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exhortation.
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Wednesday,
July 22,
2020
Peaches are
ripe and ready for purchase at the Seyfert's Orchards in
Lebanon County!
Click
on photo to enlarge
"Don't
Let The Old Man In!"
Message
summary: Today our
challenge to each reader; young and old, man or
woman is: "Don't let the old man in!"
Listen
to this message on your audio player.
"Knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin" (Romans 6:6). "That you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts" (Ephesians 4:22).
Please note: Today's message has two back stories that prompted the title and consideration of today's Scripture verse. So if you want to just skip to the spiritual lesson scroll down!
Back story 1: When we were young "older" meant anyone 50 or older. Now that we've reached that milestone and then some, "older" means at least 10-15 years older than us. It will likely keep being that way as the years pass.
Ron Hoover is an older
friend we know through Convene, a business mentoring
group he leads. By "older" he will celebrate his
80th birthday this Thursday! Early this month Ron
and his wife Bonnie were visiting their daughter
when he had a severe health crisis requiring several
days of intensive care in the local hospital. In
answer to many people praying for his healing he
recovered. We were rejoicing in his near miraculous
recovery and envisioned him laying low for a few
weeks to get over his major health scare. But lo and
behold I got an email about a meeting he would be
chairing several days later! The subject line was "Back from Near Death
and Focused on Not Letting the Old Man in!"
He shared two songs via links that he had found meaningful in his recovery. The first was a song titled "Glorious Day" from a youth convention that I wouldn't expect a man turning 80 to be sharing, but it did fit his experience. (Link to song below)
Back story 2: I had never heard of the second song but was intrigued by the title, "Don't Let The Old Man In". I listened to it and it really has an interesting message. It was written by Toby Keith, who happens to be from Oklahoma, Brooksyne's home state. He tells how he was playing golf with Clint Eastwood, who was in his late eighties at the time. He asked Eastwood what project he might be working on and he told him he was going to make another movie! Toby asked him how he did it at his age and Eastwood answered, "I don't let the old man in" in the sense of keeping active and working through the inevitable pains and limitations common to the aging body. (Links below)
Spiritual lesson: Well, being a spiritually minded (most of the time) minister of the Gospel this prompted a consideration of another sense of "old man" based upon our daily texts. "Knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin" (Romans 6:6). "That you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts" (Ephesians 4:22).
The "old man" referenced in the Bible refers to our sinful nature apart from being redeemed in Christ. Thus in a sense all the redeemed, regardless of age, have an "old man" (modern translations render "old self" or "old nature").
But even for the redeemed the old man keeps trying to get back in and take us back to our BC days (before Christ) but we must not let him back in. Don't gaze in the rear view mirror but fix your gaze on the eternal Christ as Paul wrote about in Philippians 3:12,13: “One thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus."
In the last several days I have used this as a spiritual challenge in ministry situations I encounter. Speaking to a believer who shared about his overcoming the battle of pornography I said, "Don't let the old man in!" In a restaurant the other night I engaged in a conversation with our server who confided to me that he was in recovery. I told him, "Don't let the old man back in!" and explained what I meant. Speaking to a young father seeking to raise his family in the ways of the Lord, I cautioned, "Don't let the old man in!" (That's a caution we all need to hear regularly.)
Dr. Lloyd-Jones says the old man is "the man that I used to be in Adam. As a Christian I am no longer in Adam; I am in Christ. It is not my carnal, sinful nature. That is still here, but the old man has gone, he has been crucified."
The Enduring Word online Bible commentary observes,
Listen
to this message on your audio player."Knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin" (Romans 6:6). "That you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts" (Ephesians 4:22).
Please note: Today's message has two back stories that prompted the title and consideration of today's Scripture verse. So if you want to just skip to the spiritual lesson scroll down!
Back story 1: When we were young "older" meant anyone 50 or older. Now that we've reached that milestone and then some, "older" means at least 10-15 years older than us. It will likely keep being that way as the years pass.
Ron Hoover is an older
friend we know through Convene, a business mentoring
group he leads. By "older" he will celebrate his
80th birthday this Thursday! Early this month Ron
and his wife Bonnie were visiting their daughter
when he had a severe health crisis requiring several
days of intensive care in the local hospital. In
answer to many people praying for his healing he
recovered. We were rejoicing in his near miraculous
recovery and envisioned him laying low for a few
weeks to get over his major health scare. But lo and
behold I got an email about a meeting he would be
chairing several days later! The subject line was "Back from Near Death
and Focused on Not Letting the Old Man in!"He shared two songs via links that he had found meaningful in his recovery. The first was a song titled "Glorious Day" from a youth convention that I wouldn't expect a man turning 80 to be sharing, but it did fit his experience. (Link to song below)
Back story 2: I had never heard of the second song but was intrigued by the title, "Don't Let The Old Man In". I listened to it and it really has an interesting message. It was written by Toby Keith, who happens to be from Oklahoma, Brooksyne's home state. He tells how he was playing golf with Clint Eastwood, who was in his late eighties at the time. He asked Eastwood what project he might be working on and he told him he was going to make another movie! Toby asked him how he did it at his age and Eastwood answered, "I don't let the old man in" in the sense of keeping active and working through the inevitable pains and limitations common to the aging body. (Links below)
Spiritual lesson: Well, being a spiritually minded (most of the time) minister of the Gospel this prompted a consideration of another sense of "old man" based upon our daily texts. "Knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin" (Romans 6:6). "That you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts" (Ephesians 4:22).
The "old man" referenced in the Bible refers to our sinful nature apart from being redeemed in Christ. Thus in a sense all the redeemed, regardless of age, have an "old man" (modern translations render "old self" or "old nature").
But even for the redeemed the old man keeps trying to get back in and take us back to our BC days (before Christ) but we must not let him back in. Don't gaze in the rear view mirror but fix your gaze on the eternal Christ as Paul wrote about in Philippians 3:12,13: “One thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus."
In the last several days I have used this as a spiritual challenge in ministry situations I encounter. Speaking to a believer who shared about his overcoming the battle of pornography I said, "Don't let the old man in!" In a restaurant the other night I engaged in a conversation with our server who confided to me that he was in recovery. I told him, "Don't let the old man back in!" and explained what I meant. Speaking to a young father seeking to raise his family in the ways of the Lord, I cautioned, "Don't let the old man in!" (That's a caution we all need to hear regularly.)
Dr. Lloyd-Jones says the old man is "the man that I used to be in Adam. As a Christian I am no longer in Adam; I am in Christ. It is not my carnal, sinful nature. That is still here, but the old man has gone, he has been crucified."
The Enduring Word online Bible commentary observes,
In place of the old man, God gives the
believer a new man – a self that is instinctively
obedient and pleasing to God; this aspect of our
person is that which was raised with Christ in His
resurrection. The New Testament describes the new
man for us:
· The new man, which was created according to God, in righteousness and true holiness (Ephesians 4:24).
· The new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him (Colossians 3:10).
· The new man, which was created according to God, in righteousness and true holiness (Ephesians 4:24).
· The new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him (Colossians 3:10).
So
today our challenge to each reader; young and old,
man or woman is: "Don't let the old man
in!"
Be encouraged today,
Stephen & Brooksyne Weber
Daily
prayer: Father, I want to spend the rest of my earthly
life getting to know Christ and the power of His
resurrection. Help me to be willing to
participate in His sufferings, becoming like Him in
His death, so that I might also participate in the
power of His resurrection. In so doing, I bar the
old man from entering the door to my redeemed heart,
reserving it solely for Jesus Christ, my Savior and
Lord to dwell, whose redemptive work has given me a
righteousness not of my own which comes from the
law, but that which is found through faith in
Christ. This results not just in a change of
behavior but a change within my spirit that lives
beyond this life throughout eternity, and there I
will forever praise and worship You. Amen.
Be encouraged today,
Stephen & Brooksyne Weber
Daily
prayer: Father, I want to spend the rest of my earthly
life getting to know Christ and the power of His
resurrection. Help me to be willing to
participate in His sufferings, becoming like Him in
His death, so that I might also participate in the
power of His resurrection. In so doing, I bar the
old man from entering the door to my redeemed heart,
reserving it solely for Jesus Christ, my Savior and
Lord to dwell, whose redemptive work has given me a
righteousness not of my own which comes from the
law, but that which is found through faith in
Christ. This results not just in a change of
behavior but a change within my spirit that lives
beyond this life throughout eternity, and there I
will forever praise and worship You. Amen.Prayer
thoughts from reading Philippians 3:7-14
Today's Suggested Music and Supplemental Resources
"Glorious Day"
Video
Kristian Stanfill (This
was the first song that Ron suggested. This is a very
high energy version!) We sing
this at our church and it really has a great
message. Here's a version from our church Video
"Don't Let The Old Man In" Video Toby Keith (this clip shows Clint Eastwood, who looks pretty good for his age!)
Background to song Video
"Don't Let The Old Man In" Video Frank & Joe Wells (This is a cover sung by a genuine old man!)
"The Baptism Of Jesse Taylor" Video Gaither Vocal Band. A colorful story of a changed life!
"The Old Rugged Cross Made The Difference" Video Gaither Vocal Band. Has the old rugged cross made a difference in your life? In this song the Gaithers wrote about the difference Christ made in an angry and harsh man, contrasting his old nature with his new nature, especially described in V. 2:
"Don't Let The Old Man In" Video Toby Keith (this clip shows Clint Eastwood, who looks pretty good for his age!)
Background to song Video
"Don't Let The Old Man In" Video Frank & Joe Wells (This is a cover sung by a genuine old man!)
"The Baptism Of Jesse Taylor" Video Gaither Vocal Band. A colorful story of a changed life!
"The Old Rugged Cross Made The Difference" Video Gaither Vocal Band. Has the old rugged cross made a difference in your life? In this song the Gaithers wrote about the difference Christ made in an angry and harsh man, contrasting his old nature with his new nature, especially described in V. 2:
Barren walls echoed harshness and anger
Little feet run in terror to hide;
Now those walls ring with love, warmth and laughter,
Since the Giver of Life moved inside
Little feet run in terror to hide;
Now those walls ring with love, warmth and laughter,
Since the Giver of Life moved inside
"Psalm 8"
Video
Shane & Shane We sure enjoy how
this group lyricizes Scripture to music! This was
just posted yesterday.
Further study on the
"old man": Two natures from gotquestions.org
The
only connection we have with Toby Keith is that
we've been to one his favorite hangouts, the Oark General Store
in Oark, Arkansas. Open since 1890 it's the oldest
continuously operating store in Arkansas. It's
just about the closest to nowhere we've ever been!
(Google map) (Video) Several
years ago we enjoyed a good meal there. Brooksyne
recalls visiting this store in her childhood when
she and her siblings would spend a week each
summer with her grandparents who lived about 20
miles from there at Mountain Top.
Hay
harvest in Lebanon County.
Click
on photo to enlarge
Yesterday
I made a call to visit some employees working in a
warehouse in a long abandoned Bethlehem Steel mill
in Lebanon, PA. During successful times, Bethlehem
Steel employed 2,400 at the Lebanon location and
was the largest industrial employer in area.
For a short time, Bethlehem Steel’s Lebanon plant
was even home to baseball legend Babe Ruth. Ruth
was among many players who joined the “Safe
Shelter League” during World War I. Since steel
manufacturing was considered essential work to
supply war efforts, employees were granted an
exemption from the draft. Ruth played on the
company baseball team as a steel employee and was
on the mill payroll from September 25, 1918 to
February 28, 1919. See here if you enjoy obscure
history.
Send a message to
Stephen & Brooksyne
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Scripture references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version. © 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, New King James Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. and the King James Version.
Personal Mission Statement: "I am created by God to bring Him glory. Through God's Son Jesus Christ I have been redeemed and make it my life's goal to please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity."
Scripture references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version. © 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, New King James Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. and the King James Version.
Personal Mission Statement: "I am created by God to bring Him glory. Through God's Son Jesus Christ I have been redeemed and make it my life's goal to please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity."
© Copyright 2020 Stephen C. & Brooksyne
Weber - All Rights Reserved
Daily Encouragement Net - 495 Kraybill Church Road - Mount Joy, PA 17552 USA
Daily Encouragement Net - 495 Kraybill Church Road - Mount Joy, PA 17552 USA