Every person in the Bible, every event, every book, every prophecy is given as edification (to build you up) or as an example. Whether it be good or bad it is an example for us to follow or to try and avoid. Take the example of Samson, for instance: in today’s culture Samson would be considered a pig, but Samson was a judge of Israel. We would say today, that he was saved, but for most of his adult life he was living apart from God. Don’t be like Samson, do not go out and commit obvious sins.
Take Enoch as an example. Enoch walked so closely with God that God spared Enoch an actual physical death. “And Enoch walked with God; and he was not; for God took him.” Genesis 5:24.
I dare say, none of us today walk closely enough with God, that God would spare us death (unless the Rapture of the Church would occur). I would surmise that most of us live somewhere in between the examples of Samson and Enoch.
Let’s move to the New Testament and look at the example of Saul. Saul did some pretty rotten things in his life. He was standing by, being an overseer, when the mob was stoning the very first example of a Christian martyr in the Bible, Stephen (Acts, chapter seven). In Acts chapter nine Saul met Christ on the road to Damascus and was transformed to be the remarkable teacher, evangelist, prophet, missionary that we have so often read about. We learn later, when Paul (as he was now known) was going about spreading the gospel that many times he was beaten, he was jailed, he was publicly humiliated, he was even stoned and left for dead. We also learned when he was threatened by the mob and he was be passed from the local authority to the higher ups (one after the other), that Paul was a Roman citizen. Why is that important? Because, even though Paul was a new creature in Christ, he was still a Roman citizen and was now in a position to talk to the anyone and everyone about who Christ was and what Christ had done for him. He was even willing to put himself out in front of the leaders of the most powerful country in the world at that time and tell them about Christ.
Like I said, the people in the Bible are examples of good or bad, for us to follow or to avoid. Paul was an example of a true missionary. The minute Paul was converted, he became one, and he also became an example for us to follow.
When we are saved (or converted), we become missionaries. It is true that spiritually we are no longer citizens of this world, that our home is in Heaven, but physically we are still here, still citizens of whatever country is our home.
I admire missionaries that give up home and go to either other parts of the country or the world. That seems a very hard thing to do. But, after we have been saved, it becomes part of our description, we are missionaries. I know, not all of us can talk, but sometimes the things we do, the things we say, just the way we live tells people who Christ is. This is starting to touch on the subject of part II, being a good example.
For this week, find someone who can be a good example to you. A pastor, a Sunday School teacher, or even someone you know who is a prayer warrior. By following good examples, we can become good examples.
AE
and continuing…
Psalm 1:1& 2
Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, not standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.
I have a huge repertoire of people that I really look up to. I read a lot of books, and I watch people in real life. People who live life, and you can see the fruit of the Spirit (love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance) in their everyday life. These people are rare in this day and age, but I have managed to find a few of them. They were rare throughout history as well, but many of them have books written about their lives. Search for them. Then of course in the Bible there are many fantastic examples that we can learn from.
Who are your examples in life? Who are the examples for your children? Are your examples actors, singers, dancers, politicians, etc.? Or are your examples missionaries, Pastors, evangelists, and men and women of faith?
It is fantastic to have good role models to look up to. The most important thing to remember when we have people for role models is that people are human. They will make mistakes. They will let us down. DO NOT put them on a pedestal because they will fall.
The only perfect role model is Jesus Christ. We need to follow in His footsteps with every fiber of our being. He is the only one who knew no sin, and the only one with a perfect life that we can trust to truly guide us in the right way. I like reading biographies of other Christians who have gone before me so that I can remember that I am not alone. I can know that others have gone down this road before.
I love watching my Pastor and his wife serve our church so faithfully day in and day out. They love and care for each member of our church, they lift us up in prayer, and they radiate joy every time I see them. Honestly they are quite possibly the godliest couple I’ve ever met. But they are not God, and they are still human. I cannot blindly follow them. As they tell us often, we must stay in God’s word, and study it out for ourselves.
I quite literally have the nicest parents in the world. They love God with all of their hearts, and they taught me to do the same. They love me unconditionally. I can very easily ask their advice and nine times out of ten I can follow it without thinking too hard about it. But they are still people. They come with the same package of sin and struggles as the rest of us. I can’t even blindly follow the people I most love and trust in the world. I have to depend and trust on God and his word alone. That way if tomorrow I wake up and my parents convert to cannibalism I won’t just blindly join them.
I sometimes think that logic is completely dead in today’s society. People are going along blindly following examples of their favorite “idols.” They don’t pause for even a moment to think about what they believe or why they believe it. At some point everyone will need to stop and decide who or what we will follow.
Joshua 24:15
And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell; but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.
GA
Voice of the Introverts 