Philippians 2:16-18

Hello Everyone!



I made this Spaghetti Sauce recently

and thought... “I need to put this in the Bible Study blog!!” I found this in my

hometown’s paper in Greensburg, Indiana years ago.

I have so enjoyed making it, because it is quick, fresh tasting and...

cheaper to make than buying jar spaghetti sauce.

(which I have done many times, also!!)

Drumrollllllllll.........




Here it is...


“Fast Cooking, Slow Tasting Spaghetti Sauce”

(This makes about 4 cups. You may want to double or triple the recipe.

Bob and I can get 4 servings total from this.)

3 TBLS. Olive Oil (this makes it taste really good!)

1-28 oz. Can of Crushed Tomatoes

1-15 oz. Can of Tomato Sauce

1 TBLS. Minced Dehydrated Onion

½ Tsp. Minced Dehydrated Garlic (I use the jar minced garlic or fresh)

½ tsp. Dried Basil

¼ Tsp. Black Pepper

1 Tsp. Oregano

½ Tsp Dried Parsley

(FYI, just in case you do not shop the Dollar Stores...

you can get these spices at very reasonable prices there!)

Heat the olive oil in a 6 qt. saucepan over medium heat.

Add the crushed tomatoes and tomato sauce.

Add the remaining ingredients.

Blend thoroughly; simmer for 30 minutes over a low heat, stirring often.

For Mushroom Sauce, saute’ one drained 4 ½ oz. jar of mushrooms in the olive oil.

(or use fresh mushrooms) Continue directions for the basic sauce.

For Meat Sauce, brown ½ pound of ground beef or turkey in a pan.

Drain off grease, if you have some. Add to basic sauce during the last 10 minutes of

simmering.

OK......now to our main purpose ~ God’s Word!!

We are looking at 3 verses this week ~ 16, 17 & 18.

Verse 16 - “as you hold out the Word of life-in order that I may boast on the day of Christ that I did not run or labor for nothing.”

Verse 17 – “But even if I am being poured out like a drink offering on the sacrifice and service coming from your faith, I am glad and rejoice with all of you.”

Verse 18 - “So you too should be glad and rejoice with me.”

As you “hold out the Word of life”...

Some footnotes show “or hold on to” for this phrase.

This gives me two mental pictures:

1.) Picture someone that you are talking to in conversation about their life’s

situations. They are physically or mentally wringing their hands

in hopelessness.

You “hold out the Word of life” to them to place in those wringing hands.

You tell them God’s promises.

You tell them being a Christian is not always easy,

but you have the promise of Someone Who is always there for you, 24/7...

even though you may not feel it at the time, you will when you look back at your

circumstances.

2.) I talked to one of my daughters yesterday on the phone.

My heart swelled with joy as she was telling me of a tension filled time in her life

when she clung to her Bible. That was her lifeline.

I had a time in my own life when...what is it that they say...

the thing that you fear the most comes upon you?

Welllll...that happened to me and I slept with my Bible and carried it around

during the day...it was what gave me my hope, peace and guidance through one of

the most difficult times in my life.

...“that I did not run or labor for nothing.”

I don’t know about you, but I can hardly watch the Olympics.

When I see an athlete, who has prepared for this moment in time,

for the majority of their years on earth, and then in one split second...

their hopes and dreams are dashed.... Ughhhh...

I can hardly look at the TV screen.

This is what I hear Paul saying here.

Let’s go to the city of Rome in our imagination...

the thrilling metropolis of gladiators, chariots and empires.

But we will not stop at the coliseum or palace.

We are going to a drab little room.

As we open the creaking door,

we see a room without windows,

lit only by an oil lamp sitting on a table.

Immediately, we are assaulted by the musty odor in the room

and the taste of the dirt floor rising up to our mouths.

Inside we see a man seated in the far corner.

He is an older fellow, shoulders stooped and balding...

stooped, because his eyesight is dimmed

and he needs to have the paper close to his eyes,

even though he writes in big letters.

We hear the noise in the street outside this room in this house-arrest place.

We hear the rumble of the carts.

We hear the horses’ hoofs on the stone pavement.

The world is passing by this older and bent man but he cannot join the crowd

outside in the sunshine.

The oil lamp illuminates the gleam of the chains on his hands and feet.

And...chained to him is a guard from the Roman army

whose sword glistens in the glow from the oil lamp.

As he struggles to even wipe his dirty hands on his rough and scratchy clothes,

he has every reason to be in a slump!

But his main concern is...

with the salvation of the lost than with vindication for himself.

One commentary said that he had been serving God for 20 years

(like a trained athlete)

and his main concern was that on Judgment Day,

he would see his fellow believers and that he would not have labored

(and trained) in vain!!

“But even if I am being poured out like a drink offering on the sacrifice and service

coming from your faith, I am glad and rejoice with all of you.”

Drink offering...

In the Old Testament, the drink offering would be the final offering of a sacrifice.

One commentator said that the wine would be poured over the burning sacrifice

which resulted in a steam or vapor going up to heaven.

This would symbolize the ending of our life.

Also, to me a drink offering means giving something to the Lord that you wanted to

keep for yourself, that was precious to you.

OK...these people, the Israelites were in a desert...

It would not be easy to get their wine or water for that matter.

They could not take their camel and drive to the nearest WalMart



and purchase a week’s supply.

I would think that ANYTHING liquid in a desert would be a precious

commodity and you would want to hoard and protect...

not just pour it out willy-nilly on a dead animal!!!

This brings me to several life application thoughts...

What are we holding onto in our lives that we think that we cannot ever give up?

What are we holding onto that we would NEVER want to give over to God?

What are we holding onto that we say...

"nah...I had better keep that for myself in these shaky times

with no relief in sight... "

Are we holding onto our money when God says

“Give it to that person over there?”

Are we holding onto our very lives and not giving them as a sacrifice to God?

Please allow me to repeat myself...

these people were in a desert and had NO IDEA when or if they would be able to

restock, refuel, replenish their supplies.

They had wait or go, depending on a pillar of fire or a cloud!!

Could we do that today?

But here in lies the SECRET.

Oprah has her SECRET...

The Bible has its “SECRET”.

The secret is.... when you give yourself completely over to God and say...

I will move when You say to move,

I will stay when You say to stay,

I will give when You say to give...

That is the secret to having JOY!!

“So you too should be glad and rejoice with me.”

May you and I seek that joy, that joy unspeakable. AMEN.

Until next week,


Debbie G.

(References: Online Commentary listed in the "Links" sidebar of the blog, 8 sentences from Max Lucado's Introduction to the Book of Philippians in the Inspirational Study Bible and the HOLY SPIRIT!!!)

Philippians 2:8-11

Hello Everyone!

Here is a great reminder about the Fireproof movie coming up
Friday, September 26!
Click on "Watch Videos" and you will be amazed. I think that the PG rating must come from some of the intense scenes with the firemen's traumatic rescue scenes. There is ABSOLUTELY no bad language or intimate scenes that your children should not see. It is about marriage and "Never Leaving Your Partner Behind". How do I know? Read my left sidebar about the movie for more details. I know Bob and I are going to go that Friday night or Saturday matinee or evening. Anyone here in the Franklin area want to go with us and get lunch or dinner before or after the movie...? Or make this a date with your spouse...you will never regret it!!

Now we are continuing with Philippians 2:8-11,

where we are discussing how we are to imitate

Christ's humility.

Or as I said last week, "Rejoicing in Christ as the Pattern of Our Life".

I noticed in my New International Version Bible

that the verses from 6 through 11 were indented

and were typed with more space between the lines

with no reference that would indicate that these

verses were found in another section of the Bible.

Did anyone else notice that?

After dutifully reading in the front of my Bible

in the Preface, (read boring) I saw where these

verses are in a poetic form.

This "poem" is beautiful!!

Speaking of poems...

in my research on these verses,

I was blessed to come across "poems" by

Ruth Harms Calkin.

I say "poems" because

they are more like "prayer poems" ~ w.o.w.

They are powerful, thought provoking, showing her

transparent feelings and "being real" feelings.


Our topic this week::::::::::Servanthood::::::::::!!!

Get ready...fasten your seat belt...here is Miss Ruth's "poem" on servanthood:

“You know Lord, how I like to serve You with great emotional fervor in the limelight. You know how eagerly I speak for You at Women’s Clubs. You know how I effervesce when I promote a fellowship group. You know my genuine enthusiasm at Bible study....
... But, how would I react, I wonder, if You pointed at a basin of water?
And asked me to wash the calloused feet of a bent and wrinkled old woman?

• Day after day

• Month after month

• In a room where nobody saw and nobody knew.”

----Ruth Harms Calkin (Added bullets for emphasis, are mine.)

Gulp...as my daughter says on her blog...Yelp....

Here is a link to a short autobiography about Miss Ruth:



Here is a link to more of Miss Ruth's "prayer poems":

My mom enjoyed reading Helen Steiner Rice poems and I

"kinda" liked them. But Miss Ruth's "poems" really touch my soul

and.make.me.think.

Are there any other of you precious readers out there in blog world

that have read and enjoyed Miss Ruth's work before now?

Please comment and tell us what you think of Miss Ruth's "poems".

OK...now let's get to the Word of God!!

Verses 8-11:

(8) "And being found in appearance as

a man,
He humbled Himself
and became obedient to
death-
even death on a cross!
(9) Therefore God exalted Him to
the highest place
and gave Him the name that is
above every name,
(10) that at the name of Jesus every
knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and
under the earth,
(11) and every tongue confess that
Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father."

(Some capitalizations are mine)

Did you notice that from verse 5 (last week's post) to 11,

there is a building of honor and emotion?

It reminds me of one of my most favorite

chapters in the Bible ~ Romans 8 ~

I appreciate how there is a cresendo of praise

at the end in both passages.

Now...let's see (again)...who wrote Romans 8? ~

oh yeah...Paul (again!)

Verse 8 ~ "He became obedient to death" ~

a servant.

The best leader has a servant's heart.

As Christians, we have the best Leader ever,

because He was the best Servant for us.

Servanthood=Meekness=Humility=Teachability.

I pray that I never move out of the sphere of teachability.

May we have submissive acceptance of the will of God

as it comes in the hour's event of each day.

Not one of us knows if we will be alive in the next minute.

We have this present moment.

(Hmmmmm....sounds like someone who is chained

to a Roman guard and not 100% sure he will make it

out of that jail.)

Verse 9 ~ "God exalted Him to the highest place." ~

On earth, Jesus was crowned with thorns. (Matthew 27:29)

In heaven He is crowned with glory and honor. (Revelation 5:12-14)

In heaven, He is given a Name that is above every name! (Revelation 19:16)

The first time He came to earth, He came as a humble, innocent and may I say

"vulnerable" baby. (Luke2:1-20)

The second time He comes to earth,

He will come as our Warrior King,

sitting upon a white horse. (Revelation 19:11)

Here is a link to look up Scriptures not printed out.


Here is a link below for a hymn that celebrates these verses:

(No fancy music at cyberhymnal, but maybe you will recognize the song.

Friendly reminder: you will have to turn off my Playlist to listen.)


Verse 10 ~ "...at the name of Jesus every knee should bow..."

Verse 11 ~ "...every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord..."

Every tongue shall profess openly that Christ is Lord.

In a manner of speaking, the tongue confesses that to which the knee bows.

(This passage does not teach that ultimately all the lost will be saved,

as taught by some "groups".)


"Again we see the vindication of servanthood. Christ was willing to make others more important than Himself and now God has made Christ eternally more important than anyone else."
(Dwight Edwards)

It is interesting to note that when a ruling dignitary approaches his subjects, they all rise in respect. One day as a British king entered a room and everyone stood, he said,

“Please take your seats, gentlemen. I’m not the Lord, you know.”

“No, Your Highness,” replied one of the group. “If you were, we would have dropped to our knees.”

"And every created thing which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all things in them, I heard saying, 'To Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, be blessing and honor and glory and dominion forever and ever'. And the four living creatures kept saying, 'Amen'. And the elders fell down and worshiped." (Rev 5:13-14)

Amen.

Practical Application:

If you are a family with children or teenagers "under your wing", plan to talk to them around the dinner table about this subject of servanthood with Jesus as our Example. Make a tradition to have each family member say who they served that day. Give examples. Talk about this being the antidote for being self-centered ~ w.o.w.

If you are single or empty nesters, ask God to bring someone your way each day to serve. Ask for Divine appointments. Write them down in a journal. Or when you lay your head on your pillow each night, make a habit of reviewing your day and remembering who you served that day or share with your spouse.

Until next week, go with God and worship Him every day and see who you can serve today!

Debbie G.

(Resources used: http://www.preceptaustin.org/
blueletterbible.org/commentaries)

Philippians 2:1-7

Hello Everyone!

We are starting the 2nd Chapter of Philippians!!

As a reminder, here is the Book of Philippians outline presented in the 3rd post ~

titled "Let's Get Started!"

I. Rejoicing in Christ as the Principle of Life (Chapter 1:1-11)

II. Rejoicing in Christ as the Pattern of Life (Chapter 2:1-30)

III. Rejoicing in Christ as the Prize of Life (Chapter 3:1-21)

IV. Rejoicing in Christ as the Power of Life (Chapter 4:1-23 )


Soooo..we are starting on "Rejoicing in Christ as the Pattern of Life".

The main topic this week will be tadummmm....."Humility".

But before we talk about humility, let's start with Chapter 2:

Verses 1-2:

"If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from His love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose." (New International Version, some capitalizations are mine.)

• If you have encouragement from Christ

• If you have any comfort from His love

• If you have any fellowship with the Holy Spirit
  
• (Do you allow the Holy Spirit to comfort and guide you?)

• If you have any, (not all, I think) of these graces present in your life,
  

then, the result will be peace, joy,

UNITY

and tender mercies.

Don't you just love the sound of those two words ~

"tender mercies"? Beeeeeeautiful!

Unity will prevail, differences will be dissolved, bickering will cease

and estrangements will be completely healed. Easier said than done ~ right?


Paul said that his joy would be complete ~ filled up to the full ~

full and running over when he would see this unity of heart, soul and mind!

We parents know how we feel when our children,

from the babes to the adult ones,

get along and show love to each other.

This is what Paul was saying; when he sees this...

his heart is full of joy...

full and running over.

Now this UNITY would require some humility on our part.

Verses 3-4:

"Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others."

If we would do this, would we have unity or at least more unity?

What do you think?

But you say..."That is not possible all the time, 24/7."

It can be a process...what can our model be?

Answer:

Verses 5-7

"Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made Himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness."


Some humility is good.

Some humility is bad.

Some pride is good.

Some pride is bad.

This week, we are going to spotlight the bad humility.

This bad humility is:

**when we think too little of ourselves,

**when we are afraid to be human...

**when we are harder on ourselves and one another than God is...

**when we refuse to accept that God has lavished the grace of Christ upon us...

**when we fail to accept our calling...

**when we refuse to celebrate our unique gifts and abilities.


The root word for “humility” and “humble” is humus,

meaning “rich earth,” or dirt—

the material out of which humans are made in Genesis.

But that doesn’t mean we have to grovel.

Indeed, when the Spirit breathes life into humanity we are,

to use one theologian’s phrase, “inspired mud pies,”

God-breathed, and created in God’s image—

and that’s something we can be proud of!!



Please allow me to "preach" to me and you for a few lines...

Our example is Jesus, as stated in verses 5-7.

Do you think Jesus...

**Thought too little of Himself?

**Was afraid to be human?

**Put Himself down over and over in His thought life?

**Refused to accept that the love of the Father was lavished on Him?

**Failed to accept His calling?

**Refused to celebrate His unique gifts and abilities?


Ouch...Double Ouch!!


Quotes on humility from the article I used for a resource.

(I also used portions of the article for some of this blog.)

"Humility is thinking of ourselves less, not thinking less of ourselves."

"I know people who have a low self esteem and are very proud and others with a high self esteem and very humble. Humility is acknowledging God as your everything while appreciating the gifts, talents and uniqueness he has given you."

"True humility would EMBRACE

the gifts that Christ bestowed through His grace, recognizing the origin of and purpose behind those gifts - to glorify God and help to raise up a generation behind us that would do the same." (Amen!)

"A good friend once told me, 'Humility is the courage to be who you really are...'"

"Humility...could be a cure for shame. I can testify that in the humility of living life before God as if He were indeed God and I was not, and growing in the knowledge that He dearly loves me and all His grace is there for me in Jesus, there is a wonderful freedom to blossom

into all that He has made me to be. There is no fear, no shame or crippling self-consciousness; simply a joy of moving and being in His presence no matter what I'm doing. There is a total freedom to learn from Him, run to Him when I mess up or see the darkness that sometimes is in my heart--- and rejoice when He calls me to move in whatever He's doing at the moment. Biblically, grace and genuine humility go hand in hand, and it is a sweet gift that sets free."

"Ah! Yes! A struggle not unknown to me...daily evidence is my constant apologizing for things...such as the quality of the meal I have provided for my family. So the trick is to love ourselves and lift our heads...yet not become arrogant or hold others in contempt..after all, if HE loves us..."

Yep, that is where I am coming from ~ that last quote.

I don't think I hold others in contempt...

I hope not.

So they do not do things the way I do them...

who says my way is the right way?

For sure I do not do things the right way....

I would love to hear your thoughts about the "wrong side of humility".

God bless your week,

Debbie G.

**************************************************************************

After Bible Study Chit-Chat...

Here is a video link to a favorite easy dessert ~ Jello Cake or a.k.a Poke Cake!

Please click on the words "Jello Cake..." and it will appear!!