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| What's my example LOOK like? |
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We don’t have to stumble blindly to figure out how to live as a Christian. Paul points out our example:
11:1 Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ.
But what is that example?? Should we worship in Jewish synagogues, on Saturdays instead of Sundays, segregating ourselves from the opposite sex, as Jesus surely did? Should we dress the way Christ did? Eat what Jesus did (no fast food!)? Live homeless and own nothing, as he did? Since Jesus didn’t drive a car, watch TV, go to school, or play sports, does that mean we shouldn’t either?
Of course not, that’s ridiculous. Jesus’ lifestyle was related to the culture he lived in. The example of Christ is given in the preceding chapter. After a bunch of negative examples (don’t do this and this and this), Paul says, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit:
10:24 Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of others.
Paul gives us a very specific, general principle that we can easily put into practice in our own culture or setting, whatever culture/setting that may be! Wherever we live in the world, and wherever our life takes us (home, school, work, church, etc.), we can always seek the good of others. Ok, maybe this isn’t so easy to do. And maybe this just isn’t specific enough for some of us (who require everything to be spelled out right down to the letter). But with the Spirit, all things are possible! As Paul also said, “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.” (Philippians 4:13,)
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| To add a comment to "What's my example LOOK like?" |
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| September 16, 2008 |
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| AWESOME!!! Luv the points you made! YUP YUP This gets the best blog I've read all day award!!!!!! And infinity stars!!!! |
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| September 16, 2008 |
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| Brother Mike,
Its a thought provoking blog. We have to imitate Jesus Christ is what Paul says as he did.
We have to imitate Paul who imitated Jesus Christ. In loving our neighbour, in accepting that Jesus died for our sins on the Cross. In believing that Jesus Came down from heaven and through Him everything was created in this Universe. The list can go on and on and on. Paul believed that the resurrection of Jesus gave us victory over death. The list can be added and extended. Thanks for the start. |
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| September 16, 2008 |
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| that's what I'm talking about! |
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| September 16, 2008 |
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| Brother Mike....It's plain and simple whatever JESUS DID...that's what we do....What ever is recorded in the WORD OF GOD...that's what we DO....We ain't talking about clothes....we ain't talking about culture....we ain't talking about how He lived....we talking about the EXAMPLE HE HIMSELF left.....It ain't hard....Just see what day HE went to church....Just check out how HE talked....He spoke what THE FATHER said....and it would behoove us to DO the SAME ;o) |
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| September 16, 2008 |
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| Mike! Awesome blog!!! That is all I have to say!! |
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| September 16, 2008 |
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| Mike, ya sure did it up good this time!!!!!! Star, star, star, star......woooooohooooooooo a jillion stars! |
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| September 16, 2008 |
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| Bless you brother.... a timely lesson. Thanks so much. =0) |
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| September 16, 2008 |
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Greetings Dearest Mike: Excellent! Here's a look at the simple, powerful Words of Jesus Christ as he synopsizes His Message: Matthew 19:16-30 16 And, behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life?
17 And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.
18 He saith unto him, Which? Jesus said, Thou shalt do no murder, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness,
19 Honour thy father and thy mother: and, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
20 The young man saith unto him, All these things have I kept from my youth up: what lack I yet?
21 Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me.
22 But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions.
23 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven.
24 And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.
25 When his disciples heard it, they were exceedingly amazed, saying, Who then can be saved?
26 But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible. 27 Then answered Peter and said unto him, Behold, we have forsaken all, and followed thee; what shall we have therefore?
28 And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
29 And every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name's sake, shall receive an hundredfold, and shall inherit everlasting life.
30 But many that are first shall be last; and the last shall be first.
Well there you have it. Pure and simple.
How many are following this directive from Jesus? Heavenly Father we are so grateful for this Message! (And great blogs : ) JamesAD62
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Live Jesus. Be Church. |
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| September 16, 2008 |
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| Well, This is a good blog. Someone has been working overtime talking to GOD, Hmm? |
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| September 16, 2008 |
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Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of others.
Just how hard can this be??? We are given opportunities to do this everyday. The homeless person on the street, the missions in our cities that serve others, the soup kitchens, women's and children's shelters. Opportunites abound in our churches, our own families. There are so many people who are worse off than we are and all we have to do is offer help.
The 21st century is quite different than when Jesus lived, however we still have the same problems. Give the sick,loss,homeless, helpless a hand and also pass along the GOOD NEWS about our LIVING GOD.
We can still be JUST LIKE JESUS.
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| September 16, 2008 |
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| Mike if I could be like Paul I would certainly be like Christ, I am half way ther seeing how Paul was also a mere human! Praise God and have a star old boy! love Stu! |
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| September 16, 2008 |
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Thx for such lovely input! MyChurch friends, you are so uplifting! Mary, would you say "follow my example, as I follow the example of Paul, who followed the example of Christ"? Big sister, I'm glad to hear you have attained it. James, it's right there in the pages of his word for us all to find....the example of Christ! (the Spirit will even help us with the hard parts, if we allow it) Thanks Patti, Robin, Cindy, beautyforashes... Ruth, glad you stopped by. When I want to see Jesus,I'll just look at you, ok? Dan, thanks for the clarification....the Lord's supper, a beautiful invitation....to memorialize, and remember the death (sacrifice) of our example for living... Marjay, while it is simple, it sure comes hard to a lot of people. Thanks for your encouragement and your colors,sis! Rag, haha, yeah I guess it is just a start, isn't it!? Thanks Angela, you're too kind! Yup, enough controversy for one day? lol |
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| September 16, 2008 |
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Stu, I'd like to reach my arms across the "pond" and give you a great big hug, bro! Mama Strout, judging by the words of your hymns, I imagine you are waayyyy along that path (to being like Jesus). Wonderful to know ya. |
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| September 16, 2008 |
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| I try to be a window so all can see through me to see Jesus!!!! |
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| September 16, 2008 |
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Thanks for asking Mike... Would like to add a little more to what has been offered above... as so much comes to mind... (even so will try to be brief):
One example Jesus set for us was His intimate relationship with our Father ... He took time to be alone with HIM and to seek the mind of God as to HIS will... and then yielded to it with power HE recieved from on high, via an intimate relationship with Dad....
Another example was to have intimate fellowship with those of Fathers' choosing... with an awareness an eternal plan was unfolding and HE has a part in it with them... and to surrender to it through love and.........
Another example was HE yielded to Fathers will... and gave HIM the glory... did not seek glory for HimSelf...
Another example... having been sent to establish Father's Spiritual Kingdom which is not of this world but within and in our mists... He lived its truth by way of example.... and proclaimed it with power....
Another example... HE revealed the will of our Father by encouraging Father's power of love and truth to flow through HIM to the GLORY of God... confirming the gospel/love of God... to others.... Bless You Father... the Spirit of the Lord continues to love/live on through us in ever increasing measure....
Another example..having counted the cost, HE still spoke/lived Father's truth as His own... and was not a man pleasure...
Another example... Jesus manifested the Holy Spirit of love and truth abiding within... with a promise 'greater things than these shall you do'... to those who would hear the call to follow... abide... rest in HIS completed work.... as a light in the world... through our union with the heart/power/love/truth of God...
Yet one more if I may, in my effort to be brief... Jesus interceded revealing the heart of our Father through what followed and has come into being since... (only a portion of which revealed His heart and Who He is spiritually and who He believes we are created to be through unity of Spirit, in John 17)....
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| September 16, 2008 |
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| great points there. It is my hope to allow Jesus to shine through my walk and talk, may I never be a stumbling block, but a stepping stone. |
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| September 16, 2008 |
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Stars......Excellent !!!!!!! Mike
Sweet & Simple.............Truth !!
&...........JamesAD62.............I Think Even Jesus Could not have said it Better.
Oh Yeah He Did Say That....haha Wonderful comment & Simple Reminder for ALL.
Christians Lighten Up & Find Common Grounds.... These Simple Truths.....We do all AGREE Here
on this Blog I surely Hope.
Sort The Differences, & Work Together For The Good & Best Interests of the Hurting & Dying World
all around Us.
Ton's of LOVE !! |
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| September 16, 2008 |
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Shirley, "may I never be a stumbling block, but a stepping stone", I LOVE THAT!! Michael, your comment is soooo welcome, thanks!! Not just b/c of the compliment, but especially b/c I see your excitement when we "Sort The Differences, & Work Together For The Good & Best Interests of the Hurting & Dying World". I love that attitude! Bren, thanks for fleshing out more of the specifics of Jesus' example. Those are indeed things our Savior did that we can emulate. As for me, I'm glad Paul made it so simple. Where's my mind? If it's focused on seeking my good rather than the good of others, I'm not following the Savior's example. Period! Doyle, few MyChurch users remind me more of Jesus than you, bro! |
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| September 16, 2008 |
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I'm with Michael....a thousand stars though!!!!!
I'll put away my wooden cane and sandels...LOL!! |
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| September 16, 2008 |
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| Yeppers ... the simplicity of the gospel is to be love... |
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| September 16, 2008 |
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Great thoughts all, and wonderful foundation Blog Mike, thank you.
One thought I've had about Paul saying that is not that he is perfect should we follow his example, but follow his example to get back "on track" when he makes a mistake. " To err is Human...." get used to it but learn from our mistakes and get back in The Spirit ! ASAP !!! :-) |
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| September 16, 2008 |
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| All we can do is the best we can. |
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| September 16, 2008 |
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| Awesome Thoughts...God is Good |
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| September 17, 2008 |
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Mike, answer me something. How come whenever we think of "serving Jesus", the first thing that comes out of our mouths is often something along the lines of "There's always someone worse off than I am"? First off, I'm sure people aren't so dense that after hearing each other say this so much, they start to view people who want to serve them as "looking down at me", stinging our pride and causing us to reflexively refuse the offered service, even if it would be phenomenally helpful. Second, why does someone have to be "worse off than I am" for me to serve them? Can I not serve someone who is better off than I am? I have half a mind that thinks serving only people "worse off" is almost serving according to the flesh...but I'll have to continue meditating and praying through that to further develop it. Maybe if we taught ourselves to stop thinking "someone worse off = someone I can serve", we'd stop reacting to people trying to serve us as "people looking down at me", and thus would break that stabbing-each-other cycle.... |
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| September 17, 2008 |
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Jason, my bro! First, wow, that's an original thought!! Thanks for sharing it, you've made me think! Second, in response, I guess folks may tend to think "always someone worse off than me" when their mind goes to serving Jesus, although what makes me think of those worse off is the need to be thankful in all circumstances. This is made easier when we consider how well off we are, and how minor and often petty most of our problems and difficulties really are.
Your comment made me immediately think of this verse from bro James: The brother in humble circumstances ought to take pride in his high position. But the one who is rich should take pride in his low position, because he will pass away like a wild flower. (Jam 1:9-10) I suppose he is saying the spiritually minded of us see those in humble circumstances as the ones who are better off than those who appear to us to be well off. The Lord is close to the broken hearted, and saves those who are crushed in spirit. (Ps 37:4) So in reality, we who appear to be in great need can actually look down on the rich and well to do! Thanks for posting!
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| September 17, 2008 |
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Terry, thanks sis! Remarkable comment, :-)
Bro Todd, indeed it is no small thing to seek the good of others when our natural instincts seem to be to seek our own good!
Tom, great thought. I can see that!
Amen PT. When we consider the awesome example of Christ, our own actions, and our heart, often we fall short....way short. Christ's example shows us our flaws, as a mirror.
Cheryl, a 1,000 thank yous! Did Jesus walk with a cane? OR was that Moses? Oh wait, that was a "rod". Anywho.... |
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| September 17, 2008 |
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| LOL! |
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| September 23, 2008 |
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| Great blog Mike! |
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| October 06, 2008 |
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Great blog Mike (though it seems am a little late in seeing it -sheepish grin)...it fits with another of my favourite scriptures "Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself"...this scripture to me says it all... mstovall....ur right, we have opportunities EVERY day. much love to all here. God bless! |
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| October 06, 2008 |
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