Newsletter

Let me speak to the condition of our church’s heart. Although we have just gone through a time of church discipline, I think we have turned a corner in our devotion to the Lord. What I will share today is directly from my devotion last night at our General Council of Elders meeting.

From 1 Sam. 2:30: “Therefore the LORD God of Israel says: ‘I said indeed that your house and the house of your father would walk before Me forever.’ But now the LORD says: ‘Far be it from Me; for those who honor Me I will honor, and those who despise Me shall be lightly esteemed.”

After our Fellowship Sunday morning I wanted to explore this idea a little bit. This verse in 1 Sam. tells us that God honors those who honor Him and that He lightly esteems those who despise Him. By this scripture, we know what we must do, but the question is how do we esteem and honor God?

Of course, we esteem and give Him honor when we worship Him and tithe to His church. But there is another way to give Him honor, and that is often overlooked.

Jesus said, “… Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.” (Matthew 25:40). Now who are “the least of these”? The Greek word for “least” is translated as “in amount: of management of affairs…in importance…in the estimation of men: of persons,” and “in rank and excellence: of persons.” Here’s an example that shows the heart of Jesus in regard to this matter.

When the disciples attempted to keep the children away from Jesus, Jesus rebuked them (Mark 10:13-14). The children were considered “least” by some, but according to Jesus, they were valuable, “for such is the kingdom of God” (v. 14). We can give honor to Jesus, and we honor God by giving honor to the little ones.

So, we should honor children, but that raises another question, “How do we honor the children?” We honor our children at home and at church by giving them the Word of God and by training them in the ways of the kingdom. As Christians we should supply the very best teaching materials for our children, the best environment and we must give them quality time and understanding. And we must be an example to them of peace and wisdom.

So how do we honor God? We honor God by giving honor to children and to those the world would consider of less value. We should never judge people because of their income, education, or for the work they do in society. Man looks at the outside, but God looks at the heart. Philippians 2:3 tells us to: “Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself.”

Yesterday [Sunday] I think we saw two types of honor manifested in our church. We saw a commitment to address issues in a biblical manner both by the church and the individual[s] involved. And by honoring our Father God, we were honored. As we saw how our commitment to honor children was realized by two professions of faith, subsequently we will see 4 baptisms. And I think God was very purposeful in this honoring, as we all know nothing is more to the heart of our church than the children. The actions of the individual[s] involved in our church honored God and God honored us. God is incredibly good to those who honor Him. May it always be so at New Life…

STEVEN MEDEIROS, Teacher/Preacher