Racial Prejudices Doesn't Accomplish Anything: Galatians 5:6
I think we have all been at that place in life where we have that feeling that it just doesn’t matter anymore. No matter what I do he or she will not listen to me. We almost want to give up. Why is that? We want to give up because it feels like we are not accomplishing anything. In the passage we are looking at today that is exactly what Paul was trying to tell the Galatian believers about prejudices. It doesn’t accomplish anything. It doesn’t bring about anything good. This is not only true inside the church but also outside in the greater community that we live.
If we were all to recognize and try our best to treat each other as we would like to be treated we wouldn’t have this problem. I am pretty sure that Paul was trying to explain to the Galatians believers that if treating any person different on the purposes of race or gender or any other difference does not accomplish any good.
So if it doesn’t accomplish anything what are we to do about it? Paul says what matters here is faith working through love. Paul says this exact phrase again in the final chapter of Galatians so we know that it is super important for the Galatians to get this right. It is equally important for us as Christians to get this right as well. We have to treat everyone with love expressed by our faith. So what does our faith say to do to strangers, widows, the hungry and homeless. We have to love them regardless of their skin, country of origin or current status in this life. We must love them.
If we were all to recognize and try our best to treat each other as we would like to be treated we wouldn’t have this problem. I am pretty sure that Paul was trying to explain to the Galatians believers that if treating any person different on the purposes of race or gender or any other difference does not accomplish any good.
So if it doesn’t accomplish anything what are we to do about it? Paul says what matters here is faith working through love. Paul says this exact phrase again in the final chapter of Galatians so we know that it is super important for the Galatians to get this right. It is equally important for us as Christians to get this right as well. We have to treat everyone with love expressed by our faith. So what does our faith say to do to strangers, widows, the hungry and homeless. We have to love them regardless of their skin, country of origin or current status in this life. We must love them.
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Correction Must Happen: Galatians 3:1
Starting in the 3rd chapter of Galatians we can see Paul at a very frustrating point. He is upset because the believers have been manipulated into believing something that is not true. So Paul spends a few sentences correcting them with some of the harshest language in the New Testament.
When we see our brothers and sisters in Christ not acting as Christ teaches, we must correct such actions. Here is how this works in biblical community. First, you correct the person in a one on one setting. If that doesn’t work then you and another member of your community need to go and try to correct that person. I know what you are thinking. Phil, I have never seen this in my church. If that is the case I am so sorry. Correction must happen. Church leaders need to speak to members of congregations they lead in order to correct false actions. It is the responsibility of the church to correct members of the church and when that does not happen accountability cannot exist and pretty much anyone can do anything he or she wants and still call themselves Christians. I am not saying this is the main reason the church is in such bad shape today, but I am saying it is a contributing factor to poor church health all across America.
I want to go one step further. What if members in the church are corrected for their actions. But lets say that people not connected to your church or any church for that matter do not correct their actions and still discriminate people based on skin color. Will we make a difference? Oh course we will. We will treat others with respect. We will treat those that might be hostile against us with love. Why will we do this, because Jesus commands us to, and it is how we want to be treated.
I want to add one little piece to this even though it doesn’t feel like it from Paul’s tone in this passage. We must correct one another in love. This is one of the most difficult things to do in the body of Christ.
When we see our brothers and sisters in Christ not acting as Christ teaches, we must correct such actions. Here is how this works in biblical community. First, you correct the person in a one on one setting. If that doesn’t work then you and another member of your community need to go and try to correct that person. I know what you are thinking. Phil, I have never seen this in my church. If that is the case I am so sorry. Correction must happen. Church leaders need to speak to members of congregations they lead in order to correct false actions. It is the responsibility of the church to correct members of the church and when that does not happen accountability cannot exist and pretty much anyone can do anything he or she wants and still call themselves Christians. I am not saying this is the main reason the church is in such bad shape today, but I am saying it is a contributing factor to poor church health all across America.
I want to go one step further. What if members in the church are corrected for their actions. But lets say that people not connected to your church or any church for that matter do not correct their actions and still discriminate people based on skin color. Will we make a difference? Oh course we will. We will treat others with respect. We will treat those that might be hostile against us with love. Why will we do this, because Jesus commands us to, and it is how we want to be treated.
I want to add one little piece to this even though it doesn’t feel like it from Paul’s tone in this passage. We must correct one another in love. This is one of the most difficult things to do in the body of Christ.
Words of Affirmation
03/February/2016 Filed in: 5 Love Langauges
In the church we use words to accomplish so much. We use words to share the gospel, disciple new believers, sing praises to God, and pray to our Heavenly Father. We use words all the time. As we continue to look at missionary care we will look today at loving missionaries through Words of Affirmation.
We know that words are important for missionaries too. They proclaim the message of the gospel, which is kind of a big deal in what they do, but for them to receive communication from friends and family and especially from members of their sending church is incredibly important. Missionaries are an extension of the local church. So if you have a missionary sent out from your local body, then you need to provide the same care to them as you would any other member of your congregation, and staff. It will not look the same but the same care needs to be applied to all those sent out.
We often use words to encourage missionaries. “The word encourage means to inspire” says Dr. Chapman. We want to inspire missionaries to continue to fight the good fight. We want to inspire them to be light among the darkness, and to continue to be obedient to what God has asked them to do.
We constantly pray that God will work in and among the unreached people groups of the world. Why then would we not want to share those same words with the ones out on the front lines proclaiming the gospel. Let me share something from personal experience, “Missionaries need to hear from you.” It can be as simple as “Hey just want you to know that I am thinking about you today”. If the missionaries from your church are in less secure areas please say it more like, “Hey I want you to know that this morning I prayed that God would show you the person you need to share the gospel with today.” Use your words to show missionaries how much you love and appreciate them for their obedience. Your Words of Affirmation have more impact than you will ever realize.
Things you can do…
Today: Send a note, email, or text to a missionary you support. Encourage and inspire them.
This week: Find the best way to regularly communicate with a missionary you support.
This month: Skype or FaceTime a missionary you support.
We know that words are important for missionaries too. They proclaim the message of the gospel, which is kind of a big deal in what they do, but for them to receive communication from friends and family and especially from members of their sending church is incredibly important. Missionaries are an extension of the local church. So if you have a missionary sent out from your local body, then you need to provide the same care to them as you would any other member of your congregation, and staff. It will not look the same but the same care needs to be applied to all those sent out.
We often use words to encourage missionaries. “The word encourage means to inspire” says Dr. Chapman. We want to inspire missionaries to continue to fight the good fight. We want to inspire them to be light among the darkness, and to continue to be obedient to what God has asked them to do.
We constantly pray that God will work in and among the unreached people groups of the world. Why then would we not want to share those same words with the ones out on the front lines proclaiming the gospel. Let me share something from personal experience, “Missionaries need to hear from you.” It can be as simple as “Hey just want you to know that I am thinking about you today”. If the missionaries from your church are in less secure areas please say it more like, “Hey I want you to know that this morning I prayed that God would show you the person you need to share the gospel with today.” Use your words to show missionaries how much you love and appreciate them for their obedience. Your Words of Affirmation have more impact than you will ever realize.
Things you can do…
Today: Send a note, email, or text to a missionary you support. Encourage and inspire them.
This week: Find the best way to regularly communicate with a missionary you support.
This month: Skype or FaceTime a missionary you support.
The First Post
26/January/2016 Filed in: intro
As this is the first post on a new blog I thought I would start out by sharing with you a little history about myself and a few of the topics that I will write about over the course of the next year.
My name is Phillip and I am from the wonderful state of Tennessee. I am a Vol fan but not like those you see on TV. My family and I just moved back to America after living abroad for over nine years. My wife and I have three beautiful girls under the age of 10. And like most who return to a home culture after living abroad, I am in a season of transition.
The Church
After being away for a few years we did not have the opportunity to attend what many in America call a traditional worship experience. We mostly attended small house churches. Because of our experiences during that time I will look at some of the differences between house church and the traditional American church. I will share a few other comments about the church and some encouragement for the church to continue to make healthy disciples of all nations.
Outreach & Missions
We had many wonderful experiences as cross cultural Christian workers overseas and I will share some of those both good and bad, wonderful and frustrating experiences about life and work living abroad. I will start out with talking about how friends, family, and sending churches can better care for church planters living abroad.
Technology
I have a strong desire to use technology to assist the advancement of the gospel. Most churches and ministries today are five to seven years behind technologically. I will talk about new technologies for churches and church planters. Advancement in the church can cost money and for those with extra budget, it might be good to spend funds on a few strategic items to help your church and missionaries. I will also talk about a few uses of technology that do not require financial investment.
My name is Phillip and I am from the wonderful state of Tennessee. I am a Vol fan but not like those you see on TV. My family and I just moved back to America after living abroad for over nine years. My wife and I have three beautiful girls under the age of 10. And like most who return to a home culture after living abroad, I am in a season of transition.
The Church
After being away for a few years we did not have the opportunity to attend what many in America call a traditional worship experience. We mostly attended small house churches. Because of our experiences during that time I will look at some of the differences between house church and the traditional American church. I will share a few other comments about the church and some encouragement for the church to continue to make healthy disciples of all nations.
Outreach & Missions
We had many wonderful experiences as cross cultural Christian workers overseas and I will share some of those both good and bad, wonderful and frustrating experiences about life and work living abroad. I will start out with talking about how friends, family, and sending churches can better care for church planters living abroad.
Technology
I have a strong desire to use technology to assist the advancement of the gospel. Most churches and ministries today are five to seven years behind technologically. I will talk about new technologies for churches and church planters. Advancement in the church can cost money and for those with extra budget, it might be good to spend funds on a few strategic items to help your church and missionaries. I will also talk about a few uses of technology that do not require financial investment.