A True Witness

“A true witness delivereth souls: but a deceitful witness speaketh lies.”
(Prov. 14:25)

When we find ourselves trying to convince lost people that they need what we’ve got, because they would never come to us asking what we have, something is wrong. I have heard an in-your-face kind of witnessing coming from individuals whose lives would never spark any spiritual interest otherwise. By no means am I touting what some have called “life-style evangelism” as being all that is necessary in carrying out the Great Commission. Still, evangelism without a corresponding “life-style” would seem to be a good example of salt that has lost its savor (Matt.5:13,) and, as a consequence, ends up being “good for nothing.”

We read in Acts 4:13, “Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marvelled; and they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus.” People could have assumed that because Peter and John were obviously common laborers, and not learned scholars, they were, therefore unworthy of their attention. But the obvious fact that they spoke from first-hand knowledge of Jesus made it impossible to ignore them. When you have spent time with God, and in His Word, it shows—not in pious platitudes, conscious and unconscious witness. It is knowledge that works itself out in daily living.

Probably one of the highest compliments I have ever given my husband is that he has a “working knowledge of God.” He never refers to Him in the abstract. He witnesses for the Lord with the same familiarity as when he talks about his family. In one day, at a hotel where we were staying, I watched him witness to a ninety-year-old woman and an atheist attending a conference on world religions. The latter, who, of course, did not believe in God, nevertheless, willingly accepted a tract and a, “God bless you!”

None of us is perfect; and because of that, are always capable of sin and failings. But there should be a difference between us and the world—not necessarily in the way we look, but, more importantly, in the way we live. Prayer should be as natural as breathing; praise should be a normal part of our conversation; integrity should be the mark of our dealings with others; and love (especially for fellow believers) should be a reality, not a rule. In short, our witness should ring true. Our walk and our talk should not be sending mixed signals.

A true witness has first-hand knowledge, not just hear-say.

Pre-emptive Strike

“For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds.” (2 Cor. 10:4)


A pre-emptive strike, as you would imagine, is a military attack designed to prevent or reduce the impact of an anticipated attack from an enemy. In the eyes of those who value peace at any price, it is sometimes seen as provocative rather than preventative, and, granted, it is possible to act on impulse without justification. The key, of course, is having knowledge of your enemy’s purpose, past performance, and present capabilities. But when these have been fully ascertained, only a fool would sit back and wait to be attacked. Since I write “for the girls,” you have already suspected that I am not offering a justification of a particular method of military warfare, but using it merely as an illustration of what I see to be a Bible truth.

Are we to wait until the Enemy strikes before we engage? and when I say Enemy, I am referring to Satan. Some would say we are our own worst enemy, and the devil has more important fish to fry, but I notice that in his first recorded human contact, it was the woman that he approached, not the man. I realize there are those who see the devil behind every bush, but there are just a many (if not more) who are oblivious, even when he is breathing down the back of their necks. As to his purpose, it is clear: “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour” (1 Pet.5:8). Notice it does not say he is seeking a “what,” but a “whom” to devour. He prey is not the world or society; it is us (Luke 22:31). As to his past performance and his present capabilities, we have more than enough examples in the Bible. Therefore, if anyone is a candidate for a preemptive strike it is Satan. But how does one go about delivering a handicapping blow to such a fierce enemy?

In the case of the military, a preemptive strike can be either physical or non-physical. In other words, anything that can be done to reduce the impact of the enemy’s blows before they hit could be seen as offensive, and because of their timing, pre-emptive. For instance, I know Satan will attack my mind, therefore I must not mistake imagination that can quickly become a breeding ground for wickedness (Prov.6:18), for meditation, a window to the sweetness of the Lord (Psl.104:34). This is why the next verse in 2 Corinthians ten reads: “Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.” Likewise, if I am smart, I will not allow my body to become an easy target for the devil’s fiery darts by keeping it under control and “in subjection,” as Paul said (1Cor.9:27). I am also aware that my enemy is looking for any chance he can find to fill my heart with a spirit of deception (Acts 5:3), therefore I need to constantly focus my affections on the One who has said, “Son, give me thine heart” (Prov. 23:26).

If I were fighting flesh and blood, I could know that shunning “the place of temptation” would suffice, but since we are told that we “wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against…spiritual wickedness in high places” (Eph.6:12), I must assume that my spiritual battles will more likely have to be fought in familiar, and seemingly safe, places. We are like the man in the book of Amos running from a lion, who flees to his house for safely, only to be bitten by a serpent when he wearily leans on the wall (Amos 5:19). For this reason, preemptive measures will always be appropriate in the Christian life. The enemy of our souls has set his sights on us, personally, and although we may consider ourselves to be inconsequential, the fact that he wants us gives us some indication of what is at stake.

The Enemy will strike, but his blows can be blunted in all cases, and evaded completely in some. It will require anticipatory action on our part—a preemptory strike, if you will, and only those who are serious about victory will rise to the occasion.

With Eternity's Values in View

“…the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up. /Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness.” (2 Pet. 3:10-11)

Talk about global warming! The whole thing is going to burn up one day, says Peter. According to those who keep such records, the temperature of the earth has risen one degree Fahrenheit in the last one-hundred years. And for this I should be driving my car less? Believe me, I can think of far better reasons for staying home than that! Actually, reading 2 Peter 3:10-12 in 2006, it would be much easier to believe the earth will succumb to a nuclear cataclysm long before it is overcome by greenhouse gases. I acknowledge our role as stewards of God’s earth; but, obviously, this is yet one more ploy to keep us so occupied with the temporal that we lose sight of the eternal.

If our view of this earth leads us to major on trying to preserve it, we have the wrong view. According to Peter, when we have the right perspective of the earth and our relationship to it, it will change the way we conduct our life. It will be characterized moreby holiness and godliness. Paul makes the same point in Titus 2:11-13, where he says that those who actually understand the truth of the “blessed hope” of Christ’s Second Coming live “soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world.”

We used to sing a little chorus in Sunday School when I was a young person that said: “With eternity’s values in view, Lord/With eternity’s values in view/May I do each day’s work for Jesus/With eternity’s values in view.” I understand, of course that much of life is concerned with the immediate, and rightly so. We may be citizens of Heaven, but we are occupiers of Earth. It is all right if our hearts are in the clouds as long as our heads are not. If we are unable to function in society, we can never hope to influence it for Christ. Still, having said that, I cannot help but think it would be a good thing to ask myself at the end of each day, “Did I do anything today that will outlast me, or, better still, outlast this earth?” How about you? What have you done lately that had eternity built into it?

Striving Lawfully

“And if a man also strive for masteries, yet is he not crowned, except he strive lawfully.” (2 Tim.2:5)

Like many of you, I enjoy watching the Olympics, both the winter and summer ones. I marvel at the physical abilities of these young (and not so young) athletes and am amazed at their determination to push themselves to the limits of, and in some cases, beyond, their natural capabilities. However, you are aware, I’m sure that there are some whose drive to win causes them to seek ways to “enhance” their natural abilities in order to do better than they could otherwise, giving them an unfair advantage over other contestants. For instance, I was watching during the summer Olympics in Athens in 2004, when it was announced that the winner of the gold medal in the women’s shot-put competition was being stripped of her award because she failed a drug test. She took a chance that she would not be found out, and she lost.

Paul says in 2 Timothy that, as Christians, it is possible to think we are winning the race in our Christian lives because of seeming spiritual successes. But, sadly, our great “feats” will not pass the Judge’s test if we break the rules. And, make no mistake; there are rules. Customs change; but the rules do not. Uniforms may look different; but Biblical standards of decorum remain the same. Equipment may be updated; the God’s guidelines for procedure are never outdated. Those rules unequivocally laid by the great “Rule-maker of the Universe” are timeless.

God’s rules are not arbitrary, nor are they man-made. They are fair, and we can be sure, well thought out. Neither are they vague. That is only true of those activities and practices that fall under the category of “doubtful disputations” (Rom.14:1& 14). God’s standards of conduct (and competition) are precise, as found in the eternal Word of God (James 1:21). Therefore, if you and I are striving for the mastery in the Christian life, we must constantly refer to the Rule-book; because we only cross the finish line a winner when we have striven lawfully.

Just a Piece of Paper

“He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth not the record that God gave of his Son. And this is the record, that God hath given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.” (1John 5:10-11)

“Marriage is just a piece of paper.” According to my grandson, Richard, this is the consensus of opinion among his friends and acquaintances at Berkeley, here in California, where he just graduated. And he is quick to tell you these are not second generation hippie radicals speaking. These are, for the most part, young people coming from homes much like his own, though without the same strong Biblical foundation, perhaps. He tried to point out in a recent essay what may be some of the reasons for this cynical attitude. It was not these, but, rather, their definition of marriage that rankled.

Obviously, those of us who have lived with one person for thirty, forty, fifty, or more years know that marriage is much more than a piece of paper. It is laughter and tears, heartthrobs and heartaches, ecstasy and agony, but mostly, just plain hard work. It is things like not getting your own way, and finding out how liberating that can feel. It is looking back on agreements and compromises that would rival the accomplishments of a professional diplomat or negotiator. It’s the constant perfecting of the art of keeping someone interested for almost half a century! I could go on, but my intended thesis is this: Marriage is not just a piece of paper; nevertheless it is a piece of paper. And, to my way of thinking, that is a good thing.

The underlying assumption behind the statement, of course, is that the piece of paper is meaningless. And this is where I part company with the young “philosophers” that Richard questioned. These same young people are glad, or will be glad, to have the title to their own car or the deed to their own house, even though these are just pieces of paper. Evidently, documents of ownership are more valuable—or at least more preferable—than documents of love, devotion, and allegiance. There is no such thing as “free love,” only freeloaders who lack enough sinew of soul to pledge love that will last and perform “for better or worse, in sickness and in health, so long as we both shall live,” and mean it enough to sign the dotted line.

At a certain point in my mother’s developing Alzheimer’s Disease, she did not know my father and would periodically become very distressed at his presence in the house. For this reason, he (with his good, Kentucky common sense) put their marriage license in a picture frame and hung it on the wall! When she would insist that he was not what he professed to be—her husband—he would simply point to the document that proved it. You could argue that his care of her during this trying time in their lives was credentials enough, but even God himself recognized the importance of a “record,” as the verses above will attest to.

I have in my possession a copy of the marriage record of my maternal grandparents, George W. Blount and Lou Anna Sparks. The marriage took place on April 14, 1887, in Lee County, Kentucky. My grandfather was thirty-three and my grandmother was sixteen. It was the first (and last) marriage for them both. I keep it in my file of important papers. And you will find in the same place a certificate printed on embossed paper, enclosed in an envelope that has begun to yellow with age. It confirms that Salle Jo Hopkins and Richard Douglas Sandlin were united in marriage “according to the Ordinance of God and the Laws of the State of Ohio at Grace Baptist Church, on the 14th day of October in the year of Our Lord, One Thousand Nine Hundred and Sixty-One.” It was signed by the minister, John Rawlings, and witnessed by my sister, Martha Lou Hopkins and a pastor friend of my husband, Wm. L. Jackson. Printed at the bottom is this text: “What therefore God hath joined together; let not man put asunder.”

I do not have to bring this document out periodically to remind myself that I am married to this man. His face is as familiar to me as my own reflection in the mirror, and if God sees fit, will be until I die. Our marriage is more than “just a piece of paper.” But one day my children and grandchildren will hold in their hands a document that will tell them I loved their father and grandfather enough to take his name and give it to them. And, somehow, I think they will be glad to have it.

The Mind of Christ

“But we have the mind of Christ.” (1Cor.2:16b)
“Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus.” (Philip.2:5)

“I just don’t think he (she) has any spiritual perception at all.” This was said about someone the speaker and I both knew. “Oh, no,” I countered, “I think there’s much evidence of spiritual perception. It just isn’t working itself out in his (her) everyday life.” As far as this particular person is concerned, I may be mistaken, but I don’t think the concept is farfetched. In fact, the two verses cited above seem to bear this out.

The verse in 1 Corinthians is comparing the “natural” (unsaved) man, and the one who has been granted “spiritual” discernment (the saved man or woman). In the case of the latter, Paul says we can be sure that this person has the mind of Christ. Yet, in Philippians, the same writer admonishes us as believers to let the mind of Christ live in us. The key word here is “let,” indicating a choice. “Christ-mindedness,” if I may coin the word, is not inevitable for the child of God; but it is available.

The natural man “receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God,” but the spiritual man does. He or she “gets it”; they just don’t always do anything with it. And, if you are familiar at all with what the Bible says about rejecting light, you recognize this to be a very dangerous life style. As the saying goes, “Light rejected brings greater darkness. We can end up being like the children of Israel, who boasted of having been given the Law, while at the same time refusing to keep it (Rom.2).

You and I, as New Testament believers, have been given the mind of Christ. It us up to us, however, whether or not we choose to let this Mind live and breathe through our daily lives. This brings even greater significance to the popular saying, “A mind is a terrible thing to waste.”

A Game of Recovery

"The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord...Though he fall, he shall
not be utterly cast down." (Psl.37:23-24)


The radio personality was recounting a golf game he had recently participated in. I was only half listening until he suddenly said something that caught my attention. He was playing unusually well, he said, until something happened that threw him off his stride. He immediately recognized what the problem was and quickly remedied it. “One thing I have learned,” he explained, “is that golf is a game of recovery.” When he said that, I thought to myself, “Actually, life is a game of recovery.” Of course, life is not really a game; it’s dead serious. But, if I may, I want to draw a parallel.

There are many who are able to maneuver through life quite brilliantly, it would seem; that is, until they stumble or fumble. At that point, they simply crumble. Through the years I have met numerous people whose Christian lives had “withered on the vine” because of a past failure. They just could not bring themselves to stand back up, dust themselves off, and start again. Whether it comes from pride or laziness or even true heart-felt shame, it really makes no difference; because, in any case, it turns a detour into a dead-end street.

There will always be circumstances that throw us off our spiritual stride. It may only be a misstep, or it might be a full-blown flat-on-your-back crash. Either way, the next move is ours. We can lie there and feel sorry for ourselves, or we can let God do a work of recovery in our lives.