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A Strange Question
There are many questions in the Bible. Jesus personally asked and
answered several questions. One of the strangest questions in all the Bible was
the question Jesus asked the man who had been impotent for 38 years. "When
Jesus saw him lying there, and knew that he already had been in that condition
a long time, He said to him, Do you want to be made
well?" (John 5:6) How strange!
"Do you want to be made well?" Sadly, many that struggle with
emotional, physical and even spiritual sickness do not want to be made well.
If you are in sin do you want to be made well? God
has a simple prescription whereby the sinner may be made well. To become a
Christian you must hear the gospel (Romans
If you are an unfaithful member of the body of Christ, do
you want to be made well? A child of God can become unfaithful by
having an evil heart of unbelief. "Beware, brethren, lest there be in any
of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God."
(Hebrews 3:12) A child of God can fall away from the grace of God. (Galatians 5:4) If the unfaithful do not
repent
they will be lost! "For if, after they have escaped the pollutions of the
world through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again
entangled in them and overcome, the latter end is worse for them than the
beginning. For it would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness,
than having known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered to
them." (2 Peter 2:20-22) If you are
unfaithful, "Do you want to be made well?"
If you are struggling with some sin in attitude, thought,
word or deed, do you want to be made well? Many are struggling with
sinful attitudes, thoughts, words, or deeds. They fail to be kind (Ephesians
The man in John five was made well by Jesus. And Jesus is the only one that can make us
well. "Come to Me,
all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and
lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light." (Matthew 11:28-30)
- - - -
Charles Box
Abel's Blood Speaks
In Genesis 4 God recorded the account of Cain murdering his brother, Abel. Abel's blood spoke of this heartless act. God said, "What have you done? The voice of your brother's blood cries out to Me from the ground." (Genesis 4:10) Cain's heinous act was carried out against a righteous man. (Hebrews 11:4) Both the blood of Abel and the blood of Christ speak even today. "To Jesus the Mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling that speaks better things than that of Abel." (Hebrews 12:24)
Abel's blood speaks of the importance of living faith. Cain and Abel both understood the sacrifice God expected. The Bible says, "So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." (Romans 10:17.) If Abel offered by faith, and he did (Hebrews 11:4); and if faith comes from hearing God's word, and it does (Romans 10:17); then Cain and Abel had heard God's word expressing what He desired of them. God always expect living faith from a pure heart. "Then Peter opened his mouth and said: In truth I perceive that God shows no partiality. But in every nation whoever fears Him and works righteousness is accepted by Him." (Acts 10:34-35)
Abel's blood speaks of the importance of loving our brethren. It is wrong to hate our brother whether they are our physical brethren or our spiritual brethren. Hatred caused Cain to murder his brother. (Genesis 4) Hatred caused Joseph's brothers to sell him as a slave. (Genesis 37) In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus taught of the danger of hating your brother. "You have heard that it was said to those of old, You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment. But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment. And whoever says to his brother, 'Raca!' shall be in danger of the council. But whoever says, 'You fool!' shall be in danger of hell fire." (Matthew 5:21-22) Is it really bad for one to hate his brother? Let God answer through the apostle John. "Whoever hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him." (1 John 3:15)
Abel's blood speaks of the importance of loving surrender to God's rules. What motivated Cain's actions to murder his brother we know not. He seemed to have felt that his way was just as good as God's way. "And in the process of time it came to pass that Cain brought an offering of the fruit of the ground to the Lord." (Genesis 4:3) Let us learn that it is a sin to substitute our way for God's way. Nadab and Abihu paid a terrible price to learn this lesson. "Then Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, each took his censer and put fire in it, put incense on it, and offered profane fire before the Lord, which He had not commanded them. So fire went out from the Lord and devoured them, and they died before the Lord." (Leviticus 10:1-2) They died in their rebellion before God. Substituting our way for God's way always leads to damnation.
Abel's blood speaks of the importance of personal responsibility. Cain wanted to avoid personal responsibility with the question, "Am I my brother's keeper?" Most people fail to realize their responsibility to others. Let us learn: (1) Our physical responsibility to others, "Let him who stole steal no longer, but rather let him labor, working with his hands what is good, that he may have something to give him who has need." (Ephesians 4:28) (2) Our spiritual responsibility to others, "Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right." (Ephesians 6:1) God desires that Christians understand their responsibility to others. "Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others." (Philippians 2:3-4)
Abel's blood still speaks. The blood of Jesus also speaks. (Hebrews 12:24-25) Jesus speaks of hearing His word, (John 6:44-45), believing in Him, (John 8:24), repenting of sins, (Luke 13:3), confessing Christ as Lord (Romans 10:9-10), and of being baptized into Christ. (Mark 16:15-16) The blood of Jesus also speaks of being faithful to God. (Matthew 10:22) Jesus speaks of doing the will of God so that we can go to heaven (Matthew 7:21) Are you listening to what Jesus speaks?
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Charles Box
News & Notes
1. Prayer List: In Need Of
Prayers: Jerry Barr, Jan Blackwell, Shirley Boutwell,
Charles Box, Sr., Dannie Box, Ida “Jean” Brazell,
Dorothy Buck, Brenda Burkett, Olive George Collins, Marie Curlee,
Shirley Curry, Johnny Davis (brother of Eleanor Stabler),
Bobby Fullington,
Judy Green, Roy Goodwin, Billy Heartsill,
Margie Henry (mother of Lora Gail Bagents), Dianne
Hoffman, Jeff Hughes, Mary Lawrence, George Lewis (eye surgery), Mable McClain, Renny McNaughton, Roland Mitchell, Reba Miller, Curtis Newton,
Cynthia Olive, Betty Pitts, Mary Powell, Zachary Reynolds, Don Shirley, Tete Stabler (surgery), Sarah Stidham, Ted Tindal, Richard Watts, Mary Williams and Kim Willett.
Crowne Health Care: Mary Alexander, James
Alford, Gene Buck, Gladys Childs, Kathy Johnson, Wallace Murry,
Myrtle Perdue, and Corrine Till. Pine Needle: Mary Lou Phelps. Georgiana
Nursing Facility: Helen Autrey, and Doris
Pierce. Shut-Ins: Emma Lee Gafford, Jean
Hayes, and Doris Taylor.
2. Responded To The Lord’s
Invitation: Kenyan Maxwell responded to our Lord’s invitation. Please
pray for him and welcome him back into God’s service.
3. Placed Membership:
Please welcome Sue Hunt to our
4. Special Prayer Request: Felice Kendrick asked that we pray for Kristie & Michael Hartin and also Amber, Austin and Ryan Harris as they are dealing with some difficult times.
5. Please Pray For: Pray
for Ben Newton, Jason Godwin and Dennis Phillips Jr. (Capt. Dennis Phillips,
MNCI/IAG J-4, APO AE 09342) as they serve in
6. Jim Autrey
Inducted Into Hall of Fame: On October 3rd Jim Autrey was inducted into the Sports Hall of Fame at
7.
8. Birthdays: Celebrating
a birthday this week are: October 26th Stuart
Taylor, October 27th Kyle Arnold, October 28th John
Reynolds, and October 31st Felice
Kendrick.
9. Baby Showers: A
luncheon/baby shower is plan for Darrell and Jamie Powell on November 2nd
after the morning worship. Everyone is invited to stay and enjoy a meal and
fellowship with them. They are having a boy.
10. A Trunk of Treats:
October 31st there will be a Trunk of Treats Party at the home of
Stacey & Patricia Harrell. Set up at
11. Fall Festival: The
Fall Festival will be on November 1st at the home of Stacey and
Patricia Harrell at
13. Thank You: The family
of Lois Raybon thanks you for your kind expression of
sympathy.
14. Put These Dates On Your
Calendar: November 2nd-5th – Gospel Meeting –
Rock Hill Church of Christ – Speakers Mark Turner, Terry Claunch,
George Merritt, and Richard Hender-son – Time Sunday
The Positive Influence of the
Young
Our ability to influence the people around us
is not only a gift, but it is important to God. Proverbs 21:1 tells us “A good
name is rather to be chosen than great riches, and loving favor rather than silver
or gold.” Jesus gives an exortation to us to
recognize our influence over others just as He did for His disciples. Jesus
said, “Ye are the salt of the earth: but
if the salt hath lost its savor, wherewith shall it be salted? It is henceforth good for nothing, but to be
cast out and trodden under foot of men. Ye are the light of the world. A city
set on a hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a lamp, and
put it under a bushel, but on the stand; and it shineth unto all that
are in the house. Even so let your light shine before men; that they may see
your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven” (Matthew
We don’t see much of either of these
character traits in present times. It is hard to find a truly courageous
person. Even more so, it is rare that we see someone with the courage to stand
up for God. God wants us to have courage though. Proverbs 28:1 teaches, “The
wicked flee when no man pursueth: but the righteous are bold as a lion.” We
need to be as bold as a lion. “For God gave us not a spirit of fearfulness; but
of power and love and discipline” (2 Timothy 1:7). Striving for courage will give us a better
positive influence on others around us.
Similarly, having conviction is greatly
valued by God. His Word teaches this. In Matthew
- - - - Jeff Stacy
Friends don’t
let friends miss out on Heaven!
Don’t just own a Bible; read it!
(334-382-3001)