Being Famous is the Counterfeit of Being Known - Apples of Gold - July 1, 2008 -vi-

Apples of Gold
 

Radio Script for July 1, 2008

“Being Famous is the Counterfeit of Being Known”

Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.

How many stars can you name from 1908?

How many great athletes or entertainers or authors from just 100 years ago?

It was a presidential election year.  Do you know who was running?

Honestly, the only thing I know about 1908 is that it was the last time the Cubs won a World Series.  (If they win it this year, I think we’re starting to see a pattern...)

Now here’s the thing.  In 1908 there were so many people working so hard to be somebody, and yet now they are almost entirely forgotten. 

Let me go back to when I was a kid, in the early 1970’s.  Who were the stars in my little mind?  Well there was Wilt Chamberlain, David Cassidy, Muhammad Ali, Johnny Unitas, Lou Brock, Bob Gibson.  I didn’t know any authors.  I shook President Nixon’s pinkie at a state fair.  I saw Billy Graham on TV.  And I liked the Harlem Globetrotters with Meadowlark Lemon and Curly Neal.

Now if I walked in my wife’s first grade class and asked about those names, how many do you think the kids would know?  Maybe Billy Graham and President Nixon. 

Bounce a few names off some kids you know.  It will be an eye opener.  Ask if they know who Michael Jordan is.  As famous as he is, many kids just shrug.  The only people they will know are those who are in the limelight right now.  Tiger Woods is huge…right now.  But can you name a golfer from 1908? 

My point is that fame is fleeting.  Even if you become the best in the world at something, as time goes by you will be forgotten, and new people will come along and take your place.  To become famous is not a worthy goal.

Not everyone wants to be famous.  Most people don’t have that drive.  But do we all have something in common?  I think the common element is the desire to be known.  For whatever reason, we want to be known.

To become famous is a counterfeit to becoming known.  It seems like it gets you there, but it doesn’t.  It doesn’t scratch where it itches.

In their day, everyone knew about Frank Sinatra and Elvis, but did anybody actually know them?

In Jesus’ time we see the Pharisees falling for this counterfeit of being known.  In Matthew 25 Jesus said, “Everything they do is done for men to see.”  He said, “…they love the place of honor at banquets,” and, “…they love to be greeted in the marketplaces and to have men call them ‘Rabbi.’”

Why did the Pharisees want this recognition?  I think it’s the desire to be known.  Since that was the goal, they did what it took to meet that goal.  And it worked.  People knew them as the religious stars of the day. 

But being famous is the counterfeit of being known.  Underneath their famous surface the Pharisees were hollow.  All they had was that fame, and when Jesus threatened it, when He began to peel back their whitewashed surface and reveal the dead men’s bones inside, they panicked.  And when they got the chance, they killed Him.

So if being famous is the counterfeit, what is the real thing? 

I think it comes in two layers.  The first is being known by God.  Being known by God is not hollow or fleeting.  It’s not based on your poll numbers or recent victories.  Being known by God is a solid, real thing. 

Galatians 4 says that God knows us.  And not only that, He redeemed us so that we would have full rights as His children.  He even placed His Spirit in our hearts, and from our hearts His Spirit calls out to Him, “Abba, Father.”  He knows us and we are His children and His heirs.

In First Corinthians 13 Paul said, “I am fully known.”

First Corinthians 8:3 says, “…the man who loves God is known by God.”

In Jeremiah 12:3, Jeremiah said, “…you know me, O Lord…”

In Second Samuel 7:20, David said, “…you know your servant, O Sovereign Lord.”

Psalm 44:21 says that God even knows the very secrets of our heart.

Psalm 139:4 indicates that God knows us so well, that He even knows what we are going to say before we say it.

So if there is a desire within us to be known, it is fulfilled in being known by God.

And then there is the second layer, which I think is fulfilled within the body of Christ.  It’s the true fellowship that God designed to take place within the church.

James 5:16 says we are to confess our sins to each other and pray for each other.  Why would we do that instead of just confessing to God?  One reason is that it meets the need of being known.  It shreds the superficial and gets down to the real. 

Here is where the word fellowship blossoms into its full reality.  We become known as we fellowship with God and as we fellowship with each other.

This is God’s design.  It meets our needs.  It scratches where it itches. 

So the root desire is to be known, and that desire is met as we are known by God and known by our fellow believers. 

And that desire to be famous?  Look at the big picture and I think you will see that being famous is just the counterfeit of the real gift of being known.


Comments?

E-mail me:  dougapple@wave94.com.

May God bless you today!  With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.


© 2008 The Arrow’s Tip
To subscribe to your own daily “Apples of Gold” e-mail, write dougapple@wave94.com.
If you want to be removed from this e-mail list, simply click reply and type UNSUBSCRIBE on the subject line.
If you want to catch “Apples of Gold” in its original audio format, go to www.wave94.com
To search through the large archive of past articles, go here:  http://www.wave94.com/modules.php?name=Stories_Archive
If you have trouble reaching me at my main e-mail address, try this one:  douglas_apple@msn.com

(Proverbs 25:11 – “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”)

Why “The Arrow’s Tip”?  Each morning, after diligently seeking the Lord, I write Apples of Gold.  Then before I release it to the public I pray one final prayer, “Lord, send forth your arrows.”  I envision Apples of Gold as arrows, tips dipped in the river of the water of life that flows from the throne of God (Rev. 22:1), sailing toward the hearts and minds of men and women around the world.

Doug Apple
General Manager - Wave 94
Christian Radio for Tallahassee
PO Box 4105
Tallahassee, FL  32315
(850) 926-8000
-vi-

Train Yourself to be Godly - Apples of Gold - June 30, 2008 -vi-

Apples of Gold
 

Radio Script for June 30, 2008

“Train Yourself to be Godly”

Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.

My daughter is in training.

It’s summer vacation.  It’s 7 a.m., and she is in training.

The first volleyball game is weeks away, but she is in training.

If the other team isn’t training already, they are falling behind.  When they lose, they may blame a lot of things, but the losing or winning begins right now, in the training.

One thing training involves is hyper-focus.  In volleyball you will spend hours developing the rhythm of “Bump, set, spike.  Bump, set, spike.”  In basketball the coach says, “We’re gonna shoot free throws until you can do it in your sleep!” 

Actors will focus on a scene until they have it down.  Musicians will focus on a solo.  Firefighters practice rescues. 

It’s all training that we do ahead of time, so that when it’s time to perform, we are ready. 

With that in mind, look at First Timothy 4:7.  “Train yourself to be godly.”

We know what it means to “train yourself to swim the 200 meter freestyle.”  But what does it mean to train yourself to be godly? 

What is “godly” anyway?  We are godly when we reflect the characteristics of God.

So how can we train ourselves to be godly?  Well it makes sense to me that we could pick one of the characteristics of God, then work on it. 

For example, God is pure.  So what can we do to be more pure like God?

My son introduced me to a new idea called “Simple House.”  He is talking about moving into a house with other believers, and one of the goals is to purify themselves from worldly influences.  For example, at Simple House there will be no TV or internet. 

This is one example of Christians training themselves to be godly, in this case training toward the godly characteristic of purity.

Let’s pick another characteristic of God:  slow to anger.  How could you train yourself to be slow to anger?

First of all, when are you likely to be quick to anger?  Is it while you are driving?  Are you quick to anger during sports?  Then train yourself to be more godly.  Put a Bible verse on your dashboard if you have to.  Chew on black licorice at the ballgame if you have to.  Whatever you have to do, train yourself to change your behavior.

See, sometimes we want to leave this all up to God.  “Yes, I have a temper problem.  God just needs to take it away from me.”

But the Bible says “train yourself to be godly.”  That puts the ball in our court.  We need to work on it, to go into training.

Here’s the thing.  We will train in all sorts of areas.  Many people spend hundreds of hours in training for everything from track to cello to tracheotomies.    

If you went to a piano contest, then messed up halfway through, wouldn’t you say you should have practiced more?

So why do we leave our godliness up to some kind of osmosis?  Godliness is not some slippery quality that we either have or we don’t.  It’s something we can train for. 

It’s right there in the Bible, in First Timothy 4:7, “Train yourself to be godly.”


Comments?

E-mail me:  dougapple@wave94.com.

May God bless you today!  With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.


© 2008 The Arrow’s Tip
To subscribe to your own daily “Apples of Gold” e-mail, write dougapple@wave94.com.
If you want to be removed from this e-mail list, simply click reply and type UNSUBSCRIBE on the subject line.
If you want to catch “Apples of Gold” in its original audio format, go to www.wave94.com
To search through the large archive of past articles, go here:  http://www.wave94.com/modules.php?name=Stories_Archive
If you have trouble reaching me at my main e-mail address, try this one:  douglas_apple@msn.com

(Proverbs 25:11 – “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”)

Why “The Arrow’s Tip”?  Each morning, after diligently seeking the Lord, I write Apples of Gold.  Then before I release it to the public I pray one final prayer, “Lord, send forth your arrows.”  I envision Apples of Gold as arrows, tips dipped in the river of the water of life that flows from the throne of God (Rev. 22:1), sailing toward the hearts and minds of men and women around the world.

Doug Apple
General Manager - Wave 94
Christian Radio for Tallahassee
PO Box 4105
Tallahassee, FL  32315
(850) 926-8000
-vi-

When the Changes Don't Come Fast Enough - Apples of Gold - June 27, 2008 -vi-

Apples of Gold
 

Radio Script for June 27, 2008

“When the Changes Don’t Come Fast Enough”

Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.

She had a big fight with her boyfriend.

A huge fight.

A “you’re such a jerk the wedding’s off” fight.

The next day they were both in Orlando on business, so he asked her to meet him for dinner.

“No,” she said.

“Well there’s a big, special church service at the civic center tonight.  Will you at least meet me there after dinner?”

“Okay,” she said, just to be polite.

As they walked through the civic center that night she created a chilly force field around herself.  “Don’t you dare try to hold my hand.  Don’t even touch me.”

The service was nice, some kind of Assemblies of God conference with thousands in attendance.  Eventually the speaker said, “Maybe tonight’s the night you are going to ask Jesus Christ to be your personal Savior.” 

At this, Tracey Cochran bristled.  She had heard altar calls before, and she had always told herself, “I’m not about to walk down in front of a bunch of people.”

Then the speaker said, “Turn to the person beside you and ask, ‘Is this the night you ask Jesus Christ to be your Savior?’”

The woman beside Tracey turned and asked her that question, and as bad as she wanted to say no, she found herself saying yes.

And the next thing she knew she was doing just what she had no intention of doing, walking down in front of a bunch of people to publicly accept Christ.

Tracey had heard a lot of testimonies, so she figured that her life would instantly and radically change.  But when she got home that night, and when she woke up the next day – it really wasn’t that different.

She went back to work and went about her business and, really, no big deal.  She wasn’t doing anything awful at the time anyway, so what big changes could God make?  She was a nice person, a good person before coming to Christ.  Now what?

Then one day she was driving down the highway on a business trip.  She was listening to a Whitney Houston CD, and started to notice the song lyrics.  She saw them in a new light, and thought, “Why, this is drivel.  Why am I listening to this?”

She looked at her music collection and thought, “I need to get some new music.”  So she went to the Christian bookstore and invested in some Christian music.

This may not sound like a big deal, but it was a big deal to her.  It was the first obvious change that she saw God making in her life.  Not something a preacher told her to do.  Not something she read in a book.  Just something that the Holy Spirit within her called her attention to and brought about a change.

Then she noticed something else – a growing desire for her family to come to Christ.  None of them were Christians, and she said that over time she just felt it stirring inside her, a burning desire to share the Gospel with her parents and siblings.  And before long she was able to lead both her mother and her father to Christ.

So Tracey didn’t notice any huge changes when she first became a Christian.  But big changes did come as the Spirit of God moved within her.  And the two big things she noticed was a change of her taste in music, and a desire for her family to be saved.

That story reminds me of Philippians 1:6, “…He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”

When we come to Christ, that is just the beginning of His good work within us.  It doesn’t all happen at once in one giant morphing from human to Christlike.  It tends to happen more gradually as Christ carries on His work inside us.

Have you ever seen someone come to Christ, and then you thought of a hundred things they needed to hurry up and change?  They need to stop drinking, smoking, cussing, and fooling around.  They need to stop being lazy and selfish and deceptive.  They need to change their hair and their clothes, and what about those tattoos and piercings?  They need to witness and tithe and help orphans and widows.  But meanwhile, there they are, content to just sit around and play their rated M video games.  Now what?

You may be tempted to dive in and try to turn them into super Christians, made in your own image.  But maybe you need to leave some room for the Holy Spirit.  God is the one who saved them.  He is the one who drew them in the first place.  God is the one who began the good work, and He is the one who will carry it on to completion.

I don’t know what Tracey would have done if someone would have told her to stop listening to Whitney Houston, or told her to immediately go drop a Gospel bomb on her parents.  But I do know this.  When the Holy Spirit stirs up a conviction inside someone, it becomes a true conviction. 

So be encouraged today!  In your own life, and in the life of those Christians around you – sure, maybe the changes don’t seem to be happening fast enough, or big enough – but never forget those great words in Philippians 1:6, “…He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”


Comments?

E-mail me:  dougapple@wave94.com.

May God bless you today!  With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.

Tracey Cochran and her husband Thom own the Little English Guesthouse Bed and Breakfast in Tallahassee:
http://www.littleenglishguesthouse.com/

Soon you will be able to hear Tracey’s complete testimony on www.TestifyTallahassee.com as well as on Wave 94.

© 2008 The Arrow’s Tip
To subscribe to your own daily “Apples of Gold” e-mail, write dougapple@wave94.com.
If you want to be removed from this e-mail list, simply click reply and type UNSUBSCRIBE on the subject line.
If you want to catch “Apples of Gold” in its original audio format, go to www.wave94.com
To search through the large archive of past articles, go here:  http://www.wave94.com/modules.php?name=Stories_Archive
If you have trouble reaching me at my main e-mail address, try this one:  douglas_apple@msn.com

(Proverbs 25:11 – “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”)

Why “The Arrow’s Tip”?  Each morning, after diligently seeking the Lord, I write Apples of Gold.  Then before I release it to the public I pray one final prayer, “Lord, send forth your arrows.”  I envision Apples of Gold as arrows, tips dipped in the river of the water of life that flows from the throne of God (Rev. 22:1), sailing toward the hearts and minds of men and women around the world.

Doug Apple
General Manager - Wave 94
Christian Radio for Tallahassee
PO Box 4105
Tallahassee, FL  32315
(850) 926-8000
-vi-

Those Who Know How Will Always Work For Those Who Know Why - Apples of Gold - June 26, 2008 -vi-

Apples of Gold
 

Radio Script for June 26, 2008

“Those Who Know How Will Always Work For Those Who Know Why”

Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.

Those who know how will always work for those who know why.

For example, those who know how to weld will always work for those who know why they are welding.

“Come on Doug.  It’s obvious.  We are welding to hold the building together, that’s why we are welding.”

No, that is not it.  Knowing the “why” means stepping back and seeing the real reasons.

You are welding so that people will have a nice hotel to stay in when they come to your town for the next 20 or 30 years.  You are welding to give hundreds of people a nice place to work.  You are welding to build a profit-maker for the owners.  You are welding to build a tax-producer for the government.  You are welding to add one more reason why people should spend their money in your town instead of going somewhere else.

And you thought you were just welding to hold the building together.

See, you may know how to weld, but do you know the why?  If you can see and understand the big picture, then you will understand the “why.”

And it’s good to know the “why” because remember this.  Those who know how will always work for those who know why.

“Well, Doug, maybe I’m content just knowing how.  Anything wrong with that?”

Okay, let’s look at what kind of company you are putting yourself in.

Proverbs 17:16 indicates that it’s the fools who do not desire to get wisdom.

Proverbs 1:7 says that “fools despise wisdom…”

Man, you don’t want to be in that crowd.

Alright, you want one good reason to learn the “why” of things?  Job security.  The more you learn about how things work, the more likely you are to always have a job.

Leaning the “why” will cause you to rise up in any organization.  You will grow in wisdom, and the wiser you are, the more people want you around.  They need you around.  People will come to rely on you.  They won’t want to make a move without getting your input.

Thousands of investors know how to invest in the stock market.  But Warren Buffet knows why.

Thousands of people know how to tinker with technology.  But Steve Jobs knows why.

Thousands of directors know how to create a motion picture.  But Steven Spielberg knows why.

Have you ever been to a conference in your industry?  There you are, sitting in the crowd, listening to the speakers.  Afterward you see the industry leaders huddled off to the side.  All of a sudden, just as you are walking by, they call you over.  They want to know if you have anything to say about your industry.

This will separate those who know why from those who know how.  Would you have anything to say to these industry leaders? 

Now listen to what it says in Proverbs 24:7.  It’s talking about a fool, and it says, “…in the assembly…he has nothing to say.”

The Message Bible says this about fools, “…in a serious discussion they haven’t a clue.”

Man, you don’t want to be that person! 

A friend of mine is an electrical contractor.  He told me that when he was a young electrician he decided to read the electrical code book.  That sounds like exciting reading, doesn’t it?  But it caused him to rise up in the ranks.  Instead of just knowing how to do electrical work, he began to learn why things were done the way they were.

Now he is the boss over other electricians. 

And now get this.  He sees guys sitting around on their break, reading things like People magazine.  He said he tries to get them to read things that will increase their knowledge of the industry, and he said they scoff at him.  These are guys that will never rise up in the ranks.  In the assembly of leaders they will have nothing to say.  If you tried to have a serious discussion with them about electricity, they wouldn’t have a clue. 

Man, you don’t want to be that person.

Proverbs 4:7 says, “Wisdom is supreme; therefore get wisdom.  Though it cost all you have, get understanding.”

This applies to whatever you are doing.  If you are married, get wisdom about marriage.  If you have children, get wisdom about parenting.  If you own a car, get wisdom about taking care of your car. 

And if you work in an industry, dive in and learn all you can about that industry, even about the jobs you may never do yourself.  The more you learn, the more you will understand the big picture of how it all works together.  Then you will begin understand why they do the things they do.

And it’s good to understand the why, because those who know how will always work for those who know why.


Comments?

E-mail me:  dougapple@wave94.com.

May God bless you today!  With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.


© 2008 The Arrow’s Tip
To subscribe to your own daily “Apples of Gold” e-mail, write dougapple@wave94.com.
If you want to be removed from this e-mail list, simply click reply and type UNSUBSCRIBE on the subject line.
If you want to catch “Apples of Gold” in its original audio format, go to www.wave94.com
To search through the large archive of past articles, go here:  http://www.wave94.com/modules.php?name=Stories_Archive
If you have trouble reaching me at my main e-mail address, try this one:  douglas_apple@msn.com

(Proverbs 25:11 – “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”)

Why “The Arrow’s Tip”?  Each morning, after diligently seeking the Lord, I write Apples of Gold.  Then before I release it to the public I pray one final prayer, “Lord, send forth your arrows.”  I envision Apples of Gold as arrows, tips dipped in the river of the water of life that flows from the throne of God (Rev. 22:1), sailing toward the hearts and minds of men and women around the world.

Doug Apple
General Manager - Wave 94
Christian Radio for Tallahassee
PO Box 4105
Tallahassee, FL  32315
(850) 926-8000
-vi-

A Santa Bag Full of Strife - Apples of Gold - June 25, 2008 -vi-

Apples of Gold
 

Radio Script for June 25, 2008

“A Santa Bag Full of Strife”

Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.

So we were sitting around the dinner table the other night, and I noticed the young man to my right was horking down his food.

I said, “Does it taste good?”

“Yep.”

“How do you know?  It’s going straight down your throat.”

I told him to slow down, then I decided to show him how it should go.  I made a big production out of taking a bite and saying, “Mmmmmmm.  Enjoy the flavor of every bite.”

Then I did it a couple more times, you know, to drive the lesson home.

“Mmmmmmmmmmm,” I said.

“Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!”

Well that last “Mmmm” finally crossed my wife’s irritation threshold.

“Alright,” she said, “You made your point and now you’re killing it.”

Then my youngest daughter piped in, “Yeh, Dad, really…”

So I turned to my wife, and I wasn’t smiling.  I waved my hand toward my daughter and said, “See – you start it and she just reflects your attitude.”

The little Christian family dinner was turning into the Sopranos.

Then a little sound changed everything.  We all stopped when the young man to my right, with food in his mouth and a twinkle in his eye, said, “Mmmmmmm!”

And that was that.  Peace was restored and we went on to enjoy a nice meal and a happy rest-of-the-day.

Now listen to the role that young man played.  He played the role of peacemaker.  It was a bit of genius really, and we can all learn a lot from what he did.

So here’s the question.  What do we do when suddenly the peace is broken?  How do we respond?

Well here is how God wants us to respond.  He wants us to make peace.

Jesus said, “Blessed are the peacemakers.”

There are a host of scriptures that tell us to be peacemakers. .

First Corinthians 7:15 says, “…God has called us to live in peace.”

First Peter 3:11 says, “…seek peace and pursuit it.”

Romans 12:18 says, “…as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.”

Romans 14:9 says, “…make every effort to do what leads to peace…”

Hebrews 12:14 says, “Make every effort to live in peace with all men…”

So it’s obvious that peace is a high priority for Christians. 

The biggest question is always, “How can I be a peacemaker with someone who constantly stirs up strife?”

I don’t know.

(roll music)

Comments?

E-mail me, Doug Apple…

(stop music)

Just kidding.  :  )

But seriously, is there a way to be a peacemaker around someone who seems to carry a big Santa bag full of strife and every day is Christmas?

I think the first step is to make sure you start with peace in your own heart, and that comes from the Holy Spirit within you.  Peace is a fruit of the Spirit, so if you can let the Holy Spirit rule in your own heart, that’s half the battle.  That will keep you from reacting poorly when they hand you a big box of strife.

Then what you need is what James 3:17 calls, “the wisdom that comes from heaven.” 

Really, when you are dealing with a peace-wrecker, you can’t deal with it off the top of your head.  You need wisdom from God.  You need to pray for what I call “keen insight.”  I pray that often, “Lord, give me keen insight into the situation.” 

James says that wisdom from heaven is impartial and sincere.  It doesn’t choose sides.  It doesn’t react or fly off the handle.  It doesn’t burst forth in a rage.  James says it is full of mercy and good fruit.

Yes, the Bible stresses our role as peacemakers, and there you have two ways to step into that role.  First, keep the peace in your own heart through the fruit of the Spirit, then second, ask God for wisdom from heaven to deal with stressful situations when they occur.

And the next time things take a Corleone twist at the dinner table, you can snatch it from the jaws of misery and end up with an enjoyable rest-of-the-day.


Comments?

E-mail me:  dougapple@wave94.com.

May God bless you today!  With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.


© 2008 The Arrow’s Tip
To subscribe to your own daily “Apples of Gold” e-mail, write dougapple@wave94.com.
If you want to be removed from this e-mail list, simply click reply and type UNSUBSCRIBE on the subject line.
If you want to catch “Apples of Gold” in its original audio format, go to www.wave94.com
To search through the large archive of past articles, go here:  http://www.wave94.com/modules.php?name=Stories_Archive
If you have trouble reaching me at my main e-mail address, try this one:  douglas_apple@msn.com

(Proverbs 25:11 – “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”)

Why “The Arrow’s Tip”?  Each morning, after diligently seeking the Lord, I write Apples of Gold.  Then before I release it to the public I pray one final prayer, “Lord, send forth your arrows.”  I envision Apples of Gold as arrows, tips dipped in the river of the water of life that flows from the throne of God (Rev. 22:1), sailing toward the hearts and minds of men and women around the world.

Doug Apple
General Manager - Wave 94
Christian Radio for Tallahassee
PO Box 4105
Tallahassee, FL  32315
(850) 926-8000
-vi-

Set Apart for the Service of God - Apples of Gold - June 24, 2008 -vi-

Apples of Gold
 

Radio Script for June 24, 2008

“Set Apart for the Service of God”

Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.

Set apart for the service of God.

We need to be more like that.

Christianity is not a tack-on, something we tack onto our regular lives.

Christianity is a fire that consumes our life. 

When you become a Christian, the fire of the Holy Spirit sweeps in and consumes. 

“Old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.”* 

This is the sanctified, set apart life God is calling us to.

Our life is no longer about our careers or our money.  It’s not about our trips or our clothes or our degrees on the wall.  It’s not about getting people to respect us or like us or say how good we look.  It’s not about having fun or feeling good or chasing the next thrill.  All of that is consumed in the fire.

When John the Baptist preached about Jesus he said, “He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.”

When you are baptized with fire, everything burnable burns.  It is consumed, leaving only the fire.

Look what happened to Paul.  When he became a Christian, his old life was consumed.  It was gone.  He was now set apart for the service of God.

Was that only for Paul?  Is that only for super saints or maybe preachers?

No, this is for every Christian, every one of us who has had our sins forgiven by the blood of Christ.  Revelation 1:6 says Jesus has made us to be priests to serve His God and Father.

Each and every Christian is set apart for service, as a priest.

When the devil tempted Jesus with many wonderful things, Jesus was not even phased.  He said, “It is written:  ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve Him only.”

But what happens when the rest of us our tempted?  Here is what should happen.  Nothing!  It should have the same impact as spitting on a forest fire.  You can’t even hear it sizzle over the roar of the blaze!

Like every Christian, Paul was set apart for service to God.  In Romans 1:9 he said that he served God with his whole heart.

One day Paul had the incredible privilege of preaching to some high Roman officials.  In Acts 26:22 he said, “…I stand here and testify to small and great alike.”

As he testified about Christ, one of the Roman officials interrupted him and shouted – he shouted – “Paul, you are out of your mind!  Your great learning is driving you mad!” 

That’s the way the world sees Christians who are on fire for Jesus.  They think we are nuts. 

When that happens, we are tempted to turn down the burner.  But you know what that means?  It means we are trying to please men. 

Look what Paul said in First Thessalonians 2:5, “We are not trying to please men but God…”

When we are on fire, our eyes are fixed on Jesus and nowhere else.  We want to please Him and we aren’t concerned about pleasing people.  And we aren’t concerned about pleasing ourselves, either.

Here is something that grieves me, and I am sick and tired of it.  It’s Christians who turn down the flame of the Spirit in their lives.  They want to please themselves and others.  They want to enjoy some of the worldly pleasures.  They want to have some good times.  They still want to be Christians, but they want to simply tack Christianity onto a regular, worldly life. 

This won’t work.  Christianity is not a tack-on.  Yes, you can turn down the flame, but what do you do when temptation calls?  You will answer!  Temptation will make an offer and you will accept.

Of course temptation is nothing more than a tiger pit, and you end up crashing to the bottom.  No good ever comes from turning down the flame of the Spirit in your life.  It just makes you lukewarm and disgusting.

It’s time we all turn up the flame!  We do that by selling out to God.  We say, “You know what?  Everything else goes.  Lord, I want all of You.  Take over my life.  I want to be set apart for Your service.  Nothing else matters.  This world has nothing to offer.  I want to be the priest of God you have made me to be, starting right now.”

Yes, some of your old crowd might think you are nuts.  But it’s time to build on the firm foundation and stop building on sand.  It’s time to be sold out and stop wimping out.  It’s time to be hot, not lukewarm. 

Let it ring out loud and clear.  Tell your flesh.  Tell the devil.  Tell the world.  “As of today, as of this very hour, I am set apart for the service of Christ my King!”


Comments?

E-mail me:  dougapple@wave94.com.

May God bless you today!  With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.

*  2 Corinthians 5:17

© 2008 The Arrow’s Tip
To subscribe to your own daily “Apples of Gold” e-mail, write dougapple@wave94.com.
If you want to be removed from this e-mail list, simply click reply and type UNSUBSCRIBE on the subject line.
If you want to catch “Apples of Gold” in its original audio format, go to www.wave94.com
To search through the large archive of past articles, go here:  http://www.wave94.com/modules.php?name=Stories_Archive
If you have trouble reaching me at my main e-mail address, try this one:  douglas_apple@msn.com

(Proverbs 25:11 – “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”)

Why “The Arrow’s Tip”?  Each morning, after diligently seeking the Lord, I write Apples of Gold.  Then before I release it to the public I pray one final prayer, “Lord, send forth your arrows.”  I envision Apples of Gold as arrows, tips dipped in the river of the water of life that flows from the throne of God (Rev. 22:1), sailing toward the hearts and minds of men and women around the world.

Doug Apple
General Manager - Wave 94
Christian Radio for Tallahassee
PO Box 4105
Tallahassee, FL  32315
(850) 926-8000
-vi-

The World Changes in Big Ways As We Make Our Little Decisions - Apples of Gold - June 23, 2008 -vi-

Apples of Gold
 

Radio Script for June 23, 2008

“The World Changes in Big Ways As We Make Our Little Decisions”

Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.

When I woke up that Saturday morning, I didn’t know that by noon the course of my life would be changed.

But the world changes in big ways as we make our little decisions.

On that day I was living in a college dorm.  I walked down to the room of some friends, and we decided to go out for a late breakfast.  We picked a booth and piled in.

Meanwhile, a couple young ladies came in and someone asked them to join us.  And there she was, the girl that has now been my wife for over 20 years.

The decisions you make that lead up to meeting your spouse – those are obvious life changers.  But think about all the decisions that led up to that day.

For example, how did we both end up at the same college in the first place?  I was there primarily because my aunt worked there.  So my aunt’s decision to take the job at that college effected who I married.

I don’t know what all went into her decision, but I doubt she thought, “This is important.  It will change my nephew’s life in a big way.”

And that’s the way our decisions are.  The ripple effect just keeps going and going.  The world changes in big ways as we make our little decisions.

Recently I wrote about the twin 13-year-old boys that are living with us for the summer.  Last night we pulled out all the home videos that included them.  They said, “You’ve known us most of our lives.”

So how did they end up in our lives?  Let’s trace the ripples back to their origin.

Years ago I was praying earnestly about landing a job in Christian radio.  God finally opened the door, and my wife and I spent our honeymoon moving to a new town. 

On our first visit to the town, we drove down the street and saw a church sign.  We saw a lot of church signs, of course, but this one stood out to us, so we stopped by and met the pastor and his family.  We ended up joining the church and getting involved. 

My wife led a group for young girls, and one particular girl my wife went out of her way to reach out to.  She often drove far into the country to pick her up and bring her to church. 

Eventually this girl grew up a little and found herself the single mother of twin baby boys.  Well, my wife’s outreach never stopped, and that’s why these boys are in our house 13 years later.  And it all goes back to our decision to seek the Lord about where I should work. 

That little decision changed the world in a big way for these boys.

This is kind of a fun little exercise.  Just stop and think about the people in your life, and then try to rewind back through the decisions that brought them into your life.

See, our decisions do matter, and they have ramifications far beyond what we can even imagine.

Now I’ve seen some people take the burden off their shoulders by saying, “Well, the Lord’s in control.”

Some people think their decisions don’t matter.  They think God has scripted their life all out ahead of time.  It’s a done deal.  They don’t really have any choices because God already made them.

I don’t believe that, because the Bible is full of “if-then” statements.  If we make certain decisions, we get certain results.  Our decisions do matter.

Does that mean God just turned us loose and walked away?  No.  He is still deeply involved in our lives. 

Let me use a weak analogy.  God is like the manager of a baseball team.  The manager has a game plan.  He has goals and plays and signs and training.  He chooses the players and their positions.  He prepares them and works with them.  The manager is intimately involved with the team.

However, the players still have free will.  They can make their own decisions, but the manager still runs things.  The shortstop can drop the ball or skip practice or get fat over the winter.  That’s his choice.  But then the manager will handle him according to his overall plans for the team.

I think God works the same way.  Proverbs 19:21 says, “Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.”  See, the shortstop can make whatever plans he wants.  So let’s say he plans to get fat over the winter, and he plans to be the starting shortstop.  Yes, he can get fat.  But no, he won’t start.  The manager’s purpose prevails. 

I think our decisions work the same way.  We make important decisions, then the Lord takes it from there to carry out His purposes.

So what should we do?  We should do what it says in Proverbs 16:3, “Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and your plans will succeed.”

So let me wrap all this up.  We make decisions every day, and we don’t know the long term effects.  Yet those decisions matter, and can change the world in big ways.

Since we can’t possibly know all the ramifications, we follow Proverbs 16:3 and commit to the Lord whatever we do.  We submit to His will.  We offer up our bodies as living sacrifices.  We surrender all decisions to Him. 

Then He will lead us to make good decisions that will ripple out good things into all the world around us. 

Yes, our decisions matter, so we commit them to the Lord.  It’s important that we involve Him in all of it, because the world changes in big ways as we make our little decisions.


Comments?

E-mail me:  dougapple@wave94.com.

May God bless you today!  With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.
 

© 2008 The Arrow’s Tip
To subscribe to your own daily “Apples of Gold” e-mail, write dougapple@wave94.com.
If you want to be removed from this e-mail list, simply click reply and type UNSUBSCRIBE on the subject line.
If you want to catch “Apples of Gold” in its original audio format, go to www.wave94.com
To search through the large archive of past articles, go here:  http://www.wave94.com/modules.php?name=Stories_Archive
If you have trouble reaching me at my main e-mail address, try this one:  douglas_apple@msn.com

(Proverbs 25:11 – “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”)

Why “The Arrow’s Tip”?  Each morning, after diligently seeking the Lord, I write Apples of Gold.  Then before I release it to the public I pray one final prayer, “Lord, send forth your arrows.”  I envision Apples of Gold as arrows, tips dipped in the river of the water of life that flows from the throne of God (Rev. 22:1), sailing toward the hearts and minds of men and women around the world.

Doug Apple
General Manager - Wave 94
Christian Radio for Tallahassee
PO Box 4105
Tallahassee, FL  32315
(850) 926-8000
-vi-

When God's People Turn Down Leadership Positions - Apples of Gold - June 20, 2008 -vi-

Apples of Gold
 

Radio Script for June 20, 2008

“When God’s People Turn Down Leadership Positions”

Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.

Listen to this scenario and see if you think Gideon made a mistake.

We read about Gideon in the book of Judges.  God used Gideon to deliver the Israelites from the Midianites.

After the mighty victory, Judges 8:22 says, “The Israelites said to Gideon, ‘Rule over us – you, your son and your grandson – because you have saved us out of the hand of Midian.’”

The people were ready to make Gideon king and start a monarchy, with his ancestors ruling over them.  Now why did they suddenly want to make Gideon king?

Because before Gideon, their life was wretched.  They were worshiping idols instead of the true God, so God allowed their enemies to plunder them.  The Midianites ravaged the land and killed their livestock.  The people hid in caves.

Israel was impoverished before Gideon came along.  But through God’s power he raised up an army and defeated their enemies.

Gideon was a war hero!  No wonder they wanted him to be king.

But now here is where I wonder if Gideon made a mistake.  Listen to what he told them.  “I will not rule over you, nor will my son rule over you.  The Lord will rule over you.”

Now don’t get me wrong.  I agree that the Lord is the ultimate ruler.  We should follow Him and do things His way. 

But let’s face it, people need leaders, flesh and blood leaders.  For example, God was certainly the power behind the great exodus from Egypt, but Moses was the flesh and blood leader. 

Christ is the head of the church, but the Bible spells out the roles of flesh and blood leaders.

So it’s not like having a human leader means you are pushing God off the throne.  God is always on the throne.  The question is, are we recognizing His authority and submitting to it?

Gideon certainly recognized God’s authority, so there was little danger that he would try to steal it.  So why did he turn down the chance to lead the nation?

Maybe he lacked the confidence.  Remember when the angel called him to deliver Israel in the first place – his response was, “How can I save Israel?  My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family.”

But in spite of his low self esteem God raised him up to deliver the nation.  That should have given Gideon incredible confidence – confidence in the Lord to work through him.  When God is with you, how could you not lead well?

I don’t know why Gideon turned down the role as the nation’s leader.  But I do know what happened after that.

Gideon returned to his hometown as a hero.  It sounds like he took advantage of his hero status by marrying many wives, and he kept them busy.  He ended up with 70 sons. 

But even that wasn’t enough for Gideon.  He had a cute little slave girl that became his concubine, and by her he had another son named Abimelech. 

As long as Gideon, the champion, was alive, the Midianites stayed away and the land enjoyed peace.  That was fine while it lasted, which was only about 40 years.

But here is where I suspect that Gideon just blew it.  What I think he should have done was led the nation in a time of revival, a national turning back to the Lord.  He could have reestablished God’s law as the law of the land.  He could have turned the hearts of the people back to the Lord.

He could have established an education system, training the children in the ways of a Godly nation.  He should have reestablished all the religious customs the Lord gave Moses, such as the Passover.  He could have organized the military so that the nation was safe long after he was gone.

But no.  He just went back home and built a harem and started cranking out kids.  He probably told and retold the stories of “back when we crushed the kings of Midian.”  It was like a state championship quarterback who never made it in college. 

As for the nation, it doesn’t look like Gideon established anything.  As soon as Gideon died, the people roared back into Baal worship, and the Bible says they showed no kindness to Gideon’s family.

Then the son of the slave girl rose up and slaughtered Gideon’s other sons and set himself up as the leader – the leader Gideon refused to be.

The generation after Gideon was a national disaster.  Why did it happen?  I think it could have been prevented if Gideon would have stepped up to the plate.  I wonder if his statement that the Lord would be their ruler was just a way to pass the buck.  “I don’t have to do the work of leadership.  That’s God’s job.”

Well listen to this.  Some flesh and blood is going to lead.  They may be Godly, or they may not, but someone is going to fill the shoes of leadership.  We can’t pass the buck and say, “Let God take care of it.”

God wants Godly people to step forward and use the leadership gifts He gave them. 

What will America look like 50 years from now?  What will the world look like? 

Let me tell you, it’s going to take on the shape provided by its leaders. 

So who will step forward and lead?  Who will fill the vacuum?  Will it be power hungry people with selfish motives?  Or will it be righteous people with a heart for God and for the people?

Some flesh and blood is going to shape this world.  The only question is…who?

 
Comments?

E-mail me:  dougapple@wave94.com.

May God bless you today!  With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.
 

© 2008 The Arrow’s Tip
To subscribe to your own daily “Apples of Gold” e-mail, write dougapple@wave94.com.
If you want to be removed from this e-mail list, simply click reply and type UNSUBSCRIBE on the subject line.
If you want to catch “Apples of Gold” in its original audio format, go to www.wave94.com
To search through the large archive of past articles, go here:  http://www.wave94.com/modules.php?name=Stories_Archive
If you have trouble reaching me at my main e-mail address, try this one:  douglas_apple@msn.com

(Proverbs 25:11 – “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”)

Why “The Arrow’s Tip”?  Each morning, after diligently seeking the Lord, I write Apples of Gold.  Then before I release it to the public I pray one final prayer, “Lord, send forth your arrows.”  I envision Apples of Gold as arrows, tips dipped in the river of the water of life that flows from the throne of God (Rev. 22:1), sailing toward the hearts and minds of men and women around the world.

Doug Apple
General Manager - Wave 94
Christian Radio for Tallahassee
PO Box 4105
Tallahassee, FL  32315
(850) 926-8000
-vi-

Jesus Just Spilled His Drink - Apples of Gold - June 19, 2008 -vi-

Apples of Gold
 

Radio Script for June 19, 2008

“Jesus Just Spilled His Drink”

Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.

Devion and Damari turned 13 Sunday.

They are twins who are living with us for the summer.

Now I know that Jesus said if we do something for the “least of these,” it’s just like doing it for Him.  But have you ever felt like telling Jesus to pipe down because you’re trying to sleep?  Or what do you do when Jesus starts chasing dragon flies around the pool with a broom handle, takes a swing and rips a hole in the screen?  Or what about when Jesus swings a golf club in the house…by the light?  Sometimes Jesus even wants to play the punching game.

And then there’s the eating.  Jesus doesn’t seem to care that food prices are up.  He just won’t stop eating.

And in spite of all this, no matter how much I coax, I just can’t get Jesus to do the chicken noodle soup for me.  

See, this idea of doing something for the “least of these” can seem very romantic on the surface.  But when you get down to actually doing it, it gets messy real quick.

“What?  Jesus just spilled his drink?”

Oh.  It’s “just water” he says.  It’s okay.

“Can I stop thinking about them as Jesus now?  I’m not seeing the similarity.”

And that’s exactly why Jesus brought it up.  If Jesus Himself walked in, we would give Him the royal treatment.  We would feed Him the best food, and He could eat all He wanted.  If He wanted to stay, we would be thrilled to have Him.  “Please, stay forever.”

But the “least of these,” now that’s a different story.  We try to keep them at arm’s length.  It’s one thing to give them some money now and then, but we certainly can’t have them disrupting our lives.  It’s costly and messy, and you’re not even sure you’re doing any good. 

And that’s why Jesus said what He did in Matthew 25.  If we do good for the “least of these,” we have done it to Him.  And if we neglect the least of these, we have neglected Him.

When needy people come into your life, how you treat them is how you treat Jesus. 

Now let’s take a look at an incredible teaching in Luke 14.  Jesus was invited to a dinner party at the home of a prominent citizen.  It sounds like there were several big wheels there as well.  Fancy people.  Fancy house.  Fancy food.  Probably a guy in a tux playing piano over by the fountain.

Anyway, at one point Jesus turns to his host and says, “When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid. But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”

Look at how Jesus addressed one of our core motivations:  the payback.  They invite you over.  You invite them over.  It’s a closed loop, and the needy are left out because they have nothing to offer.  I mean, who wants to network with the needy? 

Now I wish that Jesus said, “Help the needy, and the next day you will be blessed.”  Oh, He did offer a carrot, but it’s on a really long stick.

Look what He said, “Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”

“Say what?  I won’t be repaid ‘til after I’m dead?”

That’s what He said.  That’s the way He said it in Luke 14, and that’s the way He said it in Matthew 25.  We are to do good for the needy now, and we will be rewarded after we die.

This, my friend, is storing up treasures in heaven.

If you ever wanted to know how to store up treasures in heaven, this is a good way to do it.  You invest in helping the needy here.  Meanwhile, the interest on that investment is piling up in heaven.

This helps me, because to be honest with you, sometimes I feel foolish helping the needy; foolish as in maybe it’s not a wise use of my limited funds.  I think things like, “Boy, I could sure use that money elsewhere.”

Yet I know that God’s way is the best way.  And if this is what He wants me to do, then I will.  There is no better way.  He provided what I have anyway, and I must use it for His purposes.  And one purpose close to His heart is helping the needy.

And for us right now that looks like twin 13-year-olds who need a place to live and eat and burn off amazing amounts of energy. 

So I need to keep a couple things in mind.  First of all, that’s Jesus in there pouring himself up another big bowl of Honeycomb.  And second, when I begin to wonder if it’s all worth it, I trust that it is – that it’s a wise investment towards treasures in heaven. 


Comments?

E-mail me:  dougapple@wave94.com.

May God bless you today!  With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.
 

© 2008 The Arrow’s Tip
To subscribe to your own daily “Apples of Gold” e-mail, write dougapple@wave94.com.
If you want to be removed from this e-mail list, simply click reply and type UNSUBSCRIBE on the subject line.
If you want to catch “Apples of Gold” in its original audio format, go to www.wave94.com
To search through the large archive of past articles, go here:  http://www.wave94.com/modules.php?name=Stories_Archive
If you have trouble reaching me at my main e-mail address, try this one:  douglas_apple@msn.com

(Proverbs 25:11 – “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”)

Why “The Arrow’s Tip”?  Each morning, after diligently seeking the Lord, I write Apples of Gold.  Then before I release it to the public I pray one final prayer, “Lord, send forth your arrows.”  I envision Apples of Gold as arrows, tips dipped in the river of the water of life that flows from the throne of God (Rev. 22:1), sailing toward the hearts and minds of men and women around the world.

Doug Apple
General Manager - Wave 94
Christian Radio for Tallahassee
PO Box 4105
Tallahassee, FL  32315
(850) 926-8000
-vi-

What Do You Do While Singing at Church? - Apples of Gold - June 18, 2008 -vi-

Apples of Gold
 

Radio Script for June 18, 2008

“What Do You Do While Singing at Church?”

Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.

What runs through your mind as you sing at church?

I know, there are thousands of things to think about, right?

You can think about the song leader, or the worship team.  Your thoughts can range from admiring to bored to downright critical.

And what about the song selection?  “Why is it the same old songs?  Oh, wait a minute.  What?!  I don’t even know this song!”

“And why do they sing so long anyway?  Then when you finally get into it, they quit.”

Where do you get the song lyrics at your church?  From a song book?  In the bulletin?  On a big screen?  This alone gives you a lot to think about while you sing.

Here’s a favorite pastime:  watching other people sing.  It goes from how they are dressed to their hair to their movements.  Are they stiff or animated?  Do they look like they love God when they sing, or do they look all sour and scrunchy?  Must be some secret sin…

And that’s just the beginning, because we all know how the train of thought takes off from there.  It starts with, “Hey, this song reminds me of another song.  What is it?  Oh, yeah, ‘Bohemian Rhapsody.’  That was my cousin Frankie’s favorite song.  Oh, man, he did it karaoke at that wedding!  Bob and Sally’s wedding.  They didn’t make it, though.  Bob got married but forgot to stop dating.  I wonder if he still works at the newspaper?  Oh!  I need to get our ad in for the yard sale.  I better write myself a note right now.”

The next thing you know, you are making up a to-do list right in the middle of the singing!

Then later when someone asks you about your church you say, “Well, the worship’s just not as powerful as it used to be.”

Now what happens if you multiply that across the whole congregation?  Sure, their lips are singing, but where are their hearts? 

It’s like Jesus said in Matthew 15, “These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.  They worship me in vain…”

This is what we do when we sing at church but we don’t really engage.  We honor God with our lips, but our hearts are wandering off willy-nilly like undisciplined children.

Now let me use children as a positive example.  With four kids of my own, I have been to countless birthday parties.  Have you ever tried to uber organize a kid’s birthday party?  It’s just not possible.  It’s like herding cats. 

But there is always that one moment when everyone is on the same page.  Can you think of it?  What is that one moment at every kid’s birthday party when there is unity?  All distractions cease.  All other activities halt.  Everyone is unified in this one action.  What is it?

It is the singing of “Happy Birthday!”

Think about it.  As soon as you start singing, the chattering stops and everyone joins in.  Kids even run in from the other room.  They want to be a part.  This is the main event.  Everything else is just prelude and postlude.  Do whatever you want the rest of the day, but when we sing, we all sing together.  We are in unison.  For that moment we are one.

This thing of singing together is a blessed gift.  What brings the most warm fuzzies at a concert?  It’s that moment when the band stops playing and all you hear is the audience singing as a mighty chorus.

I remember signing up to go to Promise Keepers, and they gave me a recording of the songs we were going to sing.  It was important that we all knew the songs ahead of time so that we could sing together in unity.  And how awesome it was to be in the Georgia Dome, full of men’s voices raising the roof together, praising God.

Singing together brings about a certain unity.  In a way, we melt together – from individual parts into one unified body.

But this only happens when we are engaged in the singing.  However, because of a lot of reasons, it’s easy to sing at church and not be engaged.

So what can we do about it?  Here is the key.  When we sing at church, we need to focus our minds on the Lord.  We need to open our hearts directly to Him. 

Remember how He said we honor Him with our lips, but our hearts are far from Him?  So what we need to do is make sure our hearts are drawing near to Him. 

The good thing is, that’s easy to do simply by paying attention to the lyrics.  So when we sing at church, we push aside all distractions, we open our hearts to the Lord, and we pay attention to the words we are singing.

And the result will be just what we find in Romans 15:6.  When we sing the Lord’s praises together, we will, “with one heart and mouth…glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

And our worship will not be in vain.


Comments?

E-mail me:  dougapple@wave94.com.

May God bless you today!  With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.
 

© 2008 The Arrow’s Tip
To subscribe to your own daily “Apples of Gold” e-mail, write dougapple@wave94.com.
If you want to be removed from this e-mail list, simply click reply and type UNSUBSCRIBE on the subject line.
If you want to catch “Apples of Gold” in its original audio format, go to www.wave94.com
To search through the large archive of past articles, go here:  http://www.wave94.com/modules.php?name=Stories_Archive
If you have trouble reaching me at my main e-mail address, try this one:  douglas_apple@msn.com

(Proverbs 25:11 – “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”)

Why “The Arrow’s Tip”?  Each morning, after diligently seeking the Lord, I write Apples of Gold.  Then before I release it to the public I pray one final prayer, “Lord, send forth your arrows.”  I envision Apples of Gold as arrows, tips dipped in the river of the water of life that flows from the throne of God (Rev. 22:1), sailing toward the hearts and minds of men and women around the world.

Doug Apple
General Manager - Wave 94
Christian Radio for Tallahassee
PO Box 4105
Tallahassee, FL  32315
(850) 926-8000
-vi-

Can Jesus Be Just a Wise Moral Teacher? - Apples of Gold - June 16, 2008 -vi-

Apples of Gold
 

Radio Script for June 16, 2008

“Can Jesus Be Just a Wise Moral Teacher?”

Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.

He’s a young man, and here is what he said about Jesus – that he was a wise moral teacher.

Yes, he had many wise sayings, like Confucius, but he was not all that Christians make him out to be.

Here’s the problem with that.  The same book that contains Jesus’ wise moral teachings also contains his outrageous claims.

So who is Jesus really?  Let’s start by looking at what he said about himself.

In Matthew 26 Jesus was on trial before the high priest.  The high priest said, “I charge you under oath by the living God:  Tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God.”

So this is not some offhanded comment Jesus is about to make.  It’s not something he whispered to his buddies around a campfire.  He is about to answer the question while under oath in a hearing with the high priest.  His answer will have serious consequences.

Here is what he said when asked if he was the Christ, the Son of God.  “Yes, it is as you say.” 

And if that wasn’t outrageous enough, he added, “In the future you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.”

With that answer his trial was over.  He was condemned to death on the charge of speaking blasphemy.

But it wasn’t the only time Jesus made outrageous claims about himself.  He was constantly doing it.

For example, one time he told the Jews, “Before Abraham was born, I am.”  That about got him stoned.

In John 17 he prayed, “And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began.”

Now you need to know that Jesus often referred to himself as the “Son of Man.” 

In John 3 Jesus talked interchangeably about the Son of Man and the Son of God.

He said that the Son of Man came from heaven, and that he was God’s one and only son.

He said, “I am from above…I am not of this world.”

He said that everyone who believed in him would have eternal life.

He said things like, “the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.”

He said that the Son of Man would come in the clouds one day, with power and great glory, and “gather his elect from the four winds…”

He said that the holy angels would appear with him, and that all the nations would be gathered before him.

He said he had authority on earth to forgive sins.

He said, “One greater than the temple is here,” and “one greater than Jonah is here,” and “one greater than Solomon is here.”

He said, “I am the bread of life,” and “I am the living bread that came down from heaven,” and “I am the light of the world,” and “I am the good shepherd,” and “I am the way, the truth and the life.”

He said he was teacher and prophet and Lord.

He said that heaven and earth would pass away, but that his words would never pass away.

So far so good on that one.

Pilate asked him if he was the king of the Jews and Jesus said, “Yes, it is as you say.”  Then he added, “My kingdom is not of this world…my kingdom is from another place.”

He kept talking about how he would be killed, then rise from the dead on the third day.

In Luke 24 he referred to himself as “the Christ.”

So in addition to Jesus’ wise moral teaching, he also made many outrageous claims about himself.

And this is where it gets sticky.  How can you call Jesus a wise moral teacher, when so much of what he taught was outrageous?

I like how C.S. Lewis broke it down.  He said we have three choices about Jesus, that he is either a liar, a lunatic, or Lord.  Either he made all those claims falsely, knowing they weren’t true, making him a liar, and not very moral.  Or he made all those claims falsely, but actually believed them, making him a lunatic.  Or the third option is that his claims were true, and that he really is the Lord, the Christ, the Son of God and Savior of the World.

So make your choice:  liar, lunatic, or Lord.  Jesus is one of those.  But here is one category he just can’t be put in, and that’s the category of just a wise moral teacher.


Comments?

E-mail me:  dougapple@wave94.com.

May God bless you today!  With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.
 

© 2008 The Arrow’s Tip
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Why “The Arrow’s Tip”?  Each morning, after diligently seeking the Lord, I write Apples of Gold.  Then before I release it to the public I pray one final prayer, “Lord, send forth your arrows.”  I envision Apples of Gold as arrows, tips dipped in the river of the water of life that flows from the throne of God (Rev. 22:1), sailing toward the hearts and minds of men and women around the world.

Doug Apple
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