by Phil Sanders

John McCain tells the story of Bear Bryant, former football coach at the University of Alabama. Bryant was a good man and a great coach. Before the start of every game, the Bear would walk his quarterback along the sidelines in silence for all but a moment of the ritual, the moment when he would turn to the young athlete and give him just two words of advice: “Be Brave.”

You could imagine why courage would be so necessary at such a time. The quarterback is bent behind the center ready to take the snap. He is looking into the faces of several men, larger, stronger, and probably tougher than himself. They are grunting oaths to do him bodily harm. When the quarterback touches the ball, they are going to have one thing on their minds, slamming him to the hard ground. They won’t mind hurting him. “Be brave.”

“Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. But resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same experiences of suffering are being accomplished by your brethren who are in the world” (1 Pet. 5:8-9).

“Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you” (James 4:7-8).

Each of us must decide for himself who he is, what he believes, and what he will stand for. In a day where there are multiple voices all pleading to be heard, multiple religions all claiming validity, and multiple doctrines offered up, we must decide whether we will go with the crowd or stand strong with Jesus Christ.

Lucius Seneca (ca. 4 BC—65 AD) said, “’Tis nothing for a man to hold up his head in a calm; but to maintain his post when all others have quitted their ground and there to stand upright when other men are beaten down is divine.”

Let us determine to be brave when it is time to speak for truth. Let us hold up Jesus Christ for all to see. Let us not compromise to “get along” with sin or to please the crowd. Let us hold fast our faith.

by Don Ruhl

Read the Bible in a Year This morning read Leviticus chapter 25

Our Brethren Are Servants of God

Leviticus chapter 25 reveals the laws of the Sabbath Year and of the Year of Jubilee. One of the things that God regulates is what happens when an Israelite acquires one of his brethren as a slave. The truth is that the Israelite is not to treat his brother as a slave, but has a hired servant. Moreover, the brother does not belong to the Israelite forever, but the Israelite is to release his brother in the Year of Jubilee. Here is how the chapter ends,

55 For the children of Israel are servants to Me; they are My servants whom I brought out of the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God (Lev. 25:55).

God is telling those Israelites to remember that their brethren are not their servants, but they are servants or slaves to God, because He is the One who saved them out of Egypt. Therefore, the children of Israel are to treat one another well, because they are all on the same level before God. My dear friends, is this not true of Christians also? Let us remember to whom our brothers and sisters belong, and then treat them for who they are, servants of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Don Ruhl Church of Christ 220 NE Savage Street Grants Pass, Oregon 97526-1310 541-476-3100

by Don Ruhl

Read the Bible in a Year This evening read Mark 1:23--45

Let Us Alone!

A man, with an unclean spirit, appears in the synagogue where Jesus is teaching, and the man cries out to Jesus,

24 saying, Let us alone! What have we to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth? Did You come to destroy us? I know who You are--the Holy One of God! (Mar. 1:24).

Do the people today who want nothing to do with Jesus, and who are seeking to remove all mention of God from government things, know of what spirit they are? Let us pray for those who are working hard to make our society secular that they change their minds and want everything to do with Jesus.

Don Ruhl Church of Christ 220 NE Savage Street Grants Pass, Oregon 97526-1310 541-476-3100