Welcome, friends, to another
broadcast of Morsels for Zion's Poor. One of the commandments
that the Lord gave to his apostles was to teach men to be the disciples
of Jesus Christ. Paul admonished Timothy to be
a teacher of doctrine and godly practice. As the saints of God,
we are charged with exhorting and building up one another that
we might be strong in the faith, steadfast in our walk, and not
tossed about with every wind of doctrine. As a believer develops
and matures in his walk with the Lord, it is necessary that
he develop good habits and avoid harmful ones. Obviously, a man
will not progress beyond his present mindset if he continues
to go on in the same paths he has always gone in and fellowships
with the darkness of this world as he has always done. But as
helpful as developing good habits may be, there is a grave error
which many fall into. Some think that by walking in
certain traditions, customs, or patterns of devotion and morality,
one may become a child of God. There is a natural tendency of
the flesh to cling to those things which we are most comfortable
with. Try taking away a three-year-old's blanket or a 50-year-old's favorite
chair. In homes where hunting is a big
pastime, you most often see great interest in hunting by the whole
family. The same is true of others who grow accustomed to an avid
interest in sports, automobiles, motorcycles, etc. It is not,
therefore, considered unusual to see young men and women who
grow up in a church atmosphere develop an affinity for this
lifestyle. Now, we certainly would prefer
that a young man or woman spend their time in church than we
would to see them destroying their lives with the excesses
of the flesh. But we are also, sadly, aware
that many folks have learned to attend church out of habit
rather than desire. As parents, we are admonished
to bring our children up in the nurture and admonition of the
Lord. We are taught to train them up in the way they should
go. Sadly, the sins of the fathers are truly visited upon the children
when we demonstrate habitual service to the Lord rather than
delightful service. Many parents teach their children
to ask a blessing on their food by having them memorize a standard
little prayer. The same concept of prayer carries
over into adulthood with many as they adopt the phraseology
of others as they pray. Our prayers must not be born
out of habit, but out of a longing of our heart to commune with
Him who hears us when we call. Many so-called Christians develop
a whole vocabulary of words to use in their religious conversation
that is actually foreign to them in their daily life. Their manner
of speech has become a habit, which is entirely different on
Sunday than it is on Friday night. Different denominations have
their own little catchphrases and expressions that they use,
which are unique to their traditions. So habit becomes the driving
force behind many ideas and doctrines, which otherwise will not stand
the scrutiny of Scripture. Good habits are useful to the
true children of God, but will develop into stumbling blocks
and rocks of offense when they become the motivation for our
service and devotion to the Lord, rather than our help meat in
that endeavor. There is nothing worse than substituting
duty for joy or obligation for pleasure in the service of our
King. Every man according as he purposeth
in his heart, so let him give, not grudgingly or of necessity,
for God loveth the cheerful giver. This passage is speaking directly
about giving money to the Lord, but it has application in every
endeavor which we undertake in service to Him. What is the purpose
of serving the Lord out of habit and duty if we take no delight
in it? The religious man would argue
that his habitual devotion is an acceptable substitute for
true worship. Yet the Lord denied that it is
so in his discourse with the woman at the well in Samaria.
God is a spirit, and they that worship him must worship him
in spirit and truth. May the Lord help us to develop
the habit of prayer, but let us not allow prayer to become
merely a habit. Prayer without order, zeal, and
desire is like fire with no flame. May we develop the habit of a
systematic study of his word, but oh that we might be delivered
from the study of his word, which is not bathed in prayer and not
fed upon as manna to a hungry soul. Study without devotion
is like an oasis with no water. Let us gain a habit of assembling
with the brethren each time we have the opportunity. But dear
saints of God, may our delight be in the fellowship of the brethren
and not in the satisfying of some pang of religious conscience.
Church attendance without joy, worship, and the fellowship of
the saints is like a cloud with no rain or a rose with no fragrance. May it never be said of us, this
people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth and honoreth me with
their lips, but their heart is far from me. What is your habit? For a free CD containing 15 of
these radio broadcasts, send an email to forthepoor at windstream.net.