Roots by the River

Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. James 3:13 (NIV) But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. James 3:17 (NIV) Notice the words that are associated with wisdom from Heaven. 1. Humility 2. Pure 3. Peace-loving 4. Considerate 5. Submissive 6. Full of Mercy 7. Good fruit 8. Impartial 9. Sincere There are people who think they, themselves, are wise. Other people also may think they are wise. If they do not have the above characteristics, they have deceived themselves and their fans are neither observant nor do not know the definition of wisdom.

Be merciful to those who doubt; snatch others from the fire and save them; to others show mercy, mixed with fear—hating even the clothing stained by corrupted flesh. Jude 22, 23 (NIV) Here are three extreme means of evangelism, on three different needs in unbelievers. 1.Doubters: -Be merciful -Show mercy -Preach mercy Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ. Romans 10:17 (NIV) Doubt is removed by faith and faith is caused by the preaching of Christ. 2. In the fire—those on the brink of death. Snatch them from the fire. This is urgent preaching and insistent on repentance. 3. People in filth—Mercy and fear Mary sings of the mixture of mercy and fear in her song. His mercy extends to those who fear him, from generation to generation. Luke 1:50 (NIV)

You adulterous people, don't you know that friendship with the world is hatred toward God? Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. James 4:4 (NIV) Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For everything in the world—the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does—comes not from the Father but from the world. 1 John 2:15, 16 (NIV) I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. John 17:14-16 As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. John 17:18 (NIV) The world is in opposition to God and in opposition to those that love God. The world hates them. Christians do not like to be hated by the people wh...

Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. Consequently, he who rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves. For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and he will commend you. For he is God's servant to do you good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword for nothing. He is God's servant, an agent of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer. Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also because of conscience. This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God's servants, who give their full time to governing. Give everyone what you owe him: If you o...

A few days ago I mentioned both loyalty and treason were bad words. To the normal worldly person loyalty is always a good word and treason is always a bad word. I suggested there are better words. Here are a few, God, love, truth, obedience, responsibility and humility. With these as our standard as Christians we find that loyalty and treason are not necessary words. I can obey God with love, truth, and humility. If I have a responsibility to my wife, children, church, and nation, I carry them out by obedience to God and love for God and my wife, children, and nation. You can reply by saying that I am “loyal.” Not even close. Loyalty is an artificially created humanistic emotion. Love is a God authored and created emotion. The man in the Bible that stands out in loyalty in my mind is Joab. His brother Abishai is a close second. The man who stands out in love and obedience is Paul. There is not a whiff of loyalty about him. …though I myself have reasons for such confidence. If anyone el...

Over the years I have periodically thought about loyalty. I am thinking about it again. In my earlier thinking, I came to the conclusion that the word was a bad word and the practice was a bad practice. Loyalty causes things like millions of people giving strong adherence to, and following of people, like Hitler, Mussolini, Tojo, Stalin, Lenin, Mao, and causing the premature death of hundreds of millions of people. And the people who were loyal thought it was a good thing. Loyalty causes people to say, “I was born a Methodist, I will die a Methodist”, even though the Holy Spirit may have left the Methodist church a hundred years ago. Loyalty causes people to say, “South High School in Omaha is the best high school because I go to South High. Loyalty is taught in nations, churches, and schools. In military units, it is called “Espirit de corps.” Pep rallies help it along, Martial music helps it along. We have a problem with what I have just written. That is, the opposite of loyalty, is ...