Jump Start # 3634

Colossians 3:16 “Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing  one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing  with thankfulness in your hearts to God.”

Our verse today reminds us that we teach though singing. And, this passage puts to rest two common thoughts about the role of women in the church. Not understanding a statement, nor the context in Corinthians, some declare, “Women are to be silent in the church.” If that be true, then only men can sing. And, close to that, “women do not teach men.” Again, if that be true, then women shouldn’t sing because a man might be taught. More careful understanding of those passages keeps one from extreme and inconsistent positions.

There are a few ways that we teach through singing. One is to state and remind us of Biblical principles, such as “Jesus is coming soon.” Many of our songs will do that. As we sing those songs, they remind us of what the Bible teaches.

Another way that our songs teach are to remind us of the godly practices that we embrace. Love one another is such a reminder. O to be like Thee, blessed Redeemer, is another.

And, still another way our songs teach is by asking questions. Thought provoking questions. Questions that move us to actions. Questions such as, “Are you washed in the blood?” Or, “What will your answer be?”

One of the questions that we sing is, “Does Jesus care?” It’s a song about a heart broken by sorrow and pain. Does the Lord notice? Does the Lord even care? The chorus of that song loudly answers the question, “Oh yes, He cares, I know He cares.”

I wonder why someone would ask the question, “Does Jesus care?” It seems that a person wasn’t sure. Maybe the Lord doesn’t care. And, here are some thoughts we need to remember:

First, the quality of my life is not a measure of God’s care and love for me. I think we have it in our minds, especially we Americans, in this time, that if God loves me then things ought to be easy in my life. Struggles, hardships, sufferings are an indication of something not right and very possibly, that God has looked away from us.

Yet, such thoughts are not the conclusion one gets from a careful study of Biblical history. Israel in Egypt, and they cried because of the oppression. Judah taken in Babylonian captivity. The suffering Jeremiah. The beheading of John. The murder of Stephen. The abuse of the apostles. The death of James and Antipas. Had God turned His back upon these people? Were they doing wrong?

Righteous suffering is a result and consequence of righteous living.

Second, when we think that things are not right because of hardships, we fail to realize that suffering is God’s classroom. We see more and learn more in the storms of life than we do in the sunshine of life. Blessings are wonderful, but it’s the pain that takes us to our knees in prayer. And, our culture doesn’t do well with hardships. We avoid them at all costs. We want a pill to take away all pain and all sadness. Give us counselors, therapists, funny videos and put all suffering out of our minds and ways. And, because of that we live on happy street and are none the better. No lessons learned. No character developed. None the better.

Third, if the storm clouds that roll in make me question my faith, then my faith wasn’t very strong to begin with. Our Lord went to the cross. He was the suffering Savior. Fair weather Christians don’t last when a loved one is in the hospital or death circles a family member. Panic, fear and doubt fill hearts where faith never had deep roots.

One of our hymns reminds us, “This world is not my home, I’m just passing through.” Think maybe we ought to let that thought sink in more deeply. This world is not my home. My home is with the Lord. My home is His home. The passing of a Christian, though sad, especially for the family, ought not to move our foundation. They are the blessed ones. They are the ones we wish we could be. They are finished with this place. They have completed the course. They have a home with the Lord. We grieve with hope, the Thessalonians were reminded. The hopeless despair belongs to those who have no faith. That’s not us.

Does Jesus care? Yes. He has always cared. He has never stopped caring. His life is a demonstration of His care. A greater question we ought to ask is, “Do I care?” Do I care as much as He cares? Do I care about my soul as much as He cares about my soul? Or, is it that I care more about my money, my things and my fun than I do my soul?

Our songs teach us. There are many lessons that take place on a Sunday morning.

Roger