Christus Emptor

“Also the Kingdom of Heaven is like a net that was put into the lake and caught many different kinds of fish. When it was full, the fishermen pulled the net to the shore. They sat down and put the good fish in baskets and threw away the bad fish. It will be this way at the end of the world. The angels will come and separate the evil people from the good people. The angels will throw the evil people into the blazing furnace, were people will cry and grind their teeth with pain.” Jesus asked His followers, ” Do you understand all these things?” They answered, “Yes, We understand.” Matthew 13:47-51 NCV

Jesus speaks this parable or illustration. In the last days a net will be cast out. This I believe is a prophecy of the now internet. Never has there been a form of communication that makes it possible to reach the whole world at one time. With wireless networks everyone can be hooked to the grid and be in touch watch news as it happens on the other side of the world.

A lot of people see the internet only with it’s evils. Porn, gambling, and identity theft. But the Church may be missing out on what God has allowed to be setup for His work. A great net cast to catch the good and the bad fish.

According to the prophecy or parable when the net is full, when the time is ready it will be pulled in and the good fish are separated from the bad fish, the end is here.

Now the question now that you may ask is,” Who are the good and who are the bad fish?” The world view today is that although a person has done evil all his life he may still be basicly good and the little good will override the bad. Therefore all mankind is basicly good. So who sets the standard of “Good”, a benchmark of Godliness.

Mankind needed an example. God could not find one in man. That’s what the whole Old Testament is about. God let man try, but they could not do it. So, being a loving God he choose to make Himself a man and live among them. He becomes a real man and still remained real God. Something only a true God could do. He lives a human life under all the restrictions that man lives under naturally. And when the time came Him offered Himself as the perfect sacrifice for man’s sins. He brought Himself back to life to show man that He had this power to defeat death. All mankind had to do was:

Receive the forgiveness He offered

Put their total trust in Him as God

Just as He put the worlds sins on Himself, man must put His Holiness on themselves.

This would make them “good” fish.

Now back to the “net”. The internet was put in place by God using man. The church has neglected this resource for social and spiritual change for enough years. It is time for pastors and saints to use this end time opportunity to reach out to the world.

Church, do not be afraid of the evil that is on the internet but overcome it with the truth of the Gospel of Christ. This is not about which church has the coolist website or about showing the world that we are web savy. The point is to reach the seekers out there and show them the truth of Christ. And when the net is pulled in, they will be with the good fish in Christ and not the bad fish in hell.

“Exhort servants to be obedient unto their own
masters, and to please them well in all things; not
answering again; not purloining, but showing all good
fidelity; that they may adorn the doctrine of God our
Savior in all things.”

Titus 2:9-10 teaches us quit a few things about how we
are to treat our bosses and employers and why.
First we are to be obedient or submissive to those
over us at work. Even if we do not like what we are
told to do (unless it clashes with what God has told us to do). We are to do it without talking back or
grumbling. It is a shame for a professing Christian to
be reprimanded or released because of being
insubordinate.
Second, We are not to steal from our employers and
to work honestly. Although this is common sense if we
think about it, how many of us have took from our
employers. Office supplies, product or clocked-out
early. Taking what wasn’t given to us. Taking it
believing we earned it or really deserved to have it.
Stealing.
And third, which brings us to the whole reason that
the Lord is concerned about how we live our lives at
work. It is the Lord’s plan for us to be an example of
the transforming power of the Word of God. Power to
transform an unprofitable servant named Onesimus to a
more profitable servant for his master Philemon. And
the Apostle Paul believed eventually profitable to
himself and the cause of Christ.
I would paraphase this verse as so:
” Teachers, encourage workers to be obedient to
their bosses. Make them happy they hired you. Do what
you are told without talking back or grumbling. Do not
steal from them. Give them a honest days work for a
honest day’s pay. Doing this so that you will be an
example of the transforming power of the Word of God
in all that you do.”

This is reposted from another of my blogs, but I wanted to add it and mention that although we are bought with a price, we have others we are rented out to . Main our employers. We are to bring glory to the Lord by doing our employers RIGHT.

Also read Eph. 6:5-8 and the book of Phileman

“Do not rejoice when your enemy falls, And do not let your heart be glad when he stumbles; Lest the Lord see it, and it displease Him, And He turn away His wrath from him.”
Proverbs 24:17-18

I have worked with many people and have been mistreated many times by those over me. It seems that it is real easy to hope that the person gets demoted, fired or the business goes bad because I am not there. Or even go out of business. But the Lord tells us to “pray for our enemies and bless those that abuse you.” (Paraphrase Matt. 5:44) I wonder how many companies that have treated their employees bad and still do well because the people of God secretly prayed to see them “ get theirs” and fall. Therefore, God turned His wrath from them.
Next time you see a person fall that had treated you wrong, let the Lord guide you in ways to bless him. Who knows maybe the Lord will defeat an enemy by making him a friend. And above all if we are bought by Christ and therefore not our own, we have no right to be offended by others. We must turn it over to our Master Jesus and trust Him to take care of it His way. We then have no worry or stress over it.

“You all were bought at a great price, so do not become slaves of people.” 1 Cor. 7:23 NCV

Yesterday I decided to once again kick the Mountain Dew habit. If I am truly bought with a price and my body is not my own and is a temple of the Holy Spirit, then I must denounce the the indulgence of the nectar of the gods. The little green idle that I rely on to get me going in the mornings. And mid-morning. And noon. And mid-afternoon. And…..you get the picture.

Like most experts say. You must start by setting small reachable goals. So I will start with loosing the MD.

How about you. What does it mean to you that Christ sheed His blood for you and suffered on a Roman cross. Something to think about,

Sharing lessons in living the “bought” life of a Christian. Learning to be subject to the will of the Lord. And the joys of such servitude to such a wonderful savior.

Also I will use this blog to share the Lord’s love to any that will accept it.