Presently, we have a four-year-old grandson. He has more life and energy than grandpa, grandma, mommy and daddy combined. Actually, all our grandchildren do. However, our oldest in particular is constantly on the go and talking loudly. He finds it difficult to sit still for very long. Nonetheless, we’ve been working on the process of him attending church services with us. Recently I told him he needed to be very quiet while we were in the services. When this clearly wasn’t working, we told him firmly: “Will you please sit still and be quiet?”

In the Scriptures, the Lord repeatedly seeks to impress on our souls the need to be still and quiet. In Psalm 46:10, David records God’s message: “Be still and know that I am God.” When he was in times of “trouble” (46:1), David learned it was a good time to reflect quietly on God’s greatness and help. When an issue about how to properly worship the Lord arose, Moses told the questioners: “Stand still, and I will hear what the Lord will command concerning you” (Num. 9:8). Rather than clamor in an emotional state, their need was to wait quietly, listen and learn. When God instructed the prophet Samuel to announce to Saul that he was the choice of Jehovah to be king, Samuel wanted a private time with him away from all distraction. Then he told him: “…stand thou still awhile, that I may shew thee the Word of God” (1 Sam. 9:27).

As it was then, so it is now. The best condition to fully comprehend a message from God’s very words is in a state of quiet attentiveness without distraction. So important is this latter principle that we see Samuel practicing it again in the waning days of his ministry to Israel. He told them: “Now therefore stand still, that I may reason with you before the Lord of all the righteous acts of the Lord, which he did to you and your fathers” (1 Sam. 12:7).

We live in a time of too much busyness and distraction, especially with things that will not count in eternity. It is more important than ever for every child of God to recognize the necessity of being quiet and still before the Lord. This is true when we go to church to worship, and it is true every day. It is vital that we purpose to make time for a quiet time with the Lord and His Word each day.

In October of 2013, twelve-year-old Rebecca of Lakeland, Florida, took her life after being bullied by several other teens. A series of events, including malicious cyber messages to and about Rebecca drove her to a tragic end. Even after her death, one of the girls callously admitted she had bullied Rebecca, bragged about it and stated, in crass terms, that she couldn’t care less about what happened.

While the above might sound shocking, it has become commonplace in our society. In fact, in different degrees, it is common even in Christian circles. Believers of all ages allow themselves to participate in verbal bullying and many of us enable perpetrators by listening to things that should never be spoken. The Bible gives us an answer about how every godly Christian should respond to vicious words spoken against someone else.

God tells us in Proverbs 25:23: “The north wind driveth away rain: so doth an angry countenance a backbiting tongue.” The word backbiting means to attack the character or reputation of a person who is not present or, to speak slanderously of one who is absent. Oftentimes one who is backbiting is given an ear with the rationalization that the perpetrator is a friend, needs a sounding board because they are hurting, or needs counsel. But such concepts are contrary to the instruction of God’s Word. Malicious talk about someone who is not present doesn’t seek to solve the problem. It is an exercise to sin. Our response should be to let the guilty party know with certainty that it is wrong, and we want no part of such conduct. In 2 Corinthians 12:20-21, the Apostle Paul warned he would give an even stronger response to those who backbite or slander another. He would publicly “bewail many.” What do you think? Would confronting the backbiter in God’s way deter such sinful actions and perhaps aid in the health of the local church?

If you have been guilty of backbiting another, this is your opportunity to glorify your Savior. We suggest you stop this action immediately and, whether past or present, apologize, without excuse, to the one you victimized. When you hear backbiting, choose to respond as instructed above. We can either be the problem or the solution. From this point on, which will you be?

Spiritually speaking, Paul considered Timothy his “son in the faith” (1 Tim. 1:2). And, like any parent, he had noble aspirations for his loved one. In the Book of 2 Timothy, he is very specific about four things he wants Timothy to become for the Lord.

First, he wanted him to be a good servant of the Lord (1:6). God had given him a temporary spiritual gift that was not to be wasted, but consistently used in the local church, where he would have opportunities and the obligation to use this divine enablement.

Paul also wanted Timothy to become a good soul-winner (1:8). Apparently, there were real dangers in doing so for Timothy, and there was a danger he might shrink away from this essential task. He might allow the fear of men, and their reactions, to prevent him from sharing the gospel. If Timothy did not grow beyond such a fear, his lack of action would essentially be saying he was “ashamed of the testimony of our Lord.” What a reminder for us today as well!

Next, Paul wanted Timothy to be a good student of the Word (2:15). Specifically, he wanted him to diligently apply himself to the study of the Scriptures so that he would be able to rightly divide the Word.

Finally, Paul wanted Timothy to faithfully hold fast to the distinctive doctrines taught only by the Apostle Paul (1:13, 14), to continue in them without wavering (3:14), and then teach them to faithful men who would stand with him in dispensational truth (2:2). In Paul’s eyes, it would only be as Timothy achieved these four goals that he would be a spiritually-mature saint.

In a practical sense, each of us today can gauge our own spiritual maturity by measuring ourselves against these four goals that Paul had for Timothy. If we are consistently using our God-given capabilities for the Lord in our local church, then we’ve taken a step toward spiritual maturity. If we are bold and faithful in giving out the gospel to lost souls, we have taken another step toward maturity in Christ. If we are willing to endure hardship in ministry for Christ, without stopping our service, we have taken yet another step in maturity. If we are unwavering in our loyalty to the distinctive dispensational truths of God’s Word, as taught exclusively by Paul, we have taken still another important step toward spiritual maturity.

When young children begin to walk, they take one wobbly step at a time. Sometimes they fall down. The important thing in their development toward physical maturity is the process of getting back up when they fall, undeterred, and continuing to walk on toward greater stability. Dear saint, if you’ve fallen down in one of these four areas of growing in Christ toward spiritual maturity, get back up and start walking again in the right direction. Your Heavenly Father is watching and waiting to be pleased of what you choose to do next.

When South Africa’s Nelson Mandela died, news of his death dominated all newscasts. He was heralded as one of the greatest men of our day. People equated him to Martin Luther King Jr., Gandhi, and Mother Teresa, “all rolled into one.” His acclaim originated over his stand against racial injustices and inequalities in a country predominately ruled by whites. He spent 27 years in prison for his protests and alleged crimes, even refusing a release that was offered to him on the condition of renouncing his calls to revolution. Once released, he did not seek any revenge against those who had him incarcerated. Instead he preached forgiveness and healing. Eventually, Nelson Mandela rose to the highest office in his country, and at his funeral presidents, kings, prime ministers, and celebrities from all around the world came to honor him at a memorial service.

While witnessing all this worldwide news coverage for days, and hearing the constant acclaim for this man, this writer could not help thinking: “I know a far greater man who gave forgiveness to many and preached the good news of forgiveness.” Do you know this man? It was the God-man, God in the flesh, the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Savior came to Israel with the offer of the Gospel of the Kingdom, therein offering the forgiveness of sins. He taught His followers to pray to the Father for forgiveness (on the condition they must forgive others [Matt. 6:12-15]). When He healed a man sick with palsy he stated: “Son…thy sins be forgiven thee” (Matt. 9:2), and He taught Peter the necessity to forgive one who came asking forgiveness and to do so as many times as the one asking was sincere (Matt. 18:21-35).

Actually, the Lord Jesus Christ came offering divine forgiveness to all of Israel. Peter told his fellow Jews that Christ was now exalted to the right hand of God the Father in heaven “to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins” (Acts 5:31). This was the message of our Lord throughout His earthly ministry. He told His disciples He had come “to seek and to save them that are lost.”

Once Israel was set aside and the Apostle Paul was raised up by the Lord to minister to Gentiles, the message of forgiveness remained the focal point. The risen Savior explained Paul’s mission was to go to all the world, “to open their (sinners) eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they might receive the forgiveness of sins” (Acts 26:18). This would be done by pointing Jew and Gentile, man and woman, young and old, to personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ as their only hope for eternal life.

The Savior was the greatest example of forgiveness. Even after His enemies had Him falsely imprisoned, beaten, and crucified, He asked His Heavenly Father from the cross to “…forgive them, for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34). We know He could have called ten thousand angels to command His release from prison or the cross, but He refused, that He might pay the sin debt of the world so that you and I could be forgiven. Colossians 2:13 tells us that every believer has forgiveness so complete that He has “forgiven you ALL trespasses.” This God-man, our Savior, is one most worthy of our love, respect, and dedication. Rejoice in Him. Exalt His name!

Throughout much of the Old Testament, God’s people, the nation of Israel, had a very shallow, distant walk with the Lord. Even though given the unique privilege of having God’s written Word available, the Lord told the prophet Amos, “they have despised the law of the Lord, and have not kept His commandments” (Amos 2:4). This did not mean they completely ignored the Scriptures. In some cases, they simply neglected the Word. Often they only went through the motions of having it read to them without internalizing the truths of God and allowing it to change their daily lives. In other cases, after time in a distant, meaningless walk with the Lord, they completely abandoned the sacred Scriptures to worship false gods made by the hands of men.

Israel still had priests, but when God’s true prophets came with a message too close to home, they responded with words such as, “prophesy not again any more” (Amos 7:13). Resistance, even anger and violence, was a frequent response. Yet, in many cases, they still worshipped the Lord, but only in a halfhearted way that the Lord would simply not accept. Therefore, God’s message to them was, “I hate, I despise your feast days, and I will not smell in your solemn assemblies. Though ye offer Me burnt offerings…I will not accept them…Take thou away from Me the noise of thy songs; for I will not hear the melody of thy viols” (Amos 5:21-23). Even worship toward the Lord can be meaningless, or worthless, to the Lord. This is so when worship is offered with a cold heart, only going through the motions, and without seeking to be continually transformed into the person God wants His child to become (Rom. 12:1-2).

Why would the Lord not accept their worship? It boils down to the explanation recorded in both Isaiah and Matthew: “This people draweth nigh unto Me with their mouth, and honoureth Me with their lips; but their heart is far from Me” (Matt. 15:8; Isa. 29:13). Simply going through the motions of worshipping the Lord is not enough. He desires that we come to Him in sincerity, with biblical truth being paramount, allowing His Word to transform our lives, and desiring a daily walk that knows Him in a real, close, and meaningful way.

Believer, don’t settle for just going through the motions of worship. Come to the Lord with a genuine desire to know Him intimately, be “conformed to the image of his Son” (Rom. 8:29), and do His will. Then, and only then, will your worship of the Lord be truly pleasing to the One who gave His life for you.