God is going to measure us in every way possible. He is going to compare us to “The Standard”---His Word---and determine were we stand. The thoughts of the previous articles and this one are to be thought of as warning. All around us are people in the activity of worshipping God. But they are not using God's Word to govern their activities. Even the church is engaged in this. Throughout the brotherhood we are seeing congregations involved in practices not authorized in the Scriptures. We have to be aware of what God has said in order to be pleasing to Him and to bring to the forefront of our minds that God is going to measure us. We need to ask ourselves, how do we measure up? He's given us the measuring reed let's use it.

The other day I heard someone pray that another person would receive positive medical test results.

When one is looking for cancer, however, we don't want a positive result-that means we have cancer. Sometimes positive isn't good.

The Zig Ziglar, Dale Carnegie, Norman Vincent Peale, Barney the Dinosaur Effect on the church has yet to grasp this reality. We hear about "positive preaching" and "positive mental attitude," as if perception can trump reality. Pleas for balanced preaching are generally nothing more than a cry to accentuate the positive and eliminate the negative.

What is positive and what is negative? Positive is supposed to build people up while negative tears them down. That constant ray of sunshine in perpetually happy preaching, however, works a most evil result upon its audience.

People who need to hear rebuke-not want, but need-never do. Would Peter's Pentecost audience have been cut to the heart if he had blasted them with happy talk instead of telling them, "You are the men" (to paraphrase with help from another negativist, Nathan).

Positive preaching refrains from rocking the boat, perceived to be the greatest risk to church growth. A sinking boat, however, does not always rock before its plunges. Could it be that all this positive preaching is like the band playing on the deck of the Titanic?

"Then it shall come about when the Lord your God brings you into the land which He swore to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, to give you, great and splendid cities which you did not build, and houses full of all good things which you did not fill, and hewn cisterns which you did not dig, vineyards and olive trees which you did not plant, and you shall eat and be satisfied, then watch yourself, lest you forget the Lord who brought you from the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery" (Deut. 6:10-12).

One of the greatest difficulties in serving God in this country is the tendency toward complacency. In America, we are blessed with laws which protect us from persecution, and we are individually blessed with a wealth which exceeds almost any country in history. Even today, much of the world would be amazed at what we possess (homes, cars, computers, etc.). These two factors, wealth and protection from persecution, have combined to produce a lack of urgency in our service to God. Never mind that we, like the Israelites, had little to do with either factor. Most of us were born in this country (with its freedoms already in place) and born into our socio-economic station. But rather than give thanks to God for these blessings, we often grow lackadaisical, considering that this will continue forever.

That was the problem facing Israel as they prepared to take possession of the land God had promised. It was their good fortune (a blessing from God) to be born of the seed of Abraham and to be given the land of Canaan by God. Moses warned them not to forget God, and it would serve us well to heed this warning.

One important idea in remembering God is continuing to remember what He has done for us. He sent His Son to die for our sins (Jn. 3:16; Rom. 5:8), and He blessed us with the knowledge we need to live with Him (2 Pet. 1:3). There are also the many blessings, both spiritual and physical, for which we owe a great debt to God (Jas. 1:17). These thoughts should serve to remind us that it is God who has so richly given us salvation and an abundant life here as well.

A careful assessment of our own spiritual blessings in Christ, coupled with an unvarnished look at the world around us should lead us to the conclusion that there are still too many without the hope that we have. That should spur us on to try to reach others with the gifts of the gospel. Paul understood that, even in chains, he was far more rich than a king who had not received Christ (Acts 26:27-29). It should be our desire to see all we come in contact with respond to the gospel, and this kind of attitude will prevent us from becoming complacent. How can we rest when so many are lost? A heart willing to teach others will find it hard to forget God.

A final effort at avoiding complacency is in recognizing that our race is not yet run. Again, it is Paul who sets the example, explaining that even he continued to reach for and press toward the goal of a life in heaven with Christ (Phil. 3:13-14). This striving for righteousness will keep us focused on the gifts that God has already provided, as well as have us reaching for the goal we have not yet attained.

We know that the Israelites did become complacent and they forgot God. They began to disregard the blessings of the land of Canaan and serve other gods. If we do the same, the lessons of the Israelite betrayal of God will have been lost. We cannot allow our rich blessings to become a buffer which separates us from striving to truly know God.

Our response to cruelty or maliciousness is often difficult to temper. As Christians we can be especially exposed. Thus, it is incumbent upon us to keep in memory the cause of Christ lest it suffer as a result of wrong actions. Justified as they may seem. Remember, a wrong reaction is just that. It's wrong! It is never justified. This subject brought the following illustrations to mind.

In 1755, a twenty-three year old colonel was embroiled in a political campaign for a seat in the Virginia General Assembly. Exercising limited judgment, the young man made an insulting comment to a hot-tempered man named Payne. Payne, who had quite a reputation for controversy, didn't take kindly to the insult and responded by swiftly knocking his offender down with a hickory stick. Soldiers rushed to the colonel's assistance, and would have done Payne great hurt, but he called them off. The man got to his feet and excited the scene. Early the next morning, the colonel rose and wrote Payne a letter. He requested that the two meet at a nearby tavern. Payne obliged, wondering what motives and demands a man with a bruised ego might have. He was sure an apology or even a duel might be demanded. However, one can imagine Payne's surprise when the young opponent met him with an apology for his derogatory remarks, proceeding to request his forgiveness, and then offering his hand in peace. Who was the young man? Our readers would know him best as "General" George Washington. Of course, he later became the first President of the United States. It is just this sort of character which has endeared him to our nation from then until now.

Friends and brethren, a reaction to injustice may seem justified, but really it only serves to elevate the wrong to new heights. Paul wrote, "Let not the sun go down on your wrath: neither give place to the devil. Let all bitterness and wrath, and anger, and clamor, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you” (Ephesians 4:26-32). The Lord said it best, "Whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also” (Matthew 5:39) Word to live by!