Gracioius and Attractive Conversation

Tuesday, August 2, 2022

Live wisely among those who are not believers, and make the most of every opportunity.  Let your conversation be gracious and attractive so that you will have the right response for everyone.  Colossians 4:5-6

Paul’s advice to a group of believers living in a largely pagan and idol-worshipping culture was to be wise in their conversation, literally, everything they do.  His emphasis on being “gracious and attractive” with words is especially telling.  There is an art to remaining on the higher plane when opponents continually hit below the belt!  It is an art I freely admit not having mastered.  When I think of  21^st century culture I’m convinced it’s a practice that needs to make a comeback. 

Pick a segment of the current culture, and describe it in terms of commitment to truth, kindness, honesty, or love; then think about if you’d recommend any of this culture’s ways be continued in Heaven.  Think about:  politics, media, law, entertainment, professional sports, or the corporate world.  Do you see much graciousness, love, or even the most rudimentary aspects of truth, kindness, or honesty?  Or is it primarily self-serving, rude, and incredibly false?  (I told you I hadn’t mastered gracious and attractive yet, but at least it must ring true).

So, if our culture aligns rather consistently with Colossian culture, where just getting through the day was a tough assignment, what was Paul aiming at?  What good could attractive, kind words make in that kind of environment?

I’m glad you asked.

Even amongst the least-religious, least-interested in faith or God, there is an image of God stamped on the soul.  Granted, that image may be long-faded, or muddled by worldly, Godless living, or just plain neglect of spiritual life, but it is there, and graciousness, kindness, and honesty, with words that match, will remind lost sheep that they have a home waiting for them when they’re done with the pigpen.

That, frankly, is the job description for found sheep, telling the lost ones about the way back to the Shepherd.  And when they won’t listen to preachers, or other religious professionals, because they’ve learned in this tough world to never trust anyone, it is the kind words, surprising honesty, and gracious ways of helpful sheep that will connect with that image of God on even the most hardened wanderer.

For You Today

It’s easy to fall into the ways of the world, because you’ll find approval there, from those who need a little propping-up in their own walk away from God.  But if you ever hope to rescue a lost sheep God is trying to reach, you’ll have to swim against the tide of rude, self-serving lies.  Gracious and attractive conversation…well, it’s more than just words.  In the original language, the word we have translated “conversation” means everything about the way you conduct your daily living. So, Paul is really saying go all-in for honesty, truthfulness, and being kind; those are the tools of the trade for any who wish to do God’s calling.

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day!

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There are about 2,000 devotional posts in the Rocky Road Devotions library. 

To dig deeper on today’s topic read:  The Grumpy Christian

[1] Images:  Pixabay.com     Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation^©   

The Life of Christ-like Fragrance

 

Thursday, February 11, 2021

But thank God!  He has made us his captives and continues to lead us along in Christ’s triumphal procession.  Now he uses us to spread the knowledge of Christ everywhere, like a sweet perfume.  Our lives are a Christ-like fragrance rising up to God.  But this fragrance is perceived differently by those who are being saved and by those who are perishing.  To those who are perishing, we are a dreadful smell of death and doom.  But to those who are being saved, we are a life-giving perfume.  And who is adequate for such a task as this? 

2 Corinthians 2:14-16

For the apostle Paul the circumstances of life were that of a captive, someone whose circumstances depended on the choosing of his Master.  He did not concern himself too much where the road led, only that the leader was Jesus. 

If I had to draw a picture of the sweet fragrance of a Christ-likeness it would be Paul, sitting in a prison cell, with a wry smile of contentment as he’s writing to the churches.  

Those who cannot understand from where that smile originates are those who see the conditions as everything; Paul says they’re perishing, drying-up from the inside-out, life draining with a dreadful smell of death and doom.  But, to those who have found Christ, this picture is the essence of joy and eternal life.  To have found life’s deepest blessing in service to Christ, there is no greater satisfaction or fulfillment than to have met Jesus, committing to follow as a faithful servant.

I have known some servants like that.  There are several characteristics each of them bear in common.  I’d like to share some with you and ask you to keep in mind that the list is but a tip of the iceberg of what God uses.

Graciousness

I can think of no greater fragrance than the kind of gracious interest one human being sincerely displays towards another.  I’ve met a few famous people during my journey; none have surprised me more than those who listened to me like I had something worthwhile to say.  To be gracious, knowing you don’t know everything, and willing to hear another’s point of view, makes God’s job of using you much easier.

Humility

I suppose this quality is not a stand-alone trait.  Frankly, it is so related to graciousness you cannot have one without the other.  A humble person isn’t just a self-deprecating proclaimer of his low estate, someone you’d hear tossing aside a compliment with aw, shucks, I ain’t much.  Rather, the humble one just stands in genuine awe of the majesty of God he sees in every other human being he meets.

Hunger and Thirst

Now this is not the precedent of dinner on the grounds; rather it is the essence of what Jesus told us:

Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.  Matthew 5:6 ^(KJV)

The idea of righteousness-seeking is the cause of human elevation, seeking to lift others in their lives by working to relieve oppression and injustice.  It is the process of being involved with God to love a neighbor as self.  It is what the prophet Micah wrote:

No, O people, the Lord has told you what is good, and this is what he requires of you:  to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.  Micah 6:8

Again, not an exhaustive list, rather a good beginning of the kind of person that leaves a fragrant trail of Christ wherever they walk.

For You Today

There is no better practice for those who would live a life of Christ-like fragrance, spreading good news everywhere, than to spend time with the source of that fragrance.

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day!

[1] Title Image: Pixabay.com    Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation^©

 

Waiting In a Small Place

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Tuesday, October 1, 2019

I wait quietly before God, for my victory comes from him.  He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress where I will never be shaken.  So many enemies against one man—all of them trying to kill me.  To them I’m just a broken-down wall or a tottering fence.  They plan to topple me from my high position.  They delight in telling lies about me.  They praise me to my face but curse me in their hearts.                                              Interlude

Let all that I am wait quietly before God, for my hope is in him.  He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress where I will not be shaken.  My victory and honor come from God alone.  He is my refuge, a rock where no enemy can reach me.  O my people, trust in him at all times.  Pour out your heart to him, for God is our refuge.                                           Interlude

Common people are as worthless as a puff of wind, and the powerful are not what they appear to be.  If you weigh them on the scales, together they are lighter than a breath of air.  Don’t make your living by extortion or put your hope in stealing.  And if your wealth increases, don’t make it the center of your life.  God has spoken plainly, and I have heard it many times:  Power, O God, belongs to you; unfailing love, O Lord, is yours.  Surely you repay all people according to what they have done.  Psalm 62:1-12

King David knew himself well.  You don’t spend days and nights alone tending sheep and not thinking about the small places inside you upon which you’ve learned to depend.  Preachers are particularly subject to this, spending hours nose-deep in Scripture and thought about what to say next Sunday.  I wait quietly in small places.

David may have sounded a bit paranoid about all the people plotting against him; truth be told, he wasn’t paranoid – he just understood the nature of humans.  David understood his own shortcomings, reasons why he shouldn’t be king.  David knew his sinfulness and feared his shortcomings.

When alone, particularly early in the morning as this moment can attest, I think of the life I’ve lived, and those small places that I return to…

          ·      stubborn, not submitted to Christ’s changing power

          ·      willful, hardly obedient, except if it can be seen by others

          ·      selfish, less than generous, except if it can be seen by others

          ·      fearful, not depending on the Rock of Jesus’ saving power

          ·      wavering, looking for a way out that I can see instead of faith-walking

          ·      wobbly-kneed, untrue, and crabby…hardly a tower of graciousness. 

Before I begin a day I must always cover this ground in my prayers.  Like David, I know myself too well to imagine I’ll be just fine without God’s constant hand leading, and His Spirit forming me from the inside-out.

For You Today

So, now you’ve watched me reveal my soft underbelly, my weak spots.  What are you going to do about being honest with God about yours?

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day.

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[1] Title Image:  Pixabay.com     Unless noted, Scripture used from The New Living Translation©

Be Peaceful Like a Prince

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Don’t let evil conquer you, but conquer evil by doing good.  Romans 12:21(NLT)

There is a hinge that holds Romans 11 and 12 together.  In Romans 1-11, you read all about God’s gracious sacrifice of grace for our sins.  The great divide between grace and duty begins with the hinge that connects chapter 12.  Paul tells us that, as a response to all that grace he described in chapters 1-11, we are to offer our lives to God in service.

And when that is so in the life of a believer, what happens to us is like the life of a caterpillar as he changes to a butterfly in a cocoon.  God uses His grace to transform a believer into a different strain of the human species – a child of God, born from above, living a life of sacrifice – in His name. 

The practical conclusion about that change is that our theology – what we know about God – must determine and drive the actions of our everyday lives.  We follow Jesus, not the world’s fads, customs and behaviors.  So, this is all about relationships, not just how we treat one another, but how we act and work together, so we can serve as God’s ambassadors to the world. 

Paul tells us to faithfully serve together to transform a world steeped in anger, hostility, rage, and vengeance into a place of peace.  This peace is shalom, not just a treaty signed, but a condition of the heart which is characterized by everything that makes life worth living.  It’s that place where the lamb and lion can lie down together, and everything will be just fine![2]

Commit to Being Peaceable                                                                                                                     

Never pay back evil with more evil.  Do things in such a way that everyone can see you are honorable.  Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone.  Romans 12:17-18(NLT)

There can be nothing transformative about our lives without an intentional decision to be, and promote “peaceableness”.  There must be a decision to roll against the tide of our culture’s anger, and our own human nature’s desire to respond to evil with evil.

In short, our lives need to be bent towards peace.  A decision at the altar to vote for peace means more than just going back home, feeling good about our lofty thoughts.  After we decide for peace, we must begin to display it for the world to see (and change).

Displaying peace means filling your life with peace by doing things in a peaceful way, as well as intentionally saturating your thoughts with peace.  As dangerous as a gun pointed without forethought, is our unguarded and undisciplined possibilities for anger.  Rather we must plan to respond peacefully in everything; we must be on guard to display peace.  The life of a disciple of Jesus Christ is a peace-pointed life.   

Commit to Peace-Making

 Dear friends, never take revenge.  Leave that to the righteous anger of God.  For the Scriptures say, “I will take revenge; I will pay them back,” says the Lord.  Instead, “If your enemies are hungry, feed them.  If they are thirsty, give them something to drink.  In doing this, you will heap burning coals of shame on their heads.”  Romans 12:19-20(NLT)

Peace making is different than peace-loving; it’s hard business.  Peacemaking is pro-active; it doesn’t just sit back and not get angry.  Peacemaking means you get involved to destroy anger, violence and the destruction of relationships.  You go to war against war!

One afternoon, when our children were very young, there was a knock at the front door.  Elizabeth and I answered the door together to see a very angry woman we’d never met before.  It seems one of our kids had made her daughter really unhappy with something said or done that was very unkind.  Her white-hot words began:  If you think I’m going to stand by while your (&%$#@ expletive deleted) kid….  I had no idea what had happened, but I held out my hand and said:  Hi, I’m Russell, and this is Elizabeth.  I’m sorry this has been a bad day for you and your daughter.  Why don’t you come in and sit down; maybe we can figure this out together.

Now, my natural, human-self wanted to kick-in with:  Look, lady, just who do you think you are to come to my door and…...  But that would have fueled the fire, not put it out.  Peace-making is not possible when everything is about “me” or “my space” or anything that doesn’t include me caring for you.  That requires sacrifice, and that kind of sacrifice is only possible when we remember the sacrifice Jesus made for us.  Jesus came to our door two thousand years ago, but His mission wasn’t to condemn.  He didn’t knock on the door to blast an enemy; he invited us to open the door and to sup together – to have a meal.  And that’s what we’re celebrating this morning; it’s the meal of friends remembering the sacrificial rescue of Calvary…how Jesus overcame evil with good.

In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; Let the church say “Amen”!

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[1] Title Image: Courtesy of Pixabay.com

[2] Image courtesy of Pixabay.com

Love Like a King

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Don’t let evil conquer you, but conquer evil by doing good.  Romans 12:21(NLT)

There is a hinge that holds Romans 11 and 12 together.  In Romans 1-11, you read all about God’s gracious sacrifice of grace for our sins.  The great divide between grace and duty begins with the hinge that connects chapter 12.  Paul tells us that, as a response to all that grace he described in chapters 1-11, we are to offer our lives to Him in service.

And when that is so in the life of a believer, what happens to us is similar to the life of a caterpillar as he changes to a butterfly in a cocoon.  God uses His grace to transform a believer into a different strain of the human species – a child of God, born from above, living a life of sacrifice – in His name. 

The practical conclusion about that change is that our theology – what we know about God – must determine and drive the actions of our everyday lives.  We follow Jesus, not the world’s fads, customs and behaviors; otherwise…. why bother?

The twelfth chapter of Paul’s letter to the Roman believers is all about relationships, not just how we treat one another, but how we act and work together, so we can serve as God’s ambassadors to the world. 

The “relationship” is described in one, Biblical word…agape’, the God-kind of love!  This morning we look at two very important truths about how to live in that love.

Genuine (in relationships)

Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good.    Romans 12:9 (NLT)

To be genuine in relationships is the foundation of Christian living.  If there was ever a character trait which does not conform to this world’s ways, it is truthfulness. 

A little girl had developed a bad habit; she was always lying.  She was given a St. Bernard dog for her birthday, she went out and told all the neighbors that she had been given a lion.  The mother took her aside and said, “I told you not to lie.  You go upstairs and tell God you are sorry; promise God you will not lie again.” 

The little girl went upstairs, said her prayers, and then came down again.  Her mother asked, “Did you tell God you are sorry?”  The little girl replied, “Yes, I did.  And God said sometimes He finds it hard to tell my dog from a lion, too.”^[2] 

A Christ-follower who has submitted his/her body as a living, holy sacrifice, and is transformed by God’s grace is genuine; being false in relationships in any form is a form of lying.  God hates it because it destroys relationships.

Gracious (to all people)

Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other.   Romans 12:10 (NLT) 

There is a tendency to tear-down one another today, especially in American culture.  The old word “gossip” is generally thought of as being a “behind the scenes” or “behind the back activity”. 

It isn’t even that quiet these days!  Today even the ugly attitudes and rudeness of anger and careless words are flung around like cow dung in a pasture.  The Scottish preacher Alexander MacLaren once wrote:  Ugly Christianity is not Christ's Christianity.

Gossip is the opposite of gracious.  You cannot take delight in honoring anyone if you’re willing to gossip about him or her. 

A gossip separates the closest of friends.  Proverbs 16:28b(GWT)

There’s no room in any theology connected with Jesus Christ that includes in-your-face attitudes, or rudeness.  In our relationships we must be gracious towards one another.

There is an apocryphal story of Abraham that tells of a traveling stranger.  Abraham saw the old man coming along the way, very weary, and his feet bleeding.  With true hospitality he invited the old man to share his meal and to lodge with him for the night.  When Abraham noticed he asked no blessing on the meal, he enquired why, and the man said, "I am a fire worshipper and acknowledge no other god."  At this Abraham grew angry and sent him from his tent.  Soon after, God called to Abraham and asked, "Where is the old man I sent to you?"  Abraham told God he'd sent the infidel away.  The Lord answered in reply, "I have cared for him for over a hundred years, even though he has dishonored me.  Could you not endure him one night and so prove to him God's love?" 

Servanthood is not popular these days.  However, Jesus never claimed that following Him would make us popular on this earth. 

He DID say that our reward in HEAVEN would be great!

In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; Let the church say “Amen”!

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[1] Title Image: Courtesy of Pixabay.com

[2] Illustrations Unlimited© 1988 by James S. Hewett. All Rights Reserved.

Bedrock Convictions - Part 3

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Tuesday, October 18, 2016

Christian living is a call to respond to a core of beliefs and values that are absolute – to live differently than the world, and to do it decisively.  I am always troubled by my proclivity to wait, see which way the wind is blowing, and then search for the Christian principle that will make me most comfortable. 

Decisiveness is called-for in the Christian walk.  Otherwise we settle for adjusting to conditions, instead of bringing Christlikeness to bear on a problem. 

Paul says the new creation God makes of us requires changes in FOUR DECISIONS about the way we live; these changes in our character and thought life honor God:

1. Decide for TRUTH

Put on your new nature, created to be like God—truly righteous and holy.  So stop telling lies.  Let us tell our neighbors the truth, for we are all parts of the same body.  Ephesians 4:24-25^(NLT)

Jesus said:  I am the... truth.  Without speaking we can lie, simply by allowing a false message to be received.  A Christian who tells white lies has no moral absolute regarding truth.

2. Decide for RECONCILIATION

And “don’t sin by letting anger control you.”  Don’t let the sun go down while you are still angry, for anger gives a foothold to the devil.  Ephesians 4:26-27^(NLT)

Broken relationships are the very description of sin.  It was the break of fellowship with God in the Garden of Eden that was the prototype of all sin.  God has given to the Christian Church and all believers a charge, a ministry of reconciling. 

Most attitudes and actions that separate people and causes division is not of God. 

Unreconciled minds are the seeds the devil uses to destroy churches, families and whole nations.  Decide for truth, reconciliation, and... 

3. Decide for Honesty

If you are a thief, quit stealing.  Instead, use your hands for good hard work, and then give generously to others in need.  Ephesians 4:28^(NLT)

The late Ferdinand Marcos, then President of the Philippine government, was a terrible golfer.  But his score cards?  Tiger Woods would love to have had those in last week's tournament!  Marcos couldn’t bear to be a bad golfer, so he cheated whenever it came to writing down his score. 

Christian values means you will lose out, rather than cheat or lie in any way.  The size of the prize, or the reasons we rationalize are simply not the issue – honesty is!  And also...

4. Decide for Graciousness

Don’t use foul or abusive language.  Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them.   Ephesians 4:29^(NLT)

The filthiness that tumbles unashamedly out of mouths today is bad.  When it comes out of a Christian's mouth, it is sin!  What is it we are building up when we talk as if our mouths were connected to the bottom of a commode?

For You Today

Moral absolutes make Christians different from the world.  Decisions for truth, reconciliation, honesty and graciousness make us decisive.  It changes the way we live.  That's the bottom line...Christian values are better lived than talked.

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road…have a blessed day!

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NOTES

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[i] Title Images: By NASA HiRISE camera, Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, via Wikimedia Commons