Christian Living

The English language is constantly changing. New words are being added; many are for new inventions or processes. Modem, email, ecotourism, and zipper have entered our language in the recent past as words are formulated to keep pace with the changing world. Some words, such as the word flux, which means continuous movement or continual change, fall from common usage. Other words undergo change in their meanings. The King James Version of the Holy Scriptures uses many words that are examples of this flux.

The burden of this article is that we would know what it means to be Spirit-filled. It is imperative as a New Testament Church of Jesus Christ that we have youth, middle age, and older people who have their lives under the control of the Holy Spirit.

It is always encouraging to hear the testimony of an individual, how the Holy Spirit has been working in his life. It is equally discouraging when those who profess to have their lives under the Lordship of Jesus Christ fail to express the fruit of the Spirit in their lives.

Planted in each human is an accountable, sovereign will of the mind. By this, man constantly wills either to live his life as a lone entity, or voluntarily assign his will over to God's Sovereign will. The New Testament teaches that man also has a conscience sitting in judgment of, and in witness with, the moral righteousness of God to this will of man. Paul writing in Romans 1-3 explains that because of this no man stands inexcusable before God. Though the English word conscience is absent in Old Testament texts its nature is unmistakably exposed.

Commonly, when we meet someone we have not seen for awhile, we are asked the question, "How have you been?" At times we respond to this question by saying, "God has certainly blessed us." We then proceed to enumerate our "blessings."

Recently, I had the privilege of flying with United Airlines out of San Juan, Puerto Rico. In transit and out of curiosity, I began to read the in-flight magazine provided in the seat pocket. An article concerning Mardi Gras caught my eye which I found informative and revealing. Part of it reads as follows:

One feature of First Term Bible School this year has been the many questions that were asked. The desire of young people to know what the Bible says and its association with why we live the way we do is an honorable characteristic of youth growing into maturity.

One of the cardinal doctrines of the Bible is need for submission to God-ordained authority. Christian parents seek to train their children to obey without question. Their children are required to memorize Ephesians 6:1 "Children, obey your parents in the Lord for this is right." Children are taught that they need to learn obedience, not just because mom or dad want things done their way, but also because there will always be authorities that they need to relate to throughout life.

The Scriptures often use word pictures to help us understand the fullness of Spiritual realities. But since we do not live in the land of the Bible or the times of its writing, we may at times miss the impact of some of these illustrations.

Voluntary service is a relatively new concept in the history of man. In many cultures, it is still more or less unknown. It is an aspect of living known only to cultures operating outside the bounds of survival mode.

First patented in 1884 by Paul Nipkow in Germany, the television has become the most sought out form of medium the world over, challenged only by the recent development of the Internet. With this in mind, I asked myself the question how would Jesus view the television if it had been available in His day? Would He see it as an outlet that could have enhanced His ministry, enabling Him to preach to the masses in a more efficient and large scale way? Would He have used it to send God's message to every Jew and Gentile in all of the civilized world?