The Week in Review

Servant Leadership – Purpose for Today, Impact for Tomorrow

Written by Minister Jewel D. Williams

Written December 2009

Introduction

Ronald J. Burke and Carl L. Cooper in their book, Inspiring Leaders ask the question, what do leaders do? Their response is, “Leaders have two main activities: Create an agenda for change (vision and strategy) and build a strong implementation network (a strong motivated core group).”[1] A leader’s ability to create change is influenced by his or her leadership style, which can facilitate the motivation of others to embrace the vision and strategy for change. This writing will examine the leadership style of the servant leader.

Larraine Segil, Marshall Goldsmith and James A. Belasco in their book, Partnering: The New Face of Leadership, posit, “The concept of ‘servant leadership’ has become very popular in the last few years. As Confucius wrote, ‘To become the master, you must become the servant of all.’”[2] Servant leadership conveys the understanding that one must be willing to serve others in order to truly institute one’s power. This writing will define what it means to be a servant leader from a biblical perspective. Furthermore, it is this writer’s intent to explain the characteristics and the goals of the servant leader to understand how this impacts organizations today and how it will influence organizations for tomorrow.

What is Servant Leadership?

Charles C. Manz, writer of the book, Leadership Wisdom of Jesus: Practical Lessons for Today, defines what servant means. “Being a servant is fairly straightforward: look for others’ needs and try to help meet them. The Golden Rule – do to others as you would have them do to you.”[3] The concept of a servant leader is not a new one; it first appeared in the Bible, but how did the concept appear in the business world?


Authors, Larry C. Spears and Michele Lawrence of the book, Focus On Leadership: Servant-leadership for the Twenty-first Century, elucidate how the term began. Robert K. Greenleaf coined this term in an essay he wrote in 1970 called “The Servant as Leader”. “Since then, the servant-leader concept has had a deep and lasting influence on many modern leadership theories and practices.”[4] Spears and Lawrence further explain Greenleaf’s concept when they write, “Becoming a servant-leader begins with the natural feeling that one wants to serve, to serve first. Then conscious choice brings one to aspire to lead.”


Authors David Caruso and Peter Salovey of the book, The Emotionally Intelligent Manger: How to Develop and use the Four Key Emotional Skills of Leadership, explain the emotional make up of a servant leader. “We have found that those higher in emotional intelligence tend to be more interested in developing and helping people.”[5] The finding that emotional intelligence contributes to one becoming a servant leader substantiates the necessity for one to understand the needs of others and utilize that understanding to lead.


Larry Spear in an article titled, “Practicing Servant-Leadership” further explicates Greenleaf’s servant leadership concept. “True leadership emerges from those whose primary motivation is a deep desire to help others.”[6] Spear’s further explains that Greenleaf felt a need for a better approach to leadership, “one that would put serving others – including employees, customers, and community – as the number one priority.”[7]

So what is servant leadership? Servant leadership emphasizes increased service to others, which is a holistic approach to work, promoting a sense of community and the sharing of power in decision-making. A servant leader is emotionally motivated to care for others. This is in line with what God requires from his children that they care for one another. God calls his children to be “emotionally intelligent” and make others a priority.


Where can an individual obtain information pertaining to what makes one a servant leader? There are unquestionably many writers that are willing to lend their understanding to this subject, however this writing turns first to another source, the Bible (come back next week for the next installment).

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[1]Ronald J. Burke and Cary L. Cooper, Inspiring Leaders (New York: Taylor & Francis Routledge, 2006), 8.



[2] Larraine Segil, Marshall Goldsmith and James A. Belasco, Partnering: The New Face of Leadership (New York: AMACOM Books, 2003), 253.



[3] Charles C. Manz, Leadership Wisdom of Jesus: Practical Lessons for Today (San Francisco: Berkeley Berrett Koehler, 2005), 117.



[4] Larry C. Spears and Michele Lawrence, Focus On Leadership: Servant-leadership for the Twenty-first Century (New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2002), 18.



[5] David Caruso and Peter Salovey, The Emotionally Intelligent Manager: How to Develop and Use the Four Key Emotional Skills in Leadership (San Francisco: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2004), 203.



[6] Larry C. Spears, “Practicing Servant-Leadership.” Leader to Leader 2004, no. 34:7-11. Academic Search Complete, EBSCOhost (accessed December 2, 2009), 8.



[7] Ibid.

The Week in Review

WHERE ARE WE GOING?

Poem Written by Minister Jewel D. Williams

Do you know where we’re going?

Have you any idea where this road is leading?

Sometimes this path gets lonely.

There’s no one around to talk to,

or that understands the things you do.

Every now and then,

you meet a friendly face.

Sometimes this road has deep drops and tall mountains.

They slow you down, but God is always there directing your path.

Sometimes the road gets long,

the further you go, the longer it gets.

That’s okay, you’ll reach your destiny in do time.

You lose those that didn’t want to make the journey,

they get smaller and smaller in the horizon behind you,

until they aren’t there at all.

Sometimes you get tired on this journey.

God is your fueling station,

ready to replenish your strength so you can go on.

Where are we going?

Have you any idea where this road is leading?

This is the path of life,

the path God gave you to take.

It’s hard at times, but it has its rewards.

For when we reach our destiny,

God is standing at the paths end,

welcoming his faithful travelers to there heavenly home.

So journey on weary traveler, journey on.

The Week in Review

Written by Minister Jewel D. Williams

Christian Education Ministry & Discipleship (part 3)

On September 29, 2006

One key finding of faith development is that it has the potential to grow throughout adulthood. Adult activities must be created to challenge an individual’s faith to grow. The development of faith is nurtured by encouraging Christians to understand and interact with other’s thoughts, feelings and behavior. The author Dennis Dirks, one of the contributing authors to the book, Introducing Christian Education: Foundations for the Twenty-first Century, states, “The insights of faith development theory have much to contribute to the Christian leader and the process of Christian education. Its principles enlarge our understanding of the human psychological aspects of spiritual development” (83). With all of these theories, there are positive aspects that can be used to help in teaching, however there are also weaknesses and limitations. The Bible must be the final determining factor as to how development of faith is measured. This must be based on sound doctrine and biblical imperatives.

I must determine how does this information help me to guide and instruct individuals? I must determine what my purpose and goal of teaching is in light of this new learning. I must find what my intended leadership style and teaching style is in light of this new learning. Every person is unique in the way they learn and this is true for how people lead others. It is important for one to review their personal style for its strengths and weaknesses. One should continue to nurture the strengths in their leadership style. The weaknesses should be evaluated to determine what needs to be changed and how to accomplish that task.

One step I took to better my ability to lead is to have a mentor that has gone this way before to help me. I have a spiritually healthy mentor. My mentor, Reverend Cynthia Thomas, has encouraged me just as Paul encouraged Timothy. “Let no one look down on your youthfulness, but rather in speech, conduct, love, faith and purity, show yourself an example of those who believe” (1 Timothy 4:12).

As a leader one must first ensure their life is an example of Christian character. In teaching others, we must first model to them what is acceptable behavior. Joseph M. Stowell, the author of Shepherding the Church states, “First on the list is his speech – what he says about other people, what he says to people, what he is not willing to say, and what he is willing to courageously proclaim” (111). It is important that my speech is godly speech. It is also important that I know when to speak and when to be quiet. People are looking for people that are trustworthy to share their personal concerns and situations. If they feel you are a busybody, they will not trust you with their information. I try to make sure that even when requesting prayer for someone, I do not give more information than is needed so as not to release sensitive information that was shared with me. As the leader of a women’s cell group, I must show myself trustworthy if I am to have those I lead trust in me. The women share very personal things about their lives and relationships. They must feel comfortable to share without fearing they will hear that which they shared being gossiped about from others.

I also believe it is vital to mentor and show others how to live for Christ. We cannot expect a new believer to understand how to walk until they are taught how. The next step is to show them how to duplicate the process. I believe this is missing in some of our churches. New believers are being led to believe all they have to do is “get saved” and that is all there is. This is simply the beginning of the process, not the end. Robert E. Coleman, the author of The Master Plan of Evangelism states, “Surely if the pattern of Jesus at this point means anything at all, it teaches that the first duty of a church leadership is to see to it that a foundation is laid in the beginning on which can be built an effective and continuing evangelistic ministry to the multitudes” (36).


I believe that no amount of programs or activities will take the place of well-trained believers. Jesus calls us to disciple others. This is the vital point of my leadership style. Whether it is in my Sunday school class, Junior Church or as the leader of a Cell group, I want to ensure all are trained in righteousness. I also understand that others will not follow my lead, if I am not doing what I am asking of them. I believe it is important to lead by example. This is what Jesus did with his disciples.

Jesus took aside his twelve disciples and showed them how to pray, how to “be” what he was calling for them to be. “It was an indispensable part of their training, which in turn they would have to transmit to others. One thing is certain. Unless they grasped the meaning of prayer, and learned how to practice it with consistency, not much would ever come from their lives” (Coleman, 72). If I want my students to know how important prayer is, I must show it to them. I also must teach them why prayer is vital to their lives.

I am still developing my style of leadership, but on these points I believe I am following Jesus’ example, as he would call for me to. I am first an example to those that I lead. I show them by my life how important it is to study and live the word. I also stress to those I lead the importance of sharing with others. I give them assignments that allow them to test the things they have learned. I believe this is in line with what Jesus did. He taught his disciples and then he sent them to do what they had learned. I can also take the new learning and use it to see if I am preparing lessons that are appropriate for the age group I am teaching. Am I being aware of the different learning styles and making sure all are receiving the information in a way that is understandable by them?

My desire is to be a leader that is in line with the example given through the life of Jesus Christ. Jesus was creative in his messages. He used things that people were familiar with to share important messages. I must be willing to do the same. I must be creative in my teaching style and be willing to use the things that are common to people to explain the deeper things. Jesus calls us to follow him as he followed after his Father. So I call others to follow me, as I follow after Jesus with the intention of going into the world and preaching the Gospel. Understanding ones purpose and setting goals to obtain that purpose is the first step to realization. After the purpose is understood, one must then understand and learn how to accomplish this goal. Once one has developed the strategies to accomplishing the how, it is time to understand one’s personal commitment and dedication to the purposes. When one has completed that task, it is with the help of the Holy Spirit that one can be a vital contributor to the mission of the church, which is to reach the lost and equip the saved.

Work Cited

Anthony, Michael J, et. al. Introducing Christian Education: Foundations for the Twenty-first Century. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2005.

Coleman, Robert E. The Master Plan of Evangelism. Grand Rapids, MI: Fleming H. Revell Company, 2005.

McBride, Neal F. How To Lead Small Groups. Colorado Springs, Colorado: Navpress, 1990.

Mintools.com/Christian Education Ministry Overview. 2006. 14 September 2006.
http://www.mintools.com/christian-education.htm.


Mintools.com/Christian Education Ministry Philosophy. 2006. 14 September 2006.
http://www.mintools.com/christian-education-2.htm.


Rheenen, Gailyn Van. Biblical Foundations & Contemporary Strategies: Missions. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1996.

Stowell, Joseph M. Shepherding the Church. Chicago, IL: Moody Press, 1997.

Thompson, Frank Charles, D.D., PH.D. The Thompson Chain-Reference Bible, 5th ed. Indianapolis, IN: B. B. Kirkbridge Bible Co., Inc., 1988.

The Week in Review

Minister Jewel D. Williams

World Religions and Cults (part 2 of 2)

Written on June 4, 2007

The Bible and The Koran: Are They the Same Truth?

They also do not believe that Jesus died therefore he was never raised. “What matters is that people thought that Jesus died, when he didn’t” (Emerick, 232). The Koran teaches that it is a falsehood against Mary, to say that Jesus has been put to death. The truth of Scripture does state that Jesus was crucified and was raised from the dead. “Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him” (Romans 6:9).



Muslims and Christians also differ in their belief about eternal judgment. Emerick states, “Will there be Christians and Jews in Paradise? According to Islam the answer is yes. The Qur’an states that any follower of those religions who ‘believes in God and the Last Day and does what is right will have nothing to fear or regret.’ Does this mean that Islam accepts Christianity and Judaism as valid paths to salvation? Yes and no. The Islamic principle is that you will be judged by what you knew. If a person only knew about Christianity or Judaism or whatever and never heard of Islam, then God will take that into account on Judgment Day and judge the person fairly by it. If a person finds out about Islam, then it becomes incumbent upon him or her to accept it and leave behind the former religion. This is because Islam is considered to be God’s last and, therefore, most complete message to the world” (233-234).



It is also stated in this writing by the author, Abu-Hamdiyyah, “God instructs Muhammad in the Qur’an: Say: [Thus speaks God] O you creatures (servants) of Mine who committed excesses against your own selves, do not despair of God’s mercy, for God forgives all sins. It is He who is the forgiving One, the Merciful. Hence, turn towards your Lord and submit [your faces, direction] unto Him before the suffering [of death and resurrection] comes upon you, for then you will not be helped. (Surah 39: 53– 54) Reading the Qur’an, one gets the certainty that God will not wrong human beings on Judgment Day, but other than that we cannot circumscribe God’s actions; after all, He is Sovereign Subjectivity, as is clear from Surah 21: 23: ‘He is not accountable [to any one] for what He does, but He questions others for what they do.’” (120).



It is also stated by Fisher this way, “Basically, Islam says that what we experience in the afterlife is a revealing of our tendencies in this life. Our thoughts, actions, and moral qualities are turned into our outer reality. We awaken to our true nature, for it is displayed before us. For the just and merciful, the state after death is a Garden of Bliss. Those who say, ‘Our Lord is God…shall have all that your souls shall desire…A hospitable gift from One Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful!’ (Sura 41:30-32) (346).


This belief regarding judgment is vastly different from the Christian belief. While there is a time of judgment where all will stand before God, it is not based solely on self. Scripture does not agree that men that have done good deeds will receive a good reward. Salvation and its rewards are only given to those that have accepted Jesus Christ as savior and not by works, lest any one should boast. Those who believed on the Lord Jesus Christ and submit their lives to him will enjoy the benefit of heaven; where there is no more sickness, sorrow, disease or death.


Scripture gives Jesus’ own words on his purpose in this world, “Doest thou believe on the Son of God? He answered and said, Who is he, Lord, that I might believe on him? And Jesus said unto him, Thou hast both seen him, and it is he that talketh with thee. And he said, Lord, I believe. And he worshipped him. And Jesus said, For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and they that which see might be made blind…Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye should not have no sin: but now ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth” (John 9:35b-39, 41). Jesus was speaking here of his purpose to offer mankind lost to sin, the free gift of salvation. Yet, if one refused his offer, they would remain in their state of sinfulness and would be found guilty in the judgment. It is not based on one’s own trying to do what is right. These are simply a few areas of difference between the Muslim and Christian faith, to do a fuller comparison would call for more than can be covered in this short paper.


“Although Muslims also accept the Bible as a holy book, they believe that the Koran is the ultimate source of divine instruction and information. Many familiar biblical events and people, such as the creation, the flood, the Exodus, Abraham, Moses, David, Solomon, and Jesus, are also found in the Koran” (Bashir, 346-347). This would make one ask, why are they so different, after reading the last quote? There is a vital point to understand and it is stated, “The caveat is that all other religious books have had their integrity compromised, and therefore the job of the Qur’an is to correct the mistakes of previous scriptures. ‘These are the verses of the Book that make things clear.’ (Qur’an 12: 1) Islam does not accept the Bible that was created in the fourth century as being authentic revelation. The Qur’an accuses Christians and Jews of inventing their own scriptures and mixing them with the authentic words of the prophets” (Emerick, 214).


While Muslims accept some of the prophets, they do not accept that the Bible is accurate and therefore, it is rejected as the true word of God. This is what creates the greatest difference between the Muslim and the Christian, the accuracy of the Bible. It is what the Christian faith is founded on. So when the Muslim takes from the Word of God and adds to it or takes away from it, they are in fact calling down the curse of God. Revelation 22:18 reads, “For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, if any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book”.


The Muslim and the Christian agree that there is one God, but it is in the application of faith that the differences are evident. Muslims believe they have the true word of Allah and that Christians are in error. Yet, as a believer, I am confident that God’s word is without error. When man is no more, God’s word will still endure. I end with this statement on inerrancy from the word of God, “For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away. But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you” (1 Peter 1:24-25).

Cited Work

Abu-Hamdiyyah, Mohammad. Qur’an: An Introduction to its Message. New York, NY: Routledge, 2000.

Bashir, Shahzad. The New Book of Knowledge: Islam. Danbury, CT: Scholastic Library Publishing, Inc., 2006.

Emerick, Yahiya. The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Understanding Islam. Indianapolis, IN: Alpha Books, 2001.

Fisher, Mary Pat. Living Religions, 3rd ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, Inc., 1997.

Thompson, Frank Charles, D.D., PH.D. The Thompson Chain-Reference Bible, 5th ed. Indianapolis, IN: B. B. Kirkbridge Bible Co., Inc., 1988.

The Week in Review

Written by Minister Jewel D. Williams

Christian Education Ministry & Discipleship (part 2)

On September 29, 2006

It is important also for the church to understand that if this great task is to be successful, all must be involved in the process. The resource Christian Education Ministry Overview states, “The Christian Education ministry of the church is not a one person job. It takes many people working at different levels and in different capacities…Listening to a sermon in the corporate worship service is not enough to facilitate true growth. Discipleship also needs to be happening on the personal level, one-on-one with fellow believers, in small groups, and in midsize groups. Each of these levels offers a different dynamic to the growth process” (Mintools.com, 1).


One of the strategies a church can examine is the use of small groups for example. Julie Gorman, one of the contributing authors from the book, Introducing Christian Education: Foundations for the Twenty-first Century states, “In the race to survive, many churches have responded to this phenomenon by developing small group programs with a specific focus on accomplishing biblical mandates…The challenge for the church is to find a way to integrate the benefits of small group ministry in such a way that it is done with theological integrity and programmatic quality” (176). The author Neal F. McBride in his book, How to Lead Small Groups, adds some fundamental input when he states, “Jesus Christ is pictured as the greatest small group leader in history. He is our model. Ephesians 4:1-2 (NIV) admonishes us, ‘Be imitators of God…and live a life of love.’” (15).


When a church has established programs and strategies, it must not forget the importance of understanding “who” they are teaching. It is important for a church to understand the beliefs regarding how people learn and grow in the Christian faith. The church must take the time to understand what effects cognitive, moral, and faith development have on the learning process. There are different learning styles one may utilize in teaching. All of these things must be considered when trying to teach in a way that is developmentally appropriate.


In the book, Introducing Christian Education: Foundations for the Twenty-first Century, the contributing author, Ellery Pullman states, “Piaget maintained that there are four major periods of cognitive development. Each period is age-related and has certain characteristics that permit various types of knowing and understanding” (68). According to the author, understanding these stages will help one better prepare for teaching different ages in an appropriate way. In the Sensorimotor Stage (0 – 2), for example, children learn about themselves and their environment through handling and experimenting with things around them. During the Preoperational Stage (2 – 7) children become more and more capable of thinking, using words to represent the objects and events they experience. The child’s imagination becomes more exposed during this stage. In the Concrete Operations Stage (7 – 11), the child develops the ability to think operationally. “An operation is a thought or mental action. Children are able to think more logically about their environment and execute mental operations that they previously had to carry out physically” (Pullman, 69).



The last of the stages, Formal Operations (11 – 15) is when children/youth are able to manipulate abstract ideas. Thought arises from a combination of maturing and experience. “A distinguishable feature of formal operational thought is the ability to think outside the box – to think of possibilities, not jus present reality” (Pullman 69). Understanding these stages, allows programming that is appropriate for each stage that will help the teacher meet the needs of the student. “There are several guidelines for applying Piaget’s concepts. First, the teaching of biblical concepts needs to focus on what learners at each stage can do and avoid what they cannot meaningfully understand. This implication needs to be understood very carefully, as recent research has shown that children in the preoperational and concrete operational stages can do more than initially believed by Piaget” (Pullman, 70).


The author’s James Riley Estep Jr. and Alvin W. Kuest, contributing writes in the book, Introducing Christian Education: Foundations for the Twenty-first Century states, “What is moral development? This question is often asked throughout society. Interest in the development of morals in children and adults has even reached into the arena of public education” (73). The authors inform the reader that the theories with the most impact on education have relied on cognitive development.


When theories are used in creating appropriate programs, the teacher has more tools available to them to provide what each group needs to grow. “Moral development is a critical concern for Christian educators, both in theory and practice. By gleaning insights from Scripture and the social sciences, we are better able to fashion a more complete understanding of moral development as well as provide more effective ministries in our local church… Understanding the development processes associated with moral development will allow us to be better educators in the classroom, in our Christian schools, and in our homes” (Estep, Jr. and Kuest, 81). (Come back next week for the next installment)

The Week in Review

Minister Jewel D. Williams

World Religions and Cults

Written on June 4, 2007

The Bible and The Koran: Are They the Same Truth?

Today many believe that the God of the Bible is the same God of the Koran. This belief comes from the fact that Muslims worship one God and mistakenly individuals think the Muslim belief is in agreement with the Christian faith. It is important, however to compare what the Koran states alongside the Bible to see what each faith really believes and teaches. While they both believe in one God, that is where the similarities stop. When such beliefs as the Godhead, the deity of Jesus Christ, salvation, and eternal judgment are compared within each faith, one will see these religions are very different. This comparison will make it clear that the God of the Bible is not the same God of the Koran.



In the book, Living Religions, the author Mary Pat Fisher states, “the first sentence chanted in the ear of a traditional Muslim infant is the Shahadah – ‘La ilaha illa Allah’, Literally, it means ‘There is no god but God.’ Exoterically, the phrase supports absolute monotheism. As the Qur’an reveals in Sura 2:163, Your God is one God: There is no god but He, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.” (342). While this may seem to be in agreement with the Christian belief of one God, there is a vast different in the two understandings of the one God.


One difference is Islam’s rejections of the concept of the Trinity. In the book, Qur’an: An Introduction to Its Message, the author, Mohammad Abu-Hamdiyyah states, “In the words of Surah 112: Say: God is One, the Eternal God. He neither begat nor was begotten. And there is none equivalent to Him” (50). The Koran (Qur’an) misrepresents the teaching of Christianity regarding the Godhead, claiming that Christians believe in three Gods, Father, Mother and Son (20). In the book, The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Understanding Islam, the author, Yahiya J. Emerick states, “The Holy Spirit - Islam says that there is no Holy Spirit other than the angel Gabriel who has that nickname.” (233).


However, Christianity does not teach there are three gods, but one God with three distinct personalities, The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. God speaks of himself in Genesis in the plural, “And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them” (Genesis 1:26-27). The Scripture also speaks to Jesus being God, “Who being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross” (Philippians 2:6-8).


Muslims do not believe this is accurate regarding Jesus, they do not believe he is God nor do they believe he is the Son of God, but a good prophet. “The Jewish prophets and Jesus all brought the same messages from God, Muslims believe. However, Qur’an teaches that God’s original messages have been added to and distorted by humans. For instance, Muslims do not accept the idea developed historically in Christianity that Jesus has the authority to pardon or atone for our sins…Muslims believe that Jesus prophesied to the coming of Muhammad when he promised that the paraclete (‘one who would be called to help the people’) would come to assist humanity after him” (Fisher, 330-340). When Jesus spoke of the paraclete, the “helper” he was speaking of the Holy Spirit that would guide individuals into all truth and equip them for the Christian life. Christianity believes Jesus is more than a prophet but he is the Son of God as well as one of the persons of the Triune God. Scripture states, “While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold a voice out of the cloud, which said, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him” and also “The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God:” (Matthew 17:5, Mark 1:1). These verses of Scripture clearly show the difference in beliefs.


Emerick writes, “The Qur’an puts it this way: ‘O Muhammad, We have sent revelations to you just as We sent them to Noah and the Prophets who came after him; We also sent revelations to Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob, his descendants, and to Jesus, Job, Jonah, Aaron and Solomon. We revealed the Psalms to David. Revelations were also sent to those Messengers whom We have already mentioned to you and to those whose name We have not mentioned to you, and God spoke to Moses directly. All these Messengers conveyed good news to mankind and admonished them so that, after conveying the message through the Messengers, people would have no excuse to plead against God. Indeed, God is the Mighty, the Wise.’ (Qur’an 4: 163– 165)” (182). Here Muslims accept Jesus as one of many prophets, but not as the Son of God. The Christian faith accepts scripture where God declares Jesus as His Son, “So also Christ glorified not himself to be made an high priest; but he that said unto him, Thou art my Son, to day have I begotten thee.” (Hebrews 5:5). We also have God declaring this similar message when John baptizes Jesus, where he states this is my son in whom I am well pleased (Matthew 3:17).


Another difference between these two religions is the belief regarding salvation. In The New Book of Knowledge encyclopedia, the contributing author, Shahzad Bashir states, “Islam teaches that each individual has a direct and personal relationship with God and that no intermediaries are required” (347). Emerick gives clarity to the belief about Jesus when he states, “So from the point of view of Islam, the Christian doctrine that Jesus is God is moot, because Jesus didn’t die anyway, and certainly not for the sins of humanity. Who was crucified on that fateful day? If anyone was executed, it may have been the man who betrayed Jesus. If he looked sort of like Jesus, in the confusion the Caucasian Romans may have grabbed him and killed him, thinking all Semites looked alike” (207). The Muslim then believes that salvation comes only through Allah and there is no need of someone to intercede on the behalf of sinful mankind. The Christian faith teaches that salvation comes through Jesus Christ. “Neither is there salvation in any other [than Jesus]: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, where by we must (my emphasis) be saved” (Acts 4:12). (Come back next week for the next installment.)

Words of Encouragement

(are you ready to jump into life? What's holding you captive? Decide to be fearless today).

FEARLESS

(Message from Virginia Prayer Retreat - 2/2010)

There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. – 1 John 4:18


What are you afraid of? There may be several different answers to this question.

Some are afraid of the dark, or of snakes or bugs. Some are afraid of those things they have no control over, such as illness or death. Some are afraid of doing something foolish in front of others, or looking bad. The underlying thing with all fear is a person’s inability to handle that fear and not knowing what the outcome might be, because of that fear. Fears are mainly related to what we think will happen. We are afraid of bugs because we think they will bite us and make us sick or hurt us. We are afraid of dogs because we think they may attack us. Some fears are based on previous experiences. If you were once attacked by a dog, now you are afraid of all dogs. So we are afraid or have fears of what we think may happen based on an event or situation.

There’s an acronym for fear. F=False E=evidence A=Appearing R=Real. Our fears are things that immobilize us because we are looking at evidence that we believe is real based on how it appears to us, and we respond to it even when it turns out to be false.

We know that we live in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in him and he in God. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are like him. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. We love because he first loved us. If anyone says, "I love God," yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen. And he has given us this command: Whoever loves God must also love his brother. - 1 John 4:13-21

Scripture background: This scripture, this entire book in fact, presents an overarching theme throughout the chapters. On one hand the scripture talks about our belief, our trust or faith. (we see that in 4:13-16). As we read these verses the key points are about us having the confidence or trust that we are in Christ. We have our testimony, our experiences, our understanding of God’s promises to reassure us of where we stand in God (we have our mind – our logical and reasoning processes, our hearts – our testimony and experiences, and soul – our assurance from God where the Holy Spirit bears witness with us). We have also the greatest thing, which is the love of God that dwells within us richly. Therefore we have several things in place to help us have the confidence in God and in our relationship with him.

Therefore this theme that runs through the scripture is: Belief (trust, faith) & Love (which is the perfect love of God) = strength for the believer to accomplish the things of God

But on the flip side: Fear (lack of faith or trust) results when reliance on love is absent. For example: If fear (false evidence appearing real) sets up in my heart or your heart, we begin to lose the trust or reliance on the Love of God which strengthens us. If my money situation is bad, health not so go, marriage in shambles, these things take on an appearance different than what they truly are. The truth may be these are things we are facing, but it is what we think about them that are not true and causes fear to set up in our hearts. The truth is God’s love for me is actively at work in those situations. The false evidence is that these things are going to over take me. They are going to destroy me and I’ll never recover from them. So fear sets in because we are afraid we have no control over those things in our lives and that somehow God has missed what is happening to us.

What things do we need to remember when fears grip us?

God is the source of all love (4:7-8) – Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.

We are not talking about emotional, temporary love. You know that kind of love, you love me then I’ll love you. You stop loving me, well then I’ll stop loving you. God’s love is unending. His love for us means God has committed himself, obligated if you will himself, to taking care of the needs of his children. In fact, we need to begin to believe that God finds pleasure in doing for his children. We need to think not of God as the “big Santa” in the sky that wants to give you everything you want. Because some things you want God is not going to give them to you because he knows they will make you a spoiled brat and he will not do anything that will cause you to separate yourself from him.

But he does desires to give his children good gifts. You can trust him. He tells us he is faithful to the faithful. If you were young, and have now gotten older can you say you have ever seen the Lord forsake his children or leave them begging bread? God is the source of all love. So when fears arise, we need to remind ourselves about the love of God for his children.

God models what genuine love is (4:9-10) – This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.

When we forget what genuine love looks like we need to remind ourselves using God as the example. He loved us enough to send his son to die for our sins. He loved first. We did not decided one day to love God, but he first loved us. And that love drew you and I to him by the wooing of the Holy Spirit. It is then the example of what we should do, we should in turn love others, first. Not wait until they love us and treat us well, but love them first.

God commands us to love each other (4:11-12) - Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us. We know that we live in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit.

God shows us how to love by his example. God’s very essence is love, therefore, when we belong to him, we are now equipped to love in return. It is our mandate to love those around us. The good, the bad, and the ugly.

I know you are probably asking, what has any of this to do with fear? Good question, glad you asked. Fear keeps us locked up and away from allowing the love of God to flow through us not only in our lives, but it cripples us from reaching others as well. Fears make us look at ourselves and think, I cannot do that. I cannot pray for this one or that one. I cannot pray like sister “Call heavendown”, so my prayers will simply fall out my mouth and hit the floor. Someone once shared this with me, and now I share it with you. Think of your prayers as smoke, they’ll rise up from your feet and reach heavenward. God is not looking for impressive prayers, just honest, sincere loved laced prayers.

Fears also keep you from seeing yourself. You look at yourself through the lenses of your past. Though those events really happened, fear gets in and you believe that now every time you do something, you’ll get the results you got before. If you were mistreated, you feel if you trust someone you will get abused or neglected again. That does not have to be truth. And really, even if everybody mistreated you, God has already given you the promise that he will be with your always, even until the end of time. So truth is you are not alone. Fear says you are.

Let’s now turn our focus to the verse 4:18 - There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.

1. No fear in love – As I have been trying to present, fear counteracts love. Fear gets in the way of perfect love being utilized as well as love being accepted. If fear holds your heart it is like placing poison in your yard. The toxin (fear) taints the hearts soil. Therefore, when God plants his love within our heart, if the soil is not ready to grow the seed, it is difficult to bring forth good fruit from the seed God has planted.

2. Perfect love – The good news is perfect love (God’s love) drives out that fear. Perfect love is like a consuming fire that burns off the imperfections of fear. It’s like going into your yard and pulling the weeds out by the roots. Not just chopping the heads off. You think you are really doing something when you pull the heads off the weeds, until you come back a day or so later and see the weed growing again. In this instant the entire root is pulled up. But have you even pulled a weed out that had been neglected and grown big? Did you see how large a whole it left? If something wasn’t put in that whole, you still could have a change of a weed growing again. So you put in some rich soil and took care of it. Well that is what perfect love is, it is like that rich soil that God puts into that now large hole that is in our heart. He removes the hole caused by fear, and places his love there so we can become complete.

3. Fear – has to do with punishment. Punishment has several meanings, “sentence, penalty, chastisement, scolding, caution, concern or worry”. What is that fear associated with? Not necessarily the fear of hell, but the fear of falling short, or being sentenced by God, or being scolded. Fear has several levels that we are drawn into if we allow it to set up in our hearts. We begin to be concerned about something. As our minds dwell on that, we begin to feel as if we are being sentenced or punished for something. We begin to worry that this thing will not go away. If it continues to go unchecked, we can begin to feel as if God is punishing us for something. So we ask, God why me, why does this have to happen to me? If we do not check fear, fear can become all consuming and makes us ineffective, in our prayer life, in our witness and in every aspect of our walk.

4. One who fears is not made perfect in love (this is what fear does). This is the result of what happens when we let fear grip our hearts. We are not made perfect. I like the word “wonderful” in place here. This perfect doesn’t mean without problems (for we will continue to have those), but it means that when we allow fear to get in we do not let God do the wonderful thing in our lives, which is to make us look more like His Son.



I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life. This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him. – 1 John 5:13-15

There is something that happens to our lives when we allow the perfect love of God to have control. What are those things:

1. We have confidence.

a. In worship – approaching God

b. In prayer - we can ask, and have faith we will receive

c. In our relationship – we know that God hears us, and that whatever we ask he will respond to us, thus we have faith in our relationship with our father, which helps us to become “fearless”.

2. We have love for others. – This love is what propels us to seek to help others even if it means sacrificing “self”. It helps us to do as Romans 12:1 states, “ 1Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship.”

3. We have love for ourselves. – This love is what allows us to face the truth about ourselves. This love will allow us to see our shortcomings but this love casts out fear so we do not respond by trying to hide, or becoming afraid of a sentence against our lives. This love allows us to accept what Romans 8:1 states, there is no condemnation for those that are in Christ Jesus.

What does it mean to be fearless?

Bold – bold in our witness (Acts 1:8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.")

Unafraid – (Romans 8:15 For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, "Abba, Father.") you no longer walk timidly through life because you cannot figure everything out (walk by faith, not by sight). You are willing to let go of the false evidence and see your life and situations through God’s lenses.

Brave – you are willing to stand even in situations that you may not feel you are capable of, yet the love of God in you propels you to do it. I didn’t want to come here. I told the Lord, what will these women be looking for? They probably have had some really great speakers and they will be looking at me, and I’ll be looking at them. And I had just worked my way into a freezy. God had to tell me, Jewel, I am making you fearless. You can go anywhere I send you in my power and my strength. That is the truth. The false evidence appearing real is that you won’t be effective. But truth is, if God calls you to it, he will see you through it.

Daring – (Matthew 19:26 Jesus looked at them and said, "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.") You are willing to do things that others may be afraid to do or that others think cannot happen. You’ll be able to walk out on the water like Peter did. You are willing to see the possibility even in situations that seem impossible. The love of God in you, helps you to see you can do even the impossible.

Valiant (heroic) – John 15:13 Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.) You are willing to even lay down your life for what is right. That may not mean your physical life, but you are even ready to be misunderstood, mistreated, misrepresented, all for the cause of Christ. Why? Because you have the love of God in you which compels you to obey even if it means your own way of life is affect.

My question then to you today is this, are you ready to let go of fears and become fearless for the Lord? That means letting go of those wrong self-images. Letting go of past mistakes that keep you from stepping into what God has called you to do? Letting go of all that keeps you from functioning in the perfect love of God. If you really want to step out into the deep, but have been too afraid, now is your day. Let’s do that right now.