by J. Randal Matheny

We set deadlines and expect payments and promises to be made and kept, post-haste.

God had promised Abram a son, and the clock was ticking still.

So man proposes, "My servant Eliezer will be my heir."

And God disposes, "Your very own son shall be your heir" (Gen. 15:4, ESV).

Man was watching the sun rise and set. Rise and set. Rise and set. He was watching the wrong light in the sky.

Man was looking at his own physical incapacity. Long unable to produce a child. It must have become something of a joke between Abram and Sarai. A long-standing joke.

The Lord redirects his sights.

"Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them. ... So shall your offspring be" (verse 5).

Look toward heaven. He who created so many stars and hangs them from horizon to horizon can multiply Abram's descendents beyond count.

If Abram has a hard time believing in one son, God stretches his limits and promises him children without number.

"And he believed the Lord, and he counted it to him as righteousness" (verse 6).

Are you having trouble believing in some promise of the Lord Jesus Christ?

• when he says to seek first his kingdom and "all these things" will be added to your life?

• when he promises to confess you before his Father in heaven if you'll confess him before men?

• when he affirms his word will not return to him void if you proclaim the Good News?

• when he says God makes all things work for good to those who love him?

Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you can.

The exercise will stretch your limits and give you faith.

by Emmett Smith

The Sydney (Australia) Morning Herald ran an article this past week titled, “Some astronomers have too much time”. The article discussed the findings of an Australian National University astronomer and his colleagues. They deduced that the universe contains 70 sextillion stars. That’s 7 followed by 22 zeros! The team also decided that this number of stars far outnumbers all of the grains of sand on earth.

God’s declaration of His covenant with Abraham included similar language. Abraham’s seed were likened in number to the dust of the earth, to the sand of the sea shore, and to the stars of heaven. All of these things are literally innumerable to us humans. Even the astronomers cited above acknowledged that their findings were based on very simplified models. They examined a strip of the sky, counted and then visually examined all the galaxies known to reside therein, estimated the number of stars based on the perceived brightness of each galaxy, and then extrapolated out to the edge of the known universe.

Rather a rough estimate, indeed. In fact, however, God knows these numbers precisely, not as an estimate but as certain knowledge! And the use of these particular analogies in His promise to Abraham was surely based on man’s acknowledged ignorance of these very numbers. Abraham’s seed were to be innumerable! But that’s not all. Abraham’s seed also includes all the faithful throughout the Christian age. As such, the number is continually growing.

We can’t comprehend such numbers. But we can be part of that great number!

Psalms 147:4 He telleth the number of the stars; he calleth them all by their names.

By Michael E. Brooks

“Not that I speak in regard to need; for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content” (Phil 4:11).

Tastes vary, in regard to food and drink as well as colors, fabrics, furniture and cars. I am one who enjoys my hot foods and beverages very hot, and my cold ones very cold. One thing often missing in remote corners of the world is ice and refrigeration; therefore a “sacrifice” I have frequently had to make is drinking lukewarm water or other beverages. This can be trying at times, particularly in very hot weather and while walking long distances.

A few years ago my son, Scott, and I spent two weeks trekking in the Himalayas into remote villages to preach. On our way to the mountains we had spent one night in a hotel in Sriya Brebensi where we enjoyed the coldest Cokes I have yet found in Nepal. Over the next two weeks we walked for more than seven days, including two and a half to get back to Sriya Brebensi after our last preaching stop. Though it was late October in the high mountains daytime temperatures got into the eighties, and with rugged climbs we became very hot and thirsty. Even before we started that last trek we recalled the cold drinks we had enjoyed and began looking forward to them again. We weren’t echoing the rich man’s “just a drop on my tongue” (Luke 16:24). No, we wanted at least two drinks each! And the sooner the better! When we finally got back to the hotel we found the Cokes just as cold as we remembered. Nothing ever tasted any better!

It doesn’t take a lot to make one happy. Especially if the needs are great and expectations are not. We can be physically satisfied with very little. It is our desire that causes trouble. Note Paul’s self-analysis in our text. “I have learned … to be content.” It is about our attitude. James remarks upon the opposite nature:

“Where do wars and fights come from among you? Do they not come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members? You lust and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and war. Yet you do not have because you do not ask” (James 4:1-2).

Contentment is not achieved with material possessions, power, or fame. It is a blessing that God gives as our reward for seeking his righteousness. And it is usually perceived through simple pleasures: a cold drink; a simple meal; the smile on the face of one just baptized into Christ. These bring a fulfillment and lasting satisfaction that mere wealth can never achieve. As Jesus said,

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled” (Matt 5:6).

by Tim Hall

Our local newspaper carried a story the other day on scams that seem to be on the increase. Tennessee's attorney general, Paul G. Summers, was quoted giving this warning to the state's citizens: "The promise of good money for little work is very intriguing to many, and we want to make sure Tennesseans know they could lose their money as a result of these empty promises." I'm glad public officials are concerned about the safety of the citizens' money, and that they are willing to give such warnings.

The scam in question is one with which I've been approached two or three dozen times in the last year. An e-mail appears in my in-box from some dignitary of a foreign country (often it's Nigeria). An enormous sum of money is resting in a bank account, and this person needs my help in transferring it to the United States. In exchange for my help, I'm promised several millions of dollars. What the sender of this e-mail actually has in mind, though, is getting me to send chunks of money in the futile hope that I'll be handsomely rewarded. Futile hope -- it just ain't going to happen. But how many have sent large sums of money hoping to strike it rich with little effort?!

Let me be perfectly candid, though. As I was reading the quote from the attorney general, I couldn't help but see great irony in his words. Less than a year ago, voters in our state approved the creation of a state lottery. Our state government is now in the gambling business, just like most other states in the U.S. Soon they will be paying for ads on television, enticing people to lay down chunks of money for "the promise of good money for little work" (a quote from Mr. Summers; see above). The odds may be a little better of winning the lottery than in receiving a reward from the Nigerian official; but not much better.

Some are already objecting to where this article is obviously headed. "The Bible doesn't condemn gambling!" they rush to insist. No, the Bible does not condemn gambling per se. But there are plenty of principles that are relevant to this issue.

Most would agree that Jesus' words in Luke 6:31 are to be foundational for Christians: "And just as you want men to do to you, you also do to them likewise" (New King James Version). The Golden Rule teaches us to wish for others the same good things we wish for ourselves. But that's impossible when we gamble. The purchase of a lottery ticket implicitly says "I hope no one except me wins". For me to win, everyone else must lose. Is that a Christ-like attitude?

Here's another principle in question: "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). One reason able-bodied people work is to have something to give to those who are in need. But gambling uses that "surplus income" (and often much more besides). How can I give to others when I'm throwing it to the wind in the long-shot hope of a windfall?

One other principle we'll mention is that found in 1 Timothy 6:6: "Now godliness with contentment is great gain." One who is content will see no need to put money in jeopardy -- money that might be used to help with needs elsewhere. One who is content doesn't have that constant craving for more. We already consider ourselves rich, in terms which God defines. (Be sure to read the rest of this chapter for other advice on money.)

Lotteries, casinos, Internet gambling, sports betting -- they're all growing problems in our society. Why aren't our state officials warning us about these money scams? God has.

by Barry Newton

Summer is upon us and many will have enjoyed cruising across a lake or a river. If you have ever been in a high-powered speed boat, imagine the absurdity of opening wide throttle a powerful motor at night while lacking any reliable means for navigating where you are headed. The word suicide comes to my mind.

As surprising as it may seem, this may be a fitting analogy for one aspect of our American culture since the time of the late 1800's when a spiritually bankrupt philosophy called pragmatism was introduced to our country. Pragmatism (originally termed instrumentalism) replaced the value-based guiding question of "what is right" with "what works?" Denying that any normative compass exists for determining which direction a person, company or church ought to be headed, pragmatism simply affirms that value is determined by the most efficient and productive path to your goal.

The impact of pragmatism upon the thinking of society and the church has been profound. Even if different church fellowships have not always agreed what has constituted faithful doctrine, were not the members of all churches generally concerned about doctrine and truth? But as pragmatism has permeated people's outlook, is not value often attached to success and size instead of faithfulness? Has not the primary concern shifted to “results?" Accordingly, at least for some indifference appears to sum up their attitudes toward doctrinal matters.

It would be overly simplistic to assert that pragmatism is solely responsible for doctrine becoming largely lost in the wake of how people think. Some may be reacting to having experienced uncharitable discussions and blamed doctrine as the culprit. Others seem to have embraced a new concept of grace which appears to make obedience and conformity to various aspects of New Testament doctrine superfluous. Still yet another source of apathy would appear to be a particular brand of interpretation where the message and practices of Scripture are viewed as simply one of the possible ways to believe, worship and respond to God. Whatever the cause, Scripture rings out a countercultural message:

"Pay close attention to your life and to your doctrine. Persevere in them, because as you do this, you will save both yourself and your hearers." 1 Timothy 4:16

After teaching about prayer, a woman's role, those who should be considered worthy of serving in the church's structure of elders and deacons, Paul wrote "I am writing these things so that, if I am delayed, you will know how people ought to conduct themselves in the household of God, which is the church of the living God." 1 Timothy 3:14-15

"I praise you because ... you hold to the teachings, just as I delivered them to you." 1 Corinthians 11:2

"As in all the congregations of the saints, the women should keep silent in the churches. ... the things which I am writing to you are the Lord's command." 1 Corinthians 14:33-34, 37

"What you have heard from me, retain as the pattern of healthy teaching in the faith and love which are in Christ Jesus." 2 Timothy 1:13

"The time will come when men will not put up with healthy doctrine; but desiring to have their ears tickled, they will gather around themselves teachers in accordance with what they want to hear." 2 Timothy 4:3

Scripture underscores the importance of doctrine. To be sure, there is the need to avoid the caveat of using these texts as proof texts to buttress human doctrine by examining these statements within their contexts to learn their message. But the New Testament is clear. There are teachings and practices which should be passed on.

Pragmatism will always offer self-gratifying solutions to get where someone wants to go. But are not the real issues: "Where should we be headed?" "What is God's goal for my life?" "How does God want His church to be?" In short, where does the Lord's compass reveal that our boat should be headed?