On God’s Time

“But when the fullness of the time was come, God sent forth His Son, made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.” (Galatians 4:4-5)

People are getting ready for Christmas. Stores are crowded, lights are strung, trees are decorated and mantles are adorned with “stockings that have been hung by the chimney with care.”

That first Christmas came and went with most of the world being unaware. It was “when the fullness of time was come.”God never consulted with the Bethlehem Chamber of Commerce to see if it suited the merchants and the inn keeper.

That first Christmas saw God give the Greatest Gift ever given for any occasion, the gift of His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. When the gift becomes ours by faith, we become His by redeeming grace. Have a wonderful Christmas this year.

The Pure Word of God

“Every word of God is pure…” (Proverbs 30:5a)

The word, “pure,” means there are no additives, contains nothing that does not belong, untainted by impurities. Our text says that every word of God is pure. Nothing needs to be added to it.

God’s word is pure because of its source. It is like a spring of water shooting out pure water from a mountainside. Such water needs no additives nor can it be improved. The fountainhead of God’s word, the Bible, is God Himself. Since it is God’s word, it needs no man made “purifier.”  “Add nothing to it lest you be found a liar.” (Proverbs 30:6)

For man to add something to the Bible would be like taking pure, refreshing, thirst quenching, healthy water and adding raw sewage to it.  If you were to take a pint of cool, clear, pure water to a city’s sewage plant, how many drops of raw sewage would we need to add to that pint of pure water to make you not drink it?

God’s word needs only to be read, studied, meditated upon, believed and lived. It makes life worth living, your troubles manageable, adds joy as it takes away sorrow. It shows us salvation through the Lord Jesus Christ. I encourage you to read a portion of the Bible every day.

If My People...

“If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.” (II Chronicles 7:14)

It was on the occasion of the dedication of the new temple in Jerusalem when Solomon had prayed his dedicatory prayer that God responded to with the words in our text. In his prayer Solomon recognized that Israel might sin and fall under the judgment of God and be carried away captive. God promised them a way out if they would do the four things mentioned in our text.

With the death of Solomon the nation divided into two kingdoms. It was as if they were on a bob-sled with greased runners headed down hill to judgment. Today Israel is in a “holding pattern” waiting until the second coming of Jesus to be restored to their glory days. God would have healed them if they had followed His instruction.

America is fast coming to be known as a nation who has forgotten God. There is hope if the nation turns back to God as He instructed Israel to do. May we awaken to the signs before us before it is too late.

Give Thanks Always

“Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Ephesians 5:20)

To give thanks always, as our text says, is to be thankful at least once a day and even more often as we remember the numerous blessings God gives us each day. While it is good fur us to have a  day in the year set aside for expressing it, “Thanks” should not be reserved for a special day once a year only.

As I read the context of this verse I see that giving thanks results from being filled with, or controlled by, the Holy Spirit. It goes along with singing and making melody in our hearts, also resulting from the filling of the Holy Spirit.

Let us each vow today to give thanks to God at least once every day from now until Thanksgiving Day, 2016.

In Everything

“In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.”

(I Thessalonians 5:18)

The first word in our text is the word, “In,” not, “For.” There is a huge difference. Matthew Henry, the British Bible scholar and commentator from three centuries ago, was robbed one day by a highwayman. When he was thanking God for his day and the blessings of it, he thanked  God that even though the thief stole all that he had, it wasn’t much. Second, that even though he stole all his goods he still had his life and his health. Third, that, “it was I who was robbed and not I who robbed.” He was not thankful “for” the robbery. He was thankful “in” it.

Someone had an automobile accident. Even though the car was a total loss, the driver walked away without a scratch. He was not thankful “for” the wreck and the loss of his car. He was thankful, “in” the midst of it.

When our Christian loved ones die, we are not thankful “for” their suffering, sickness and death. We are thankful “in” the midst of it to know they had trusted the One who gave His life for them and that He had prepared a place called heaven for them.

On this Thanksgiving Day let us be thankful to God in every circumstance of life and that God is with us in all the bad times as well as the good times.

Faith that Faces Opposition

“First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, that your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world.” (Romans 1:8)

Paul the Apostle was responsible for planting many churches, but the church at Rome was not one of them. He had heard of these saints and had heard of the opposition they were enduring as they practiced their faith. He expressed thanks to God for their strong faith.

He knew that Rome was a hot-bed of immorality, paganism, idol worship and all sorts of sins. It was their stand against the opposition to the Christian message, the believers lifestyle and their firm stand of faith that led Paul to thank God for their faith which was spoken of throughout the whole world.

You and I face opposition as we live the Christian life and practice our faith. What would Paul say of us? Would he be thankful for our faith or would his face get red with embarrassment  when someone mentioned us to him? Many of those saints in Rome died a martyr’s death. May God help us to stand firm when opposition comes.

God’s Unspeakable Gift

“Thanks be unto God for His unspeakable gift.” (II Corinthians 9:15)

A gift cannot be earned. There is no exchange of money, goods or time for a gift. There is no obligation of work before or after a gift. There is no expectation on the part of a donor for a gift. A gift is free or else it ceases to be a gift. A gift has only to be received from the donor.

Paul mentioned the “unspeakable” or “indescribable” gift from God. He is writing of the, “gift of God, eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Romans 6:23) I have never been able in my finite understanding and vocabulary to adequately describe this indescribable gift. All I can do is receive it and say “thanks” and live with thanksgiving in my heart for this gift greater than all other gifts combined.

That free gift is available to all who will receive it. With thanksgiving in my heart I tell others about the gift and how to receive it. Have you received your gift of eternal life?

God Will Not Forget You

“Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? Yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee.” (Isaiah 49:15)

We have heard of some instances in which a mother has turned her back on her children and walked away. A few years ago a woman fastened her children in their car seats and drove them into a stream where they drowned. Fortunately, such cases are rare.

One would never hear of God turning His back on one of His children. Over and over again God assures us that He will not leave us nor forsake us. When you are going through terrible heartache, pain and agony and you do not think you have a friend in the world, remember He is present with you if you have received Jesus as your Savior and Lord. He is that friend that sticks closer than a brother.  Trust Him to be there for you in your hour of trial.

Forgetting God Numberless Days

"Can a maid forget her ornaments, or a bride her attire? Yet my people have forgotten me days without number.” (Jeremiah 2:32)

It would be strange indeed for a young bride-to-be to forget the attire she intended to wear to her wedding or the ornaments with which she would adorn herself for the wedding. Ask the average married woman to tell you what she wore on her wedding day and she can tell you precisely. Fifty or sixty or more years afterward she can tell you to the last detail what she had on.

However, Jeremiah the prophet of God said that the people of the nation of Judah had forgotten God, “days without number.” Apparently they had not talked to God in prayer nor had they thought of His commandments. They were bowing down to strange, lifeless idols. As far as they were concerned God was a distant relic from the past.

I fear that the United States of America has the same problem. The God of George Washington, Ben Franklin, John Adams, George Whitfield and Jonathan Edwards is just a paragraph in an all but forgotten history book for many folks.

It is time to think again of the God of the Bible, the God of our founding fathers.

Be Thankful Unto Him

“Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise: be thankful unto Him, and bless His name.” (Psalm 100:4)

It is a holy privilege to communicate with God in prayer. Our God is alive. He is not a dead, martyred Jew or some dead leader of some religion in the Middle East. We are welcome to come into His presence and have an audience with Him anytime.

But, while we are invited to, “come boldly to the Throne of Grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need,” (Heb. 4:15) we don’t just barge in with a “Christmas list” of things we want or think we need. We come through the “entrance” gates thankful for all He has done and for all He has given us. We go from the entrance gates into His courts with praise. We are having an audience with the King of Glory, the creator of the universe. In His courts we continue to be thankful. While we are in His presence we are to bless His name.

One of the Christmas hymns invites us to, “come let us adore Him, Oh come let us adore Him, Oh, come let us adore us adore Him, Christ the Lord.”

Give Thanks to God

“Oh give thanks unto the LORD; for He is good: because His mercy endureth forever.” 

(Psalm 118:1)

I have been told that in some public school history text books, revisionists have attempted to change some facts. One of these changes is that the first thanksgiving after the Pilgrims landed on these shores, “they bowed their heads and were thankful.” The revisionists, to be politically correct, have left out any reference to God as being the One to whom the Pilgrims gave thanks.

The Bible says that all good gifts come from God. (James 1:17) My history books told me and my fellow students that the Pilgrims “bowed their heads and gave thanks to God.”

Regardless of what the Pilgrims did or anyone else has done since that first thanksgiving, let us be thankful to the LORD before, during and after this Thanksgiving season, as the Psalmist has instructed us.

Brotherly Love

“Let brotherly love continue.” (Hebrews 13:1)

It is interesting that the two words, “brotherly love,” are one word in the Greek language from whence this translation comes. That one word is “philadelphia.” As you know there is a city in the state of Pennsylvania named Philadelphia. It is commonly called “the city of brotherly love.”

The writer of Hebrews, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, is telling these scattered Hebrew Christians to never cease loving one another. It is one thing to say we love our brother in Christ, it is another to actually love our brother and it is even more amazing to show brotherly love.

Jesus said, “By this shall all men know that you are my disciples, if you have love one to another.” (John 13:35)

Let brotherly love continue. Don’t let it end.

It Is Written

“It is written…” (Matthew 4:4, 7, 10)

Someone has said and it has often been  repeated that, “It is written,” is nourishing enough, “It is written,” is comfort enough, and “It is written,” is authority enough.

When Satan tempted Jesus following His forty days of fasting in the wilderness, Jesus responded to each temptation with the use of quotations from the Bible, prefaced with, “It is written.”

The psalmist said, “Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee. (Psalm 119:11) Jesus had hidden God’s word in His heart, something you and I must do, knowing that sooner or later we will face Satan’s temptations. Are you hiding God’s Word in your heart through reading, memorizing, meditating upon it and studying it?

In Distress? Call Out to God

”In my distress I cried unto the LORD, and He heard me.” (Psalm 120:1)

There have been many people through the ages who have been in distress from many causes. Hezekiah, king of Judah, was one whose distress was sickness. God sent Isaiah the prophet to take a message to the king. “Set thy house in order: for thou shalt die and not live. Then Hezekiah turned his face toward the wall, and prayed unto the LORD…” (Isaiah 38:1-2) After he prayed God gave him fifteen more years.

If Hezekiah is the author of this Psalm, then the above mentioned sickness and prayer could be his reference to distress in our text.

The lesson for us is that when we are in any distress, whether health, finances, employment, family or a host of others, we can come before the LORD in prayer and can expect Him to hear us. God always encourages his followers to pray.

Walk In the Old Paths

“Thus saith the LORD, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls. But they said, we will not walk therein.” (Jeremiah 6:16)

When evangelist, Billy Graham came on the scene in a huge revival in Los Angeles in 1949 there were those who said, “Graham will set the church back fifty years.” Mister Graham responded by saying, “I don’t want to set the church back fifty years. I want to set it back two-thousand years.”

We must get back to standing with the doctrines of the first century churches who believed the authority of the bible. We must declare that sin is against the will of God and a transgression of the law of God. We must declare with certainty that eternal life comes through Jesus Christ alone. With that same kind of certainty we must declare the Second Coming of Jesus. Churches must get back to living holy, uncompromising lives in this sinful world.

...Neither Were Thankful

“Because that, when they knew God, they glorified Him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.” (Romans 1:21)

One of the identifying marks of a Godless, pagan society is thanklessness. John MacArthur on his “Grace to You” radio program said, “We are living in Romans chapter one with all its Godlessness today.” In the midst of all the sins mentioned in Romans chapter one is the sin of thanklessness. It is listed with idolatry, homosexuality, covetousness, fornication, a list of more than twenty-four items of sin.

One may not be guilty of committing every sin on the list, but if we haven’t expressed thanks to God for His many blessings to us, we need to pause a little while and thank Him for the gift of eternal life through His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Glory in the Cross

“But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.” (Galatians 6:14)

Paul never saw the cross as a good luck charm, an item of jewelry, or beautiful art work to adorn a wall or table. One would not have seen a small cross on the dash board of Paul’s chariot.

Paul gloried in the cross because it did two major things. First, it revealed God’s attitude toward sin. It is one thing to read “thou shalt” and “thou shall not” in the Ten Commandments. It is another thing to see the Son of God suffering death on the cross because of man’s sin. All the sins of the world were placed on Jesus Christ and God the Father poured out his Holy Wrath on sin. That’s what God thinks of sin.

Second, the cross represents God’s love for the sinner. Man cannot pay for his sins with his own efforts. But, God in His love for mankind sent Jesus to die on the cross for all of us sinners.

Things That Accompany Salvation

“But, beloved, we are persuaded better things of you, and things that accompany salvation…” (Hebrews 6:9)

When someone comes to know the Lord they receive the indwelling Holy Spirit to aid them in living the Christian life and to comfort them along the way. Some of the other things that accompany salvation would be, “the fruit of the Spirit; love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness goodness, faith, meekness and temperance.” (Galatians 5:22-23) Other things are sobriety, assurance of salvation, peace that passes all understanding, hunger and thirst for the things of God, Godly behavior and a list too long for this page.

The writer is saying that the evidence will show that a saved person is a changed person. There are some accompanying marks that bear the proof.

Where are the Nine?

“And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back...and fell down at His feet giving Him thanks...and Jesus answering said, were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine? (Luke 17: 15, 16, 17)

Ten leprous men begged Jesus to have mercy on them and heal them. Sure enough, He healed them. When one of the ten turned back and gave Him thanks, Jesus asked the question, “Where are the other nine?”

During this November Thanksgiving season when we are so blessed with God’s provision which He has so abundantly lavished on us, let us remember to be thankful. Will this be the year we profoundly thank Him for His goodness to us for the blessings of life, friends, the privilege of living in America with her freedoms, for food on our tables, clothes in our closets and a roof over our heads? Or, will this be another of those thankless seasons when we wonder why we don’t have more?

Don’t wait until Thanksgiving to be thankful.

Dealing With Our Sins

“Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil.” (Ecclesiastes 8:11)

In the 1930’s and 40’s if Adolph Hitler had been dealt with after his first taking the life of a Jew and before he was responsible for the second death, it is very probable that six million Jews would not have died in Nazi consecration camps and gas chambers in the Holocaust.

Prisons across America are holding men and women who got away with breaking small laws as children. If someone, a parent, a teacher or a friend had stopped their committing such deeds as juveniles, in many instances they would not have committed the larger crime that landed them behind bars.

You and I must take our sins to the foot of the cross and deal with them there in confession and repentance and let God deal with our sins in mercy, grace and forgiveness before He has to deal with them in judgment and wrath. “If we confess our sins He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins…” (I John 1:9)

God’s Word Will Stand Forever

“Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away.” (Luke 21:33)

In the book of Revelation John the Beloved tells us that he “saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away…” (Revelation 21:1) The Bible tells us that what is seen is temporary, but what is not seen is eternal. All of that which we see with our eyes will someday pass away. God’s word is eternal.

But someone objects. “We are able to see our Bibles, the big ones, the little ones and everything in between. Are they not temporary?” Lovingly, I tell you that God’s Word is written and even though we see it in book form, if one were to destroy every single copy, as Jehoikim, king of Judah destroyed the scroll of the prophet Jeremiah, God’s word will not destroyed. Jeremiah dictated the unwritten word back to his penman, Baruch. If every copy were burned in a fire as was Jeremiah’s prophesy, God’s word would still stand.

Yes, heaven and earth shall pass away but God’s word will forever stand firm. We can depend on what He says to be accurate, true and everlasting. There will always be those who deny it, attempt to destroy it, and say it is not true. However, God’s Word will not pass away. The Psalmist said, “Forever, Oh LORD, thy word is settled in heaven.” (Psalm 119:89)

Be Strong and Courageous

“Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.” (Joshua 1:9)

Moses, God’s servant, had died and God had buried him in an unmarked grave. Joshua, his successor, had been given the reigns of leadership over the nation of Israel. In this verse God is instructing Joshua to be strong and courageous (Joshua 1:6, 7, 9) because God is with him.

The Lord Jesus has given believers the “Great Commission” to go into the world and evangelize the lost, baptize those who become saved and teach all those whom we baptize. He then promises that He will be with us to the very end as we do His bidding. Let us be courageous and faithful to our Lord as Joshua was instructed to be courageous and unafraid.

Warning Signs

“And it shall come to pass at that time, that I will search Jerusalem with candles, and punish the men that are settled on their lees: that say in their heart, the LORD will not do good, neither will He do evil.” (Zephaniah 1:12)

Just as there were in the days of the reign of Josiah, king of Judah and the prophets, Zephaniah and Jeremiah, we have people today who think God either will not or cannot bring judgment on unrepentant rejecters of God and His word.

But as surely and certainly as the prophets had warned, the Babylonians under Nebuchadnezzar, “God’s servant,” came in and took Judah captive. They stayed in captivity for seventy years. The people then realized that God meant what He said and did what He said He would do. They had been warned and now they were reaping what they had sown.

If those people who went into captivity could come to America and stand on the capitol steps and on the mall in Washington, what would they say to us concerning America’s sins and her refusal to heed the warning signs of judgment? Let us turn to God.

How Firm A Foundation

"If the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do?” (Psalm 11:3)

A building without a foundation is destined to fall. The same is true for society. There must be strong foundations for a strong society.  Jesus told about two men who built their houses on two different kinds of foundations. One built on solid rock. The other built on sand. The house on the rock stood firm but the one on the sand fell.

God gave us the Bible, His holy Word, as the first foundation and Satan has been attacking it for centuries. Hear him as he questions Eve, “Yea, hath God said…?” (Genesis 3:1) But the foundation still stands firm. God gave us the home and Satan has tried to change the home into something that does not resemble a Biblical home. But the home continues to be strong. God has given us law, order and justice as a foundation and Satan and his crowd continue to attempt to destroy it.  Another foundation God has given us the church. It still stands strong, although Satan has attempted to change its doctrines, weaken its stand against sin and infiltrate it with false teachers.

John Philips says, “Satan is attempting to destroy the foundations to make room for the coming man of sin, the Anti-Christ.”

What can the righteous do? Keep on being faithful to The Lord Jesus Christ.

Restoring the Joy of Salvation

“Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit.” (Psalm 51:12)

Taking joy out of salvation is like trying to take heat out of fire. Joyless salvation is as unreasonable as a bird that has wings but cannot fly. The person who has experienced the heartfelt joy of  being saved and who through personal sin loses that joy, is miserable because sin has stolen his joy. Joyless salvation is a contradiction in terms.

That’s where King David was. Un-confessed sin and the joy of God’s salvation cannot exist together in the same person at the same time. David acknowledged and confessed his sin of adultery with Bathsheba and his attempted cover up. He then asked God to restore the joy.

One is miserable trying to carry around un-confessed sins and attempting to be joyful at the same time. Take your sins to the Cross of Christ, confess them and leave them there.

God Owns It All

“For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills.” (Psalm 50:10)

In the old west, livestock were branded to show ownership, a practice still used today in some areas. My dad purchased two mares from Texas that had brands that had been burned there when these mares were colts.

When I go into the woods and see squirrels, rabbits, raccoons, possums and other animals, the Bible, not some brand, tells me that God is the owner. In addition, the cattle on a thousand hills are His.

Look at the words of the old song,

                                                “A Child of the King”

                        “My Father is rich in houses and lands,

                                    He holdeth the wealth of the world in His hands!

                        Of rubies and diamonds, of silver and gold,

                                    His coffers are full, He has riches untold.

                                                            Chorus

                        I’m a child of the King, A child of the King:

                                    With Jesus my Savior, I’m a child of the King.”

Place your faith in Jesus. Become a child of the King.

Contentment

“…And having food and raiment let us be therewith content.” ( I Timothy 6:8)

In his day Howard Hughes was reportedly the richest man alive. No one knew exactly how rich he was. When someone asked, “How much did he leave behind?” Another answered, “He left it all behind.” It was told that he could not eat a decent meal of meat and vegetables because of health issues. For all the good his wealth did him he may as well have had a sack full of shredded newspapers.

You and I should be content with what God has given us. John D. Rockefeller, of Standard Oil fame, was another rich man. He was asked, “How much money do you need to be content and satisfied?” He replied, “Just a little more.”

A lady walked into her walk-in closet which was hanging full of clothes and declared, “I just don’t have a thing to wear.”

The Bible says, “...and be content with such things as you have: for He has said, ‘I will never leave you, nor forsake you.’” (Hebrews 13:5)

God’s Unfailing Promises

“Blessed be the Lord, that hath given rest unto His people Israel, according to all that He promised: There has not failed one word of all His good promise, which He promised by the hand of Moses His servant.” (I Kings 8:56)

Since you and I are human we may not be able to keep all the promises we make, however well intentioned we may have been when we made the promise. Someone promises to pay back a bank note at a given time. However his failing health, loss of a job or a number of other unforeseen things may hinder his keeping that promise.

It was following Solomon’s prayer of dedication of the temple that he reminded the people of Israel of the many promises God had made to them and that He had never broken one of them.

God has never broken a promise. John 3:16 is the apex of all the promises of God. “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” He has never broken a promise. You can trust Him to keep this one.

Step Out On Faith

“Why are you fearful, Oh ye of little faith?” (Matthew 8:26)

Often God’s work goes undone because we fear that which we cannot see ahead. We fear that we might fail if we attempt to lead someone to faith in Christ. We fear sharing our testimony with someone. We fear that we might look foolish and embarrass ourselves.

Many men have been called of God to preach the Gospel when they were young. They feared that they might not be able to provide for their families on a pastor’s small pay.  An elderly gentleman I knew wept when he told a group of young people how he feared as a young man to step out on faith and answer the call of God on his life to preach the Gospel.

People fear to teach a Sunday school class because they fear criticism and also fear that they might make a mistake in the Biblical presentation.

The Bible says, “Without faith it is impossible to please Him.” (Hebrews 11:6) So, surrender your life to Him, do what He tells you to do, trusting Him to see you through all the storms, the wind and the waves.

Fools

The fool hath said in his heart, ‘There is no God.’” (Psalm 53:1)

Years ago there was a song that asked the question, “What Kind of Fool Am I?”  The man in our text is a “Godless” fool. There are other kinds of fools.

In one of His parables Jesus spoke of a man whose crops yielded better than ever. So he said to himself, I have no room to store all my goods. I’ll tear down my old barns and build greater ones. But God said, “thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be which thou hast provided? So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.” (Luke 12:20-21) He is the rich fool.

Then there is the man in our Lord’s Sermon on the Mount who heard the teachings of Jesus but would not give heed to them. Jesus said that man is “likened to a foolish man who built his house on the sand: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, an beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.” (Matthew 7:26-27) He is the “unheeding” fool.

The person who is deceived by alcoholic beverages is said to be unwise, or foolish.

Then there is the “fool” for Christ’s sake. He looks foolish to this mad world because he has forsaken everything for Christ. (I Corinthians 4:10-13) Life is much better for the “fools for Christ’s sake.”