THE MISSING LINK

  Forty days after the resurrection of Jesus from the dead, His Disciples watched Him ascend into the heavens.  They stood there amazed and perplexed, wondering what was going to happen next. Jesus had told them to wait in Jerusalem and they would receive the gift the Father promised.  That gift was that in a few days they would be baptized with the Holy Spirit.  While waiting, they took care of business by adding to their number Matthias, since Judas had killed himself. 

  Now, it is the DAY OF PENTECOST.  The Apostles are suddenly overwhelmed, filled with the Holy Spirit. The Spirit enables them to speak in foreign languages, so that all the people gathered there understood in their own language.  The Apostles are divinely guided to speak God’s truth to the people.  The Apostle Peter, representing the twelve, preached the first full gospel sermon.  Everything had been fulfilled: Jesus the Messiah had come,  lived a perfect life, killed as the perfect sacrifice, resurrected from the dead, ascended back to heaven, and now, has completed His purpose by sending back the Holy Spirit.  God speaking through the Apostle Peter tells the Jews gathered, that they had killed the Messiah, God’s Son.    
The Holy Spirit inspired message convicted many of the Jews and they asked, “What shall we do?”  Do for what?  Of course, do to get back in the good graces of God, do to be forgiven. 

  For the first time in all of history, through the Holy Spirit inspired Apostles, the divine answer was given. “Repent, and be baptized every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”  Acts 2:38   3000 people accepted what was said and were baptized.  “And the Lord added to the Church daily such as should be saved.”  Acts 2:47   

  What is Pentecost?  IT IS THE BIRTHDAY OF THE CHURCH.  It is the coming of the Holy Spirit to guide the Apostles in God’s truth.  Pentecost is the missing link which fulfills all that God was seeking to do.  It is the fulfillment of Jesus’ commitment when He said, “I will build My Church”  The church was built by Him on the Day of Pentecost.   The church belongs to Jesus.  You can’t join the church, you  can only join Jesus and He adds you to His body, the Church.  God’s action is through His people, the Christians.

  Some years ago, King George was to broadcast a speech to all North America over 59 radio stations, and the current for this event was to flow through one set of wires energized by one generator.  Just before the message was to begin. some one tripped over the wire and broke it.  Harold Vivian, chief control operator, grasped the broken ends and for twenty minutes, literally spliced them with his body, so the message would go through.

The King of Kings, our Lord Jesus Christ, has a message for all the world, but the wires between God and man must be spliced by Christian people as they testify for Him.  This is the business of the church.
                   Rise up Church and share God’s truth in love. 

WHAT A DIFFERENCE A DAY MAKES

  I have a good friend in Louisville, Kentucky by the name of Chuck Schumann. We served together when I ministered with the South Louisville Christian Church. He was an excellent teacher of one of our Sunday School adult classes.  Many years later, we served together at Damascus Road Christian Church in Louisville, when I ministered there while teaching at Louisville Bible College.  Chuck has always been a great student of the Bible.  We talk by phone almost every day, sometimes more than once.  He hungers for Christian conversation.  We enjoy studying together God’s Word. We recently began discussing the upcoming day of May 27, which is PENTECOST SUNDAY.  The church used to make a big emphasis of that day, but it seems to have been lost or badly neglected today.  Out of our talk about Pentecost, Chuck sent me this essay on the subject, some of that I wish to share with you.

“Time is one thing that can be the catalyst for memories.  Pearl Harbor occurred on Sunday, December 7, 1941.  When night came, the attack was over and the world was changed forever.  John Kennedy was assassinated on November 23, 1963. That evil deed changed our world.  The twin towers of New York were attacked in the morning of September 11, 2000.  The impact of that deed is still causing changes in the world we know.  Such impact of these deeds will be long remembered by us. 

In the religious world, there are several days that have changed the world forever. 
Although these events happened many years ago, they are remembered as the events are celebrated even today.  The coming of the Messiah, (Christmas).  The establishment of the Lord’s Supper, (Maundy Thursday). The murder of Jesus, Crucifixion, (Good Friday).  The resurrection of Jesus, (Easter).  All of these are world changing events.

However, there is one day that has caused more impact and change on every living soul on this planet than all the other days.  Without it, God’s plan of salvation would not be available to us.  We would only be able to mourn the death of the Son of God and rejoice in God’s marvelous resurrection of His beloved Son.  If that was the end of God’s story, we would be sinners in a sinful world without the access to God’s forgiving grace. If this day, PENTECOST, had not occurred, the Apostles would not have been able to answer the question, “What must I do to be saved?” “

  Jesus told the Apostles that it was necessary for Him to leave them, so that He could send back the Holy Spirit to guide and direct them.  Jesus told them to wait in the City of Jerusalem until they be given this power from on high.  This they did and on the DAY OF PENTECOST, the Holy Spirit came upon them.  He guided them to preach and teach the way of salvation provided through Jesus.  

  The God given answer to the essential question, “What Must I Do To Be Saved?” was answered by the Apostle Peter in stating, “Repent and be baptized, everyone of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”  Acts 2:38  

  Let us remember, what God did on Pentecost, and be obedient from the heart to God’s way for our salvation.

A CHRISTIAN MOTHER

  Upon this Mother’s Day, we do well to honor Christian Mothers. 

  There are those who are contending that Christianity is on the decline and it no longer functions meaningfully in our culture.  If true, what are we Christians going to do about it?  We who are suppose to be light and salt to a world of darkness and evil?  Our effectiveness is due to God’s presence in our lives and the extent to which we surrender, on a daily basis, to His Lordship.  I believe that the answer lies in our homes.  If our homes, families, are not strong in the faith, everything else will be weakened.  As goes the home, so goes everything else.

  Mothers, it may will depend most upon you, you pointing the family to the way of the Lord. We husbands and fathers have not been as consecrated to the Lord in leading the family to God as we ought to be.  Parents, teach your children the Bible, share with them in prayer, point them to Jesus, bring them to church, involve the family in the work of the Lord.  None of this is possible, if you do not set the example, lead the way.

  The question is asked in the 31st chapter of the book of Proverbs, “Who can find a virtuous woman?”  May we share together what God’s Word says about a virtuous woman.  
The chief concern of woman, who becomes wife and mother, is to her husband and family. The key note of her life is faithfulness. 
She is energetic.  She tends to the needs of her household.  She does not eat the bread of idleness. 
She is compassionate.  Her concern for her family makes her mindful of others. She is known for her kindness.
The crowning virtue of the ideal mother, and that particular virtue that sets her apart from all others is, SHE FEARS THE LORD.  She knows that “pretty is what pretty does.” Her deepest concern is not the physical but the spiritual. Bodily beauty is vain and deceitful.  Her beauty is beauty of the soul, that never fades or leads astray. 

The result of this woman, wife and mother, is her influence upon her family. Her children and husband praise her.  Name, if you can; a higher, stronger, more uplifting and more abiding influence than that of a GODLY MOTHER. 

Christian mothers, we honor you this day and thank God for you.  Someone said, “It is the hand that rocks the cradle, that rules the world.”  May your influence increase.

AS GOES THE HOME

  Once a man walked down the streets of New York and saw the signs of great financial interests and investments.  “Here,” he said, “is the secret of America’s greatness.”  Then, he went to a simple country home in Ohio. He heard the dinner bell ring and saw the farm hands as they came in and drew water and washed their hands. Then, he saw them sit down.  The father took the Bible and read a passage and all bowed their heads while he thanked God for the many blessings of the land and the home.  Then, that man knew the truth.  “Here,” he said, “is the real secret of the greatness of America.”  And, he was right. 

  America’s greatness is not in her financial empires.  Not in her vast resources, though her land is rich in mineral wealth.  Not in her standing army or fleets that sail the high seas.  Not in the power of the atomic energy, nor in the beauty of her landscapes. Her greatness lies in her Godly and reverent Christian homes. The homes mold the criminals or the Christians, the law breakers or the Christian leaders, the gunmen and gangsters or the missionaries and ministers.  The secret is in the home. It is true, “AS GOES THE HOME SO GOES THE WORLD.”

  Christian homes are our only hope. We must have homes that instill character and point children down the straight and narrow path.  Parents who put honesty before profit and principle before promotion. Parents who have a passion for the things of God and put love of truth above love of popularity. Fathers and mothers who believe in and contend for “the faith once delivered to the Saints,” as recorded in the Bible.  Parents who not only teach their household to love God with all of their being, but they seek to exemplify it in their living. As parents, we can talk all we want to about loving God and putting His Kingdom first, but if we do not back it up with example, it is worse than wasted breath.  The inconsistency in our lives refute what we say.  How can we substitute pleasure, the earning of money, and other selfish interest for fellowshiping and serving with God’s people in His Church, and expect the children to put the Kingdom of God first?  Our neglect in reading God’s Word, praying, participating in the work of the Church and sharing Jesus with others says to all who see, those things are not priority, they are not of of utmost importance.  Social and school functions are not to supersede the Church, unless you want them to believe that the things of God are secondary.

  Let us not deceive ourselves, without Christianity, without Christian education, without the principles of Christ taught in our homes, we are simply raising pagans. Physically, they will be perfect, intellectually, they will be brilliant, but spiritually, they will be heathens. The home is the place where children learn what is good, what is kind and what is important in life. The important thing is not what kind of a house people live in, but what kind of people live in the house.    

We have a responsibility to God, to our children, to ourselves to provide our children with the kind of home that has sufficient love and guidance with consistent and meaningful discipline and adequate knowledge of the Word of God. 
           “AS GOES THE HOME SO GOES EVERY THING ELSE.”