A Pattern

A very good morning to you, I greet you in Jesus' precious Name! It is Sunday morning, the 12th of February 2023, and this is your friend Angus Buchan with a thought for today. If we start in the book of Philippians chapter 3, I'm reading verse 17:

"Brethren, join in following my example, and note those who so walk, as you have us for a pattern."

Then 1 Corinthians 11:1 Paul says:

"Imitate me as I also imitate Christ"

A pattern is a design, a model - it is an example for other people to follow. Now Dad and Mom, it is a very poor example to say to your children: Don't do what I do but do as I tell you, because when your children come of age they will do exactly what you do. It is very important for us to imitate Christ. Folks, when Paul says imitate me as I also imitate Christ, what he was saying was - don't imitate me but imitate the Jesus inside of me. We've got to show people Jesus, not just tell them about Jesus! They've got to see a difference in you.

I'll give you a good example - when farming and you driving around the field in your pickup and your tractor driver is ploughing up and down the field... And you see black smoke coming out of the exhaust pipe, that means he is driving in the wrong gear and is using up unburnt fuel - it is very expensive. What you do is, when he comes to the top of the field, you stop him, jump on the tractor, ask him to move over and put the tractor in the right gear. You set the plough because he's not ploughing properly. The front coulter is out of the ground, the back one is too deep... You set the plough nicely and then you start to plough, in the right gear, and the tractor just run smoothly along the field because the plough has been set correctly. Then the tractor driver salutes you and says: "Thank you sir, for teaching me and showing me". Your relationship with the tractor driver is excellent, the job is going well and your tractor is doing its job.

Imitate me as I also imitate Christ. You cannot expect people to do what you tell them, when you don't do it yourself! So today, on Sunday, let's go out and let's be a pattern, let's be a design, let's be a good model for people to follow.

Jesus bless you and have a wonderful day!