Healing Rays of Righteousness

God’s Gift of Freedom

Many who call themselves Christian do not understand that God’s gift of FREEDOM overrides and should frame our understanding of the national freedoms of speech, religion, and wealth.  Contrary to popular thought, God’s FREEDOM does not give me the right to disrespect, demean, ridicule, blaspheme, or falsely accuse others as I may wish to do.  Neither does God’s FREEDOM give me the right to coerce  others by legalization, to believe and live according to the religious tradition I have chosen.  And neither does God’s FREEDOM give me the right to gain and store wealth for my own comfort and pleasure. 

In fact, God’s FREEDOM frees me from all of the above selfish and prejudiced concerns in order to fully love God and share with others all that I am or hope to be.

We need to rediscover that any worthy definition of freedom must be grounded in the biblical understanding that the core motivation and life-purpose of every follower of Jesus is rooted in the same sacrificial “agape” love which is seen in Jesus and evidenced in a lifestyle of  “serving” others. 

Thus, for the Christian, God’s gift of FREEDOM is not a lawless, irresponsible anarchy, but a holy commonwealth nourished by a self-disciplined, trustworthy, responsible lifestyle of living in unselfish, unwavering love for God and others. 

When asked which is the greatest commandment, Jesus replied, “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’  This is the first and greatest commandment.  And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’  All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”  (Matthew 22:37-40).

Jesus proclaimed FREEDOM to be the purpose and focus for His ministry when he said, “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor.  He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” (Luke 4:18-19).

In his letter to the Galatians, the apostle Paul declared FREEDOM to be God’s gracious gift to us through Jesus’ suffering and death, “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free.” And then he adds, “You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free.  But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love.  For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command; ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”  (Galatians 5:1, 13-14).

The apostle Peter similarly writes, “Live as free people, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as God’s slaves.  Show proper respect to everyone, love the family of believers, fear God, honor the emperor.”  (1 Peter 2:16-17).

When we accept God’s gift of FREEDOM, purchased for us through Jesus’ suffering and death, we are rescued (redeemed) and set free from the guilt and penalty of sin.  And then by God’s overcoming death through Jesus’ resurrection from the tomb, we are set free from the fear of death.  And finally, by God’s bringing Jesus’ love and power to us through His indwelling Holy Spirit, we are set free from self-contempt, insecurity, hopelessness, purposeless living, addictions, racism, and all selfish and unloving attitudes and actions toward others.

We all know that this FREEDOM gift from God has been and continues to be constantly under attack by satanic-inspired enemies seeking to deceive the declared disciples of Jesus into believing a false, but more tolerable understanding of personal freedoms as my rights to speak and do as I please.

Another writer has named these enemies of FREEDOM as complacency, conformity, control, and coercion, which are currently extremely active in the political and religious arenas of today.

Complacency is evident in the undisciplined and unmotivated person.  God’s FREEDOM is always the result of a disciplined relationship of love and obedience to God.  It is never free nor automatic.  It must be desired and pursued as our first priority.

Conformity is evident in the desire to squeeze everyone into the same mold of thinking and acting as we are by intimidation and accusation.  God’s grants His FREEDOM to all others, even if they are not like us, do not think like us, nor agree with us, and even do not do things the way we do.  And yet, this desire for conformity continues to be a divisive struggle in many evangelical, conservative churches.  

Control is evident in the attempt by any religious group to control the government and determine its policies regarding religious beliefs and behaviors.  This is an insidious enemy of God’s FREEDOM.  Our histories would confirm that the most grievous threat to God’s FREEDOM is not a government void of religion, but a government controlled by religion.  An earlier Baptist church leader, John Leland said, “Experience, the best teacher, has taught us that fondness of magistrates to foster Christianity has done it more harm than all the persecutions ever did.”  And yet, this is the advertised goal of many who call themselves evangelical Christians, in their use of Old Testament stories to authenticate their efforts.

Coercion is evident in the demands that the religious faith of others be just like ours, and expressed with the same terminology and practiced in the same manner as we do.  The Pharisees of Jesus’ day were coercing people into conformity with their rules and regulations regarding relationship with God.  

Jesus opposed this kind of Pharisaical pursuit of Godly living, knowing that coercion of any kind is an enemy of the FREEDOM that He was offering to all people.  Jesus’ always offered God’s gift of FREEDOM as a choice.  Jesus lived and practiced the FREEDOM He taught, always inviting others to choose to believe, trust, and follow Him, saying “Come to me.”  

God’s gift of FREEDOM to Love is offered to all as a choice that bubbles up from a redeemed, transformed heart toward loving God and all others.  So let this FREEDOM to LOVE ring and reign today and tomorrow, in the lives of all who claim to be Christian in our churches, nation, and world.  Amen.

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“Healing Rays of Righteousness” – July 27, 2022

www.geigler13.wordpress.com

Ray M. Geigley

MIND YOUR MANNERS

Sabbath Day hospitality was a significant part of Jewish life.  Banquets and other mealtimes provided a casual atmosphere for philosophers and teachers to impart their wisdom.  There was nothing unusual about Jesus being invited to a home for a meal after the weekly Synagogue service.  Most of the time the host was sincere, wanting to learn more of God’s truth.

However, there were several occasions when Jesus was invited to dinner only so his critics could watch him and find something to criticize.  That was the case in Luke 14.  Jesus is invited to eat in the house of a leading Pharisee only so the guests could watch him closely and catch him violating some Sabbath rule.

But Jesus turned the occasion into a teachable moment.  When they were called to the dinner table, Jesus saw their mad scramble for the places of honor, closest to the head table.  Once the guests were seated and quieted by the serving of the food, Jesus began to speak about their lack of humility, and concludes with these words in verse 11, “For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” 

The story is told of a newly promoted, pompous air force officer sitting in his new office.  While thoroughly enjoying his good fortune, a worker with a toolbox in hand, walks into his office.  Wanting to impress the visitor, the officer picked up the phone, and said, “Yes, General, I will call President Bush this afternoon.  No, I will not forget.  I understand that the president wants to talk to me.”  Then hanging up, the officer asked the young worker, “And what may I do for you?”  “Oh,” replied the workman, “I just came to connect your phone.”

We may chuckle, but even today many of us still have the problem of wanting to be the “top dog” – the first in line, the most honored.  Somewhere I read that, “Man is the only animal you can pat on the back, and his head swells.”  Think about that as you check your humility meter.

During this and other occasions, Jesus teaches that humility is more important than being honored.  Jesus upset the popular notion of how to be successful in the eyes of the community.  What Jesus said was contrary to the Pharisees’ way of thinking, and their puffed-up egos.  They considered themselves good, religious people and thought the community should esteem them as such.

Even the disciples struggled with this new “upside-down” Kingdom thinking.  Remember the story of James and John, the sons of Zebedee, asking Jesus for the honor of being seated on his right and left in his glory.  On another occasion the disciples were arguing about who was the greatest among them.

Donald W. McCullough writes in his book, Finding Happiness in The Most Unlikely Places, “Often our self-centered aggressiveness comes from not liking ourselves very much.  Insecurities push us to prove to others and, most of all, to ourselves that we have value; if only we could get to the top of the ladder of success, we might think, surely, we would feel more worthwhile.”

We like and crave honor, but humility, well, that does not excite us.  Why?  Probably because we tend to think of being humble as akin to being weak and of little worth.  Some would call it being like a doormat.

However, humility is not about putting yourself down as a worthless nobody.  Being humble is not a denial of value or ability, a minimizing of who God created us to be.  In fact, as recorded in Psalm 139, God looks on us as being very precious. 

To be humble is to acknowledge our finitude, our inability to save ourselves, our complete dependence on God’s grace.  So, when we say “yes” to God’s love in Jesus Christ, we can say “no” to the old games of fighting for prestige and security.  What Jesus did on Calvary’s cross validates our worth.  

Humility is an honest evaluation of ourselves, an acceptance of who we really are in Christ Jesus.  It is knowing that even while we were yet sinners, God has forgiven us our past, put a robe on our shoulders, a ring on our finger, and sandals on our feet, and has exalted us by inviting us to the wedding feast.

The humble person habitually feels that he/she owes all their gifts and accomplishments to God, and that they have been the recipient of underserved redeeming love.  To be humble means that we are in earnest about God’s glory rather than our own.  Humility is a fruit of seeking to glorify God in our lives.

To the Roman Christians, the apostle Paul writes, “For by the grace given me I say to every one of you:  Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has distributed to each of you.”  (Romans 12:3).

And because we no longer are trying to be “top dog” in our community, we are freed to ease the pain, want, and hurt in our community by sharing what God has so generously given us, that is, His amazing, awesome love.

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“Healing Rays of Righteousness” – July 20, 2022

www.geigler13.wordpress.com

Ray M. Geigley

Joy, Joy, Joy

Many times, in past years, I have sung “I have the joy, joy, joy, down in my heart, down in my heart, down in my heart;  I have the joy, joy, joy, down in my heart to stay.”

To find a person who is brimming full of joy is about as rare as sighting a bald eagle these days, thanks to the very disturbing and depressing currents events in our nation and world.  And I sense that much of what is passed off as joy is simply counterfeited happiness.  More than 50 years ago, Joseph Folliet wrote a critique that remains very appropriate for today:

“I listen to you talk, my brothers of today; I lend an ear to your conversations, which are nothing but alternating soliloquies.  You pour forth torrents of black bile in the form of criticism, complaints and accusations, forever deploring your bad luck and blaming some mysterious people called ‘they’ who never tire of playing dirty tricks on you.  As it happens, ‘they’ is everything outside of you – tax collectors, neighbors, the government, perfect strangers.  Nothing and nobody, from the weather to the people closest to you, can escape your censure.  Why this perpetual fault-finding, which is sadistic toward others and masochistic toward yourselves?  Isn’t it possible that you see the dark side of everything because there’s so much darkness in your souls?  Don’t you find the world sad and ugly because you view it with a joyless eye?  The cold and gloom are in you first of all.  Always unsatisfied, always discontented, you make more and more demands.  Now, demands point to a lack.  When the destitute clamor, we can see exactly what they need.  But when the rich and the surfeited multiply their demands, what can they possibly be looking for?  Perhaps the one thing that wealth and prestige can’t give; joy.”  (Invitation to Joy, published by Newman,1968)

I believe that of all the things we may lack the lack of joy is the saddest.  And nothing makes the Gospel of Jesus Christ more appealing than its promise of joy.  All through the New Testament we read and hear a symphony of joy.  When Jesus was born, an angel announced, “I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.” (Lk. 2:10).  Throughout his teaching ministry, Jesus repeatedly promises joy to those who are his disciples.  When Jesus is telling of his impending death, he reassures the disciples, “Now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy.” (Jn. 16:22). 

The Gospel is both a message of joy and an invitation to begin living a life brimming full and overflowing with joy.  Genuine joy reflects God’s very own Being.  It is who He is, the source of all joy.  God is not some grim and emotionless ruler of the earth and its people.  The Old Testament says, “He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing.” (Zeph. 3:17). 

The joy God gives is different from pleasure and happiness because it is an abiding, deep-down exuberance which comes from God through His Spirit by faith in his Son, Jesus.  The joy He gives is supernatural in its source and essence, the fruit of His Spirit. 

Maybe you are asking how we can cooperate with this fruit-producing energy in our life?  We should begin by seriously considering the conditions that Jesus lays down before promising joy to his disciples. “If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father’s commands and remain in his love.  I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.” (Jn. 15:10-11).

Then we can begin cultivating the fruit-producing habits of spiritual discipline by studying the scriptures, being in prayer with God, and in Christian fellowship.  We may need to adjust our schedules in order to spend more time with God, remembering what David said about God, “…you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.” (Ps. 16:11).

I want to be a joy-filled person, giving witness to others that God is faithful in all his promises.  Yes, there is much to criticize and complain about, but our Heavenly Father is greater than any circumstance and is sovereign over all situations.  “This day is holy to our Lord.  Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”  (Nehemiah 8:10b). 

And so, let us give thanks to God and let His joy overflow in all our relationships and conversations.  There is no better way to enhance the quality of life and to light the darkness in our communities, church, nation, and world.  Amen!

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“Healing Rays of Righteousness” – July 6, 2022

www.geigler13.wordpress.com

Ray M. Geigley