From the Preacher's Desk:

Humility.  Perhaps the most elusive of all godly characteristics.  If you do not have it, then you know you need it, and if you think that you do have it, then you probably do not and need it even more.  David, in his despair after his sin with Bathsheba wrote, "The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, A broken and a contrite heart— These, O God, You will not despise" (Psalm 51:17 NKJV).  David got there, but oh, how great was the cost!  James wrote, "But He gives more grace. Therefore He says: 'GOD RESISTS THE PROUD, BUT GIVES GRACE TO THE HUMBLE'" (James 4:6).  It follows, therefore, that since grace falls into the "have-to-have" category, then humbleness must likewise be placed into that same category.

Jesus said:

"Blessed are the poor in spirit" (Matthew 5:3).  

"Therefore whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven" (Matthew 18:4).
"If anyone desires to be first, he shall be last of all and servant of all" (Mark 9:35).
"Whoever desires to be great among you, let him be your servant" (Matthew 20:26).
"And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted" (Matthew 23:12).
And, "For I have given you an example, that you should do as I have done to you.  Most assuredly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master; nor is he who is sent greater than he who sent him" (John 13:15-16).

So how do we pursue something that we have to have, obviously the more of it we have the better, yet at the same time, the more that we know that we have it, the greater the likelihood that we will lose it to the pride that comes with possessing it?

First, seek a broken spirit and contrite heart through the acknowledgment of God's grace and our own sinfulness.  Our place in God's scheme of redemption is always--always--as a recipient.  We can never allow ourselves to think that God owes us anything (see Romans 4).

Second, seek to be a servant, not for the sake of service, but for the sake of the Master.  Again, our role in God's scheme of redemption must be remembered.  Many servants serve for the hope of gaining something themselves.  Our service for God and for one another, however, must be because we know that we are not our own masters!

Third, seek to be the publican and not the Pharisee.  I am afraid sometimes that it is easier for us to relate to the Pharisee than it is the publican.  We start telling ourselves how good we are because we are not doing so many different sinful things that we see others around us doing, and we end up using those around us as our measuring stick instead of Jesus.

 "Till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ" (Ephesians 4:13). 

Jacob's Return to Esau

From the Preacher's Desk:

In Genesis 32 and 33, Jacob is heading back to the land of Canaan after having been gone for twenty years.  He had ran away for fear of his brother Esau after he had stolen Esau's blessing from his father Isaac and lived with his kinsman Laban for that time.  Now, as he approaches his home, he hears that his brother is coming out to meet him.  Once again, he is afraid.

As Jacob found out, running from sin, problems, or even anxieties is not going to make them go away.  Even though of the two brothers Jacob was the one whom God had chosen to perpetuate the promises made to Abraham, Jacob's behavior was not without consequences.  As a matter of fact, Jacob had every right to be afraid of Esau because of the way he had treated him.  Although reading Genesis 32 proves that Esau's anger had diminished and his attitude had changed, that did nothing to take away the  responsibility of Jacob for his actions.

Genesis 32 and 33 show also that Jacob had experienced a change of attitude toward his brother.  Jacob was in possession of both the birthright and the blessing which rightfully should have belonged to Esau, but as he approached his brother, instead of being haughty or demanding he came with humility.  He offered to Esau both possessions and obeisance to demonstrate his change of heart.

Finally, although reconciliation was achieved, Jacob decided to keep his distance from his brother.  Their parting was accomplished in complete peace and brotherly love, yet Jacob decided that the best course of action was to not get too close.  The Bible does not tell us exactly why Jacob did this.  It may have been that he did not trust his brother, or he may not have trusted himself.  Whatever the reason, Jacob judged it to be wise to just stay away.

The lessons to be learned from these chapters are many.  First, the situation which Jacob found himself in was of his own creation--as he fully understood.  Jacob did not try to blame Esau, his mother, or his father, nor did he try to blame God.  Such is true with man and sin.  The things we decide to do or not do are going to determine our relationship with sin.  When we succumb to temptation, there will be no one to blame but ourselves.

Second, as Jacob was responsible for his actions, so must we be held responsible for our actions.  Solomon wrote, "For God will bring every work into judgment, Including every secret thing, Whether good or evil" (Ecclesiastes 12:14 NKJV).

Third, running from sin is not the answer.  Look at what happened to Jonah as he tried to flee from God when commanded to go to Nineveh.  Look at what happened to David when he tried to cover his transgression with Bathsheba.  Look at what happened to Peter when he tried to hide his association with Jesus by denying him.  Moses told the tribes of Reuben and Gad, "...and be sure your sin will find you out" (Numbers 32:23).

Fourth, our attitude toward sin can make all of the difference.  Repentance is frequently defined as a change of mind brought by a change of heart which results in a change of life (cf. 2 Corinthians 5:10).  No change will ever occur until we decide to bring it about, but the desire alone is not enough.

Finally, stay as far from sin as you can.  At some point we have to admit that we cannot ever trust the devil to do what is right.  Sometimes, we have to admit that we cannot trust ourselves.  Regardless of the situation, the farther we stay from sin, the better off we will be.