as you can. xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
14 Aloha, HOW GOD WORKS FOR US Gideon in Judges 6-8 09-21-06Dear Kingsley and Everyone I Know,
Greetings in the name of Christ Jesus. One of the Christian ministries sent me some information about how God works for us. It focused on Gideon, and so God seems to be leading me to show me how that story might be applied to those of us who are going through some type of recovery or significant life changing experience. I was also reminded by some others by my own generational challenges.
God works for us, just as He did over 3200 years ago as described in the book of Judges about Gideon. That book seems to show those of us in a 12 step program how tragic an incomplete recovery program can be and how dysfunctional patterns tend to continue from one generation to the next. And to show how God is ready to lift us up when we look to Him for help.
The conquest of the Promised Land under Joshua had been a miraculous success. It wasnt long, however, before the people forgot what had made it all possible faith in God and obedience to His commands. They became trapped in a spiritual cycle from falling into sin, enslaved by an oppressor, crying out to God for help, and then, God sent a leader (or judge) to deliver them. Maybe some pastors are sharing a message here to deliver us. At the end of each painful round, there was a temporary period of faithfulness and stability. But soon, most of the people slipped back into the same vicious cycle of relapse.
The book of Judges shows what happens to a society when its citizens do whatever they choose. The people of Israel refused to learn from their past mistakes. They blinded themselves to the needs of others and to the commands of God. As a result, they became trapped by their individual delusions and brought suffering on themselves and the people around them. They refused to follow the path to freedom by obeying Gods program for righteous and healthy living. Doing things our way still leads to enslavement and suffering; following Gods program is the only path to freedom. Let us learn from Israels mistakes. We would be wise to note that Israels failures often came after great victories. Success is sometimes the first step toward a fall. We must humbly take inventory of our activities and relationships, keeping our eyes on God and obeying His will for us. But when we do fail, we can be sure that God will listen to our cries for help. Maybe New Orleans is crying out for help. He wants to deliver us once again.
Most of the story of Gideon is told in chapters 6 and 7 in the book of Judges, before Saul, David and Solomon became kings of Israel. There was a span of about 400 years where the 12 tribes of Jacob (Israel) did not trust putting their leadership in the hands of a king after Moses died and Joshua led them to capture what is now Israel. Several leaders came to surface as described in the Book of Judges. One of them was a person who worked on the farm that God transformed into one of the Israelites great leaders.
In times of trouble, we often search for the thunder and lightning of Gods voice and direction. Mistakenly, we think that God will provide us with the solution we seek in some spectacular way. The truth of the matter is that the answer often lies within us.
Gideon struggled in his commitment to God. Day in and day out he sought food and shelter for his family in a land constantly raided by hostile invaders. Gideon was under extreme pressure to remain resourceful in the face of his enemies. His deliverance came in an unexpected way.
God called Gideon to deliver the Israelites from the rule of their oppressors. Like many of us, Gideon felt inadequate in the face of a great task. He obeyed, but his doubts kept him dragging his feet. He waited time and again for confirmation of what God had already told him to do.
Many of us feel week and thing we are a failure. We question Gods interest in our life or our situation. Just as Gideon already had the talents and resourcefulness that God needed, often we already have within us what God needs to overcome our obstacles. Even when our faith wavers, God empowers us as we act.
6;11-15 Gideon responded to the angles message with little faith or hope. He was so used to the oppression of the Midianites that he had little confidence that things could ever be any different. Not only did Gideon view himself as weak and insignificant, he also viewed God with distrust as being unfaithful to his covenant people. This is a typical response of a person trying to cope with terrible circumstances. We become so worn down by continuous pain that we lose hope of ever breaking free. We are deeply aware of our helplessness. But this is the starting point fo recovery. Gideon had admitted that he was helpless; now he only needed to discover that God was able to deliver him.
6:22-40 Gideons responses to God alternated between faith and fear. It took courage to build the altars to God and to tear down the altar to Baal. He also blew the trumpet of assembly for those who would fight for God. Yet his fears limited him to destroying the place of idol worship in the middle of the night and questioning Gods leadership (as seen in the fleece incident). Similarly many of us use any excuse we can think of to not face what we fear. Fear is healthy; it can warn us of dangers and prompt us to be careful. But it should not stop us from doing what we know is right.
7:4-7 In further streamlining the fighting force from ten thousand to three hundred, God demonstrated to Gideon that He was looking for men who most consistently faced the reality of their present circumstances, keeping watch for the enemy while drinking. Facing the present reality is crucial to success in the recovery process. If we are constantly in touch with reality, we will not fall victim to sneak attacks we will expect struggles with temptation. We can only combat our problems when we remain alert.
7:8-25 We may begin to believe that we are destined to bondage, poverty, and failure. When we persist in this view of our life, we give up the possibility of change. We settle for just trying to survive. We live in fear and shame, filling up with resentment as our life remains in the pit. We need to overcome these kinds of negative assumptions about ourselves.
Our first impression of Gideon is of a discouraged young man with little self-respect. His family was the poorest in a small tribe, and he was the least in his family. We first see him as he was threshing wheat in a winepress, hiding the little grain he had from his Midianite oppressors. An angel appeared and called to him, "Mighty hero, the LORD is with you!" Gideon didnt look or feel like a mighty hero, but God could see his potential. By the end of the story, Gideon had become the deliverer of his people. His first step toward success was to see himself as God saw him a mighty warrior. Then he was able to hope in the possibility of freedom.
We, too, must begin by finding the courage to see ourselves in a new light and to summon up hope for a better life. Then as God gives us the strength we can set about pursuing freedom from the bondage that surround us and our family.
7:24-8:3 Gideons patient handling of the temperamental Ephraimite leaders reflect a great deal of progress in overcoming his feelings of power inadequacy. In contrast to the anger of Ephraims leaders, Gideon displayed great self-control and wisdom as a leader. He was willing to go to great lengths to set things straight. Self-control and wisdom are important elements of the recovery process.
8:4:21 This pursuit and execution of the Midianite kings are a striking example of perseverance on Gideons part. In clear contrast to the tribes of Israel who had failed to finish the job of driving out the Canaanites, Gideon continued until the Midianite forces were completely defeated. He reversed the previous oppressive situation completely, opening the doorway to a new life of freedom for Israel. We should follow Gideons example, doing all we can to escape oppression from our dependencies. God will help us to accomplish this; then He will help us goon to build a new life.
8:22-35 Once again the Israelites turned form the true God and worshipped idols. The special golden vest Gideon made to commemorate the defeat of the Midianites was soon worshiped by the people. And Later, after Gideons death, the Israelites went back to worshiping Baal and Baal-berith. The people still did not recognize the cycle of disobedience and oppression. We must not be like the Israelites but should learn form our past experiences. When tempted to return to old addictions, we need to remember the consequences of those behaviors and persevere in recovery.
I know I could go on and on about how God is working for us. God bless you and your family.
Your brother in Christ, Bob Erb @ www.liferecoveryministry.org, www.boberb.com, www.waikikibeachoutreach.com and other links they provide.
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13. Aloha, Working for God or for Self - 2 Corinthians 9-11 -- 09-19-05 Dear Vinay and Everyone I Know,
Greetings in the name of Christ Jesus. Thank you for your response. Thank you for your words of encouragement. Thank you for sharing a part of your life and ministry. Thank you for expressing your love and confidence in God. Mostly, thank you for your prayers. Thank you for sharing the Word of God.
I will continue to pray for God's guidance in your life. Your words have inspired me to study God's Word and to share what He is showing me.
2 Corinthians 9:8 (New Living Translation)
And God will generously provide all you need. Then you will always have everything you need and plenty left over to share with others.
The more spiritual seeds we plant by generously helping others, the greater will be our harvest of spiritual fruit. god never forces us to give; He wants us to give with willing hearts. God is only interested in what we DO; He is also interested in the attitudes and motives behind our ACTIONS. Some of us may feel that we don't have much to offer people in need. Our life may be in ruins; we may have gone into debt to support destructive habits. But even if we have nothing else to give, we can share our story of how God gave us a second chance. As little as this may seem to us, it may be the gift of life to someone in the throes of an addiction.
As Paul continues in the remaining chapters to this little church in the midst of a sinful city in Greece, similar to New Orleans, he expresses the suffering he had to encounter to love Christ that ensured him of love, joy and peace, even when in pain and in jail.
From a recovery perspective, it is illuminating to note that Paul had set limits on his ministry based on his understanding of God's will for him. Our recovery activities also need to be in line with God's plan. We must concentrate our limiting energy on priorities that reflect God's will. Paul was sensitive to God's will for his life, and he was confident that his leadership over the Corinthian church was a part of that plan. We can be sure that recovery is part of God's plan for us. We need to learn what activities He wants us to be involved in on a daily basis. Insight concerning God's will for us is likely to come through prayer, study of the Scriptures, the help of godly friends, or the guidance from the Holy Spirit.
Paul was worried that the Corinthian believers would replace their faith in Jesus with a false faith (money and lust)/ Corinth was a cosmopolitan city; numerous pagan religions and cults were practices there. Paul also was concerned because rejecting Christ would lead to painful consequences. Believers might reject the abundant life offered by Jesus Christ for lives of ultimate disaster. We also live in a world of multiple religions; recovery programs can be found that represent most of them. But true recovery is possible only through the work of Jesus Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit (based upon my own experiences). Rejecting the hope offered in Christ is rejecting the only real power available for recovery and dealing with significant life changing experiences. Looking to any other power will lead to disappointment and failure.
The Corinthian believers had apparently rejected Paul's teachings in order to follow a number of false teachers who had twisted the Christian message. These false leaders were probably Judaizers who taught that salvation came through faith in Christ plus adherence to the Jewish law. Sometimes we are tempted to follow the same heresy. We want to earn our life and recovery by working hard. This approach, however, is powerless over our dependency. We need God's help. Paul made it clear in all of his letters that salvation is a free gift, paid for by the sacrificial work of Jesus Christ. Without God, we are helpless against the power of sin in our life. But, with His help, we can overcome our dependency.
Paul demonstrated his commitment to Jesus Christ by listing the tremendous hardships he had suffered. If nothing else, such ongoing mistreatment, deprivation, and the burden of his ministry responsibility revealed his perseverance. Paul was definitely no fair weather minister or friend. If we display the kind of commitment to recovery that Paul had for his ministry, we will receive the same kind of powerful help that Paul experienced in his service for Christ.
Paul's "boasting" was not intended to make him look better than he really was. He boasted about his weakness so Christ could work through him. Even though the apostle told of his incredible vision of heaven, he quickly admitted his own weaknesses. He recounted how he sensed God's grace even thought his chronic physical suffering and spiritual warfare. Paul honestly assessed his life, recognizing both his strengths and weaknesses. Then he accepted and received the power that God offers to all who look to Him. Paul is a good model for us to follow. When we make an honest assessment of our life and learn to depend upon God's infinite resources, we will make significant progress in recovery and dealing with significant life changing experiences.
Acts 20:33-35
(33) "I have never coveted anyone's money or fine clothing. (34) You know that these hands of mine have worked to pay my own way, and I have even supplied the needs of those who were with me. (35) And I have been a constant example of how you can help the poor by working hard. You should remember the words of the Lord Jesus: `It is more blessed to give than to receive.' "
As Paul met with the Ephesian elders, he told them of his plans to return to Jerusalem. Paul sensed a clear leading by the Holy Spirit and was determined to follow it. Apparently, Paul was aware that God's plan would lead him through difficult circumstances. Yet he felt compelled to do the work God assigned him. Following God's will in recovery is not easy. Sometimes it leads to loneliness and loss. Sometimes it causes conflict with out friends and family. Even though following God's will can be hard at times, it is always the best way. Paul's example encourages us to pray for clear knowledge of God's will and the power to obey it.
If the Holy Ghost has made ministers overseers of the flock, that is, shepherds, they must be true to their trust. Let us consider our Master's concern for the flock committed to our charge. It is the church He has purchased with his own blood. The blood was His as Man; yet so close is the union between the Divine and human nature, that it is there called the blood of God, for it was the blood of Him who is God. This put such dignity and worth into it, as to ransom believers from all evil, and purchase all good. Paul spake about their souls with affection and concern. They were full of care what would become of them. Paul directs them to look up to God with faith, and commends them to the word of God's grace, not only as the foundation of their hope and the fountain of their joy, but as the rule of their walking. The most advanced Christians are capable of growing, and will find the word of grace help our growth. As those cannot be welcome guests to the holy God who are unsanctified; so heaven would be no heaven to them; but to all who are born again, and on whom the image of God is renewed, it is sure, as almighty power and eternal truth make it so. He recommends himself to them as an example of not caring as to things of the present world; this they would find help forward their comfortable passage through it. It might seem a hard saying, therefore Paul adds to it a saying of their Master's, which he would have them always remember; "It is more blessed to give than to receive:" it seems they were words often used to His disciples. The opinion of the children of this world, is contrary to this; we are afraid of giving, unless in hope of getting. Clear gain, is with many of us the most blessed thing that can be; but Christ tell us what is more blessed, more excellent. It makes us more like to God, who gives to all, and receives from none; and to the Lord Jesus, who went about doing good. This mind was in Christ Jesus, may it be in us also. It is good for friends, when they part, to part with prayer. Those who exhort and pray for one another, may have many weeping seasons and painful separations, but we will meet before the throne of God, to part no more. It was a comfort to all, that the presence of Christ both went with Him and stayed with us.
God bless you and your family.
Your brother in Christ,
. xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx 12. Aloha, Discouragement to JOY - Psalm 43:5 -- 09-15-05
Dear Esta and Everyone I Know,
Greetings in the name of Christ Jesus. Thank you for sharing your understanding of being a garbage throw away.
I hope the web site describes the pain that I had felt and the great joy I now have as I have turned to Him and His Word. Thank you for sharing the Word of God.
Psalm 43:5 (New Living Translation)
Why am I discouraged?
Why so sad? I will put my hope in God! I will praise him again-- my Savior and my God! As we work through the recovery process, those who are ungodly may treat us unfaily. During such time we must look to God, our only dependable source of strength and encouragement. As we turn our life over to Him and seek His wisdom and strength, we will find the help we need. We must learn, as the psalmest did, to find strength by reading God's Word and allowing Him to restore our joy. As our relationship with God grows stronger, we will discover the means for reconciling our broken relationships.
God bless you and your family.
Your brother in Christ,
Bob Erb @ www.liferecoveryministry.org
Esta Lake <estalake@yahoo.com> wrote:
11. Aloha, The Arrogant are blessed? Malachi 3:13-16 -- 09-15-05 Dear Everyone I Know,
Greetings in the name of Christ Jesus. God seemed to lead me to the last book of the Old Testament today. So, I will again share what He seems to be showing me, and maybe someone else will also understand.
Malachi 3:13-16 (New Living Translation) (13) "You have said terrible things about me," says the LORD. "But you say, `What do you mean? How have we spoken against you?' (14) "You have said, `What's the use of serving God? What have we gained by obeying his commands or by trying to show the LORD Almighty that we are sorry for our sins? (15) From now on we will say, "Blessed are the arrogant." For those who do evil get rich, and those who dare God to punish them go free of harm.' " (16) Then those who feared the LORD spoke with each other, and the LORD listened to what they said. In his presence, a scroll of remembrance was written to record the names of those who feared him and loved to think about him.
When recovery involves only changes in external behavioral without internal change, there is the constant threat of relapse. This seemed to be the case with the people in Jerusalem. Under Nehemiahs leadership, the people had rebuilt the walls of the city and their lives. But when Nehemiah returned to Persia, all the excellent activities and attitudes that he had fostered in the people disappeared. Malachi wrote this about 420 years before the birth of Christ Jesus. This is the last book of the Old Testament.
Malachi preached to a nation of backsliders people who had relapsed. Even the spiritual leaders had fallen into old, sinful patterns. As a result, they were suffering the consequences of economic depression, poor crops, and attacks of foreign marauders. Family life had dissolved, and divorce was rampant. The peoples religious lives were cold and empty.
Malachi gave a message of hope to a nation that knew repeated failure. After being restored to their homeland, the Jews had forgotten the One who had delivered them. We tend to make the same mistakes. As soon as we overcome our pressing problem, we forget the One who helped us escape God. Without a continued relationship with God, our hope of sustaining recovery is slim at best. We need to keep our eyes on God, the source and means for success in recovery.
Although Malachi presented a long list of the peoples sins, woven throughout his words of judgment is a clear message of hope and forgiveness. As the final book of the Old Testament, Malachi forms a bridge with the New Testament with its promise of the coming of another prophet like Elijah. This promise was fulfilled in the coming of John the Baptist, who prepared the way for the Messiah Jesus Christ. With God, there is always hope! The Lords Promise of MercyMalachi wrote in Judea between the return from Babylon and Christ's birth. During that period God's people had grown lackadaisical in their worship, yet a faithful few remained.
"'Your words have been harsh against Me,' says the LORD." God accuses them of calling Him into account for what was happening within the nation. They were experiencing difficult times, just as the people of God have frequently endured difficult times. These are times when we cry out to God, "Why, God? Why are you allowing this to happen? When are you going to intervene?" but He does not seem to be listening. "Yet you say, 'What have we spoken against You?'" They did not feel that their accusations were against God, but He gives them an example.
The faithful can see that these others are not very godly. Maybe they see that "the proud" are sinning openly, breaking the commandments of God. Maybe the proud do not have a submissive, quiet, and gentle spirit. Maybe they are aggressive and assertive, and they maneuvered themselves to the head of the group. And they seemed to be getting away with it!
Notice what these faithful people did in response to the difficult times they were enduring as part of the partnership. All of God's faithful people should do these things:
1). They feared God. They respected and revered Him. They stood in awe of Him. Some may have even felt an appropriate measure of terror.
2). They thought on His name. They meditated on it. It can suggest that they esteemed His name. They spoke highly of it. They honored Him. They looked to Him, though they were complaining for leadership and guidance. His name, of course, stands for everything that He is. He does not have just one name, He has many names. They show, or advertise, what He is, what He will do, and what He requires.
3). They fellowshipped with one another. No doubt they spoke of their trials and their blessings, about the things that were going on in the partnership of that day, of their studies into God's Word, of their plans, of their expectations of the Kingdom of God. God heard! God watched and responded, maybe not when they would have liked Him to respond, but God did respond in His time, when it was right for His purposes.
So will He respond to us!
Then God makes a wonderful promise to those of us who fear Him: "'They shall be Mine,' says the LORD of hosts, 'on that day that I make them My jewels. And I will spare them as a man spares his own son who serves him'" . In Isaiah 49:15-16, God says, "Yet I will not forget you. See, I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands...." He is watching! He is aware of what is going on, and He will act! The Jews reproved for their corruptions.The men of that generation turned away from God, they had not kept his ordinances. God gives them a gracious call. But they said, Wherein shall we return? God notices what returns our hearts make to the calls of His word. It shows great perverseness in sin, when we make afflictions excuses for sin, which are sent to part between our sins and us. Here is an earnest exhortation to reform. God must be served in the first place; and the interest of our souls ought to be preferred before that of our bodies. Let us trust God to provide for our comfort. God has blessings ready for us, but through the weakness of our faith and the narrowness of our desires, we have not room to receive them. We who makes trial will find honoring the Lord with His substance loses nothing.
God bless you and your family.
Your brother in Christ, Bob Erb @ www.liferecoveryministry.org xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
10. Dear Esta and Everyone I Know,
Greetings in the name of Christ Jesus. As I was beginning to study the Bible today, I happened to check out your profile on ChristiaNet and saw you identified some scriptures and decided that maybe God wanted me to check them out.
Maybe my comments may help someone else see things to help them in their challenges in life.
Philemon 1:4-7 (New Living Translation)
Paul's Thanksgiving and Prayer 4I always thank God when I pray for you, Philemon, 5because I keep hearing of your trust in the Lord Jesus and your love for all of God's people. 6You are generous because of your faith. And I am praying that you will really put your generosity to work, for in so doing you will come to an understanding of all the good things we can do for Christ. 7I myself have gained much joy and comfort from your love, my brother, because your kindness has so often refreshed the hearts of God's people.
Before bringing up the problem of the runaway Onesimus, Paul established his lines of communication with Philemon. The apostle showed an appreciation for Philemon and a real concern for his family. Paul's example can help us in recovery. Sometimes we must confront others about their dependency or deal with another touchy problem. As we face confrontation, we need to make sure we value the people involved and take the time to establish strong lines of communication. If we jump in too soon, they may feel that we are just trying to hurt them. If we prove our love beforehand, however, they will be more receptive to what we say.
Paul's PrayerSome of the most significant explorations of the literary genre of Paul's letters have been in the second parts of his letters, where he gives thanks to God and then offers a prayer on behalf of his audience. Generally speaking, such expressions of thanksgiving and petition serve three purposes: (1) to establish good rapport between Paul and his first readers, so that they will respond positively to the advice that follows, (2) to set forth in the context of thanksgiving the religious ideals or moral virtues toward which the congregation should aspire, and (3) in the petitions offered, to introduce the spiritual crisis that threatens the readership's spiritual advance. Paul's thanksgiving functions, then, as a critical preface to what follows in the letter's main body. Not only are specific goals established and a motive given for following the apostolic advice, but the crisis that might undermine these goals is sometimes suggested. We should take particular care to explore the meaning of the special vocabulary that Paul uses in this part of his letters, since it will often form the basis for the advice that follows in the main body. In the case of Paul's letter to Philemon, the ideals established in thanking God are faith and love. The implied threats to these twin ideals are, first, whether the faith of Philemon (Paul's thanksgiving has a single person in mind) will be shared in a sufficiently active way and, second, whether his love, which Paul claims has given him great joy and encouragement, will continue to refresh the hearts of the saints -- including Onesimus, as we will see. Thanksgiving Paul gives thanks to God for his friend Philemon. His language is emphatic--adding personal pronouns to emphasize that he is the subject of the sentence and Philemon is its object -- and immediate, expressing the verbal ideas in the present tense. Not only is the content of Paul's thanksgiving formed by current reports of Philemon's faith and love, but Paul is ready to always thank God for Philemon's Christian witness. The force of the present tense of Paul's thanksgiving impresses the reader with the security of their relationship: Paul continually gives God thanks for the continuing good reports he hears of Philemon's faith and love. Paul often uses a triad of Christian virtues, such as faith, hope and love, to express his thanks to God for his readers; he highlights qualities that characterize mature Christian life. Although only two are mentioned in this letter, they constitute the Christian ideals he desires to find in Philemon's life. Certainly Paul reworks the triad to introduce his subsequent appeal: Philemon is characterized by the very virtues that will forge a restored relationship with Onesimus. After Paul thanks God for Philemon, he prays for him. The content of his petition actually reverses the terms of his thanksgiving: first he prays for Philemon's faith and then for his love. Some commentaries suggest Paul's intercessory prayer for Philemon is that he may acquire sufficient faith and love from God to respond favorably to the request to reconcile himself with Onesimus. Most commentators, however, link the opening clause that you may be active in sharing your faith with my prayers rather than with as I re- member you. Paul's prayer is not for Philemon's character, for which Paul has just given thanks, but for the sharing of Philemon's faith. He is mainly interested in the kind of fruit that God harvests in the relations between believers. Paul's implied prayer, then, is that Philemon welcome Onesimus gladly as an equal "partner" in the faith. God calls each believer into a congregation and provides each with certain gifts and opportunities to minister to other believers, so that all may be brought to maturity together in Christ Jesus. This sense of partnership marks out a congregation's partnership and is found where persons view one another as equals in worth and importance. It aims at partnership with Christ in God's salvation, so that with him we are able to find those resources necessary to enable us to minister, to love, to view one another as important and valuable. Christianity is about a transformation of the way we see and think about other people. When we begin to view others as those with whom life and faith are shared equally in Christ, arrogance and bigotry are finished. Further, in referring to Philemon's faith Paul probably has in mind his public demonstration of Christian faith rather than his personal faith in Jesus Christ. While the immediate result of Philemon's faith is a full understanding of every good thing we have in Christ. Paul is speaking about every good thing Philemon experiences while in Christ, where God's grace is found. For Paul, compassion is both the capacity to love and the experience of being loved. His prayer for Philemon is for a greater capacity to love; but such compassion is also the experience of those saints he has refreshed. In this way, the compassionate heart is the mark of the partnership of shared faith. More important, Paul's prayer introduces in a positive way what the main body of his letter develops: that the compassion and so partnership of the congregation are now threatened by the problem between Onesimus and Philemon. Given Paul's twofold petition, then, the reader realizes that Philemon's response to Paul's appeal will largely determine whether the congregation's witness to the gospel in Colosse will survive.
Colossians 3:14 And the most important piece of clothing you must wear is love. Love is what binds us all together in perfect harmony. To mortify or put to death all corrupt affections; It is our duty to mortify our members which incline to the things of the world. Mortify them, kill them, suppress them, as weeds or vermin which spread and destroy all about them. Continual opposition must be made to all corrupt workings, and no provision made for carnal indulgences. Occasions of sin must be avoided: the lusts of the flesh, and the love of the world; and covetousness, which is idolatry; love of present good, and of outward enjoyments. It is necessary to mortify sins, because if we do not kill them, they will kill us. The gospel changes the higher as well as the lower powers of the soul, and supports the rule of right reason and conscience, over appetite and passion. There is now no difference from country, or conditions and circumstances of life. It is the duty of every one to be holy, because Christ is a Christian's All, his only Lord and Savior, and all his hope and happiness.
God bless you and your family. Your brother in Christ, Bob Erb @ www.liferecoveryministry.org xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
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