SCRIP-BITS

1 Corinthians 15:57.    But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
 
Oh Friends, it’s just been another normal day in our world, with riots still bubbling in Britain, and the worldwide economic crisis ongoing, but also with new tensions raising their ugly heads in places like South Africa, where a white supremacist leader was apparently bludgeoned to death in his bed by his farm workers. Meanwhile in Bangkok, the capital of Thailand, the Redshirts, the people’s movement, and the government are squaring off again with demonstrations and angry words, unlike North and South Korea where shells were actually fired by both sides, and in Kyrgyzstan, where the city of Osh was burned to the ground following racial disturbances. Then good ole boy Canada, ordered all the Libyan diplomats out of the country, ostensibly closing the Libyan Embassy. And we haven’t even mentioned the volatile Middle East, where the Syrian gov’t seems intent on putting down the uprising by force. When and how is it all going to end eh Friends? None of these problems will go away easily. Instead, they all seem poised to escalate and further complicate matters. And the sad part is that there’s no real common denominator to all the tensions. They vary from outright racism to economic dysfunction, religious differences, internal political rivalries and bitter dislike and discord between nations. That means there’s no one common solution, but a host of problems to each be solved on their own. Unfortunately though, in our new global village, problems tend to spread much quicker than solutions. So what’s a believer, a Christian, a follower of Christ supposed to do amidst all this confusion and turmoil in our world? Simply stand strong and steadfast in faith my people! It’s not easy to keep your wits about you when others around you are losing theirs, but if we truly believe, then we’ll acknowledge the greater power that’s God in our lives, and don’t give into fear and worry, since our Bit assures us of victory. ‘But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.’ And that’s the gospel truth Friends! Christ’s victory over sin and death allows us to live in fearful situations in faith, without fear. As Bruh Paul reassures us in the verse after our Bit: ‘Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain (futile) in the Lord.’ (1 Cor.15:58) Yes my brethren, despite all the turmoil around us, believers are expected to continue doing God’s work, for if we don’t faint, and /or give up, we will be richly rewarded later on. It’s the age old struggle between the flesh and the Spirit, regarding which Bruh Paul concludes to the Roman church: ‘I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin.’ (Rom.7:25) Oh my people, in these tumultuous times, believers are called to show what they’re really made of. Are we truly believing and standing triumphant in Christ, per the gospel? ‘Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth (leads) us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour (fragrance) of his knowledge by us in every place.’ (2 Cor.2:14) Wherever we are, are we triumphantly walking in peace and LOVE and spreading the Word? The apostle John puts it this way: ‘For whatsoever (whosoever) is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?’ (1 John 5:4-5) Oh my people, by faith in Jesus, who’s already overcome the world, we too can overcome it! And finally, listen to these verses from the Book of Revelation, concerning the new heaven and new earth: ‘And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.’ (Rev.21:3-4) Yes Friends, eventually this old, beaten up earth will be destroyed, and a new one installed with Jesus as Lord and Master. Then all negative stuff will cease to exist. So please, let’s hang in there with Christ, truly exercise our faith, which has been given to us expressly for difficult times like these, knowing that whatsoever we do in God’s name, with a right heart and motive, won’t be in vain. Much LOVE!…anyone can have great faith in good times…but it’s the turbulent times that distinguish the sheep from the goats…the true believer from the false…