I know a teenage guy who's trying to make his dream come true - to have
a music group of his own. And so there are four guys spending long evenings - a
lot of their weekends - practicing, writing, perfecting, and recording. Their
goal is to do a professional recording and see if it can open some doors for
them. Of course, they found one issue that needs to be resolved right up front.
See, they need some fairly expensive equipment, plus it's going to cost them
much to get the recording done. So, who's going to pay for all that? Well,
obviously, some of the guys have more money than others, but they know that
it's only right to divide it equally. So they're all working right now to chip
in on that equipment. They basically agreed on a simple principle: It's only
fair if we all share the cost. Our word
for today is taken from the Word of God, Philippians 2:5, "Your attitude
should be the same as that of Christ Jesus." Okay. Well, then he goes on
to tell us what that attitude is, "Who, being in the very nature God, did
not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself
nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness, and
being found in appearance as a man He humbled himself and became obedient to
death, even death on a cross." Now, when you hear this expression,
"Have the same attitude as Jesus" and you ask what attitude, the
answer is very clearly spelled out. God was willing to pay a high price to save
lost people. Well, here's the question, "Why should God make all the
sacrifices?" See, Christians in other generations have paid for this
gospel...for this faith with physical consequences, economic consequences,
family persecutions, and many have paid with their lives and still are. This
very day people are paying with their lives for their allegiance to Jesus Christ.
Why should God's people in other generations make all the sacrifices to reach
the lost? Today Christians in many parts of the world are risking everything to
stand for the Gospel. Why should God's people in other places make all the
sacrifices? Which brings it to you and I. Should we be getting off this
comfortably; this conveniently? So many of us are figuratively speaking,
throwing in our few pennies while God and so many of His people have thrown in
everything they had to rescue a dying world. There's a world of lost people out
there; we're surrounded by them, we know some of them. They are heading for a Christ-less eternity.
We just can't be content with going to our Christian meetings,
giving our little offerings, holding some office, singing our songs, and
serving on our committees. This is a costly faith; it's an expensive faith; one
for which God's Son gave His life. What are you and I giving? We all have to
sacrifice some of our earth loves to reach the people that Christ gave His
entire life for. Yet it seems that, we who have more than any other
Christian in history, instead of giving more time, more talent and more
resource, only keep more to and for ourselves.
The guys in that music group got it right. It's only fair if we
all share the cost.
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