James 1:26 “If you claim to be religious but don’t control your tongue, you are fooling yourself, and your religion is worthless.”

I find this passage very interesting.  We are so quick to talk about the mouths of others and yet we are seldom looking at our own tongue and evaluating what it is doing.  You hear time and again that “those people on Xbox Live are so foul”, “it’s the worst language ever” or “I’ve never heard so many F-bombs” but the reality is that for most people that is their nature.  We were all there once, we were all foul, disgusting people who needed a Saviour.  Whether we spewed hatred or not we were still like filthy rags to God.  By their very own nature, by natural instinct those people who are full of hate on Xbox Live are just doing what they know how to do and we honestly can’t blame them for it.  We can only show them a way out of that mess.

What we can hold accountable though, are those of us who have made the decision to follow Christ.  Those of us who wear Jesus, whether it be on our profile, gamertag or bio we are standing up saying “I know Jesus Christ.  I represent Him.  Look at me if you want to know Jesus”.  The problem is that though we display that we love Jesus, we sometimes don’t “say” that we love Jesus.  It’s not a magical phrase I am talking about saying “I Love Jesus” it’s saying everything else while you wear Jesus.  I certainly don’t want my religion to be considered worthless, and I certainly don’t want to be considered a fool but by my very words I am doing so.  There are many times when I retort back to someone online without love in my words.  I may make fun of them or say something mean regardless of it I curse or not.  See, it’s no longer in my nature to do those things.  I have put on Christ since I accepted him as a sacrifice for my sins.  My nature is to be the same as Jesus, so I can be held accountable for what I’ve said because I have to make the decision to be mean, I have to consciously decide to say this and that to my opponents.  Although the tongue is a deadly poison and can be used to cause life or death I must be sure to “bridle” it to not only keep myself from looking like a fool, but to make my decision to follow Christ worthwhile.

-Drew

Acts 20:35 – In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.

I think we as Christians have heard this phrase before in many different ways.  We’ve heard it on Sunday’s when the offering plate is passed around.  We hear it from our parents or friends when we are coaxed to give.  We sometimes hear it in our own thoughts when an opportunity arises to lend a hand to one another.  What I want to focus on today is what is said before “it is more blessed to give than to receive”.  Paul states “In everything I did, I showed you”.  What stands out to me is that Paul wasn’t giving us an order, just as Jesus wasn’t ordering us around to give.  Paul says “Look at me, look at all the things I have done in my life.  Emulate my actions and deeds”.  Paul gave his entire life trying to reach out to others from writing the majority of the New Testament, to traveling around the Far East lending a hand and preaching the Word of God.  Paul knew that giving wasn’t an easy thing.  In fact, Paul considered himself the chief of sinners.  If Paul was the chief of sinners then he probably dealt with pride and if he dealt with pride than he probably dealt with selfishness.  There were probably days that Paul said to himself “I do not want to do anything today”.  There were probably days when he was just fed up with people and the work he was called to do, yet Paul carried on.  Paul kept running the race regardless of how tired he was.  He continued to press toward the mark of the high calling of Christ. (Phil 3:14)

God knows that it’s not easy for us to operate outside of ourselves.  He knows that we would rather do whatever we want to do all day long, but He calls us to give.  Give of your time, your patience, your kindness, your mercy and your forgiveness.  Give to those who are less fortunate than you.  Give to a cause you believe in.  Give to your church or your family.  Whatever you do, do it as if you were doing it unto the Lord (1 Cor 10:31).  And remember in the end those watching you will learn that “it is better to give than to receive”.

-Drew