Westside Church of Christ

Lessons sometimes come to us in unexpected ways. One of my most valuable ones came to me at the conclusion of a worship service. Listening to sermons is always good, but this didn’t really come from the preaching. In fact, I can’t remember anything about the sermon, but I certainly do recall the immediate impact that day had on me. It still shapes my thinking almost fifty years later.

My brother preached the sermon, and I stood in awe of his biblical knowledge. That brings up another lesson that I would learn later. How did he know the Bible so well? God didn’t just zap him with the knowledge, did He? No, he knew it because he studied a lot. I was looking for a supernatural shortcut, but there is none. The church has been focused on the apostles’ doctrine from the very beginning (Acts 2:42), but that wasn’t what hit me that day. I didn’t immediately recognize that. No, this was something else.

As I listened to the message (Whatever it may have been!), my mind wandered over to my dad. I was thinking about how he needed to hear this. It was like the sermon was specifically talking about one of his faults. It’s easy, isn’t it. I hope my dear ole father is paying close attention to this. Maybe, he’ll straighten out this flaw. I couldn’t wait to speak with him after it was over to see if he got it. Of course, I didn’t dare mention it, but surely, he would see himself. How could he miss the obvious?

I went directly to him after the final “amen” to see what he had to say, and he had plenty. “I hope old Bob over there was listening to this. He sure needed it.” There it was, the lesson that has echoed in my brain for five decades. I hoped dad was listening. Dad hoped Bob was listening, and none of us benefited from the sermon. It has been ingrained in my thinking ever since. Application begins at home.

The word of God opens up a whole new view of many things. Of course, we learn about the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Insights into the unseen Creator are critical in trying to make sense of a nonsensical world. Our God is good and trustworthy whether our circumstances show it or not, and His word reveals humanity in an unvarnished way. That includes me.

The scriptures have exposed our struggles from the very beginning, and it’s easy to look at our neighbors with critical eyes but that isn’t a place to start. No, we begin very personally. What do they show me about myself? It can be uncomfortable and therein is the challenge. There’s ugly in me. God sees it, too, and offers cleansing through the blood of His Son if we will face it and confess it with repentance. He wants that. Do we?