by A. A. Neale

Places mean much to us. Where we were born. Where we got married. The first house we lived in as newlyweds. Where we were baptized. Where we had our first job.

Places of memories, of special moments, of important connections between people.

When the Jews sought to seize Jesus, he escaped from them to a special place.

"And He went away again beyond the Jordan to the place where John was baptizing at first, and there He stayed" (John 10:40, NKJV).

This rugged, isolated place would have made it harder for the authorities to grab our Lord. And in these difficult moments, the place would have brought solace to a tired, harrassed man.

"Then many came to Him and said, 'John performed no sign, but all the things that John spoke about this Man were true'" (v. 41).

The masses followed Jesus out across the Jordan River. There, they recalled John's testimony about Jesus. "Behold! the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!" (John 1:29).

The One whose shoes he was not worthy to stoop down and unlatch.

The One on whom had descended the Spirit of God.

The One God had approved by his voice from above.

John was no miracle worker, performed no great signs, but was a Truth Speaker par excellence. He told things like they were. Never minced words. Never flinched from telling every person what he needed to do. Fiery. Passionate. Zealous. Straight as an arrow.

And he was right about Jesus.

"And many believed in Him there" (John 10:42).

There, where John had preached and baptized. All the rich associations of the Baptizer's message came into focus upon the Man who was everything, who did everything, John said he was and would.

I want to go back there, too, to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.

Back to John's preaching. Back to simple sermons and clear messages. Back to rich associations, lots of Bible texts, plenty of explanation rising from the pages of Scripture.

I want to go back to fiery, zealous men of God proclaiming a straight-shooting gospel meant to convince and convert.

I want to go back to tears in the eye over the lost of the world, to urgent exhortations welling up from love of those condemned because of their sins, to passionate pleas to heed the promise of salvation procured at awful cost to the God of heaven.

I don't want to go back, necessarily, to little country churches with pot-bellied stoves in the winter and funeral fans in the summer. I'm no old fool who, late in life, reminisces over what was lost and how the world just isn't like it was in the old days. I like my conveniences, my 'puter, my modern life, such as it is.

Repine I do, however, over the loss of zeal for God, for the Son of God, for the Word of God.

So I think I'll go back beyond the Jordan where Jesus stayed. Where I can believe in Him there, with the echoes of God's saints in the hills, rocks, and trees.

Would you go with me?

by Mike Benson

Some time ago I attended an auction near Lawrenceburg, Tennessee. Among the many items up for bidding was a beautiful antique china cabinet. It was ornately crafted and it had a graceful glass door. Simply speaking, it was a magnificent piece of old-style furniture.

Do you know how much that cabinet sold for? Just guess. $22.50. That's right. Twenty-two dollars and fifty cents! While I'm certainly no antique appraiser, I'm certain it's worth was much, much more than a mere $22.50. Whoever bought the cabinet got a bargain. Some would even say a steal.

"Why didn't it go for a higher price?" The only answer I can come up with is that it was not valued by potential buyers. They didn't recognize its true worth.

In Psalm 119 the Bible says, "I rejoice at Your Word as one who finds great treasure" (v. 162). Dear reader, if God's word is really valuable to you, you'll study it, learn it, and most importantly, obey it. HOW MUCH is the Bible worth to you (Psalm 139:17)? What's your bid?

Think about it.

by Stan Mitchell

"What is the conclusion then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will also pray with the understanding. I will sing with the spirit and I will also sing with the understanding" (1 Corinthians 14:15, NKJV).

I heard someone say recently that their congregation had reached a "compromise" over the kinds of hymns they sang in their congregation. They were seeking to "please everybody" by singing some new songs, some old ones, some "praise songs," and some classics. It made me think of a wedding -- "something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue ..."

I understand the desire to keep the peace in a congregation, and I agree that when we choose songs, and a style of song, that we should always be mindful of the needs of others (Philippians 2:1-4). But we've got to do better than mechanically inserting one song that will please the teens, one that will please the elderly, and so on. Our hymns are important. It hurts me to see brethren whispering and conducting some sort of business, even church business, when they should be joining the rest of us in song.

A danger we face with this approach is that we fracture the church into special age, race, and cultural groups, each with its own musical "requirements." Music becomes a divisive force, Balkanizing the church, each group seeking what Michael Hamilton calls its own "stylistic national anthem" (Christianity Today, 43, 1999).

What is the answer? If a song's message is not Biblical, then it is not a hymn. Some songs miss the mark not because they teach false doctrine but because they don't teach much of anything. In our hymns we are to "teach and admonish one another" (Colossians 3:16; Ephesians 5:19). We worship a first class God; let's not offer him a second class offering of praise. He deserves the very best that we have!

by Barry Newton

To listen to their self-testimony, neither of them had done anything wrong. Yet the atmosphere in the room was as cold as a blizzard in January. As far as he was concerned, their strained relationship was all her fault. Similarly, she was totally convinced she was in the right. So they sat in silence, not looking at each other or talking. Each blaming the other. Each wanting the other to apologize. What would happen next is a matter of what they value most.

Disciples are taught to love, forgive, and to show mercy to others. If God desires to heal our human relationships, is it possible a situation exists where they remain fractured?

To listen to some Christians the answer appears to be "yes." How familiar are the following sentiments? "I have not done anything wrong. They hurt me. So the responsibility is upon them to come to me first and ask for forgiveness. I am justified in not doing anything more."

How often have Christians stonewalled healing a relationship because each has dogmatically insisted that the weight of responsibility was upon the other person to make the first move? In spite of God's desire to heal broken relationships, could it be that unity can legitimately be thwarted by a common human situation?

What happens when two godly values collide? The spiritually mature response is to honor the higher principle. For example, Christians are told to both obey the authorities and to preach Christ. So what should we do if the authorities tell us to not preach Christ? As Peter and John's question highlights, which is more important: obeying God or obeying man? Accordingly they continued to preach Jesus.

Which is more important to you: defending your position in being right or a healed relationship? Which would God consider more important? Before you answer, remember God is the one who sent his innocent Son to die for his enemies that we might have peace with him through Jesus. And do not forget the apostle's words, "why not rather take wrong? Why not rather be cheated?"/1 Would Paul place greater value upon defending "I have done nothing wrong" or in saying, "I am sorry for how my actions may have hurt you"?

To value the unity of reconciliation as being more important than protecting my rights reflects God's love. Without a doubt, this is not a response of the spiritually immature.

1/ 1 Corinthians 6:7

by Richard Mansel

Food is the fuel that keeps our bodies running. Without it we become sluggish and weak. Spiritually, we must also feed or grow too weak to go through life.

Peter wrote, "Since you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit in sincere love of the brethren, love one another fervently with a pure heart, having been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever" (1 Peter 1:22-23, NKJV).

As Peter teaches, when we "obey" our souls are "purified" through the process of being born again (John 3:1-5). We stay purified through loving and fellowshiping our brethren and staying connected to God. Since we are born "through the word of God," we endure in it forever. Cultivation of this word in our heart is the most important way to prevent the withering of faithlessness.

In Ephesians 1:15-23 we read Paul encouraging the Ephesian brethren because of their strong faith. He instructs them in how they can increase their faith and how they are blessed because of their faith.

First, the power is given only to the faithful. Paul writes, "and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power" (Ephesians 1:19).

Rechargeable batteries are a marvelous invention that illustrate the power of God. Batteries are worthless on their own. They provide power and then when the power has dissipated, they are discarded. With rechargeable batteries they are plugged into the power source and become renewed. When the power is gone, the batteries are worthless again until they are returned to the power source. The power is not in the battery but in the charger. To have the power God wishes for us to have, we must be in Christ (Romans 6:3-4; Galatians 3:27).

When we become a child of God we gain access to this renewable power source, by the grace of God. We are simply tools, not the source of the power. Without God's power we begin to fade until we are lifeless.

Second, the power results from the Word. David Dewitt writes, "Many years ago a woman in a remote area went to great expense to have electricity installed in her home. She was the first one in her area to do so. A few months after the wiring the electric company prepared her bill and noticed that she had hardly used any electricity. They sent out a repairman thinking something was wrong. He noticed that the meter was running and asked her if she used her electricity. She said, ‘Of course we do. We turn on the lights every night so we can see to light our lamps and then we turn the lights off.' Doesn't that sound ridiculous? Having all of the power that you need and the ability to tap it all of the time but only using it enough to get by."

We have an even greater power through the Word of God and we neglect it and futilely try to make our own light. This "power" of God is in the "glory" which is through the "knowledge of Him" which was "worked in Christ" (Ephesians 1:18-20). This power comes from Christ and it is renewed in Scripture. Jesus said, "I am the light of the world; He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life" (John 8:12).