Proverbially
SPEAKING…
(4)
A JOB well done is its own reward.
There is no way that we can lift people
up unless we come down to their level to help them.
Beware lest when we give out we
give in and then give up (Galatians 6:9).
Being intoxicated, or drunk, is not
just a single sin, but it is one that opens the door to many others.
Know God--know hope, know peace;
no God--no hope, no peace.
The man who makes the best of that
which is less than best will come out the best.
In an atmosphere of ill will the
will of God will not and cannot be accomplished.
We can give without loving (I Corinthians
13:3), but we cannot love without giving (I John 3:16-18; John 3:16).
Difficulties are obstacles only
to the weak.
God is Spirit (non- physical), John
4:24, and any reference to Him otherwise is an accommodation to the limited
mind of finite man.
We best keep God's Word when we
give it away--EVANGELIZE!
x
(VOL 35, NO. 4, 1997)
<BACK
Proverbially
SPEAKING…
(5)
TO FAIL to plan is to plan to fail.
In a sense prayer connects us with those for whom we pray,
as well as connecting us with God.
The man who fears God has nothing else to fear.
As metal is solidly welded together by intense heat, so the
closest friendships are forged in the common experience of adversity.
Quitting sin is not a matter of Christian growth, but of
repentance.
When we look to the future, and press on with hope, our life
will not be past tense.
Life is too valuable to let the years slip by without living
them.
Too many are more interested in polishing the sepulchres
of the prophets (Matthew 23:29-32), with no intentions of doing what they
said, than in going to the empty tomb and living the resurrected life.
Where will you be when you get where you are going?
It is hard for the weak to forgive for they are insecure
and feel threatened and intimidated in doing so.
x
<BACK
Proverbially
SPEAKING...
(6)
THE FEAR of failure keeps many in that category.
The purpose of having a sheepfold is not only to keep the
sheep in, but to keep the wolves out.
Nothing works like work when it comes to getting the Lord's
work done.
You cannot do as you please unless your purpose in living
is to please God in everything that you do and say.
To die without accepting Christ is to be a fool forever.
Don't take the low road, but take the high (John 14:6), and
it will lead to a home on high.
People who are oblivious to time, many times are in danger
of falling into oblivion.
All things come to them who wait, and then if we are not
alert, they may just pass on by.
He has gained much who does not want much.
We can give without loving (I Corinthians 13:3), but we cannot
love without giving (I John 3:16-18; John 3:16).
A man who is afraid of failure will do ANYTHING or NOTHING.
x
<BACK
|
 BARBS...
with a Point
(3)
WHEN we esteem and lift men just a
little too high, we will eventually see their clay feet.
"Can't" never did anything, and
"Won't" never will.
If ignorance is bliss, a lot of people
must be having a gay old time as far as their knowledge of the Word of
God is concerned.
x
We cannot
pull together, or even walk together, unless we are going in the same direction.
A man of small stature physically is
still small though he stand on the highest mountain, and men of little
character are still little though they be found in the highest places of
society.
We cannot drag our feet and walk
as Jesus walked (I John 2:6).
When the attention of religious people
is placed upon a religious movement instead of the religious truth that
produced that movement, the movement has fizzled out.
If peacemakers are called "children
of God" (Matthew 5:9), what would troublemakers be called?
If hearing God's Word preached in its
fullness runs people off from church, they really didn't have far to go.
Have you ever noticed, an empty
container makes more noise than a full one.
Some people proudly esteem themselves
to be advanced Bible students when really they are only secondhand clones
of sectarianism and have never actually approached the Bible independently
on their own to understand it.
When people who do not practice
self-control are in control of our country, things get out of control.
Criticism coming from those in error,
considering the source, many times should be looked upon as a backhanded
compliment.
Hope is the anchor of the soul (Hebrews
6:18,19), and those without it are adrift upon a troubled sea.
If today's church cannot accomplish
what it is trying to do through the individual Christian and the local
congregation (and must resort to other means), chances are that it has
gotten out of the range and authority of its commission.
Freedom, if it is not in the context
of purpose and responsibility, has no meaning and is harmful to all concerned.
The Word of God is the seed of the
kingdom and does not produce tares of a denominational hybrid; consequently
Jesus said, "Every plant, which my heavenly Father hath not planted, shall
be rooted up" (Matthew 15:13).
We need to present the truth in
a good solid affirmative way; reactionaryism produces reactionaryism
Contrary to what the word might seem
to suggest, when people are "highminded," their thoughts do not come from
above but from below.
<BACK
____________________________________________________
BARBS...
with a Point
(4)
"GOD resists the proud, But gives grace
to the humble" (James 4:6)--therefore, to be proud is to deprive
ourselves of the grace of God.
Are you a stumbling block or a stepping
stone?
Acknowledging that we are sinners without
forsaking our sins only the more emphatically accents our condemnation.
Sound preaching must have more than
sound to it.
When we are on "fire" for the Lord,
we need to be careful that we do not experience "burn out" when so few
respond to what we have to say.
"To err is human, to forgive, divine,"
but to continue in sin is devilish.
When a person sits under strong preaching,
and does not obey it, it makes him more set in the ways of error.
Salvation is not based upon feeling,
but feeling should be based upon salvation.
Some Christians grow (just grow older)
but don't grow in the grace and knowledge of the Lord (II Peter 3:18; 1:2-11).
It seems that many modern "pastors"
are more interested in fleecing the sheep than in feeding them.
If we whisper repentance and shout
forgiveness, there will be little change in a person's life as he goes
on living in his unforgiven sin.
Life, not properly lived, can become
wearisome and burdensome.
God is concerned not only about how
we give, that we are a cheerful and generous giver; but how that we receive,
that it is with thanksgiving.
If we can't figure out that people
are lost, chances are we don't know if we are saved or not either.
It seems that we must strip away the
veneer of wealth, material things, gaudy garments, and cosmetics before
the spiritual man can shine through.
If we have a "short fuse," it would
be wise to stay away from explosive situations.
When we have our appointment with the
"grim reaper," we will then reap that which we have sown, good or bad.
It is hard to be clothed with Christ
when we are all wrapped up in the world.
A sect may also be a group of
people who self-righteously think they are all of the Lord's church when
in reality they are only a section, if indeed that at times.
If you live without God, you will
die without God (and without hope).
If something is the truth, no amount
of wishing it were otherwise or believing something else will change the
matter.
<BACK
|
Proverbially
Speaking
