Once upon a time there was a very mighty and powerful king. This king had a son who was betrothed to be married; so the King planned a royal banquet to celebrate the marriage of his one and only child. As he prepared a delightful feast for all who would come, he sent out his servants to tell the invitees that the time had come for the celebration. However, they did not listen to the voice of the servants.The King sent a second group of servants out to persuade the people to come; as all was ready to be enjoyed. Still, they did not take the message seriously, and each went back to his own business. Those who remained of the invitees were a violent sort, and treated the servants cruelly, even to the point of murder. When the king found out about this atrocity which was committed, he was outraged; and sent his armies to take vengeance on the murderers, and demolish their city.

After all this turn of events, the king said to his servants that the guests formerly invited were unworthy of the honor of attending the celebration. He commanded the servants to search high and low throughout the region, and invite every single person they could find to attend the marriage feast, whether bad or good.

After they did so, there was no shortage of guests – the palace was filled to overflowing! The king came in to take a look at the turnout; but something was amiss. There was one man who was found to be without a wedding garment. The king sharply rebuked him, saying “Friend, how did you get in to my palace with no wedding garment?”, but the man had nothing to say for himself. So the king commanded his servants to bind up the man, and remove him from the ceremony and cast him out, alone, into complete darkness.

Many were called, but few were chosen.

The end.

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Wait, wait, wait. That’s it? That can’t be the end of the story. No “happily ever after”?

You’ve probably guessed by now…this is no fairy tale, but is in fact a true story; and it is found in Matthew 22:1-14. The king is God, the son is Jesus, and we are the invitees.

The ending is bleak, but has an important message for us.

What I really want to point out with this story is the man who lacked a wedding garment. What is the significance…why is an article of clothing so important? Well, clothing in the bible is a representation of what kind of person we are. When the bible speaks of putting on a garment, the picture (or type) it is portraying is the putting on of character.

A crucial element in the parable to consider is this: the man without the wedding garment accepted the king’s invitation. He wanted to be at the feast. Nonetheless, his desire was a selfish one, for he wanted to come to the feast on his own terms. By disregarding the custom of putting on a wedding garment, his attitude proclaimed that he thought he knew best, and thought he could get away with less than the king’s standard.

Let’s take a moment to ponder the consequence of his foolish notion.

He was…

[cast out]

[surrounded in complete and utter darkness]

[with weeping and gnashing of teeth]

Ladies, for our own good we can not sugarcoat this…the man was condemned to hell. This should be a sobering thought, for such will be our eternal reward if we will choose to put on our own garment (man’s wisdom) instead of God’s garment (wisdom from above).

Sure, we have free will, and we are welcome to do things our own way.

We can follow in the footsteps of Nadab and Abihu, who offered strange fire before the Lord [which He commanded them not]…but then again, they were devoured by fire, and “died there before the Lord”.

[Leviticus 10:1-2]

We can follow in the footsteps of Uzza who touched the ark of the covenant in a rash attempt to save it, even though the Lord had said touching the ark was to be done under no circumstance…but then again, God smote him and he “died before God“. (1 Chronicles 13:9-10)

We can follow in the footsteps of Lot’s wife, who took one last glance at her home as it burned to ash, even though she was under strict command to look solely ahead…but then again, she was turned into a pillar of salt and also died before God. (Genesis 19:26)

Friends, we have free will to live as we please – but are the consequences really worth it?

Sometimes we don’t understand why God has certain expectations of us, but we would do well to remember that His ways are not our ways, and His thoughts are not our thoughts! (Isaiah 55:8-9) He is the KING! He knows what is best for us.

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Now that we have looked at some passages of those who chose their own way instead of God’s ways, let us consider someone who did the opposite; a man who obeyed even when he did not understand the Lord’s reasoning.

“And he [Jesus] entered into one of the ships, which was Simon’s, and prayed him that he would thrust out a little from the land. And he sat down, and taught the people out of the ship. Now when he had left speaking, he said unto Simon, launch out into the deep, and let down your nets for a draught. And Simon answering said unto him, Master, we have toiled all the night, and have taken nothing: nevertheless at thy word I will let down the net.” Luke 5:1-5

Okay, so we’ve all heard this story before, and we know the conclusion…the incredible amount of fish that came from Lake Gennesaret, and Jesus’ memorable words: “Fear not; from henceforth thou shalt catch men.” (v. 10) For a moment, though, let’s key in on Simon’s words in verse 5: “nevertheless, at thy word I will let down the net”….

Wow! Here we find true faith; an obedient faith. Think about it – who was the fisherman here? Simon. He knew the ropes better than just about anybody…but he recognized that Jesus knew even better than he, and Simon obeyed his Lord. The reward for that act was immeasurable.

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In light of these pictures laid out for us in God’s word – which man are we?

Are we going to be the man thrown out of the kingdom because we think we know better than the King?

Or are we going to be the humble servant who proclaims “nevertheless, at thy word I will…”.

Let us take on a Simon spirit in our day-to-day lives and in our worship in the assembly. We ought to seek God’s will in every matter, for our salvation is too precious to treat carelessly. Instead of living in “sporadic surrender” to God, let us offer ourselves to Him in total and “supreme surrender”!

“Buy the truth, and sell it not; also wisdom, and instruction, and understanding” – Proverbs 23:23

God bless, and take a chill pill!
Mrs. Dustin Bolks

Mrs. Dustin Bolks is a church of Christ preacher’s wife, and the home educating mother of two children. She and her family currently reside in Northwest Iowa.

This last Friday, the Supreme Court made the decision to legalize homosexual marriage in all 50 states. This is no secret – all one has to do is log into social media to find articles on the LGBT community’s so called “victory” plastered all over streaming feeds, pictures of men kissing men, women kissing women, and rainbows strewn across profile pictures.What???

…

Wait a second, what is going on here?

Have we regressed so far as a society that the abnormal, the un-natural, the abominable is now cause for celebration? How did we get from “the good ol’ days” to this madness? Furthermore, where do we go from here?

Instead of stacking all the blame on the homosexuals, I want to look a little deeper into the matter. I want us to look inside ourselves. As christians, where is our responsibility in this?

I think as people in general, we often struggle with balance. What do I mean by that? I mean that many times we see matters in only black or white. Oftentimes we are not objective, and get caught up in our emotions rather than the truth. Concerning the topic of homosexuality, two polar opposite groups continue to battle in our nation –

Group A: The Homosexual Supporters,

and

Group B: The Homosexual Opposers.

I would like to offer an objective view on each of these.

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The Homosexual Supporters

After reading many posts/comments from homosexual supporters in the last few days, here are some of the common phrases that I have heard in favor of gay marriage:

1. “Love is love/the heart wants what it wants”

2. “How dare you say anything agaist homosexuals! You are a hateful bigot!”

and

3. “Only God can judge me”

Now, let us think about these phrases for a moment.

— 1. The heart may want what it wants, but we humans need to live according to God’s spirit, not according to our frail human hearts. Think about the implications of the statement. What about someone who has a bad heart? If my heart wants money, am I to rob a bank because “the heart wants what it wants”? If my heart wants revenge, am I to murder because “the heart wants what it wants”? Of course not – how foolish! We may not do just what we want. We are worth more than that.

“There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death” – Proverbs 14:12

— 2. Unfortunately I must admit that there are and have been people all throughout time who are cruel and merciless to homosexuals. Adolf Hitler for example; the atrocities he committed towards many different people (including homosexuals) were nothing short of pure evil. However, not everyone who disapproves of a person’s behavior HATES the person. In fact, most christians just want to help homosexuals, but don’t know how to go about it.

— 3. I am afraid many people misunderstand what it means to judge. Without writing an entire article on the topic (you may refer to one of my previous articles – Jeering Judgment”), suffice it to say that there is a difference between being judged, and being forewarned of God’s final judgment. Christians are not judging the homosexual lifestyle; God has already pre-determined the judgment of these unrepentant souls. (1 Corinthians 6:9-10) We warn people because we care!

“Open rebuke is better than secret love. Faithful are the wounds of a friend; but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful” – Proverbs 27:5-6

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Homosexual Opposers

Sisters, I oppose homosexuality – BUT – I am appalled at the way some christians handle opposition. We are to speak the truth in love. We are to teach homosexuals because we care about them. We are NOT to ridicule them, taunt them, harass them, and fight with them. Truly some people ought to be ashamed of themselves, for they have the truth but they have no love. Do not be one of these people. I know you’re trying to stand on God’s word, and I know you are convicted, and those are good things! But we will not win these souls by baring our teeth at them. What they need is someone who cares and has words that are seasoned with salt. Love and truth need to go hand-in-hand.

“Teach me, and I will hold my tongue: and cause me to understand wherein I have erred. How forcible are right words! but what doth your arguing reprove?” Job 6:24-25

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Bottom line, we need to have balance to weigh out the truth about homosexuality. We are not to support it, (for even to delight in these wicked actions is to be worthy of death – Romans 1:32, 2 John 1:11) but neither are we to hate these sinners. Cliché as it is, we are truly to hate the sin, while loving the sinner. (Keep in mind, loving the sinner is not turning a blind eye – but makes us responsible to warn them, and teach them with love).

“How sweet are thy words unto my taste! Yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth! Through thy precepts I get understanding: therefore I hate every false way”

God bless, and take a chill pill!
Mrs. Dustin Bolks

My friend, I want to ask you a simple question.

Are you a quitter?

I am.

I started quitting in November 2007 when I was buried with Christ in baptism. See, what I “quit”, was my fleshly addiction…sin. Cold turkey. The funny thing about addictions though, is you never really stop quitting them. It’s not a once and for all quit, but an every-single-day-of-your-life sort of quit — quitters (never) quit quitting.

When we start to recognize sin for what it truly is – a disease and an addiction – we will be able to put it in proper perspective.

Any honest quitter of drugs or alcohol will tell you “once an addict, always an addict”. Now don’t get me wrong, the longer an addict goes without their addiction in their life the cravings will be less and less. In fact, the cravings will eventually desist. But all it takes is one puff of that cigarette, one drink of that liquor to start that addict right back at the dark place they used to be.

Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall. (‭1 Corinthians‬ ‭10‬:‭12‬ KJV)

Whatever our SIN addiction may be, we mustn’t let ourselves have the satisfaction of one “puff”, or one “drop” of that sin…or we’re going to be fallen on the floor in a mess of our own making. Maybe we’ll never pick ourselves back up.

Are you addicted to gossip? – one word could be your undoing.

Addicted to fornication? One kiss before you are back on the road to destruction.

Addicted to complaining? One groan from your lips could be your last chance.

We must always be on the watch and examining ourselves daily, for truly “the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak”.  (Matthew 26:41)

Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world. (‭1 Peter‬ ‭5‬:‭8-9‬ KJV)

Friends, let’s face it. We’re all addicted to sin…but what makes christians different from the rest? We are quitters. True quitters are always quitting, and we will quit until the day we die to glorify our King.

Keep the faith, and NEVER quit quitting.

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If you strike a thorn or rose,

Keep a-goin’!

If it hails or if it snows,

Keep a-goin’!

‘Taint no use to sit an’ whine

When the fish ain’t on your line;

Bait your hook an’ keep a-tryin’–

Keep a-goin’!

When the weather kills your crop,

Keep a-goin’!

Though ’tis work to reach the top,

Keep a-goin’!

S’pose you’re out o’ ev’ry dime,

Gittin’ broke ain’t any crime;

Tell the world you’re feelin’ prime–

Keep a-goin’!

When it looks like all is up,

Keep a-goin’!

Drain the sweetness from the cup,

Keep a-goin’!

See the wild birds on the wing,

Hear the bells that sweetly ring,

When you feel like singin’, sing–

Keep a-goin’!

– Frank L. Stanton

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I returned, and saw under the sun, that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet favour to men of skill; but time and chance happeneth to them all. (‭Ecclesiastes‬ ‭9‬:‭11‬ KJV)

God bless, and take a chill pill!
Mrs. Dustin Bolks

Mrs. Dustin Bolks is a church of Christ preacher’s wife and the home educating mother of two children. She and her family currently reside in Northwest Iowa.