FISHERS OF MEN

Self or Christ:      Too often we fail to lose ourselves in Christ, God's son and our redeemer. In this complex and confusing world there is a great need for renewing power of Christ. Paul found that Christ was the greatest tonic in his life. Is He yours?  To the church in Philippi He wrote, "I can do all things thru Christ who strengthens me." Paul had lost himself in Christ and found great strength.       Jesus taught in (Matthew  5:5,) "Blessed are the meek, For they shall inherit the earth."  Meekness is the ability and the willingness to lose myself in something greater than myself and that is exactly what Paul did. He had power, honor, and prestige in his own right. Roman citizen, member of the Sanhedrin, leading member of the influential Pharisees and a dynamic defender of Judaism. That such a man could set aside deeply ingrained teaching, honored friends, personal pride, earthly security for the life of a martyr, hated and persecuted, distrusted and feared, is a monument to courage and strength not often witnessed by men on this earth. He was willing to lose himself in something greater than himself. He ceased to be the famous and powerful Saul of Tarsus and became simply an apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ.     Now if we are to gain the desired level of spiritual and emotional stability, we must lose our identity in ourselves, yes, a difficult task in a world which constantly makes demands upon us to conform.  The great Apostle Paul warned, (Romans 12:2.) "Don't let the world around you squeeze you into its mold, but let God remold your minds from within." Jesus said, "He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it." (Matt. 10:29.) This is the type of commitment which Christ requires if we are to be complete in Him.       A few questions may help us to place our decision in ("Self or Christ)"  (1). Would I forget the pleasures of a blue grass band,  concert, movie, play, sports event, or hunting or fishing to help bring a soul to Christ? (2). Would I cheat in taking a test or in paying a debt to make my position educationally, socially, or financially better?  (3). Have I considered the plight of those who are poor and underprivileged without doing something about their condition?  (4). Am I critical of others who are zealous in their trying to help win souls? (5). Am I willing to die for my Lord? Think about this one!!     When given the alternative of denying his Lord and living or confessing his Lord and dying at the stake, Polycarp said, "For eighty and six years I have been His servant, and he has done me no wrong, and how can I blaspheme my king who saved me?"  This is genuine identification with Christ. What choices have you made?  There is a beginning; one cannot really be a Christian without yielding to the will of Christ. Paul wrote: "For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ." (Galatians 3:27.)   When the penitent believer is buried with Christ in baptism, he has put on Christ as an integral part of his life. "I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I, who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and delivered Himself up for me." (Galatians 2:20).    Robert Swain

2316 East Hundred Road

Chester, Virginia 23836

(804) 530-1764

Building located 1.6 miles west of Hopewell, VA on route 10 (2316 East Hundred Road)

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