Christ's coming (I Corinthians 4:5, 6). The church of Corinth was divided. Some were following Paul, others Apollos and some Cephus. They were making judgments based on ignorance. Everything was cen tered around likes and dislikes. The Apostle reminds them, "Therefore judge nothing before the time un til the Lord comes." It is possible to do the right thing with the wrong motives. It is even possible to do the wrong things with the right motives. Too often we have a tendency to draw wrong conclusions. It is a dangerous and sinful thing to be critical. How can we determine the motives of oth ers? The day is coming when the Lord is sufficiently adequate to make known the hidden words and works of men. He will make the record eminently fair. He will show the deceit and guile people may have exercised against us. What we need to do is to rest in Him. In II Corinthians 5:10 we have the time of this evaluation. This is not a judgment for salvation. Paul is talking to believers. He has in mind our stewardship and service. We must be convinced of the im portance of waiting for the day of judgment. It is then that all things will be balanced off by the Lord. There is also a warning we ought to keep in mind. God grant that today we will prepare for tomor row. As evangelicals who believe in the soon coming of the Saviour let us not be caught up in the min- utea of unimportant details. The important thing is to be prepared for His coming. What have we done with the equipment His grace has given us? Are you prepared to greet Him, ready to hear His "Well
Our Gospel may be offensive but we do not need to be. Some Christians seem to want to mimic the world to such an extent that they have no salvation really to offer because they are no different than those of secular society. We do not need to be strange or odd, but at the same time we should not forget whose messenger we are. The love of God is not a vague thing, it is very practical. By His matchless grace may we show that love is an effective manner to oth ers through the power of the Holy Spirit. PREPARED FOR HIS COM ING Have you ever been discouraged in your work for the Lord? Perhaps you are under the illusion that God is going to reward you immediately because of your faithfulness. This is not the way it happens. We have to live by faith and not by sight. We have to look at our service in the light of the second coming of our blessed Lord. It is then that things will be right. At that point you will be rewarded for your stewardship standing before the judgment seat of Christ (II Corin thians 5:10). The problem is that we look at surface things, drawing wrong con clusions. At the return of Christ He will vindicate God, He will vindi cate Himself, He will vindicate His Word and He will vindicate us. The Lord's plans will be fulfilled. Christ will show that He did not die as a martyr for a lost cause. The Rap ture will clearly reveal that every thing God said was true. The world will then see that what was prom ised to us as believers is then our full inheritance. There is a vital certainty to
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