COMMISSION FOR SERVICE

“Return to your own house, and tell what great things God has done for you. And he went his way and proclaimed throughout the whole city what great things Jesus had done for him” (Luke 8:39 NKJV).

After the man had been freed of demon possession, he “begged” the Lord Jesus to be with Him (cf. Luke 8:38). However, the Lord Jesus told him to return home and serve there. Thus, we want to note the commission for service: the place of service, the proclamation in service, and the performance in service.

Place of service – “Return to your own house.” The home is where all service and witnessing should begin. If we cannot live out our faith in our own home or community, we are not ready to testify for the Lord elsewhere. If our faith is real, it will show up at home. God puts us in a place of service where it will be the most effective. This man’s testimony would be bigger at home than anywhere else because the people in his own home and town knew what he was before the Lord Jesus changed him. This would make his testimony more effective there than anywhere else.

Proclamation in service – “Tell what great things God has done for you.” The man was to speak about the great things God had done, not about the great things the man had done. A lot of church folks would do well to ponder this part of the commission, since we are more prone to want to talk about ourselves than about the Lord.

Performance in service – “And he went his way and proclaimed throughout the whole city what great things Jesus had done for him.” The man obeyed the Lord Jesus’ commission and had a great ministry for the Lord. And note that the man was earnest in his performance, for he “proclaimed throughout the whole city.” He may have been disappointed in the place of service, but he did not let that diminish his dedication.

(Adapted from Butler’s Daily Reading 3)

Soli Deo Gloria (To God Alone Be The Glory)

Quotation of the Week

“He who does not serve God where he is would not serve God anywhere else!”

Charles Haddon Spurgeon (1834 - 1892)

English Particular Baptist Preacher

Word Study

Eyes

In Heb. 4:13 we read, “And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account" (NKJV).

“Eyes” is the Greek word ophthalmós (ὀφθαλμός = of-thal-mos'). It most often used to describe the literal eye, but occasionally is used figuratively to describe the eyes as the source of spiritual sight. Metaphorically, it means the eyes of the mind, the faculty of knowing. We get our English words ophthalmology and ophthalmologist from this word. In Classical Greek, ophthalmós is used for the physical eye of the body and is often considered the most important part of the man, linking him to the surrounding world. In the Septuagint, ophthalmós conveys the idea of seeing, making note of, or judging. In the New Testament, ophthalmós carries the same idea, but also include the eye as the symbol for judgment, such as in the expressions “an eye for an eye” (Matt. 5:38). Here in Heb. 4:13, “eyes” is an anthropomorphic description of God, Who sees all and knows all. Prov. 15:3 reminds us that “The eyes (ophthalmós) of the LORD are in every place, keeping watch on the evil and the good.”

“Fear Nots” Found in the Bible

“For they all saw him, and were troubled. And immediately he talked with them, and saith unto them, Be of good cheer: it is I; be not afraid” (Mark 6:50 KJV).

Did You Know…

According to the Book of Genesis, God made all the animals come to Noah, and it took seven days to get all the animals into the ark (Gen. 7:1-10).

Bible Quiz

According to the Book of James, what will the man who endures temptation receive from the Lord?

**Answer to last week’s Bible Quiz: While in Joppa, Peter had a vision of something being lowered down from heaven on a large sheet. What was on the sheet? Unclean animals (Acts 10:9-13).

Names For the Lord Jesus in the Bible

“RULER OVER THE KINGS OF THE EARTH”

"And from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth” (Rev. 1:5 NJKV).

1. Meaning – RULER OVER THE KINGS OF THE EARTH speaks of the Lord Jesus as the rightful ruler of all the rulers of the earth.

2. Insights – The idea here is that the Lord Jesus Christ is the sovereign King of the earth; He is absolutely sovereign over the affairs of this world, to which He holds the title deed. He is the all-powerful King who is the chief or head of all earthly powers or rulers, and has them all under His dominion and control, and can dispose of them as He will. The Lord Jesus Christ is “King of Kings, and Lord of Lords” (cf. Rev. 19:16). It is not “He will be ruler” but rather “He is ruler!” He is not planning to start ruling at some future time; He is ruling now. This authority belongs to the Lord Jesus Christ in the present time and perpetually.

Did You Know – Christian History

Thomas Tenison was born September 29, 1636 in Cambridgeshire, England. He was an English church leader and Archbishop of Canterbury.

Tenison was educated at Norwich School, continuing on to Corpus Christi College, Cambridge. He graduated in 1657. Tenison began to study medicine, but on the eve of the Restoration decided upon a theological profession, and was ordained privately at Richmond in Surrey by the bishop of Salisbury. Being admitted fellow of his college in 1662, he became tutor, and in 1665 was chosen one of the university preachers. About the same time, he was also presented to the parish of St. Andrew the Great in Cambridge.

In 1667, Tenison was made rector of Holywell and Nedingworth, and in 1674 was chosen principal minister to the Church of St. Pete’s Mancroft, Norwich. In 1680 he took the degree of D.D., and in October of the same year was presented by Charles II, being then a royal chaplain, to the vicarage of St. Martin’s-in-the-Fields, London. Immediately after the Revolution he was promoted to be archdeacon of London; was consecrated bishop of Lincoln in 1692, and was made the archbishop of Canterbury in 1694.

As archbishop, he successfully steered the church through the convocation controversy, though convocation itself was abandoned. He showed compassion for the poor, and promoted voluntary societies and charity schools, the foundation of the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge and the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, and the demand for bishops in America.

Besides the sermons and tracts and various other writings on the “Popish” controversy, Tenison was the author of The Creed of Mr. Hobbes Examined (1670) and Baconia, or Certain Genuine Remains of Lord Bacon (1679). Tenison died in London December 14, 1715. He was instrumental in the last years of his life in the literary executorship of Sir Thomas Browne’s manuscript writings known as Christian Morals.

A Little Humor

A little girl was sitting on her grandfather’s lap as he read her a bedtime story. From time to time, she would take her eyes off the book and reach up to touch his weathered, wrinkled cheek. She would alternately stroke her own cheek and then touch his again. Finally she spoke up: “Grandpa, did God make you? “Yes, sweetheart,” he answered, “God made me a long time ago.” “Oh,” she paused, “Grandpa, did God make me too?” “Yes, indeed, honey,” he said, “God made you just a little while ago.” Stroking their faces again, she observed, “God’s getting better at it, isn’t he?

Thought Provoking Church Sign

“True freedom is not in choosing your own way but in yielding to God’s way!”