KEPT THE DOG, BUT

LOST 3 SONS

“A strange dog came to a preacher’s house, and his three sons soon became quite fond of it. It so happened that there were three white hairs in the animal’s tail. One day an advertisement was seen in the newspaper about a lost dog which fit the description perfectly.

‘In the presence of my three boys,’ said the minister, ‘we carefully separated the three white hairs and removed them.’ The real owner discovered where the straying canine had found home and came to claim him. The dog showed every recognition, so the man was ready to take him away.

Quickly the minister spoke up, ‘Didn’t you say the dog would be known by three white hairs in its tail?’

The owner, unable to find the identifying feature was forced to leave. The minister said later, ‘We kept the dog, but I lost my three sons for Christ.’ His sons no longer had confidence in what their father professed. He hadn’t practiced what he preached.” (Encyclopedia of 7700 Illustrations)

The limits of what is right and wrong are being pried and pulled, stretched and fudged. We see this in the simple day to day ethics of our lives. We see issues of ethics in churches and Christian organizations being flagrantly abused, ignored, excused, or changed. Often in our society each individual decides for himself or herself what is right or wrong. Somewhere along the way sight has been lost of the sovereign Lord of heaven and earth who has eternally established standards for righteousness for every area of our lives. He is the One to whom every human being will give an account for words, behavior, and beliefs. His standards of righteousness do not change with whims, eras, cultures, or nations.

Our decisions to adopt and follow His will and ways or our determinations to ignore and amend them will definitely affect our descendents and our destinies.

We would like you to consider a very helpful study on ethics: Christian Ethics by Dr. Bob Smith, # 20100. Perhaps you know a friend that could greatly benefit from this course, kindly share the good news!