Paul’s Letter to 21st Century ChristiansWritten by Rev. Saundra L. Washington
I received a letter this week that is written in Greek that I have translated and would like to share with you. It is from Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by will of God, and it is addressed to: all my brothers and sisters living in 21st century. Grace to you and peace from God our Father and Lord Jesus Christ.For many years I have longed to see you. I have heard a great deal about you and all marvelous things you are doing. News has reached me that your scientific and technological advances are phenomenal. You have at your disposal automobiles so luxurious that average man in my day would never have conceived such a possibility. I have heard about your ingenious skyscrapers and huge builders. I understand some folks become a bit dizzy and faint, just looking up at them. It boggles my mind just contemplating fascinating achievements you have attained. It is my understanding medical technology can cure in twinkling of an eye, plagues and diseases that would destroy us by thousands. All of this is wonderful. You can do so much more in your day than I could do in Greco-Roman world of my day. Your educational facilities and advantages are superb and beyond compare to any other time in human history. You can travel distances in 5 days that in my day, required 5 years. All of this is marvelous. And what is this I hear about that high-tech deluxe jumbo jet called Air force One. I’m told it’s a floating mansion with sophisticated and extensive electronics. You have computers and cellular phones that make it possible for you to contact just about anybody in world while cruising tens of thousands of feet in air. All of this is simply fabulous. I am a staunch believer in progress. I believe in development. I believe in growth and advancement. I think all of these are splendid. But I wonder if your moral and spiritual progress has kept up with your scientific and technological progress. From what I have been hearing, your spiritual progress lags far behind your technological progress. It seems to me that you have plenty of money – but very little manners; lots of gossip – but little Gospel; prey on bad news – ignore God’s good news; play too much – pray too little; fine houses – very few homes; lots of lust – very little love; talk too much – testify too little; lots of churches – few temples of God; lots of formality – little spirituality; lots of beliefs – no faith. And what are these Situation Ethics I keep haring about? In my day it was, children obey your parents. But it seems like you all have changed it to; parents obey your children. I am proud to hear America, that through your political genius you have managed to make your world a neighborhood. I understand that you have been able to establish working relationships with far away countries and that is beautiful. But it is tragic that with all you have at your disposal; you have failed to make it a Brotherhood. Oh yes, my brothers and sisters, you have managed to produce ultimate in scientific knowledge. In my day in my wildest imagination, we never would have thought of invention of nuclear bombs; that deadly weapon that can be dropped from a plane on heads of millions of people and can set whole world on fire with press of a button. You live in an age of technological genius. But I also heard other day that you live in an age of longing, age of anxiety, age of suspicion and fear. You live in an age in which people are afraid to defend faith for fear of offending disbelievers; an age of compromise and acceptance and tolerance for intolerable. You live in an age where all representations of Christianity in work place, community and government offices are considered inappropriate and to be reserved for private home environment only. So it seems like you have plenty of genius but no wisdom. Therefore I find it necessary to write to you to remind you; in midst of all your great knowledge and advancement, of responsibility laid upon you to represent Jesus Christ.
| | Give Him A StoneWritten by Anthony Smith
Give Him a Stone. by Rev A.R.Smith Luke 11:10-11:13 Give Him a Stone. I was raised up in rural parts of appalachia, some said that it would be noon before sun would hit ground. Raised by hard working parents, never tiring of working from dawn to dusk, to provide for their children. One year, my parents moved from home, I was born in, to another house, so that I and my brothers and sister, would be closer to school we attended. We had hard times there, not really fitting in with rest of students, were we poor? Not really, My dad would rise before sun was up, go to work and my mother would always have breakfast on table before we got out of bed.Our clothes were always clean and pressed. Being youngest, I was recipient of many a hand-me down from my brothers. I didn’t mind, some of their clothes were pretty cool. Dad always bought us new clothes before we started school and demanded that we take good care of them. My oldest brother Richard, moved out west, another brother, Ronnie, died, Willie and Carl, went to war, and my sister got married, I felt so alone, in a house that was always filled with love and protection. I was learning what life was really all about. But, all in all, I remembered that what ever we needed as children, growing up, was always there, Love, Food, water, clothing and shelter. Life was Brown Beans and Cornbread. A simple life but one that was filled with Love, one for another.I was taught about Jesus, and how every need we had would be filled by Him, and how a new family would take a part in my life, church. I was taught, ”Ask and you shall receive” I thought that this was great, I thought that there would be no christian that would ever do without as long as we were all in church family. Lets read a little of what I was taught. Luke 11:10-13; For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent? Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give Holy Spirit to them that ask him? To me this man Jesus was what I needed in life and because we were in His Fathers Family all our needs would be met. Later in life I strayed from family, trying to do things my way, you know a young man with no worries, problems or fear. But one thing I always kept in back of my mind is words of Jesus. After a number of years, I thought like prodigal son, ”Am I better off without my Father or should I go back and appologise for everything that I have done? ”Luke 15:17 And when he came to himself, he said, How many hired servants of my father’s have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger! Luke 15:18 I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before thee, ;this is how I felt without God. So I returned and He forgave. So I started to minister to any and all that would listen. And more I started to look at Church Family, I found out something very interesting. The family that I had left was nowhere to be found. Things had changed, some for better but some for worst. I found out that being fed with a stone was getting commonplace among church family, that I thought would be first to help. I found it easier to receive a piece of bread from un-believers than from our families in Christ. I found that these words kept coming into my mind, every-time I asked for aid for poor churches and christians; If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent?
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