Jump Start # 4177

1 Corinthians 13:4 “Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant.”

  He was a Boone, a direct descendant of the famed Daniel Boone. His wife was the great-great grand niece of Thomas Jefferson, the president and signer of the Declaration of Independence. Two powerful bloodlines that helped shape our country. But after about a dozen years of marriage, Boone had enough and filed for divorce around 1912 in St. Louis where they lived. According to newspaper accounts, Boone claimed his wife repeatedly told him that her family tree was superior to his and considered Thomas Jefferson a more distinguished ancestor that the savage killing woodsman that Daniel Boone was. The Boones lived in log cabins in the wilderness. The Jeffersons lived in brick homes in the cities. She thought that the Boones looked like washerwomen compared with the Jeffersons. And, with that, the marriage ended.

Our verse today, written to help a troubled and jealous church certainly brings to light the deep trouble that jealousy causes. Arrogance. Bragging. Not being kind. Those are the things that accompany jealousy.

Jealousy finds so many ways to get into our hearts. For King Saul, it was a young shepherd boy who killed a giant that was getting more attention and praise than he was. His jealousy led to violence. For others, it’s looks. For others, it’s talent. For others, it’s what someone else has or their position in life. And, when we are jealous of others we usually don’t have good thoughts about them. We want what they have. And, yes, we preachers can become jealous of each other. “How many meetings are you holding this year,” one asks. That’s all it takes to make one feel inferior, less appreciative, and not as good as the other. Jealousy can arise within a family.  When someone brags too much about the daughter-in-law’s pies, mama begins to believe that no one likes her cooking.  Jealousy has entered the home. One cousin starts on the varsity team, the other didn’t make the team. The air can fill quickly with tension, bitterness and jealousy.

Here are some thoughts:

First, you cannot keep someone else from being jealous. This is an internal thing. You can sit on the sidelines of life and not use your talents for fear of making someone else jealous, but in so doing, you are not doing what you should. You must live your life. Now, what you say and how you put yourself out there can certainly create jealousy. Don’t talk about yourself. Don’t brag about what you have done. Let your work speak for itself.

Second, the way to master jealousy is to be humble. Be thankful for others and what they can do. In the kingdom, the foot and the hand and the eye all have different roles and functions. Be thankful that they are all on the same side of the kingdom and can help each other. When someone asks to learn what you do, be humble and show them. When you see others who are doing what you cannot, don’t sulk in self pity. God has given all of us unique talents and abilities. You can do what others can’t. Be humble.

Third, realize that jealousy is a dangerous sin that will eat you from the inside out. It will change how you see others. It will cause you to pull away and not like others. It will damage fellowship. And, jealousy isn’t stationary. It leads to greater problems such as gossip and hatred. Count your many blessings and name them. Look what the Lord has done for you. Look at the opportunities that the Lord has given you. When you start thinking the worse of someone, catch it and pray for forgiveness.

Boone and Jefferson marrying together. Rather than rejoicing where they came from and realizing that who they are and what they do is more important than their ancestors, they allowed jealousy to destroy their marriage. And, the green eyes of jealousy has destroyed many marriages through the years.

Love is not jealous. It’s just that simple.

Roger

Jump Start # 4176

 1 Corinthians 15:2 “by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain.”

  In the opening sentences of this chapter, which is about the resurrection of Jesus, Paul emphasizes the gospel message that he preached to the Corinthians. It begins with “the gospel which I preached to you” (1); then, “the word which I preached to you” (2); then, “I delivered to you as of first importance” (3); then, “according to the Scriptures” (3 and 4). It was the preached message that would be the foundation of their faith. Paul didn’t pass around little slivers of the cross. He didn’t have a blood-stained cloth that came from the cross. He didn’t have one of the thorns from the crown Christ wore. His proof was in the message of the cross.

Our verse speaks of holding fast the word which was preached. Phillips words this, “remain faithful to the message.” The KJV states, “keep in memory what I preached.” I like that. Keep in memory what I preached.

That is the concern of every preacher. Will what is said Sunday morning be remembered after lunch that day? Will it make any difference the next day? Will anyone remember? The preacher pours hours into making his sermon the best he knows how. He’ll research words. He’ll think of the best way to state things. He’ll work on illustrations, powerpoint, outlines. Hours and hours are poured into shaping a sermon that he hopes will make a difference in the lives of the audience. But will they keep in memory what is preached?

Some will use all kinds of displays or gimmicks to try to make something stick with the audience. I must admit I’ve done that a few times. I had a cooked steak all wrapped up on a table beside the pulpit. In the sermon I opened it up, sat down in a chair, took a bite so they knew it was real. I then said it needed some sauce and poured motor oil all over it. It was ruined. One couldn’t give it to a dog. The point was how sin ruins the soul. It makes us good for nothing. I don’t think many remembered the point, but they kept talking about how I ruined a good steak.

Here are some lessons:

First, remembering what was preached will help me throughout the week. I will remember passages and points and that will help shape my decisions. It may be the very thing I need to keep me from inviting Satan into my heart. I tend to doubt that Jesus was carrying a copy of Deuteronomy in the wilderness when Satan tempted Him. Yet, three times He quoted from Deuteronomy. Knowing the word will help us be victorious in battles against our giants.

Second, the direction of our passage is not from the preacher to the audience, but rather from the audience to the message. Preachers can cross the line and become entertainers and in so doing they become what is remembered and not the message. Keep in memory what I preached is what the audience must do. It helps bringing a Bible. It helps taking notes. It helps sitting where you won’t be distracted. It helps talking about the lesson afterwards. It helps thinking about it the next day. Keep in memory is on us. The failure to grow or to remember the message is often pointed to the preacher. “He’s boring,” we declare. “It’s too much like a lecture,” others complain. Yet, what am I doing to “keep in memory what was preached?” There are some incredible one sentence thoughts that preachers say in their sermons. Write those down. They will help you.

Third, I’ve had people come up to me and talk about something I preached decades ago. I have long forgotten the sermon, but they didn’t. It was something at the right moment that made a difference in their lives. That’s the power of God’s word. I expect most of us have a favorite sermon. There was something about that one lesson that touched our hearts and made a difference. You remembered.

Keep in memory what was preached…it will help you.

Roger