THE GOOD NEWS MAGAZINE 15TH EDITION

A welcome Note

It is another opportunity we wish to share with you the Wonderful Good News of our Lord Jesus Christ. We pray and hope that you have been receiving from the Lord and that He is teaching you His Word day by day. For by His Word we are prepared to overcome all the wiles of the enemy and become victorious in our daily lives.  Faith comes by hearing and by hearing God’s Word. When faith is created within us, we spring up into action to do what the Word says. 

As humans, God has given us a free will, and this when I look at it deeply I find that God gave us a free will for our own good. We can either decide to sit down and ignore what the Word says and that will be just okay as that is the decision we have settled for. Or we can decide to heed the Word, rise up and act on the Word and that I say would be a wise decision before God, for faith without works is dead.

Now, there is this one account I want to share about, the four Lepers. 2Kings 7:3-8

And there were four leprous men at the entering in of the gate: and they said one to another, Why sit we here until we die? If we say, We will enter into the city, then the famine is in the city, and we shall die there: and if we sit still here, we die also.  Now therefore come, and let us fall unto the host of the Syrians: if they save us alive, we shall live; and if they kill us, we shall but die. And they rose up in the twilight, to go unto the camp of the Syrians: and when they were come to the uttermost part of the camp of Syria, behold, there was no man there. For the Lord had made the host of the Syrians to hear a noise of chariots, and a noise of horses, even the noise of a great host: and they said one to another, Lo, the king of Israel hath hired against us the kings of the Hittites, and the kings of the Egyptians, to come upon us. Wherefore they arose and fled in the twilight, and left their tents, and their horses, and their asses, even the camp as it was, and fled for their life. And when these lepers came to the uttermost part of the camp, they went into one tent, and did eat and drink, and carried thence silver, and gold, and raiment, and went and hid it; and came again, and entered into another tent, and carried thence also, and went and hid it.

Why sit here till we die? This is a question we all need to ask ourselves. Yes, why sit here until we die? When I read and reach on this line, my faith starts to be elevated. Who could have known that the four lepers who suffered from leprosy could deliver the nation of Israel? These lepers are the people who were cast outside the city. They were people who had no significance in the face of men.

 These lepers sat outside the city and the reason was that they were not permitted to live within the city because of their contagious and incurable disease. These men were faced with a fatal disease, they were outcasts, and they were starving because of a famine in the land. Such a dark and gloomy life and no perceived future would make the average person throw in the towel and just give up on life - but not these men.

You can imagine the terrible life they lived! But I thank God for when He starts operating, He could use anything, even stones to accomplish what He intends, like the words of these four men.

Why sit here until we die?

Sitting and examining their situation, they realized that just simply sitting and doing nothing would result in having and being nothing, so they asked themselves the question, "Why do we sit here until we die?" They knew that if they entered the city, they would die because of the famine. They also knew that if they sat there and did nothing, that they would die as well. What did they do? They made the decision to ACT. Regardless of their gloomy circumstance, they got up from where they were and decided to do something to change their situation. They made the choice to face their obstacles and do something different. They went into the city realizing that difficulties may be ahead, for if the city dwellers spared their lives, they would live, and if not, they would die, but given the situation that they were in, things were not going to just get better.

Upon entering the city, to their pleasant surprise, no one was there, because God had caused the city dwellers to abandon their tents. Because of their decision to change their situation, and the decision to ACT, these hungry dying men went into a tent and feasted as they ate, drank, and carried off silver, gold, and clothing. However, it did not end there, after putting away the silver, gold, and clothing, they entered another tent and again met a great fortune...we later discover that they did not keep all they knew and had for themselves but shared with others.

 We also have a message of hope and life that needs to be shared with a world that is trapped in sin and darkness. They have no hope, and we hold our peace. They have no way out, and we hold our peace. My prayer is that we will see that the days of sitting silently by while the world perishes are over! I pray that we will see the need to share the message we have been given. It makes us no good when we keep this wonderful message of salvation to ourselves, for Isaiah said this long before Apostle Paul could quote this: Isa:52:7: How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth! And Romans 10:15:  says, And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!

It is time that we believers realize and speak these powerful words in faith! It's time to SPRING up into ACTION and share with friends the Good News of our Lord Jesus Christ! It's time to be tired of the situations we are in! It's time to share healing messages of salvation to sick hearts full of sins! You see, God uses the weak vessels to shame the mighty ones. God wants to lift those that seem to be down and are completely down trodden just like the four lepers who had almost given up on life. All that it requires is to only speak out these powerful words in faith and ACT on God’s Word. Some of us, just like the lepers, could be in our decision place today. If you are in a place, or situation that seems lifeless, regardless of where that place may be, or how things look, ask yourself the question, why do I sit here until I die? Don’t you realize that God ACTS only when we take a step of faith? Remember Abraham when told by God to get out of his country, he did that by faith. He took ACTION and left his home country to a place he didn’t know. Surely that took a great faith. Take a good look at where you are, and where you want to be. Then take the necessary steps to find yourself in that desired place. Because in the midst of misfortune - choice, and then action will find you reaping the great benefits that God has purposed for your life.

Let the church arise and go forth. It doesn’t matter if the enemies are in the city. What matters is that the battle belongs to the Lord! When trials and tribulations come our way, we know we have the King of Kings. He takes care of every situation. He gives us the strength to spring into ACTION and go to villages, markets, hospitals, streets and to the uttermost parts of the world to share this Gospel.  When ACTING in faith, there are many risks involved but trust God. Maybe God has called you to be a missionary to reach out people in the interior parts of the world that are hostile with the Gospel, but you still have doubt, whether you will come back alive or not. That doesn’t matter, if God has called you and anointed you, He will use you as His vessel as He wills. He will lead you in the direction to chart your way forth. All we need  to do is trust Him. Surrender all to Him. God awaits our response to this, ‘Can we ACT in faith?’

 

ARE YOU ACTING LIKE MARY OR MARTHA?

I believe many of us are familiar with the story of Mary and Martha…how Martha was busy preparing a meal for the Lord, but Mary chose to sit at His feet and listen to Him teach.  Just in case some are not familiar with this account, let's take a look at it in God's word.

Luke 10: 38-41 ~ “Now it came to pass, as they went, that he entered into a certain village:  and a certain woman named Martha received him into her house.  And she had a sister called Mary, which also sat at Jesus' feet, and heard his word.  But Martha was cumbered about much serving, and came to him, and said, Lord, dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone?  Bid her therefore that she help me.  And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things;”

At first, if you are anything like me, you look at this passage and could possibly ponder that perhaps I could see Martha's point.  Here, JESUS, the guest of all guests comes to my house. I'm running around cleaning, making sure everything is just perfect for Him, preparing the food just so, making sure everyone is comfortable and taken care of, and my sister just sits there!  I have to admit, as far as personalities go, I've always been the “Martha”.  I'd be the one taking care of the arrangements, preparing the food, doing the organizing, the planning...anything and everything that was necessary...sometimes, to the point of not being able to enjoy my company because I was too busy preparing, serving, cleaning...”entertaining” as many of us might call it.  After all, if you're going to do something, you want to do it right. 

However, the more I read this passage, a couple of things stood out to me that really hadn't occurred to me before.  First of all, Martha was “doing”.  She was doing a good thing.  She was housing, feeding and serving the Lord.  She was a verb, not a noun. BUT...and that 3 letter word is a big one..the very person she was serving, feeding and housing, she was complaining to!  Looking at this from a purely human perspective, who invites someone to their home, and then complains to them about all the work they have to do for them...and then point out that her sister just sits there visiting with them while she does it all?  Ah!  Something else jumped out of God's word right before my very eyes. Yes, Martha was doing...but so was Mary!

Martha was doing what she does best; Organizing, preparing, cooking, serving. Yes, she was a verb...she was called to action and was doing just that.  However, Mary was as well.  Let's look at verse 42, the last verse in this passage; “But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her.”

Mary was taking action just as much as Martha... she was doing what the Lord tells all of us to do.  That is to listen to His words. To soak them in like a dry sponge. To put Him first before anyone or anything else in our life.

What a lesson I learned from these few short verses. First of all, we can serve the Lord outwardly by the things we do according to His word, but before we can do that, we need to have a heart like Mary's;  A heart that yearns to sit at the feet of Christ and hear all he has to say every opportunity we have to do it.

This is what I choose...something the world cannot take away…to draw closer to Jesus Christ and place Him in His proper place in my heart.  Making this choice to do so is also taking action!  Won't you take this action today?  Choose to serve physically as Martha did, but to have a heart like Mary's to listen and obey.

DO WE OR DON'T WE?  A MATTER OF LIFE OR DEATH.

There have been many times in life when we've been faced with a decision as to whether we should take action on a decision, or to just not do anything at all and let the consequences fall where they may. There are other times, when we don't have the option to make a decision at all or the luxury of time to think things through and we either have to respond, or forever live with the results...whatever they may be.

In today's passage, that is not the case.  Jesus, as was known to be a common thing for Him while here on earth, was ministering to people, going about teaching, and people were following Him wherever He went.  As He finished speaking and was about to move on to another place, a number of people began to bring their children to be blessed by the Lord, to which the disciples tried to stop them out of concern for Christ and growing tired.  But Jesus stopped them, and told them to let the children come to Him... and this is where we’ll jump right into Luke 18:17-30;

“Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child shall in no wise enter therein.  And a certain ruler asked him, saying, Good Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?  And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good?  None is good, save one, that is, God.  Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honour thy father and thy mother.  And he said, All these have I kept from my youth up.  Now when Jesus heard these things, he said unto him, Yet lackest thou one thing:  sell all that thou hast, and distribute unto the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, follow me.  And when he heard this, he was very sorrowful;   for he was very rich.  And when Jesus saw that he was very sorrowful, he said, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God!  For it is easier for a camel to go through a needle's eye, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God, and they that head it said, Who then can be saved?  And he said, The things which are impossible with men are possible with God.  Then Peter said, Lo, we have left all, and followed thee.  And he said unto them, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or parents or brethren or wife, or children, for the kingdom of God's sake, who shall not receive manifold more in this present time, and in the world to come life everlasting.”

We can look at the parable for what it's worth and learn so very much from it.  And yet, if we take a deeper look at it, there are so many gems, hidden treasures, that can also be taken from this account and applied to our everyday lives giving us the ability to see in the lives of those we encounter and share the Gospel with  ways of seeing into their way of thinking and being so much more effective as we sow the seed of the free gift of salvation.

If we have read through the first four books of the Bible, we find many accounts of people seeking out to question Christ.  I think it is safe to say most of the wealthy, religious people who asked Jesus public questions were trying to trick Him into some “tricky” questions or irrelevant statements...for example, Luke 20:22 – someone asks Him, “Is it lawful for us to give tribute unto Caesar, or no?” or in Luke 6:2 -     “And certain of the Pharisees said unto them, Why do ye that which is not lawful to do on the sabbath days?”  when it had absolutely nothing to do with what Christ was teaching.  But this never caught Him off guard…He expected it and always had an answer.  But in the account we read today, this young man's question was no trick.  It was a sincere question to which he needed to know the answer – how to inherit eternal life-- a question each and every human being on the face of this planet needs to know!

If we take the time to stop and consider his question, it really does give us some insight into the inner thinking of this young man...and a bit about his personality, and even what must have been going through his mind when he was called to action.

1.                 He must be feeling inadequate in his spiritual preparation for where he   

would spend eternity or he probably wouldn't have asked such a question.

2.                 He sides with the Pharisees rather than the Sadducees because the

Sadducees didn't believe in life after death, and this question clearly  implies that he does.

3.                 He believes that eternal life is something that one earns or merits by what

he does .

As I'm sure you've come across in your attempts of sharing Jesus Christ with the unsaved, all you have to do is ask any man or woman what you have to do to get to Heaven as this young man did, and chances are, you'll get a similar answer;  You go to Heaven if you do good, you go to Hell if you do bad things. Well...only VERY bad things. No matter how they word it, eternal life, to them, is obtained as a reward for what you do while you're here on earth.

The young man's question betrays both his superficial understanding of inheriting eternal life, and his superficial understanding of a person's ability to do good deeds that are pure in motive.  Isaiah 64:6 had already expressed the impossibility of this way of thinking when he said that our righteousness was as filthy rags!

In just this short discussion between this young man and Jesus Christ, the Lord had already spoken of in several terms;

1.                 Luke 18:18 -  “eternal life”

2.                 Luke 18:30 -  “life everlasting”

3.                 Luke 18:22 -  “treasure in Heaven”

4.                 Luke 18:24 -  “kingdom of God”

5.                 Luke 18:29 -  “kingdom of God”

6.                 Luke 18:26 -  “be saved”

Most importantly of them all, Jesus Himself comes right out in Luke 18:19, “...none is good, save one, that is, God!”

A sad ending, to an account that didn't have to end this way, is that this young man “heard” all he needed to do for eternal life.  However, this one decision, this decision to not take action, sealed his fate for eternity.  And the same applies to any man or woman who does the same.  It is made crystal clear in James 1:22-25, “But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.  For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass;  For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straghtway forgetteth what manner of man he was. But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.”

Yes!  It was that easy for the young ruler to “hear” the words of Christ, and then “do” them.  With that comes great reward...and his eternity would be much different than what it is now.  But this does not just apply to that one man.  Oh no, not by far.

This passage of scripture also applies to each and every one of us who claim to have yielded our lives over to Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.  He has commanded each one of us to GO!  To TELL!  To SHARE the glorious Gospel of His saving work on Calvary with each and every person we are able to.  This same passage of scripture applies to us!  Are we to be hearers of His word only?  Absolutely not!  We are to take action...we're to be doers of the word and NOT hearers only.

We admonish each one of you read and re-read this passage of scripture, to take up your Bible and study it to show yourself approved according to 2 Timothy 2:14-15;

“Of these things put them in remembrance, charging them before the Lord that they strive not about words to no profit, but to the subverting of the hearers. Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”

Why? So that we can be in obedience to 1 Peter 3:15; “But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear;”.  That's why!

This has been one of those very difficult articles to write.  For as I'm writing what the Holy Spirit has placed in my heart for this edition, and given me through His word, He has also been convicting my heart of the need to be ready to take ACTION!  Not just be a hearer who is full of information with the ability to quote verses here and there, or prove how much Bible information I know, but to use it to be a doer...a doer who doesn't just hear that the Lord tells us to take the Gospel to ALL, but a man/woman who is willing to take action...and spread the glorious Gospel of the saving grace of Jesus Christ to a sin sick world dying and going to Hell.

BUT ONE THING IS NEEDFUL

Isn't it true that we are always filled up with so much to do in our daily lives? I wake up early each day in the morning to do my daily activities. When the day is over I just have to rest and thank the Lord for each day. That is the normal life we all probably have.

When it comes to serve the Lord, I do admit that there are those who do God's will; they do serve the Lord with passion and humility. It is in this service that I want to share today. I want to encourage someone who has been serving the Lord and you didn't know if the Lord was in that, if the Lord was with you, if the Lord was listening to you, and to show you the needful thing.

Martha had a sister by the name Mary. Then, one day, something happened. Jesus came to the village where Mary and Martha lived. Martha was so kind as we see she received Jesus in her house. That was the best thing she could do. Then just as anyone could do when you have visitors, Martha had to prepare something for her guests to eat. She went to the kitchen with Mary to prepare something for the Lord. Did I say with Mary? Yes.

But you might ask me, ‘Brother Justus, the scripture doesn't say that, Mary was not in the kitchen but was listening to Jesus as He shared the Word'. Well, let me show you something my friend:

If you read carefully, the Word shows us that Mary had been in the kitchen with Martha until Jesus started teaching. Luke10:40 But Martha was cumbered about much serving, and came to him, and said, Lord, dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone? bid her therefore that she help me. Look carefully, Martha said that her sister had left her alone to do all the serving.....' Lord, dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone? bid her therefore that she help me.'

 I know how she must have felt to be all alone doing the cooking. A lot of questions might have been going through her mind. Why is Mary sitting there with Jesus? Can’t she come and help me? As a matter of fact we see that she didn’t directly ask Mary to help her, but she went ahead blaming all to Jesus as we see her approach when she says that Jesus does not care...but I am here to show you the needful thing. Sometimes we have to decide on the important issues concerning the state of our hearts, that is the needful thing.

We do not have to choose between worshiping the Lord like Mary or serving the Lord like Martha. Neither does there need to be such a conflict between our physical or secular needs and our spiritual growth. Sadly, that is exactly what many believers end up with.

The Bible says in Matthew 4:4 that man cannot live on bread alone but by every Word which proceeds from God's mouth. But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. Mary was being fed from the Lord. Jesus is the bread of LIFE! While Martha was being distracted from her soul's needs by other things Mary was having a wonderful time with Jesus. I am not trying to imply that in this case Martha was doing a bad thing in serving the Lord, but am trying to show you the needful thing, the necessary thing.

This is what the Bible says in John 15:5, 'I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing'. Sometimes, even good things can fill up our lives to the point where we neglect our souls. God has not blessed us with our families, friends, jobs, abilities and other gifts to give us an excuse to abandon a close walk with Him. He daily wants us to listen from Him and act on His Without Him we can do nothing.

Mary chose the good part, and Martha came complaining to Jesus to this He replied, ' Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things: But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her.'

Oh, that we could choose the good part just like Mary. Mary knew the secret, faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. Martha was worried about so many things, she had anxiety. Anxiety is a killer. Many of the physical and mental ills of our present day are stress related. And Martha is certainly a stressed out lady at this point in time. Her exasperation can be seen in the way she forms her question, "Lord, do You not care...?"Yes, the Lord does care, but not nearly as much about the problem as Martha sees it as He does about the real problem of which Martha is unaware. The Lord is more concerned about Martha's state of mind and priorities than He is about being served in a feast later on.

Jesus taught us that we should not be anxious or worry about anything, we must first seek God's Kingdom and its righteousness and all these other things shall be added unto us. The needful and good thing which Mary had chosen was to listen to the Lord's teaching. At the end, the things Jesus said that day were of much more importance than what He ate. Today, if we are too busy to listen from the Lord; to pray and study His word; to meditate on life's purpose and to enjoy a peaceful, private time with Him, then there is something horribly wrong with our practice. If our walk of faith consists mainly of going to church and then on with life's busy day, then we are not receiving of the goodness that the Lord has planned for us. And if we are so hassled by the routines of daily existence that we find ourselves lashing out at those we love as Martha did on that occasion then it is high time we change in springing into action!

May the Lord quicken our spirits, to know and understand the necessary thing.

 

CREATIVE WRITINGS

OUR BEST-By Grant Colfax Tullar

Hear ye the Master's call, "Give Me thy Best!"  For be it great or
small, That is His test.

Do then the best you can, not for reward, not for the praise of man
but for the Lord.

Wait not for men to laud. Heed not their slight.  Winning the smile of
God brings its delight.

Aiding the good and true ne'er goes unblessed.  All that we think or
do, be it the best.

Every work for Jesus will be blessed, but he asks from everyone his best.

Our talents may be few; these may be small.

But, unto Him is due our best, our all."

FAITH - By M.S.Lowndes

Increase our faith so we may see

What you're doing in our lives

And all that we'll accomplish in you

So our faith begins to rise

We need to be reminded, Lord,

Of the small mustard seed

And how the same amount of faith

Moves mountains if we believe

As we walk in pure obedience

With confidence in you,

Our faith begins to grow and flourish,

Bearing more abundant fruit

We must go beyond the limits

Of our comfort zones,

Our faith is activated at those times

When we walk into the unknown

For it's when the safety net is gone,

We realize we need our Lord,

When there's nothing left to fall back on,

We must lean on God much more

And faith is released in our hearts

As we bend our knee to pray;

We shall be strengthened as we walk

And commit to Him each day.

© By M.S.Lowndes

TESTIMONY

Sometimes It Takes A Dream

By Helen Dowd

Isaiah 44:22 – “I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, thy transgressions, and, as a cloud, thy sins:”

Isaiah 1:18 –– “Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.”

Sometimes it takes a vivid dream to help us see reality. It did for me, not long ago. I had had a bad day, and was extremely tired when I went to bed.

As a child I was plagued with nightmares. They were always the same. I was brought up in a very godly home. My mother was a gentle woman. Her actions, rather than a lot of words, shouted her Christianity. My father, on the other hand, drilled into his children what would happen if we did not follow the Lord. In other words, he was a "hellfire preacher" to us children.

We always had prayer before going to bed. And time and time again I would wake up trembling, and in a cold sweat. I dreamed that Jesus had come, and I was left...Even after I had given my heart to the Lord, at the age of eight, I had these nightmares. I would stand at the top of the stairs, afraid to go down, in case my parents had "gone up to heaven", and I had been left. On a few occasions I got the nerve up to call out to Dad. He always came. We would kneel by my bed and he would ask God to take my nightmare away. Then I would go to sleep, reassured that I was still a child of God.

When I became an adult those nightmares faded out. But on this occasion I woke up in the same old cold sweat. It was then that God gave me the same old assurance that I was still a child of God.

This poem was born as a result of this experience.

I had a dream last night.
I stood before the throne.
And on a great wide T.V. screen
My whole life there was shown.
My name was in plain view.
To ALL, God made me known.
I saw before my very eyes
The wicked seeds I’d sown.

I hung my head in shame.
I didn't like this show.
I saw there all the hidden things
I thought folks didn't know:
The private, secret thoughts,
Deceits from long ago,
The mean and selfish things I'd done.
The list began to grow.

But then the picture changed.
And on the T.V. screen
I saw Christ walking toward the Throne:
He’d come to intervene.
When God called out my name
I saw Christ step between.
I heard Him say, “I’ve paid the price.”
He’d wiped the record clean.

• And now another scene:
  The screen was filled with light.
  Again my name was written there.
  But Christ had set things right.
  I stood before the Throne,
  Pure in a robe of white.
  A lasting memory will remain
  Of the dream I had that night.

Isaiah 43:25 

“I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgression for mine own sake, and will not remember thy sins.”

                                                           © Helen