The Gospel Message

 

Romans 1:16

16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel; it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who has faith, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. 

For preaching the gospel, Paul had been imprisoned, stoned, left for dead, beaten with rods, robbed, starved, suffered in cold, suffered in heat, gone hungry, and he was laughed at.  Yet, here he is, writing to the Romans, saying that he is not ashamed of the gospel.

The very gospel that caused people to react so violently towards him, Paul called “the power of God for salvation to all who believe.”  Paul was not ashamed of the gospel because he knew it to be from God for the benefit of humanity.  

The world rejects the gospel because it is a message of love, mercy, and forgiveness; it is a message of generosity, giving and self-sacrifice; it is a message of peace and unity 

As we glorify our wars, celebrate our greed and selfishness, and make excuses for our hate and vengefulness, remember Paul and the gospel message.

“For in it the righteousness of God is revealed through faith for faith; as it is written, “The one who is righteous will live by faith.” (Romans 1:17)

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

Christian Fellowship

 Romans 1:8-12

“8 First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is proclaimed throughout the world. 9 For God, whom I serve with my spirit by announcing the gospel of his Son, is my witness that without ceasing I remember you always in my prayers, 10 asking that by God’s will I may somehow at last succeed in coming to you. 11 For I am longing to see you so that I may share with you some spiritual gift to strengthen you— 12 or rather so that we may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith, both yours and mine.”

Paul wanted to meet with the members of the Roman church so that he could share his spiritual gifts with them in order to strengthen them and so that he, himself, could be strengthened by them.

The fellowship of Christians is more than just a meet and greet; more than just a shared meal; more than just an icebreaker exercise at a seminar.  Through Christian fellowship we can all be strengthened in our faith journey, no matter where we are in that journey.  

Some of my fondest memories of Christian fellowship involve being around older, more mature Christians, listening to their stories, and watching them as they led the church. They inspired me to explore my faith more deeply and to endeavor to live the kind of life that Christians are called to live.

The world is a challenge to a people of faith, and it is easy to fall into its temptations and distractions.  Amidst of all this, the world can make us feel like we are alone.   Christian fellowship can give us encouragement, solace, and reinforcement when we need it most.

“Do not neglect to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encourage one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.” (Hebrews 10:24-25)

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

The Source

1 Corinthians 1:  1-10

“1 Paul, called to be an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and our brother Sosthenes, 2 To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, together with all those who in every place call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours: 3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 4 I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that has been given you in Christ Jesus, 5 for in every way you have been enriched in him, in speech and knowledge of every kind— 6 just as the testimony of Christ has been strengthened among you— 7 so that you are not lacking in any spiritual gift as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ. 8 He will also strengthen you to the end, so that you may be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 God is faithful; by him you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. 10 Now I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you be in agreement and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same purpose.”

In the first ten verses of Paul’s letter to the Church in Corinth,  the name of Christ appears ten times.  Paul’s letter was going to be a difficult one in which Paul was going to deal with sensitive issues.  

So, Paul emphasized Christ and reminded the members of the Corinthian church that it was by Christ that they were saved, by Christ that they were given strength, by Christ they received their spiritual gifts, and it was Christ that they served.

In our spiritual walk, it is important that we never forget the source of our salvation.  Let us never forget the wellspring of our faith, the inspiration of our love, the power of our souls. Let us never forget who and why we serve.

“I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.” (Revelation 22:13)

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

A Foreshadowing

2 Kings 13:14-20

“14 Now when Elisha had fallen sick with the illness of which he was to die, King Joash of Israel went down to him, and wept before him, crying, “My father, my father! The chariots of Israel and its horsemen!” 15 Elisha said to him, “Take a bow and arrows”; so he took a bow and arrows. 16 Then he said to the king of Israel, “Draw the bow”; and he drew it. Elisha laid his hands on the king’s hands. 17 Then he said, “Open the window eastward”; and he opened it. Elisha said, “Shoot”; and he shot. Then he said, “The Lord’s arrow of victory, the arrow of victory over Aram! For you shall fight the Arameans in Aphek until you have made an end of them.” 18 He continued, “Take the arrows”; and he took them. He said to the king of Israel, “Strike the ground with them”; he struck three times, and stopped. 19 Then the man of God was angry with him, and said, “You should have struck five or six times; then you would have struck down Aram until you had made an end of it, but now you will strike down Aram only three times.” 20 So Elisha died, and they buried him. Now bands of Moabites used to invade the land in the spring of the year. 21 As a man was being buried, a marauding band was seen and the man was thrown into the grave of Elisha; as soon as the man touched the bones of Elisha, he came to life and stood on his feet.”

Two things catch the readers’ eye in this scripture: First, King Joash, at the deathbed of Elisha, repeats the exact phrase that Elisha said when Elijah was taken up.  Second, After Elisha’s death, a dead man was resurrected after being placed in the grave of Elijah.

Elisha is linked by this passage to the life of Elijah and to Christ.  Elisha was a servant and apprentice of Elijah, and Elisha’s life was a foreshadowing of the yet to be incarnated Christ.  

Our lives as Christians are to be modeled after the life and teachings of Christ.  We are to be examples of the living, resurrected Christ in the world…

and a foreshadowing of the future Kingdom of God. 

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

Open Our Eyes

2 Kings: 6:15-17

“15 When an attendant of the man of God rose early in the morning and went out, an army with horses and chariots was all around the city. His servant said, “Alas, master! What shall we do?” 16 He replied, “Do not be afraid, for there are more with us than there are with them.” 17 Then Elisha prayed: “O Lord, please open his eyes that he may see.” So the Lord opened the eyes of the servant, and he saw; the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.” 

The King of Aram attacked the city of Dothan, where Elisha was living.  When the people of the city awoke, they were surrounded by Aramean soldiers on foot, horses and chariots.  The people of Dothan appeared to be outnumbered.

Elisha told his servant that there were more “with us than with them” and suddenly the servant could see thousands of God’s army of Angels around Elisha on horses and in chariots of fire.

In our struggles as Christians, we have God’s Holy Spirit leading and guiding us.  Where we go, God goes.  When we pray, but the words just will not come, the Holy Spirit prays for us.  When we think we cannot go on, the Holy Spirit gives us the courage to persevere.  

“For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind" (2 Timothy 1:7).

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

Anger

2 Kings 5:-14

“13 But his servants approached and said to him [Naaman], “Father, if the prophet had commanded you to do something difficult, would you not have done it? How much more, when all he said to you was, ‘Wash, and be clean’?” 14 So he went down and immersed himself seven times in the Jordan, according to the word of the man of God [Elisha]; his flesh was restored like the flesh of a young boy, and he was clean.”

Elisha, through a messenger, told Naaman to bathe in the Jordan River seven times in order to be healed of leprosy.  Naaman thought he should have been healed by the prophet, Elisha, himself.   So he turned away in anger and began to leave. 

Naaman was ready to walk away from God’s healing because he was angry. His servants stopped him and persuaded him to do as Elisha had requested.  He immersed himself seven times in the Jordan River and was healed.

Emotions such as anger interfere with our relationship with God.  During times of anger we are unable to discern the voice of God and be led by His spirit.  

“You must understand this, my beloved: let everyone be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger; for your anger does not produce God’s righteousness.” (James 1:19-20) 

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

Show and Ceremony

2 Kings 5:8-12

“8 But when Elisha the man of God heard that the king of Israel had torn his clothes, he sent a message to the king, “Why have you torn your clothes? Let him come to me, that he may learn that there is a prophet in Israel.” 9 So Naaman came with his horses and chariots, and halted at the entrance of Elisha’s house. 10 Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, “Go, wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored and you shall be clean.” 11 But Naaman became angry and went away, saying, “I thought that for me he would surely come out, and stand and call on the name of the Lord his God, and would wave his hand over the spot, and cure the leprosy! 12 Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Could I not wash in them, and be clean?” He turned and went away in a rage. 

The mighty warrior, Naaman, had won a glorious victory for the King of Aram.  In turn, the King of Aram wrote a letter to the King of Israel telling him that he was sending Naaman to the prophet Elisha so that Naaman could be healed of his leprosy.

When Naaman arrived with his horses and chariots, he expected the prophet Elisha to give him personal treatment.  Instead, Elisha sent his servant to tell Naaman to bathe in the Jordan River seven times, and if he did this he would be healed of his leprosy.

Naaman was not thrilled with these instructions, even though the message was one of healing and hope.  Naaman wanted the show and the ceremony more than he wanted to be healed. He wanted the prophet himself to stand over him, wave his hand over the leprosy and let everyone see how the prophet himself cured him.

Sometimes we let our need for the show and the ceremony overshadow our need for the  healing and the hope of Christ.

Christ did not come to earth so that we could have vast, complicated, ornate and lavish worship services.  He came to heal us and make us whole.

“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. (John 3:16)

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)