Life - Line Devotionals

Life - A Publication Syndicated by: Leslie A Turvey -Lines

Archives - Article Listings

By Date with Title

Either Scroll Down to Read More or use your back button!

All Scripture is linked through the Blue Letter Bible.

Jesus Christ blended in with the crowd, yet Christians today seem to want to stand out.

The question in Shakespeare’s Macbeth, “Saw ye the weird sisters?” could well have been asked about Christians.

Many Christians -- not you, of course -- believe they have to stand out in any crowd. Indeed some, in their desire to stand out, are almost as weird as Macbeth’s three witches. But are Christians supposed to be weird?

Jesus denounced the pharisees for competing with each other in the size of their phylacteries, and the width of the trim on their garments (Matthew 23:5). Their reason, of course, was to make them stand out: to say, “I’m holier than thou.”

But are Christians, today, any better? They wear T-shirts with inscriptions such as “Choose Life,” “John 3:16,” “The fruits of the spirit are,” with an arrow directing the reader to the back where the fruits are listed. There seems to be a competition to see who can wear the most outlandish T-shirt proclaiming, “Look at me. I’m a Christian. I’m holier than thou.”

It’s always been my belief that Christians should take their cue from Jesus Christ. Yet, nowhere in the bible do we read about Jesus wearing a T-shirt -- or whatever was the equivalent in his day -- proclaiming, “Prepare to meet thy God.” Nor can I imagine he had a bumper sticker on his donkey saying, “Honk if you love Jesus.”

Jesus Christ looked so much like other Jews of his day he could blend right in with the crowd (John 8:59). There certainly was nothing different about our Lord’s attire.

Many young Christians at school, carrying their books from class to class, make sure their bible is on top, in full view. “I’m holier than thou. I read my bible.”

But it’s not just the young people who appear weird in their Christianity. A fad several years ago was to write a letter in English, then sign it “Shalom” at the end. It seemed to be a response to the hippie-era greeting of making a V with the index and second finger, and proclaiming, “Peace.”

More recently the fad has taken on a life of its own, with people writing in English until they come to the word God. Whoops! Make that G-d. Some go further and write Yeshua, or Yehovah, or JHVH -- or is it YHVH? -- for Lord. It seems to be another holier-than-thou competition.

Why bounce back and forth between English and Hebrew. Either write and speak English, or write and speak Hebrew. If you do the second, people on the outside will likely think you’re a Jew. But if you mix the languages the outsiders will think you’re a kook. Not wanting to appear weird, they may be turned off from becoming a Christian, believing if they are converted they may have to be weird too.

Ministers often wear a special robe, or a backward collar, to preach in. Priests especially, of various Christian religions, even wear their robes and collars on the street. Is all this necessary, or do they wear such garb for vanity’s sake, to make them stand out like the pharisees? Their clothing shouts loudly, “Look at me: I’m holier than thou. I’m a man of the cloth.”

Like Jesus, Christians should blend in with the crowd. Yet, like Jesus we should stand out. He left us an example that we should follow in his perfect way of life (1 Peter 2:21). It’s in our lives, not in our oddities, that we Christians must stand out.

You may contact the Life Lines author at laturvey@becon.org.

BREAKING IT GENTLY

Well, if that’s the way you want to be. Kapow! Is this how to solve problems, or does your bible teach a better way?

A wealthy farmer returned home from travelling abroad. His hired hand met him at the airport.

“Well, Ben,” enquired the farmer, “did anything exciting happen while I was gone?”

“Nothing much,” came the reply. “Except your dog died.”

“Killer? How’d he die?”

“From eating too much burnt horse meat, I reckon.”

“Where’d he get burnt horse meat?” queried the farmer.

“From the barn fire, sir. The stable burned down, and your prize thoroughbreds got cooked.”

“The barn burned down? How did it catch fire?”

“We figure a spark from the house fire landed on the hay.”

“There was a fire in the house?”

“Yes sir. Burned right to the ground.”

“How did the house catch fire?”

“Seems one of the candles tipped over and lit the draperies.”

“Candles? What candles?”

“The ones by the coffin, sir.”

“Coffin? Who died?”

“Your wife, sir. But other than that nothing much happened.”

We really don’t like to be bearers of bad news, but sooner or later it has to come out. Normally we get to the point a bit quicker than Ben.

Sometimes our bad news involves the way someone has treated us. If we’re not careful, our response can have serious consequences (Romans 12:17; 1 Thessalonians 5:15; 1 Peter 3:9).

The old wild west movies wouldn’t have been very exciting without some fisticuffs at the local saloon. Old timers will recall the story: Big Bad John swaggers through the swingin’ doors, demanding to know whose been playin’ around with his gal. Tables are overturned; a fair supply of liquor gets spilled; and John’s the only one standing when the fight is done.

Of course the hard-drinkin’ cowboys of the old west weren’t too interested in solving their differences in a Godly manner but, too often, neither are today’s church members.

It’s a familiar story: Nellie tells Sally about Tillie (in strict confidence, of course), but Sally passes it on. Eventually it gets to Tillie in a grotesquely distorted form. Tillie gets her nose out of joint, and refuses to speak to Nellie. Or she may decide she’d be better off in the church down the street, so off she goes.

Fisticuffs solve nothing. Neither does Tillie’s way of dealing with the problem.

Jesus gave us the way to solve person-to-person problems. He said, if someone offends us we’re to go and discuss the matter with him. Anyone who’s tried this has discovered it often solves the problem (Matthew 18:15).

But, Jesus knew it doesn’t always clear up the matter, so he said if the miscreant refuses to hear us out we’re to take one or two witnesses to hear what is said. Note, these are witnesses; they’re not to get into the fray (vs 16).

Lest you think we should go to the troublemaker in the morning, and take witnesses in the afternoon, please think again. Give him time to consider the matter. We may even want to go back a second or third time alone. Then, if he’s still defiant after a few days or weeks, that’s the time to take the witnesses.

Even then, the fellow should be given some time to reconsider. If another visit with the witnesses proves him to be unrepentant, then it’s time to take it to the church, perhaps through the minister (vs 17).

Barging in like Big Bad John won’t solve the problem. It will only make matters worse. But resolving the problem step-by-step, as Jesus taught, can have long-lasting, and often friendship-building results.

You may contact the Life Lines author at laturvey@becon.org.

THE BRIDGE

An essay

A traveller in a distant land came to a wild, raging river. The footbridge spanning the gorge was old and decrepit, but since crossing it was the only way to continue his journey he decided to take the risk.

Once on the bridge the traveller saw others making the crossing, each stepping cautiously across spaces where boards had once been.

Near the end of the bridge he was stopped by a group of travellers listening to an old man who said, “Many people cross this bridge every day. Some take time to improve the bridge for others, and to give a helping hand to the weak and the weary and the fearful.

“Others,” he said, “anxious to find the treasure that lies just beyond, do only what is necessary to get across, with no regard to their fellow travellers. Some,” he continued,” complain about the condition of the bridge. Some push their fellow travellers out of the way. And some even kick loose boards into the river.”

The old man paused, then said, “The bridge is Today in your life. Tomorrow, when you are on solid ground, how you crossed the bridge will determine the treasure you will find. Those who were helpful will find treasures of health and happiness and peace and friends. The others may find gold, but will forfeit the treasures of a truly abundant life.

“How,” asked the old man, “did you cross the bridge?”

You may contact the Life Lines author at laturvey@becon.org.

BROKEN TRUST

Friendship is built on simple things, like trust and understanding and acceptance. However, as David Johndrow says, “Whenever we trust someone, we give them the power to hurt us.”

A man visited an antiques store and asked whether the owner had any medals or badges. "No," he replied, "just my father-in-law's service medal, and it's not for sale." He showed it to the man, repeating that it wasn't for sale.

"That's right," his wife agreed. "We'd never part with Dad's medal. It was left to us in trust."

The man gave the owner his business card and said, "If you ever decide to sell it, please let me know."

"Just out of interest,” the owner asked, “how much would you have paid for it?"

"Five hundred dollars," came the reply.

With a look of astonishment on his face, the owner stated, "It's yours!"

We all – well, not you, of course – have broken a trust sometime in our lives. Maybe we didn’t think it was such a big thing. A friend asked if you could help him move, and despite agreeing to help, you weaselled out of it at the last minute.

Marriage is a trust, yet nearly half of all American marital unions fall to pieces because a husband or wife breaks the trust.

Martha Stewart landed in jail because she used her position of trust for her own benefit. In Canada, a former prime minister disgraced himself by allowing some of his trusted colleagues to misappropriate public funds.

Everything we do affects an average of seventeen other people. A little white lie (There’s really no such thing.) can become bloated into a federal offence by the gossip grapevine. The pilfering of a few coins from petty cash can result in the dismissal of the guilty one. Consider the effects. In a good way others may think twice about paying for lunch from the company purse. On the negative side, his wife and kids suffer from lack of income, and from the shame he has brought into the family. The repercussions are like the Energizer bunny: they just keep going and going and going.

Long-time friendships are often shattered by broken trusts. George and Bill had been best friends since they were kids. George started dating Mary, but Bill stepped into the picture. Now George accuses Bill of stealing Mary’s affections.

There’s a lot of suppositions in such a situation. Suppose Mary wasn’t really happy with George. Suppose while they were dating, Mary had special feelings for Bill. Suppose. Suppose. Suppose.

Regardless of what the truth might be, George sees Bill as having broken a lifelong trust. He also perceives Mary as having broken trust as well. Depending on George’s temperament the outcome could be very messy.

There’s three sides to every story: yours, mine, and the truth. George’s side of the story is Bill stole his gal. Bill says Mary went out with George only because all the other girls were taken, and she felt sorry for him. Mary may be the only one who knows the truth, but George won’t trust her word because she deserted him. So what should be done?

Often when a trust has been broken there’s a penalty to be paid, as in the case of Martha Stewart. Her company may have forgiven her, but she had to pay the penalty nonetheless.

In love triangles the penalty is nearly certain to be mental, with a good possibility of sexually-transmitted diseases. No amount of forgiveness will cure them.

But does a broken trust need to result in shattered lives and friendships? Not necessarily.

Suppose George, instead of getting all bent out of shape with Bill and Mary, decides to talk with them. Mary tells George he’s a really nice fellow, and will be a good husband for the right woman. “But,” she says, “I’m not that woman. We just aren’t suited for each other, and marriage under those circumstances would be a disaster.”

Upon hearing the truth, George may forgive his friends, and wish them a happy ever after.

Will it always work out that way? Unfortunately, no. Some people don’t seem to be capable of forgiving, and they likely find it difficult to accept forgiveness as well. Under those conditions, it may be best to simply walk away. There’s no sense in everybody being unhappy.

You may contact the Life Lines author at laturvey@becon.org.

CANADA THE COMPLACENT

The Bereans challenged Paul by searching the scriptures to see whether he was telling the truth. There doesn’t seem to be many Bereans in Canada.

I fear for my country. Christians in Canada seem to take a ho-hum attitude when their beliefs are challenged.

Correction: They take a get-outa-my-face attitude.

With more than 2000 people on the Life Lines mailing list only a few are Canadians. Granted, most readers are from the United States, and Canada has only 11% of the population of the nation to our south. But the Canadian to U.S. Life Lines reader ratio does not come near 11% of the overall readership. One percent is more like it.

When Life Lines is published a couple recipients may write to say get outa my face. But when half of those are Canadians I wonder what is happening to the Christian segment of my country.

I’m not sure what other ministries have seen in this respect, but I wouldn’t wonder their findings would be about the same.

Am I complaining? No. It matters not where the Life Lines readers live. What matters is whether they see the truth and, having seen it, whether they accept it, challenge it, or trash it. It seems most Canadians simply prefer to trash it. Their comfort zone is too small, and when truth enters they become uncomfortable and retreat. As Winston Churchill said, “Men occasionally stumble over the truth, but most of them pick themselves up and hurry off as if nothing happened.”

What’s wrong with having one’s beliefs challenged? Absolutely nothing. Truth ultimately stands up to challenge; untruth never does. So if Life Lines includes something that opposes your religious teachings challenge it. If the article is true, you will have gained value. If it is wrong let me know. I will have learned something, and will have to make some changes.

Life Lines exists because I questioned my Baptist beliefs nearly fifty years ago. When God knew I was ready he started giving the answers to my queries, and helped me to make the necessary life changes. Never once have I regretted his decision because I knew he was moving me to the truth.

Many readers have written to say thanks for giving them insight into what the bible says, and that’s heart-warming. But the praise really belongs to God our heavenly father, and our saviour, Jesus Christ. Without them Life Lines would not be possible.

Again, however, I question why none of the Canadian readers respond in kind. Are they so ho-hum comfortable in their beliefs – or in the society of their particular congregation – that they don’t want the insight and truth their American neighbours desire?

There’s a day coming when every one of us will have our lives exposed to the Judge, and many will be asked why they weren’t like the Bereans who searched the scriptures to see whether what they were taught stood up to the bible (Acts 17:10-11). I fear many of those will be my fellow Canadians who simply choose to continue in their own way when their way is challenged.

There’s a closing sadness in this. Many Canadians have already shut Life Lines out of their lives, and will not see this column to benefit from it. But to those Canadians – and to all others who are still on the mailing list – I ask, what do you do with the truth when it’s presented to you?

You may contact the Life Lines author at laturvey@becon.org.

CHILI AND CHRISTIAN EVANGELISM

What does chili con carne have to do with Christian evangelism? More than you might imagine. Read on.

The fellows, where I worked, decided we should have a chili lunch. Betty prepared the beans and meat with an appropriate amount of chili peppers. Obedient to my wife’s instructions, I plugged in the slow-cooker as soon as I arrived at work. And, in case we wanted a little more pep in the mix, she sent the jar of peppers with me.

Every half hour one of the fellows went into the company kitchen to stir the chili. Each of us, not knowing what the others had done, added more chili peppers.

Lunch time came and we sat down to the best chili dinner we’d ever had. Man, it was good!

Well it was good going in, but you can guess what we thought of the chili the next day. Ooowww!

Jesus had some advice regarding that chili. Well, not directly, but he said, “You are the salt of the earth (Matthew 5:13).”

At a Detroit gourmet club, salt shakers were banned from the table. A variety of chefs prepared the meals, and each dinner was prepared with just enough salt to bring out the rich flavour of the food. To add salt at the table would be an insult to the chefs.

A man I knew did just the opposite. Before he ever tasted the food on his plate, he poured salt on it until everything was white. The rich flavour of the food was destroyed by the mineral snow storm.

The chili in the slow-cooker was similar. I’m not sure anyone could taste the beans and meat, but we sure could taste the chili peppers!

When Jesus said, “You are the salt of the earth,” he referred more to the chefs who prepared the gourmet club dinners. They added just enough salt, and no more. The balance was perfect.

Many Christians forget they are to enhance the world around us. Like the man who poured on the salt, they think the more they harangue their fellow workers – or their family, or whomever – about getting saved, the better Christians they are. Jesus said otherwise.

Jesus sent his apostles on a ministerial journey, to preach a message of repentance, because God’s kingdom was at hand. If they were made welcome in a city they were to remain there until their work was done. But, if the people refused to listen, then the apostles were to wipe off the dust of the city from their feet, and move on (Matthew 10:5-14; Mark 6:7-12; Luke 10:1-11).

How long do you think they’d be welcome if they poured on the message until the people couldn’t stand it any longer? They were to be like the chefs’ salt: give the people just enough of Jesus’ message to enhance their lives.

The apostle Paul did this during his visit to Athens. He went to Mars Hill, the city’s idol worship centre. When he addressed the people he recognized them as being very religious. (Let’s forgive the King James translators for using the adjective superstitious.)

He said, “As I went along I beheld your devotions, and found an altar inscribed ‘To The Unknown God.’ The one whom you worship without knowing him, I will reveal to you (Acts 17:16-23).” Paul then told them of the only true and living God.

Again, Paul didn’t pour on his message until he destroyed their desire to hear. Instead, he gave them just a little salt: “I see that you are very religious,” then added just enough to introduce God to them (vss 24-31). As a result of Paul’s subtle use of God’s salt, we’re told many people wanted to hear more (vs 32), and some put their faith in God, and went with him (vs 34).

So, zealous Christians, the next time you’re tempted to corner someone to get them saved before it’s too late, think about Paul’s use of God’s salt. If you don’t your victim may think of you the same as we thought of our chili lunch the day after.

You may contact the Life Lines author at laturvey@becon.org.

CHRISTIAN JARGON

Is there something special about writing weird expressions, or do Christians simply parrot what they’ve heard other Christians say?

Why do Christians use jargon, especially when they write? They seldom use it in normal speech.

If you’ve received a prayer request you’ve likely been asked to lift up John in prayer. Or you might have been asked to stand in the gap for Enid. Is this more meaningful than simply being asked to pray for the person?

What does a Christian mean when he says God spoke to my heart? And what does she mean when she asks if you have Jesus in your heart? One writer said, regarding an undetermined something, the Lord quickened to me. Eh?

Somewhere along the line the word partake was introduced to Christian jargon. Instead of observing the Lord’s Supper, they partake of it. That’s an old English verb that’s not even in the bible.

Of course Christians are out to get the world saved, when the world doesn’t know it needs saving. And saved from what? They’ll tell you Jesus died for you. If I was an outsider I’d wonder why some dude who lived two thousand years ago died for me. I wasn’t even born then.

Something that’s becoming passé in Christian writing is thee and thou and thine when writing a prayer. But these 15th century words are still used in many spoken prayers. Are they special to God?

Christians write and speak about grace, but those outside the congregation must wonder what they’re talking about. And they say syrupy things like precious Jesus as though he is a precious little baby. Man, Jesus must have been one of the physically strongest men of his day!

Read the obituaries and you’ll discover the deceased is at home with the Lord, or Jesus took her home, or one of many such phrases. Again, an outsider must wonder where the deceased has gone.

Now somebody will take me to task for this, but there’s no biblical precedent for capitalizing he in reference to God or Jesus Christ. Many other words in the Christian vocabulary get capitalized, even though the original languages had no capitals or punctuation. Capitalization was at the whim of the individual translators, and they didn’t agree with each other..

One bit of Christian jargon is the adjective Reverend used by ministers and priests and nuns. Psalm 111:9 tells us God’s name is reverend. Those whose business cards use Reverend, or who sign themselves Reverend, or who allow themselves to be called Reverend, have chosen to usurp a title that belongs solely to God. (Some even call themselves The Most Holy Reverend so-and-so, as though they are better than God.) They remind me of the scribes and pharisees whom Jesus said love to be called Rabbi, Rabbi (Matthew 23:7).

Aside from jargon, Christians come up with some awfully strange ideas, such as one woman told me recently, we will spend eternity sitting at Jesus’ feet, gazing into his wonderful face. How boring! (And I believe Jesus would agree with me.)

Another strange idea – and who knows where this got started? – is, when early Christians met another person, they drew a fish in the sand with their toe. If the other person did the same thing, they knew they were, as Anne of Green Gables would say, “kindred spirits.” Is anyone so foolish as to believe this? Enemies of Christianity would quickly catch on to it, and draw a fish to con Christians into believing they were members of the fellowship, if I dare use that bit of jargon.

Finally, one televangelist’s weekly program ends with the sentence, “God loves you, and ssso do we.” I don’t buy it. How can any person who has never met me say he loves me? I get the feeling the announcer means, “God loves you, and $$$o do we.”

C’mon, fellow Christians. If you’re truly intent on converting others to our way of thinking, don’t make them think they need to speak and write gibberish, because that’s what jargon really is.

¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯

Additional Note: As I wrote this, I realized I’ve been guilty of using Christian jargon when I sign my name. I started calling myself Brother several years ago, since Leslie has become a unigender name. But my photo accompanies nearly everything I write, so now I will simply sign my name as: Leslie A Turvey (A servant of the only true and living God).

You may contact the Life Lines author at laturvey@becon.org.

THE CHRISTIAN'S COMFORT ZONE

What is your reaction when the truth comes within your comfort zone? Are you willing to accept it, or .....

Everyone has a comfort zone, that area of life in which one feels most comfortable. Most people are restricted by too small a comfort zone; a few have a zone that seems to have no boundaries. For them no challenge is too great: they climb sheer rock cliffs, go sky-diving, and drive race cars at breakneck speeds. They don’t have to be asked twice to go deep-sea diving off New Zealand, or hot-air ballooning in British Columbia.

But the majority of us are bound by a tiny comfort zone, and we don’t like to step outside it. “Come on. You’ll have fun!” is the cry of our friends whose comfort zone is different than ours. But we’d rather stay at home than go bowling, because we’ve never bowled and we’re afraid everyone will laugh at us.

Comfort zones are funny things. Little kids don’t have them. They go running in the rain, and stomping through all the mud puddles they can find. When was the last time you did that? Somewhere between when you were a kid and now, you developed your comfort zone, and running in the rain and stomping through mud puddles is outside it.

Comfort zones tend to expand and contract. Grandfathers have been known to make absolute fools of themselves crawling around the floor while the young ‘uns on their back yell, “Giddyap horsey.” But when the kids get tired of Gramps they go back home, and his comfort zone snaps back like a rubber band until the young ‘uns come again.

We're told we should never discuss politics or religion. Know why? Most people don’t have a clue about either one. They’d rather talk about the weather: that’s comfortable. Some time ago a Life Lines reader asked to be taken off the mailing list because, “Some of them disturb me.” Oh, my!

But she’s not alone. Christians each have their comfort zone. They have their own pew at church, and feel out of place if someone else occupies it. And like the fellow who said, “I’ve made up my mind. Don’t confuse me with facts,” they believe what they’ve always believed, and don’t want anyone telling them otherwise.

The average Christian comfort zone includes the belief that you’ll go to heaven when you die. But let someone read Jesus’ words in John 3:13, and they’ll change the subject in a hurry. Their comfort zone also includes belief in eternal torment in some netherworld blast furnace, when the bible on their bed table doesn’t even hint at such a thing. But tell them that and they again quickly change the subject. They don’t want the truth invading their comfort zone. They’re happy with it just the way it is.

When minister Joe Wright opened the Kansas Senate in 1999, everyone expected the usual politically correct generalities. But Joe Wright’s prayer passionately called the country to repentance and righteousness. The response was immediate: a number of legislators walked out during the prayer. Repentance and righteousness was not within their comfort zone. Unfortunately it is not within the comfort zone of many Christians either.

When the woman asked to be removed from the mailing list because, “Some of them disturb me,” I did as she asked. But I was also able to tell her, “Life Lines is not designed to pacify readers, but to bring the truth within their comfort zone.”

What is your response when someone disturbs you with the truth? Do you check it out, like the Bereans (Acts 17:10-11), or are you like the Kansas legislators who walked out when the truth came in?

You may contact the Life Lines author at laturvey@becon.org.

CHRISTIANS OR SAINTS?

Are you a saint, or just a Christian? Who should decide? Certainly not me: I don't have the wisdom to make such a decision.

When Sammy Davis was asked to define success he replied, "I don't know what success is, but failure is trying to please everyone."

How true. Not everyone agrees with everything in Life Lines. Some readers have objected to the use of the name Christian, when the new testament refers to saints. So why do I use the name Christian when I write?

The Life Lines readership is composed of people from a host of denominations. Are Catholics Christians, and the rest something else? Are Baptists saints, and the rest only Christians?

What constitutes a saint? The Catholics do not consider anyone a saint unless he’s been dead several hundred years. Even Mother Teresa, a saint if there ever was one, can only be beatified until Rome finds sufficient proof that she should be elevated to sainthood.

I observe the seventh day sabbath. Am I a non-saint in the eyes of those who observe Sunday? Would I be right in saying the Sunday people are not saints because they don't observe the sabbath?

There are millions of Christians on earth today, but I'm sure they're not all saints. Some engage in war in the name of Christianity. Others are Sunday Christians, acting the part for an hour on Sunday, but blending in with the world the rest of the week. Then there are people in every denomination -- and perhaps even of no denomination -- who are saints through and through. They live the Christ life twenty-four-seven. I don't have the wisdom of Christ to know who should be called by which name.

Considering this, should I change my terminology from Christians to saints, thereby implying that everyone I write to is a saint? I don't believe so. By writing Christians, I include those who are saints, or who consider themselves saints.

One reader who took me to task over the Christian vs. saints issue said, “If we become a teacher, we are dealing with the people of God.” She was right, and wrong. Since every person on earth is God's, no matter who I write to I am dealing with the people of God. However, if she meant only the saints are the people of God, she is wrong. The saints have, at this time, been selected from among his people to understand his truth and love.

But how will the others come to know their heavenly father except the saints show them? As a journalist (retired), with many years of learning of God's grace and love and power, our father has trusted me to use the gift of writing to bring his message to both Christians and saints.

Jesus said, “I was hungry, and you gave me no meat. I was thirsty, and you gave me no drink. I was a stranger, and you didn't take me in; naked, and you didn't clothe me; sick, and in prison, and you didn't visit me (Matthew 25:41-45).”

I don't want to hear Jesus Christ say I didn’t give the meat of the gospel to those who hungered for it. I don’t want him to say I didn’t let them drink of the holy spirit. I don’t dare stand before him unless I’ve been a friend to as many as I am able. (A stranger is a friend you haven’t met yet.)

I have the opportunity to clothe the saints, and those Christians outside the family of saints -- and perhaps even those outside Christianity -- with the love of God. I don't want to hear Jesus say I left them naked.

Many Life Lines readers have told me a particular column came at just the right time to lift a load of care from them. What would Jesus say to me if I had refused to write that column?

You may have read my bio. One sentence from it states, “Some [Life Lines columns] have been translated into other languages, some go to missionaries, and some are apparently being forwarded to prisons.” But what would Jesus say if I decided they shouldn’t go to prisons?

If I were not ministering in the above ways, I could be sure of Jesus saying to me, “Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as you did it not to one of the least of these, you did it not to me. And these [including Leslie A Turvey] shall go away into everlasting punishment.”

One final note: In none of these warnings did Jesus say I had to call the hungry, the thirsty, the stranger, the naked, the sick, and the prisoners by any particular name. The only admonition was regarding my treatment of them.

So, until God's holy spirit directs me otherwise, Christian it will be.

You may contact the Life Lines author at laturvey@becon.org.

Free!

Start receiving Life Lines weekly!

Subscribe!

Last Revised October 20, 2006
Copyright 1998 - 2006 Silver & Gold Productions™
Designed and Maintained by Silver & Gold Productions™
Email Fountain Gateway