do good. The same thing is empha sized in Romans 15:4 and II Timo thy 3:15-17. The human eye often does not see things as they really are. It’s easy to be wrongly im pressed with outward appearance. Faith has a much clearer measure. Instead of rushing about, disturbed over incongruities, we can rest calm ly in the Lord and in His wonderful Word. As the Old Testament He brew was taught that his place of blessing was in the land, so the place of blessing for the believer is in Christ Jesus (Eph. 1:3). We are to be fed out of the truth found in the Word of God. God wants us to commit every problem to Him. Some times this is more easily said than done. There is no short-cut to a god ly, Christ-centered, Christian life. No place should be reserved for worry and anxiety. Anxiety is a les son in futility (Matt. 6:25ff). This passage doesn’t encourage careless handling of our responsibilities or suggest indolence. We must learn to budget our time, money, and talent. The Christian isn’t to be concerned about matters of food, drink, cloth ing and shelter. God can be trusted to take care of them all more than adequately.
ceived Christ may have everything in this life, but he’ll have absolutely nothing in the next. Look at the pic ture given to us in Luke 12:16 where we see the rich fool who had every thing to live with, but nothing to live for. This life, at best, is very short. Many prosperous people neglect the greatest transaction life has to offer : the acceptance of God’s gift, Jesus Christ. All men are born in sin. The Saviour came to die on the cross. What right-thinking believer, walk ing in fellowship with God, would ever exchange the exceeding riches which are his in Christ for the spir itual bankruptcy of the prosperous unbeliever in this world? Envying the wicked man can lead to a resent ful attitude. The Christian needs to consider the compromise of his Christian tes timony in the pursuit of gain. Too often accumulating material posses sions may mean losing out to the Lord. I don't mean their salvation, but in their Christian experience. The believer must be very careful that he doesn’t come to doubt God’s love and faithfulness. Whenever we gaze with envy at the man who is unsaved, we need to look again at the books of Ephesians and Philip- pians, remembering that in poverty and imprisonment the Apostle Paul could say that he was rejoicing in the Lord. He had his eyes solidly fixed on the life which follows this one. Here’s where we must stand, confident in the truths and promises of Scripture. C hapter S ix I N times like these we do desper ately need the. Saviour. The first and primary necessity is to be born again. Once this most important of all life’s decisions, has been made, we should be living a victorious Christian life. In Psalm 37:3 we are encouraged to trust in the Lord and 20
Professor Ervin Estruth conducts a class at the Arizona Bible College in Phoenix.
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