Just a Matter of Knowing What to Do . . .

A while back, Sandy and I decided that we needed to purchase a car to leave at the house in Burnet since we always travel there in one car, and then both want to go in different directions while we are there. I want to go to the YMCA to work out and she wants to go to Walmart, or the beauty shop, or to get a massage. Last month we went car-shopping . . . and bought a cool, very clean and low-mileage A4 Audi convertible. What a sweet little car! When we left Burnet, we went to Austin where we met Chris and Courtney, who had driven my Escalade up to meet us. Sandy liked the Audi so much that she left her BMW in Burnet and brought the Audi home for a while. Chris and I went to Waco for a business dinner and Sandy and Courtney drove home.


Last week Chris drove the Audi and came home and reported that the electric top would not work. I took it to the auto repair shop and the guy said he could not fix it. I did what folks do in this modern era . . . I did a Google search and discovered that the code on the LED screen is a common failing on that particular car. After watching the YouTube video, I called the mechanic who is restoring the old Sting Ray. He said, “Bring it over and let me take a look.” I did and he had it back in perfect working order in ten minutes! It was simply a matter of knowing what to do . . . and he knew!


That is one of the great challenges in life . . . to learn what to do . . . and when to do it. When one learns that, life becomes a breeze . . . well, I suppose . . . but I sure have not reached that place yet.

I think the Apostle Paul sure did.

 

The Inheritance . . .

I taught 1 Peter 1:1-9 in Sunday school yesterday morning. What a terrific passage of Scripture . . . what heavy-duty theology packed into such a small amount of space.

Peter identifies the intended recipients as “The Elect” . . . and goes on to say that we were chosen by God, set aside for sanctification . . . all so that we can serve Christ. He then declares that we have an inheritance . . . undefiled, incorruptible, and untarnished . . . and totally protected by God Himself!

Peter was writing his epistle to both Jews and Gentiles (all those who were not Jewish . . . who were Believers and scattered across Asia Minor) . . . basically homeless folks without a homeland. The Jews in the group had been promised the Nation of Israel (the Promised Land) as an inheritance . . . but were sad that it had been lost to them. That precious inheritance had been ravaged by war, famine, plagues . . . defiled by idolatry . . . and lost to those other nations because of sin and rebellion. Those Jews knew the sorrow of a lost inheritance. That land is still being fought over . . . and its ownership in constant dispute.

I know something of a lost inheritance. My Maternal Grandfather owned a few sections of land in the Texas Hill Country . . . by far the most expensive land in rural Texas today . . . some of it as much as $25,000 per acre. For a variety of reasons, no one in my family has lived on that place since my mother was about 15 years of age. In fact, the place has been forever lost to my family. That loss troubled my mother well into her golden years . . . she loved that land, and spoke of it often.

Peter’s message to those pilgrims was two-fold:

1. Hang on . . . stand pat . . . The Lord is using your current struggles to develop you . . . much the same as a jeweler uses heat to purify gold and silver . . . but those struggles won’t always be your story; and

2. That the reward is eternal . . . it is our inheritance. As Believers, we are joint heirs with Jesus, meaning . . . whatever God has in store for Jesus throughout eternity . . . we will be a part of that! That inheritance can never be lost . . . as the Promised Land was lost to the Jews . . . and as was my grandfather’s land lost to my family. Peter, inspired by God, declares that our inheritance he was describing can never be lost or tarnished . . . because God, with all of His majesty, might, power, resources, authority, and powerful army guards . . . protects . . . insures . . . and guarantees it! He also declares that God simply cannot fail . . . He must prevail . . . He will deliver . . . in a time and manner of His choosing!

Meanwhile, all who read Peter’s letter are instructed to: understand who we are in Christ, to live holy and obedient lives, to hold onto the living hope we have in Christ, to run our race, to finish our course, and to wait on the Lord to work it all out according to His master plan . . . and to do that we need to get our focus off of us and focus on Christ.

A mansion . . . streets of gold . . . never a tear-drop . . . no more pain . . . no more sorrow. Now, I can get excited about that as an inheritance! What about you?

I recall having read of two old bachelor brothers, Homer and Langley Collier, of upstate New York. They were the sons of a prominent surgeon who left them financially well off . . . a large three-story mansion built on a hillside and a large bank account. Over time, Homer and Langley became reclusive, and began to hoard . . . after a while no one ever seemed to see either of the brothers. Years later the mailman reported a foul odor at the front door. The authorities finally managed to gain access to the old mansion by a 3rd-story bathroom window. The discovery was grizzling . . . trash and junk piled from floor to ceiling with barely walk space all over the house. After 27 dump trucks of debris had been removed from the house, the authorities found Langley’s body beneath seven years of newspapers. When questioned, Homer said Langley had lost his eyes sight seven years before and he had been saving the newspapers so Langley could catch up on his reading when his eyesight returned. The tragedy of the story is that these two brother . . . in spite of a grand inheritance . . . chose to live as if the inheritance did not exist and foolishly satisfy themselves with trash, junk, and clutter.

Believers can make that same foolish choice . . . and live with a bunch of baggage and junk in our lives.