Judas Iscariot was the treasurer among the disciples of the Lord and he often stole money out of the bag which was there to sustain Jesus and His traveling companions (John 12:6, 13:29). Judas loved money, so he went to the enemies of the Lord and asked them, “how much will you give me if I turn him over to you?” (Matthew 26:14-16). The price agreed on was thirty pieces of silver, though not an lot of money, it was still equal to about a week’s wages (Acts 1:15-18).
Judas sold his soul for money, and the Bible teaches men not to love money, because there are things far more valuable (1 Timothy 6:10; Acts 8:18-23; Mark 8:36-37). When Judas realized he made a bad choice, he went back to his fellow conspirators thinking they would also see the light, but they didn’t. Angered by their refusal to acknowledge what was right, he threw the money down and went out and killed himself (Matt. 27:3-5). This tragic account proves that we shouldn’t sell out righteous for money, and not to be so depressed over our mistakes, that we kill ourselves. Because in life there is hope for those of a contrite heart (Proverbs 28:13; Ecclesiastes 9:4; Ezekiel 14:6; Psalm 51:17). Hope to hear from you or see you at the services. Many say, “I forgive, but I don’t forget”. Well, this so called forgiveness isn’t of any profit to anyone, and it’s certainly not the way the Lord does when He forgives. God is willing to forgive anyone who will repent and ask His forgiveness (Isaiah 1:10-20; Acts 2:38). After that, God doesn’t keep the sin of man still on the books and neither will He bring it up again in the future. When God forgives, He forgets, and so should men (Hebrews 10:17).
Yet, we still see those who hold grudges and refuse to give second chances to those who seek forgiveness. None can be forgiven of their trespasses, if they refuse the same courtesy to others (Matthew 6:12, 18:21-35; James 2:13; Ephesians 4:31-32). We best get rid of all those grudges and start forgiving because the mercy we refuse to show today will be denied us tomorrow (Galatians 6:7; Proverbs 11:5; Numbers 32:23; Prov. 26:27; Daniel 6:24). Hope to hear from you or see you at the services. Hurricane Sandy came and took a lot from the people of the Northeast. But natural disasters are a part of life, and we haven’t seen the last hurricane. If one doesn’t come back to the Northeast, it will certainly come to some other unfortunate part of America. With all that being said, we must come back to what the word of God said about life on earth. God’s word teaches that we shouldn’t get wrapped up with things of this life because all material things are temporary (Matthew 6:19-21; Luke 12:15; 1 John 2:15-17; 1 Timothy 6:7; Job 49:16-17; Matthew 6:30).
What we need to do now is rise up and go forward because to go backward means death. We must realize how much we need the teaching of God’s word and allow that to guide our future steps (Proverbs 3:1-10; Galatians 6:1-2). God will teach us not to get too content in this life, and He will strengthen us as we face the troubles of time. Hope to hear from you or see you at the services. District Attorney Seth Williams recently spoke of preventing young children from becoming criminals by having classes in elementary school promoting good behavior, morals and responsibility. D.A. Williams feels that it is best to work with children while they are at a young, ripe age, steering them in the path of right before they get indoctrinated by ungodly parents, neighbors, or other evil people.
I praise D.A. Williams for his foresight, and he is correct is his assessment. However, as we have said; it is a crying shame that so many parents, neighbors, and others who are daily with young ones, don’t set a good example. If a parent or some person does evil in the presence of a child, he will be influenced by the actions of those who committed the sin in his presence. The D.A. of a city, shouldn’t have to figure out ways to save the future children. Parents should be doing that, and they will answer to God, as to why they didn’t. (Ecclesiastes 12:1; Proverbs 22:6; Romans 14:12). |