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Table of Contents:The Reason for Hope - - - - - - - - - - - - 1The Ten Best Things in Second Corinthians - - - - - -2Advent and the Miracle of Intimacy with God - - - - 4Exegetically Speaking - - - - - - - - - - - - 5Following God - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 5Words to Stand You on Your Feet - - - - - - - - 6Jewels from Past Giants - - - - - - - - - - - 8
Marks of the Master- - - - - - - - - - - - - 10Advancing the Ministries of the Gospel- - - - - - 11Book Reviews- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 12News Update - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 13Sermon Helps - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 14Puzzles and ‘Toons - - - - - - - - - - - - 16
_____________________________________________________________________________The Reason for HopeBy John Meador
Originally published in Pulpit Helps, December 2007.
Why do you celebrate Christmas? Are you sure of it? The waters of our seasonal celebrations seem to get murkier every year. With “Happy Holidays” (instead of Merry Christmas) and the ever-increasing commercialism of Christmas by our friendly retailers, one can get lost in the reason for celebration. Parents struggle to help kids see past the gifts to the real Giver of Christmas. Individuals get to the end of the celebration and often feel a deep sense of emptiness. But Christmas should bring hope, and there is a reason for hope!
It is good to remember that we have a reasonable basis of belief for believing in Jesus Christ—and for celebrating Christmas. In this world of relativism—where everything is relegated to what one “wants” to believe—we must have something more solid than just a sincere faith. We also must have a reasonable faith. The apostles did not die for something they just sincerely felt. They died for what they knew to be true!
We are told to “always being ready to make a defense (reasonable statement) for the hope that is in you” (1 Pet. 3:15). As we sit around the dinner table during this time of the year, as we exchange gifts with one another or worship together with all the incredible beauty and pageantry of Christmas, we can ensure a true celebration by remembering why we can be confident that Jesus is the reason for the season. We celebrate Christmas—and Christ—because we know He is the Messiah sent from God.
The Apostle Peter knew the reason: “Of this salvation the prophets have inquired and searched carefully, who prophesied of the grace that would come to you, searching what, or what manner of time, the Spirit of Christ who was in them was indicating when He testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow” (1 Pet. 1:10-11). Peter does not exalt common sense or experience as the basis of His belief. He rather appeals to the prophets and the obvious fulfillment of their prophecies as his foundation. These words convey
Peter’s answer to why he knew Jesus was the Messiah. This verse also gives our reason—your reason for celebration.
First, authentic prophecies of divine origin were recorded centuries in advance through recognized prophets. The Old Testament prophets were those who spoke directly for God. What’s more, God spoke through them to tell of events that were yet to occur! He told them when to go to war, and who would win. He spoke to them about men he would heal, or allow to die. He also spoke to them, frequently, about the coming Messiah.
The reason we know these prophets were authentic was their accuracy. A prophet who spoke “from the Lord” but who spoke inaccurately about a coming event was stoned to death. A bad prophet was a dead one. That tends to demonstrate who is authentic and who is not, and the authentic prophets are recorded in Scripture.
Second, these prophets predicted in precise detail the birth, sufferings, and glories of the Messiah. These weren’t just vague references to a general event. These prophecies were specific and time-sensitive. Listed below are only a few of the hundreds of Messianic prophecies.
A. His BirthGiven: “The Lord…will give you a sign; Behold a
virgin will be with child and bear a Son…” (Isa. 7:14). Fulfilled: “…she was found to be with child by the Holy Spirit…Joseph…kept her a virgin until she gave birth to a Son” (Matt. 1:18, 24-25).
B. His AncestryGiven: “A shoot will spring from the stem of
Jesse…” (Isa. 11:1). Fulfilled: “Jesus…(as was supposed) the son of Joseph…the son of Jesse…” (Luke 3:23, 32).
C. His BirthplaceGiven: “But as for you, Bethlehem...from you One
will go forth for Me to be a ruler in Israel…from the days of eternity” (Mic. 5:2). Fulfilled: “…Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea…” (Matt. 2:1).
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D. His TimingGiven: “…from the issuing of a decree to restore
and rebuild Jerusalem until Messiah…there will be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks (of years)…” (Dan. 9:24-26). Fulfilled: “…Jesus was born…in the days of Herod the king…” (Matt. 2:1). Herod died in 4 AD, just after Jesus was born, according to scholarly consensus, while the 69 weeks of Daniel [after the Jewish and Gregorian calendars are reconciled] were completed in AD 33. This fulfills Daniel’s prophetic dating.
E. His SufferingsGiven: “…they pierced my hands and my feet. I can
count all my bones. They look, they stare at me. They divide my garments…” (Ps. 22:16-18). Fulfilled: “…And they cast lots, dividing His garments…and the people stood by, looking on” (Luke 23:34-35).
F. His GloryGiven: “You have ascended on high…” (Ps. 68:18).
Fulfilled: “…when…Jesus had spoken to them, He was received up into heaven…” (Mark 16:19).
Conclusion: Coincidence or Hope?Some say Jesus “engineered” all these things to be
fulfilled. Now, that is a wild statement. How can one possibly control the day of his birth or his ancestors? How
can a person determine exactly when he dies, or predict how many pieces of silver he was betrayed for?
Others say Jesus’ fulfillment of over 300 Old Testament prophecies was “coincidental.” Peter Stoner says that the odds of one man fulfilling just eight prophecies of this nature are one in 1017! That would be 1 in 100,000,000,000,000,000. I don’t think “coincidence” cuts it, do you? Only God could have orchestrated an event of this magnitude.
Third, these prophecies were supernaturally fulfilled in Jesus Christ. The apostle concludes that these prophecies were heard, fulfilled, and accepted as being fulfilled supernaturally: “…these things which now have been announced to you through those who preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven....” (1 Pet. 1:12).
In other words, this is the witness of the Holy Spirit and heaven itself—an unarguable fact. It’s what we preach, Peter says—and it is what we can believe this Christmas and throughout all time.
So, why does all this bring hope? It brings hope to Christmas because it says that God orchestrated all these events, literally moving heaven and earth, so that we might have a Savior who would Himself bring us to God. And that, my friends, is hope. I’m sure of it.
John Meador is senior pastor of First Baptist Church of Euless, Texas.
_____________________________________________________________________________The Ten Best Things in Second Corinthians—Part 2By Joe McKeever
“For this end also I wrote that I might put you to the test, whether you are obedient in all things” (2 Cor. 2:9).
We started this in the last issue, but I only gave you the first five with a promise of more. Here they are.
6) 2 Corinthians 8:1-5—a great example of giving. The Lord’s churches in the region of Macedonia (which included Philippi, Thessalonica, and Berea) were something to brag about. Paul used them as examples: “This is how it’s done!”
Denominational publications will highlight an individual church for its outstanding record in ministry, growth, or evangelism. Critics will often take exception to doing so, suggesting that to single out one church for its accomplishment is to encourage pride and makes other churches feel inferior. Maybe so, but there is good scriptural precedent for using the heroics of one congregation to inspire others.
You have to love the way Paul adds layer upon layer in lauding the giving of the Macedonians: They gave liberally, even though experiencing affliction. Their
sacrificial giving was accompanied by (inspired by?) an abundance of joy and deep poverty. These overflowed in a wealth of liberality. (Not exactly the formula financial experts recommend, but in the case of this amazing group of believers, it worked.) Their giving was not only according to their ability but beyond that! In fact, they begged for the privilege of supporting the saints with their offerings. That tells you they realized that giving is a privilege, and far more than a duty. Only the godliest of believers ever climb high enough to see this truth. Best of all, before they did anything, they first gave themselves to the Lord and then to “us” by the will of God. Only then did they begin giving. And brother, did they ever give!
7) 2 Corinthians 9:6-9—some principles of giving. Principles for contributing to the Lord’s work through the offering plate are found throughout the Word, and not bunched up in one place (See Matt. 6:19-21 for starters; also Matt. 23:23 and 1 Cor. 16:2). Here are some of the insights from this passage in chapter 9.
You determine the size of the harvest you want to reap by the size of the sowing you are willing to do (9:6). I
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know, I know—this sounds like something a televangelist would spout in an attempt to separate you from your hard-earned cash. But it’s a truth from Scripture, even if some do abuse it.
What you purpose in your heart determines the worth of your gift (9:7). Some have wondered how Heaven assesses the true value of our contributions. Does God read the numbers on our checks? I’ve heard people say the value is determined by how much you have left over after giving. While that is worth thinking about, there is a more reliable method. God gives our gifts the same value we place on them. That is, if my contribution is really important to me, it matters to Him. If it means nothing to me, it means the same to Him. That’s why what we “purpose in (our) heart” is so critical.
God wants you to have enough to be able to give generously (9:8). Not necessarily enough to buy that Audi or the widescreen high-definition television, but enough to be generous in giving to those in need or in ministry, doing the work of the Lord. To our shame, we often treat excess income as an opportunity to indulge our whims and materialistic urges.
Note—pastors who shy away from preaching on giving do their people a great disservice. Churches that look for ways to protect their members from the offering plate are caving in to the carnal fears of some—those who do not like to give—and failing the Lord and those who love to give. Many pastors are going to be in big trouble at judgment when their members arrive empty-handed, having laid up little or no treasure in heaven (see Matthew 6:19-20) because their shepherds were such cowards who feared criticism. Let the minister help the people overcome the chokehold of greed, the burden of materialism, and the fear of giving. Let ministers teach their people it is more blessed to give than to receive.
8) Chapters 10 and 11—Paul invites us in for a personal look at his embattled situation. Consider the revelations this esteemed apostle makes concerning himself.
“My critics say I’m meek in person but bold when absent.” This is evidently a reference to the power he conveys through his letters (10:1). Paul answers that they are being superficial, judging according to the flesh (see 10:7), and this is not the plane on which spiritual warfare is conducted (10:4-5).
They say, “His letters are weighty and strong, but his personal presence is unimpressive, and his speech contemptible” (10:10). Paul thought he was being properly humble when in their presence, but immaturity does not recognize nor value humility. They liked “star power!” And they found that in Paul’s critics. Let every pastor who has ever been reproached for his less-than-powerful mannerisms take comfort in this criticism of Paul. Some people think to be “anointed” and “filled with the Spirit” is to be loud, forceful, and personally persuasive. Humility
and quietness have no place in such thinking. Paul told his hearers that when he finally gets to their church, he would be just as forceful in person as in his letters (10:11). It appears he has just about run out of patience with this bunch.
Who are your critics, Paul? In 10:12, he speaks of “those who commend themselves,” people who “measure themselves by themselves,” and such. They boast (10:17) and they put Paul down as a Johnny-come-lately, not a bona fide apostle whom they should follow and to whom they are obligated to support financially (see 11:5ff). Paul calls these critics “false apostles, deceitful workers, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ” (11:13). Later, in 12:11, he calls them “super-apostles,” a wonderful instance of the apostle’s sarcasm.
So, Paul, are you an authentic apostle? Where are your credentials? His answer comes in the amazing litany of 11:21-33. We don’t have space to do it justice here, so I’ll simply point out that Paul gives a “reverse résumé.” Instead of listing his accomplishments, awards, and decorations as proof of his apostleship, he shows them his scars (11:23-27). We are stunned into silence. Christian workers who have thought they were suffering for Jesus will read this and be ashamed of their self-centeredness. Paul had good precedence for “showing them his scars” to verify his genuineness. In Luke 24:39 and John 20, Jesus did this very thing, literally.
9) 2 Corinthians 12:7-10—when I’m weak, I’m strong. Paul could have written a bestseller called “My 60 Minutes in Heaven” or something like that. The opening verses of chapter 12 refer to just such an experience Paul had. Note that he begins by referring to “a man in Christ Jesus” and ends by admitting he’s being autobiographical: “…to keep me from exalting myself…” (12:7).
Some think this “visit to Heaven” occurred when Paul was stoned by opponents, dragged out of the city, and left for dead (Acts 14:19). There’s no way to know. One problem of having such a celestial vision would be pride. “How wonderful to the Father I must be!” So, to put a stop to that business, Paul says a problem was given to him, one he called “a thorn in the flesh,” which originated with Satan, and which did not yield itself to prayer. What was the problem? He didn’t say, and we should give thanks for that. Otherwise, God’s hasty servants would have presumptuously built theologies around that particular infirmity and laid more burdens on His people.
“My grace is sufficient for you; my power is perfected in weakness” (12:9). That is a word from God, heard only by Paul but conveyed to us through the written Word, and aren’t we glad. Even though it makes little sense to the outside world, we find ourselves “amen”-ing him when he concludes, “Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, that the power of Christ may dwell in me.”
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10) 2 Corinthians 13—quit testing me; test yourself. He says in 13:3, “You are looking for proof of Christ in me.” That is much of the burden of this epistle, the harassment he was receiving from this congregation which owed its very existence to his ministry. We’ve already looked at the proof Paul gave them.
Instead of examining him, Paul says, “Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith” (13:5). He adds, “Jesus Christ is in you. That is, unless you fail the test.” And then, “I trust that you will realize that we ourselves do not fail the test.” Earlier in this epistle, Paul told this congregation, “For this purpose I wrote to you, that I might
know the proof of you, whether you are obedient in all things” (2:9).
He ends the epistle with this wonderful prayer-wish: “Finally, brethren, rejoice, be made complete, be comforted, be like-minded, live in peace; and the God of love and peace shall be with you” (13:11). And then this benediction: “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen” (13:14).
Joe McKeever is a retired Southern Baptist pastor from New Orleans, Louisiana. He blogs regularly at
www.joemckeever.com.
_____________________________________________________________________________Advent and the Miracle of Intimacy with GodBy Shea Oakley
Even during this yuletide season, I’m not sure that we who call ourselves followers of Christ often give much thought to the supreme miracle that we are about to celebrate, the miracle that exists at the very center of our faith.
The advent on earth of the universal God in human form is a mystery both unfathomable and blessed. We are all far worse off if we do not take time at this season, or at any time of the year for that matter, to ponder the sublime reality of God becoming a man.
No other enduring religion in the world puts forth the idea of a Supreme Being so willing to identify with His deeply fallen human creation as to literally become one of them. That He would do so out of love—because only such an “incarnation” would make possible our rescue from spiritual death—should become for us an incredibly sweet and compelling truth if we will simply ponder it for a while.
It is mind-boggling, yes, but even though we cannot completely comprehend the full glory of our Lord becoming incarnate, we can apprehend it in such a way as to open a door to one of the greatest and most transcendent blessings that we can know in our Christian walk.
Just think about it. We belong to a God who so loved us as to become one of us to make that “belonging” possible. What indescribable condescension must that have entailed for One who is infinite, eternal and uncaused Being? I once wrote that it is somewhat akin to a man becoming a flea to save a world of fleas, but that barely begins to cover the magnitude of the descent we now consider. It is truly the miracle of the ages.
But do not just use your intellect in your endeavor to experience the truth of the earthly advent of the Lord
Jesus Christ, use your heart as well, for this is nothing if not an affair of the heart. How can our hearts not love Immanuel, God with us? Christmas testifies to the beginning of a new and profound opportunity for human intimacy with God, an intimacy with God as man.
How can we remain unmoved by a Holy God, One wholly “other” as one German theologian once described his innate separation from us, becoming us? The mere fact of the Son of God becoming also the Son of Man is enough, in my opinion, to make Christianity the most compelling belief system on the planet. No one has a God like ours, no one, and it is Jesus, the God-Man who makes this so.
Perhaps the only thing more compelling than the Advent itself is the reality that the God who arrived on earth as one fully human over two-thousand years ago then proceeded to go to the cross and defeat death for what were now His fellow human beings as well as His creation. Contemplate that. He made us but, because of Christmas, he also died for us, as one of us.
But then that is a story for another Holy Day, a few months hence.
© Shea Oakley. All Rights Reserved.
Converted from atheism in 1990, Shea Oakley has written over 350 articles for electronic and print publications since
2002, including Disciple Magazine (and Pulpit Helps Magazine), The Christian Herald, The Christian
Post, Christian Network and Crosshome.com. In 2003 he graduated from Alliance Theological Seminary with a Certificate of Theological Studies. Shea and his wife
Kathleen make their home in West Milford, New Jersey.
_____________________________________________________________________________Exegetically Speaking—by Spiros Zodhiates
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The ConspiracyMatthew 28:11-15
From Exegetical Commentary on Matthew, 2006, AMG Publishers
The Roman soldiers had been assigned to guard the tomb so that the disciples would not be able to steal the body of Jesus. Pilate was satisfied that he had secured Rome against such a conspiracy.
[11] But then the report came in that the body was missing. Some of the guards went to the chief priests. They seem to have reported the facts without bias as “occurrences” (tá genómena, the aorist middle participle of gínomai [1096], to become) and reported “all” (from hápas [537], each and all) the pertinent news (note the specific hápanta from hápas).
[12] What did these chief priests and elders do now? “And when they were assembled together with the elders and had taken counsel (sumboúlion [4824], a discussion), they gave large (hikaná [2425], sufficient, that is bribe) money unto the soldiers” (a.t.).
This was not the first time the Pharisees marshaled against Jesus. They had tried to trap Him with words (Matt. 22:15–17) and to deceive the people concerning His character (Mark 3:22; John 9:24); they had plotted His death (John 11:53); had bribed Judas to betray Him (Matt. 26:14, 15); had perverted and misrepresented His teaching at the trial (Matt. 26:59–62; Luke 23:1, 2); and had influenced Pilate to crucify Him (John 19:12). And now, following the glorious, irrefutable resurrection, they attempted to hide the truth. They did not hesitate to endanger the lives of the soldiers that might be condemned to death by Pilate, who only reluctantly gave permission to crucify Jesus.
[13] The lie was self-incriminating, which meant that the money had to be high enough to compensate for the risk of falling asleep on duty—a capital offense. The Romans had no allegiances to the Jews, but the soldiers were trapped because the body was missing. It had disappeared on their watch, and they desperately needed an excuse.
[14-15] Along with the payment, the chief priests and elders also offered these soldiers further aid if Pilate heard what happened. “We will persuade (from peíthō [3982], to convince) him and make (from poiéō [4160], to do or make) you secure (from amérimnos [275] from the privative a [1], without; and the noun mérimna [3308], worry)” (a.t.).
In other words, for confirming the lie, they would make the soldiers free from anxiety by eliminating the danger. “So they took the money (from argúrion [694], silver), and did as they were taught (from didáskō [1321]).” They were “taught” not “told,” as the King James faithfully translates the original. It was rational instruction and didactic skill, not orders or a bullying negotiation. The priests and elders convinced the soldiers that this was the best and perhaps the only strategy. Persuasion like this is typical of the cults who use propaganda and the suppression of truth to retain their members.
The aftermath of all this? “And this saying is commonly reported (from diaphēmízō [1310], to advertise) among the Jews until this day.” The body was gone! What else could they do but lie? This “conspiracy theory” has continued into the twentieth century, republished in the work of Jewish author Hugh Schonfield (The Passover Plot, New York: Bernard Geis Assoc., 1965).
Today the Jewish nation as a whole still rejects Jesus’ resurrection, His atonement for sin, and His deity. But all this will change when He returns: “So all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Zion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob” (Rom. 11:26). At that time, I believe, Jews will repent collectively.
Spiros Zodhiates (1922-2009) served as president of AMG International for over 40 years, was the founding editor of
Pulpit Helps Magazine (Disciple’s predecessor), and authored dozens of exegetical books.
_____________________________________________________________________________Following God—by Wayne Barber
A Divine Moment
Originally published in Pulpit Helps, December 2004.“But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law” (Gal. 4:4).
The context of Galatians shows the difference between Religion and Christianity. Religion is what a man, whether Jew or Gentile, can do for God; Christianity is
what only God can do for man. Religious people have no joy in the celebration of Christmas. They do not need a Redeemer; they think that they are righteous in themselves. But believers rejoice in this occasion. We understand our need for a Savior. That’s why Christmas is so special to us!
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Christmas is the first of at least five chapters in the “Book of Redemption”: Chapter 1—Christ was born of a virgin; Chapter 2—He lived a sinless life, the God-man; Chapter 3—He died for our sins on the cross; Chapter 4—He rose victorious over sin and death; Chapter 5—He ascended back to the Father in heaven. And we could add many more! He comes to live in the lives of believers, etc. But first, He who has eternally existed had to be born into our world as the God-man.
God began slowly opening the door to the revelation of His plan for all mankind in Genesis 3, when He said to the serpent: “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; he shall bruise you on the head, and you shall bruise him on the heel” (v. 15). God continued to shed more and more light on His eternal plan for man as the Scriptures unfolded. After destroying all but Noah’s family with the Flood, and after confusing the languages and separating the people, God singled out Abraham. In Genesis 15 He cut covenant with him.
In Genesis 29, Judah was born to Jacob’s wife, Leah. In 1 Samuel 16, David was born in the line of Judah. In Matthew 1, Jesus Christ was born to Mary, who was of David’s line (cf. Ps. 132:11; Luke 1:32; Rom. 1:3), while she was a virgin. So Paul can say in Galatians 4:4-5 that Jesus came in “the fullness of time.”
Exactly the Right TimeGod does what He does with divine precision.
Some would say the birth of Jesus came at a good time. Some might say it came at an acceptable time. But the Bible says it came at the precise time, the perfect time. The Greek for “fullness” is plērōma. It means when something is fulfilled or completed. In this context, when it’s time had
come—the time. The definite article is used with chrónos, time, indicating a specific time. This is supported by Galatians 4:2: “but he is under guardians and managers until the date set by the father.” The word for “date set” is the word prothésmios, which means a date set beforehand.
God knew the exact time for Christ to be born of a virgin in Bethlehem. The date was preset. There was to be a divine moment that Christ was to be born in a manger in Bethlehem—at the fullness of time.
When Jesus was born, everything was right for the Messiah to come. Since the Babylonian captivity, the Jews had finally forsaken the idolatry that had plagued them for centuries. No Jew has ever gone back to it; the pain had been so great. When Ezra read from the Law and the people repented; there was a turning back to God like never before.
The Greek culture had been established by Alexander the Great. The magnificent precision of the Greek language now infiltrated the known world. This gave people a common language, no matter what part of the world they were from. The Roman Empire had established a “peace” which would allow freedom to travel and for the gospel message to get out. The time was exactly right when God sent forth His Son. It was a divine moment. “God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son so that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16)!
What about you this Christmas? Have you received Him into your heart? Do you know our Savior Jesus Christ? If you do, then you along with me are rejoicing in your heart. Jesus is the reason for the season!
Wayne Barber is senior pastor of Woodland Park Baptist Church in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
_____________________________________________________________________________Words to Stand You on Your Feet—by Joe McKeever
It’s All Right to Let Some People Leave Your Church
“As a result of this, many of His disciples withdrew and were not walking with Him anymore” (John 6:66). “They went out from us because they were not of us” (1 John 2:19).
Sometimes the best thing to happen to your church is for a few people to leave.
Not long ago I ministered in a church where a few longtime leaders had just left. From the little I know of that congregation, these were the ones who had controlled that church for decades, who dominated pastors and drove them away whenever it suited them, and who resisted anything remotely looking like change. The pastor’s greatest surprise was that they had left. He was one happy camper.
My seminary professor used to say, “People measure the effectiveness of a revival by the additions to the church. Sometimes, a better gauge is the subtractions.”
Recently, I “unfriended” a person on Facebook. This troubled individual latches on to the Lord’s workers and devotes herself to controlling their lives, playing on their guilt, and making demands on their time. I don’t need this. After we parted ways on Facebook, she began leaving critical messages on my blog—two one day and four the next morning.
One of the luxuries of having your own blog is you can manage it. We went into the program and erased her comments. “It’s pastors like you,” she said on one of the now-erased comments, “who cause people to quit going to
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church.” Interesting logic—according to that, pastors who refuse to let strangers manipulate their lives are responsible if that person walks away from church. I don’t think I’ll buy any of that today, thank you.
Plenty of people believe it. Some who swallow that poison are pastors and sincere Christian workers. They obsess that someone somewhere might be offended if they did this or that—or did not do this or that—with the result being to harm their eternal souls. They worry and grieve themselves into an early grave.
A teenager called me on the phone one day. This was back in the days when public schools would invite preachers to come on campus and address the student body on topics of faith and morality. I forget what I had said in the message, but the student wanted to argue about it. He said, “I did not agree with you.” I said, “Well, that’s fine. Not everyone does.”
He proceeded to tell me how smart he was, and that he had read all the “Great Books” series (something I once tried, got about halfway through Marcus Aurelius and called it off). Whether he actually had or not is anyone’s guess. The last thing I said to him was, “When you’re ready to have a real discussion about this and not just argue, call me back and we can talk.”
A couple of weeks later, he committed suicide. I ran over every detail of our conversation to see if I had failed him in some way, if I should have picked up on what he was going through and should have responded to him differently. I concluded that I was in no way responsible for what he had done.
Sometimes, you have to let people walk away. It’s their choice. People have the freedom to choose. That means the liberty to come in or go out.
Watch Jesus. You quickly see that He did not beat Himself up when an audience walked out on Him. After the entire crowd—people who called themselves His disciples!—got up and left in John 6, the Lord turned to the twelve and said, “Well, how about you? Will you go away, too?” Simon Peter, gifted with the ability to say precisely the wrong thing, got one right this time: “Lord, to whom shall we go? Thou hast the words of eternal life.”
I mentioned to my wife how the Lord allowed people to leave without going to pieces over it, and she said, “That’s not all. He even drove some of them away when He cleansed the temple.” Good point.
People are free, responsible, accountable. They want to be free, but they don’t want to be responsible and accountable for their freedom. So, they live in any ungodly way they please and when the fruit of that behavior begins to drop from their trees onto their lawn, they say, “Why did God do this to me?” Answer: He had nothing to do with this. You are reaping the harvest for which you have been sowing and working.
Some will want the freedom to come in and out of churches, doing as they please, and when things do not go
to suit them, they blame the preachers. People are sinners and will often act like they are. Get used to it, Christian worker. They need to be saved. They need a new heart, the kind only available from a life-transforming experience with the living God through faith in Jesus Christ.
You know, if you are a regular reader of my articles here or on my blog, that I believe most trouble-makers in churches are really atheists. I believe they don’t have a clue that God is alive and in this place, that it matters to Him what they are doing, and that Jesus Christ takes personally all they do—good, bad, ugly—to His Body the Church. If they believed in Him, they would tiptoe into church and gently offer Him their lives and service. But they do not believe.
Ministers must not obsess about some who leave. Some leaders are in the way of what the God-appointed leaders are trying to do, they simply do not share the values of the Lord, and they aren’t remotely interested in changing. They should get out. When they do, it will signal a new birth of freedom for their church.
Our family still laughs about a woman from my childhood church who uttered a statement in a church business session that should be carved in stone since it so perfectly expresses the attitude of certain change-resistant members. Speaking about a longtime practice of the church which the new pastor wanted to end because it was not worthy of the Lord and which was now dividing the congregation, this little woman who had belonged to that church for what seemed like 183 years, said, “Well, if it’s sin, it’s been sin all these many years and I don’t see no reason to stop now.”
We laugh, but we grieve too. I’ve found this woman’s sisters and brothers in every church I ever served. In most cases, these people do not believe for one moment that this church belongs to Jesus. This is their church. “My momma and daddy built this church.” “My family goes back four generations in this church.” “We’ve been here longer than the rest of you, so what we say should carry more weight.” “Pastors come and go, but we stay on forever.”
There is no way to say this too strongly: The best thing to happen to many a church would be for certain members to leave; the sooner the better. In fact, we should pray the Lord would lead some people away.
I pastored six churches and served on staff of two over a half century of ministry (My ordination was exactly 50 years ago this month). Early on, I began to pray a little three-pronged prayer which I recommend to every pastor and leader: “O Lord, send only the people to this church You want here; keep away any You do not want here; and if there’s anyone here You want out, please get them out. Amen.”
I can hear the protests. “But what would we ever do without Deacon Strongarm?” Answer: “I don’t know; let’s find out.” “How will this church survive without our tithes
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and offerings?” Answer: “You might be surprised to discover the Lord does not need your money.”
Over all these years, I have seen many a disgruntled member walk away in a huff, certain the church would fall into ruin without their presence and wise counsel and big gifts. In no case—not one, nada!—did the church ever skip a beat without them. It seems to be a matter of pride with the Lord that He will not let a church suffer when these self-appointed rulers depart with their tiny offerings.
Pastors and leaders must never let themselves be intimidated into submission because “If you don’t go along with this, I’m leaving and taking my checkbook with me.” Let them go. You will never regret it.
Does this sound harsh? It will to some. They will interpret the departure of some as a personal rejection and grieve over what this says about themselves, their church, their preaching. Get over it.
To those who know their scriptures, treasure the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ, and truly want His Gospel to go forth, the day the naysayers and unbelievers, the
controllers and the demanders, the malignant and the recalcitrant, depart will be a banner day for that congregation for years to come.
I can see it now. A generation from now, this wonderful church holds a day of celebration. They erect banners, invite in longtime members, and invite the old folks to give testimonies about this pivotal moment in the church’s history. “Tell us again, former pastor, about that blessed day when those people walked out and blessed our church. We are so indebted to them for leaving.”
Who knows, they even erect a bronze plaque in the foyer of the church with their names on it: “Hall of Fame. Due to the departure of these Christ-denying, church-controlling sons of Diotrephes (3 John 9), our church began to grow and multiply. We owe them so much.” You never can tell; it just might happen.
Joe McKeever is a retired Southern Baptist pastor from New Orleans, Louisiana. He blogs regularly at
www.joemckeever.com.
_____________________________________________________________________________Jewels from Past Giants
On Obeying Christ—Part 2By R. W. Dale
Published as a chapter in Laws of Christ for Common Life, 1884.
What is it to obey Christ? The question appears to be an extremely simple one, but it is possible to suppose that we are obeying Christ when we are really refusing Him any effective authority over our moral life.
III. Christ is AuthoritativeThere is a light that lights every man, but it reaches
us dim, broken, obscured. It shines more and more clearly as we are faithful to it, but even when we have been faithful for years we are troubled that the light is not steadier and stronger. That light is a revelation from heaven. It is a divine Word, translated very imperfectly into a human dialect which, at the best, has no resources for expressing accurately and fully the divine meaning. Still it is divine. It is a revelation of the eternal law of righteousness; and God’s will and the eternal law of righteousness are one. Conscience touches God; God touches conscience. Whatever obedience I owe to the law which is revealed to conscience, I owe to God.
This moral supremacy, this identity with the eternal law of righteousness, is the ultimate prerogative, the incommunicable glory of Deity. That God is my Creator imposes on me many obligations; but if, though He is my Creator, He were not my God, His authority over me would
not be unlimited. His goodness—incessant and infinite—imposes on me many obligations, but if, though He is infinitely good, He were not my God, I should be bound to be grateful to Him, but not to obey Him: my own conscience would still reveal the highest law, and this would determine the measure of my duty to Him.
His power, in itself, gives Him absolutely no moral rights over me. It is not because He can punish me for not doing His will—it is not because He has actually menaced me with punishment for not doing His will—that I am bound to obey Him. The menace of punishment does not create a crime; if an action is not already wrong, it is a crime to punish it.
He is God, and this means that He has an authority over me, absolutely unique and absolutely unlimited. Do you ask, “Why must a man obey God?” You can never have heard the voice of God if you ask that question. You may as well ask, “Why must a man obey conscience?” I must obey conscience because I ought; there is nothing more to be said. I must obey God because I ought; there is nothing more to be said.
And in Christ God comes to me and claims my obedience. The ultimate prerogative, the incommunicable glory of God, is Christ’s. He is the Eternal Law of Righteousness incarnate. He does not counsel; He commands. When I discover who He is, I have no choice but to obey Him.
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IV. Christ Must Rule over Our ConscienceThis position is challenged. It is contended that
conscience must always retain its sovereignty, and that even in Christ’s presence conscience remains supreme. In support of this contention it is alleged that Christ Himself appeals to conscience to recognize His claims. Miracles the most stupendous can never compel religious faith or moral submission; for miracles, in themselves, are simply displays of power. Conscience must recognize the moral supremacy of Christ before Christ can command either our religious reverence or our moral submission. If conscience has to form a judgment on the moral claims of Christ as a whole, conscience must be competent to form a judgment on the details of His teaching, on His separate moral precepts; and only as conscience recognizes their moral obligation do they become obligatory. Conscience after all is supreme.
It is true that conscience must determine whether or not the claims of Christ to moral authority are valid; but when conscience has once discovered that He is the living, personal revelation of the eternal law of righteousness, conscience has recognized its Master and Lord. Henceforth conscience itself insists that the commands of Christ must be obeyed.
“But am I, in any particular, to obey Christ against the dictates of my own conscience?” Wait and see whether the conflict arises. It may happen, indeed, that some of Christ’s precepts impose duties which conscience has not discovered for itself, and does not recognize as intrinsically obligatory even when they are commanded. The explanation of this is to be found in what has been already said of the slow development of conscience.
The jurisdiction of conscience is august; but conscience is not omniscient, even in its actual decisions it is not infallible. Left to itself, it often discovers duties only when it is too late to discharge them. But Christ enables us to anticipate experience. He does not command what conscience condemns; but in the early years of the Christian life it is very commonly found that He commands many duties which as yet conscience does not enforce.
V. Christ’s Authority Is Real and PersonalThese claims of Christ to personal authority over
the moral life provoke not only speculative criticism but resentment. There are men of high integrity and generous temperament to whom they are intolerable. It is one thing to submit to an abstract law which conscience discovers for itself—in this submission there is no humiliation; it is quite another thing to submit to the government of a Person.
Nor is it because the submission is claimed by one who has “been made flesh” that the claim is resisted. There are, it is to be feared, many persons who suppose that they believe in God, but who refuse Him all authority over conduct. They would vehemently resent the charge of atheism, but they regard God as nothing more than a
metaphysical hypothesis to account for the existence of the universe. In support of this position they may appeal to the Christian apologists of the eighteenth century, some of whom seem to have learnt their theology from Aristotle rather than from Christ; but they are in open conflict both with the Jewish and the Christian revelation.
The Book of Genesis begins, no doubt, with a wonderful celebration of God as the Creator of the heavens and the earth, of the sun, the moon, the stars, and of all living things; but it is impossible that this can record the first revelation of God to the human race. God first revealed Himself in His immediate relations to living men, and when men began to know Him for themselves He led them on to the discovery that He whom they knew was the Creator of all things. Both in the New Testament and in the Old, God’s present and direct relations to men take precedence of all questions concerning the great First Cause.
But these relations are to many men intolerable. While God is nothing more than the Origin of all things, the personal life is free; as soon as He claims authority, the freedom seems lost. The claim is met with angry resistance. It is thrust aside, out of sight. To be ruled by a Law—this can be borne; to be ruled by a Person is to be reduced to the condition of a slave.
But those to whom the great discovery of God in Christ has come, know that in His service there is perfect freedom. The recognition of His personal supremacy over life brings with it courage, elastic vigor, high hope, and a sense of great security and peace. The rule of Law—not of the personal God—is the real tyranny. The law can command; it can do nothing more. It is inflexible, and to those who are conscious of moral failure, it is stern and implacable.
It has no pity for our weakness, no tears for our defeats, no compassion for our follies, and no forgiveness for our sins. It does not share our hopes. It does not rejoice in our triumphs. It leaves the awful loneliness of the soul in the highest provinces of life unrelieved. It can receive no confidences, show no sympathy. It lays upon us heavy burdens, and gives no strength to bear them. It raises questions which perplex us and answers none of them.
When Christ becomes the Lord of conduct everything is changed. He stands by us in every conflict; gives strength as well as defines duty; rejoices more than we rejoice ourselves in our victories; grieves more than we grieve ourselves in our reverses. Henceforth we are never alone, either in the unexciting and monotonous duties of common days, or in those hours of peril in which, but for His presence and support, our hearts would fail and our strength faint.
Christ becomes our comrade, faithful and generous; but yet He is our Ruler and we are under the government of a higher Will than our own. Close observers may discover the wonderful difference that this makes in the character of a man whose morality, in the ordinary sense of the word,
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has undergone no change as the result of his submission to Christ’s authority.
The difference is hard to put into words, but it is as if the man were always in the presence of one greater than himself; and this is the actual explanation of his new temper and spirit. There is no servility in him, but arrogance and willfulness are now impossible. There is a new dignity in his moral bearing, but it is not a dignity that comes from self-assertion; it is a dignity that comes from his relationship to the greatness of another.
No such results follow belief in a God who is nothing more than a metaphysical hypothesis to account for the origin of the universe. In men who have such a belief it may be perfectly clear that their will has never done homage to a higher will; and that whatever discipline they may have received from education and from the experience of life, the central forces of their nature are unsubdued and untamed. They have no relation to a nature higher than their own. They have no God.
We have to obey God in Christ. But when the real secret of the Christian revelation is mastered, the obedience
assumes a unique character. The Will by which we are ruled is the will of another who is yet not another. The fountains of our life are in Him. We are one with Him as the branch is one with the vine. He is our higher self, our truer self. The Will we obey is a force which acts, not from without, but from within. It inspires as well as governs, impels as well as commands. This wonderful relation to Christ, and this alone, renders it possible to obey Him. Not until we abide in Christ and Christ abides in us are we able to keep His commandments.
Robert William Dale (1829-1895) was an English Congregationalist pastor and church leader. Born in London, Dale studied at Spring Hill College in the
industrial city of Birmingham. In 1853, he joined the Carr’s Lane Chapel as co-pastor, acceding to the role of pastor in 1859 and holding that position for the rest of his life. He is
remembered both for his passionate preaching of the Gospel and as a social reformer for his insistence that the church
work to back up her witness by caring for the poor and needy.
_____________________________________________________________________________Marks of the Master—by The Old Scot
Size beyond Comprehension
Originally published in Pulpit Helps, March 2007.
When we think about big things, the Earth we live on seems to be about the biggest thing we can imagine. It is made up of great forests, wide grasslands, lofty mountain ranges, and seemingly endless oceans—and that’s just on the surface.
If our Earth wore a belt, it would have to be 25,000 miles long. But if we could stand so far out in space that Earth looked as small as a bowling ball, it would appear perfectly smooth. Our mighty mountains would be so insignificant that they would not show up at all.
Another way to think about Earth’s size is to weigh it—and scientists have found a way to estimate Earth’s weight fairly closely. It turns out that our home planet weighs six thousand million tons, times a million millions. That’s six, followed by 21 zeros, or in mathematical shorthand, 6 x 1021.
That’s a pretty hefty figure to try to get our minds around—but actually Earth is pretty small-potatoes compared to the giants of space. In fact, Earth seems puny even compared to other planets in our solar system. Jupiter, for instance, is about 1,300 times the size of Earth.
And then there’s the Sun: It is so vast that you could lose the Earth and also our Moon—including its quarter-million mile orbit out from Earth—inside the Sun. To put Earth in perspective, imagine the Sun as a ball two
feet thick. Now walk 215 feet away and put down a dried pea. That’s Earth.
But now let’s look outside our “local” Solar System: If you have a star-finder, locate the constellation Orion, and in it the bright star Betelguese. Betelguese could swallow up the Sun and the entire orbits of Mercury, Venus, and Earth, with 15 million miles to spare, and hardly burp!
And of course there is Antares, in the constellation Scorpio. It’s nearly twice as big as Betelguese. And there are millions and millions of other stars in the heavens, most of them larger than our Sun. Any way you look at it, there’s an awful lot of material in our “material universe”!
Thinking about all this should lead us to two other thoughts.
The first is about ourselves. I well remember the summer night I first really thought about the stars. I was about eight years old, and was lying on the soft grass of our country home, with all the glory of God’s heavens spread out above me. I hope you have had, or can have such an experience. It made me feel very, very small, I can tell you!—especially the Milky Way enthroned in velvety blackness.
Then, thinking about how huge everything in space is ought to help us realize how great God is, to manufacture all this by speaking it into existence! “And God said ‘Let
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there be light,’ and there was light” (Gen. 1:3). Truly, our God is a Mighty God!
But there is a third wonderful thought connected with our viewing the heavens: insignificant as we seem by contrast with the mighty works in space, we are precious to God nonetheless.
So highly does God value us that He sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to die for you and me, as well as the rest of mankind. As Judge, God must judge sin and wickedness; but as Father He provided the Lamb of God to pay with His
own blood for those sins, for all who will come to Him in belief and repentance.
It’s good to demote ourselves from the center of our universe; but it’s also grand to know our Father loves us, isn’t it?
The Old Scot (Ted Kyle) lives in Newberg, Oregon, with his wife, Marga.
Source: Immensity, by Clarence H. Benson, Van Kampen Press, Chicago, 1937.
_____________________________________________________________________________Advancing the Ministries of the Gospel
When Disaster StrikesBy AMG International Staff
From providing relief in war-torn Greece in the 1940s, to ministering in Guatemala in the wake of the 1974 earthquake, to reaching out to our own countrymen after Hurricane Katrina in 2005, to helping victims of the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, disaster relief has always been a part of AMG International’s work. We do this, even though we are not specifically a “disaster relief” organization, for the same reason as all of our other ministries—to reach the lost with the Gospel of Jesus Christ
Something in our sin nature always draws us away from the fear of God and awe at His creation. We want to believe that the world is safe, predictable, and somehow under our control. Nothing shatters this false trust faster than a natural disaster. Suddenly, the world we thought we knew turns on us, threatening our lives and wiping out the work of our hands in a moment.
Even those of us who know and worship Christ can forget how fragile life is until something happens to grab our attention. We remember all too well the wave of tornadoes that swept through our city last year. The shock of seeing friends lose their homes and other valuable things brought home the power of a disaster to shake us.
When people are hurting, their focus shifts outward as they seek assistance and answers. Often Christians are among the first to provide shelter, food, water and comfort in the aftermath of a crisis. This care and concern builds trust and opens doors for the Gospel—people are ready to listen to Christ’s message when they see that His people sacrificially extend His compassion. Because AMG has a ministry presence with missionaries and national workers in many countries, we are uniquely positioned to be “first responders” to both physical and spiritual needs when disaster strikes a people we work among.
In recent months, the Philippines have been hit by a very intense monsoon season which resulted in widespread flooding. AMG has many ministries throughout the
Philippines (childcare, education, and camping projects), so when a disaster like this strikes, we are both victims and helpers. With currently available funds, AMG Philippines expects to be able to help almost 5,500 families who have been affected by these floods. Our national director there, Hector Araña, shares the following update on what we have been able to do to serve in the midst of the floods:
“11 out of the 18 AMG childcare centers in Metro Manila have been affected by the flood. We have recently distributed relief goods and needed items to about 830 families with sponsored children in our centers to cover their needs for two days. Many others in the communities where we serve are asking us for help since the government and other organizations’ relief assistance is not enough because of the huge number of victims.
“One of the flood victims asked me, ‘Is this the plan of the Lord for us?’ When you are right there, the power of touch, a smile, a listening ear or even the smallest act of caring, like giving a small pack of relief goods, have a great potential to turn life around. [By providing relief supplies] you have made a difference in the lives of these people affected by the torrential flooding in the Philippines.”
Stories like this strengthen AMG’s commitment to the work of disaster relief. By offering Christlike compassion in the midst of such natural disaster, our missionaries and national workers earn the credibility to speak about the “spiritual disaster relief” that is the Gospel of salvation through Jesus Christ. Far from being an interruption of their regular ministry, our field staff see these situations as an opportunity to reach out to those with whom they may otherwise never have contact.
This kind of ministry is difficult to prepare for—you never know ahead of time when and where disasters will come or how many people will be affected—so it is important to always be ready. The relief packs Hector and
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his staff were able to provide were purchased through gifts to AMG’s disaster relief fund by donors like you over the past year. Will you continue in partnership with us so that we can be ready with a helping hand and the truth of Christ whenever and wherever we are needed most?
To learn more about AMG’s disaster relief ministries around the world and how you can support them, please visit www.amginternational.org or call 1-800-251-7206.
Advancing the Ministries of the Gospel (AMG) International is a non-denominational, international
missions agency based in Chattanooga, Tenn. AMG’s distinctive has always been its reliance on national workers
to carry the Gospel in their own cultures. Today, they operate ministries in over 40 countries around the world
through partnership with national believers.
_____________________________________________________________________________Book Review—12/10/2012
The Conviction to Lead: 25 Principles for Leadership that Matters, Albert Mohler, 2012, Bethany House, Bloomington, Minn., ISBN 9780764210044, 213 pages, $22.99, hardcover.
There are not many authors I can say this about, but when Albert Mohler, president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky., writes a book, I have to think long and hard before passing it by. He writes with thoughtfulness and clarity on a variety of issues facing the Church today, and always brings a challenging and winsome biblical perspective. Mohler’s latest offering, The Conviction to Lead, is no exception, taking a somewhat tired genre to great heights.
Far from the standard leadership repertoire of witty aphorisms and exhortations to work ever harder for esoteric goals, Mohler offers real, solid advice. Moreover, his advice is not directed at a general audience, but for those who are in positions of leadership or who are genuinely recognizing God’s call to them in that area.
The advice Mohler offers is a thorough blend of foundational truths and principles for Christian leadership and the practical applications (in everything from management, to communication, to developing good media skills) that flow from that. His guiding idea is “convictional leadership”, that is, that a leader is only as good as the truths on which every aspect of his vision, goals, and methods are grounded.
Some examples of how this idea shapes Mohler’s arguments are found in the ways he discusses some of the
“standard” leadership mantras. He reframes “getting buy-in” from followers in terms of teaching the convictions of the faith so that an organization’s stakeholders can learn and respond to truth, not charisma. He turns “brand building” on its head so that the focus is on stewarding the work God has entrusted to an organization and giving Him the glory. He talks about time management from the perspective of eternity, not just in the name of productivity and efficiency.
At bottom, Mohler’s idea of convictional leadership is about motivating men and women to greatness for Christ’s sake, not securing success, wealth, or influence in earthly terms. While he shares some stories from his own experience, there is none of the self-congratulatory tone that often drags down books like this.
Mohler’s stated reason for writing this book is to transform the way Christians think about leadership and to raise up a generation of leaders who are completely committed to Christ and His Church, and I think his work here goes a long way toward those goals. There is plenty of meat here for both leaders and followers (whether they want to become leaders and those who wish to learn which leaders to follow). If you are in a position of leadership, buy this book and read it carefully. If you’re not a leader yourself, buy this book and give it to someone who is.
Justin Lonas
Target: Pastors/LeadersType: LeadershipTake: Highly Recommended
_____________________________________________________________________________News Update—12/10/12
Fiscal Cliff Imperils Adoption Tax CreditWith Congress embroiled in debate over the so-
called “fiscal cliff,” many in the adoption community are concerned that the adoption tax credit set to expire at the end of the year could be forgotten, Baptist Press reports.
The tax credit that provided last year a maximum of $13,360 to each adoptive family has helped countless low and middle-income families afford the costly endeavor. Unlike a tax deduction, which only reduces taxable income, a tax credit actually reduces a person’s tax liability.
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In September U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.) introduced the Making Adoption Affordable Act, which would permanently establish the tax credit and make it “refundable,” allowing adoptive families to receive a refund “in excess of their tax liability,” but amid all the debate regarding the fiscal cliff, the bill “has sort of been stalled,” says Bill J. Blacquiere, president of nationwide adoption agency Bethany Christian Services.
“Throughout this year we’ve always been told by legislators that this bill would be taken up after the election,” he said. “Well, now it is after the election....” Blacquiere fears that without the tax credit, there will be fewer adoptions. “People would just simply say, ‘I can’t afford this cost,’ and they would back out of it,” he said.
Religion Today Summaries
Belgium: Two Newly Elected Muslim Politicians in Brussels Vow to Implement Sharia
Two Muslim politicians who won October municipal elections in Belgium’s capital, Brussels, have vowed to implement sharia, or Islamic law, in Belgium, the Gatestone Institute reports.
The two candidates, Lhoucine Ait Jeddig and Redouane Ahrouch, both from the fledgling Islam Party, won seats in two heavily Islamic municipalities of Brussels, and say they regard their election as key to the assertion of the Muslim community in the country. In a one-hour video of a post-election press conference, Ahrouch says at one point that he will strive to make sure the town council’s “motions and solutions are durable and definitive and will emanate from Islam.”
The Islam party, which plans to field candidates in European-level elections in 2014, campaigned on three core issues: ensuring that halal meals are served in public school cafeterias, securing the official recognition of Muslim religious holidays, and pushing for a law that would legalize the wearing of Islamic headscarves in public spaces.
Ahrouch has admitted he is taking a gradual approach, saying it may take decades to enforce sharia, but says his ultimate goal—creating an Islamic state in Belgium—has not changed. “I think we have to sensitize people, make them understand the advantages to having Islamic people and Islamic laws,” he told a reporter. “And then it will be completely natural to have Islamic laws and we will become an Islamic state.” Muslims now make up one quarter of the population of Brussels.
Religion Today Summaries
Philippines Typhoon Death Toll Still RisingThe death toll is continuing to rise from a powerful
typhoon that flooded much of the southern Philippines, CBN News reports. More than 280 people have been reported dead, at least 151 of those in the worst-hit province
of Compostela Valley on the southern island of Mindanao, and more than 50,000 have been forced to flee from flooded villages.
“The waters came so suddenly and unexpectedly, and the winds were so fierce—that compounded the loss of lives and livelihood,” Compostela Valley provincial Gov. Arturo Uy told Reuters. Officials fear the death toll from Typhoon Bopha will increase as rescue crews and soldiers reach other hard-hit areas that had been isolated by landslides and flooding.
Religion Today Summaries
Chen Guangcheng: Forced Abortion in China “Still Extensively Exists”
Blind Chinese activist Chen Guangcheng, whose dramatic escape from house arrest and flight to New York captured the attention of the world in May, has issued a powerful video calling on the Chinese Communist Party to account for crimes committed against the Chinese people, ASSIST News Service reports.
These include crimes committed against Chen’s own family—such as his nephew, who was just given a three-year jail sentence for defending himself when officials broke into his house and savagely beat him and his parents. Instead of improving, Chen says “the human rights situation in China is, in fact, getting worse…. In China, no one is safe.”
Moreover, Chen says “the violence in maintaining China’s one-child policy still extensively exists. It is a sin, because life is sacred.” In 2006, Chen was detained and tortured for exposing the massive, systematic use of forced abortion and involuntarily sterilization in China.
According to Reggie Littlejohn, president of Women’s Rights without Frontiers: “Chen Guangcheng has endured incalculable suffering for human rights in China, and in particular, for the rights of women not to be forcibly aborted or sterilized. He has confirmed that these barbaric practices are still being used ‘extensively’.... The leaders of the United States should join Chen in calling for a peaceful transition away from policies that are oppressing and terrorizing the people of China, who are one-fifth of the population of the earth.”
Religion Today Summaries
Unhappy Egyptians Given Two Weeks to Consider Divisive Constitution That Elevates Sharia
Given just two weeks to consider a draft constitution that will be put to a national referendum Dec. 15, Egyptians were taking to the streets in large numbers December 4 to protest the latest development in their country’s chaotic political transition, CNSNews,com reports.
Drafted by ultra-conservative Islamists despite concerns of many non-Muslims and liberals, the
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constitution has deepened divisions in Egyptian society. Voicing support are president Mohammed Morsi’s Muslim Brotherhood and the Salafist Nour Party, the two parties which together dominated the elected legislature—whose future remains uncertain since a Supreme Constitutional Court ruling last June—and several prominent Islamic leaders.
Opponents of the constitution and referendum plan include Coptic Christians, some minority Shia and Sufi Muslims, liberal and secular political parties, and two former presidential hopefuls, Amr Moussa and Mohamed
El Baradei. The judiciary also appears to be divided, with some judges saying they will refuse to oversee the referendum, as required by law, but the Supreme Judicial Council was reported Monday to have agreed to supervise the process.
The rush to push ahead with the constitution followed Morsi’s controversial Nov. 22 decree granting himself extensive new powers and exempting his decisions from judicial review.
Religion Today Summaries
_____________________________________________________________________________Sermon Helps—From SermonHall.com
Sermon OutlinesMary the Mother of JesusIntro.: Mary was chosen to be the mother of Jesus. Through her, the prophecies of Isaiah, Micah and other Scripture would be fulfilled. Notice:I. Her Holiness
A. Her person was holy—she was a virgin (Luke 1:27).
B. Her practices were holy. She was quick to obey God. She didn’t question God or make excuses (Luke 1:38).
II. Her Humanity A. She was a faithful wife and mother. After Jesus was born, Joseph and Mary were married and had at least six children (Matt. 13:55-56).B. She experienced pain and frustration. Her son, Jesus was born to die. She knew the teachings of Isaiah 53 and Psalm 22, how He would suffer and die. She watched as He performed miracles. She then watched her Son die upon the cross.C. She had faith. There were many things that she didn’t understand, but she trusted God. Though Romans 8:28 was not yet written, she believed its message. She had faith that pleased God (see Hebrews 11:1, 6.)
III. Her HumilityA. Humble acceptance. Mary was going to have a child, and she was not married (Matt. 1:18-25). This surely created misunderstanding and much gossip for both her and Joseph to face.B. Humble attitude. The Son of God was born in a stable (Luke 2:17). A humble Savior, showing His humility through a humble woman.C. Humble affection. What great love! Imagine having a Son, who would die for the sins of mankind at the age of 33. Mary was willing to give “her Son” to save mankind.
Conc.: Mary was not perfect, but she pleased God and allowed Him to use her. Learn from her holiness, her humanity, and her humility.
Anonymous
Hope, the Gift of ChristmasIntro.: When Christ came to this earth as a baby born in Bethlehem, he came to a world that was without hope. But He brought hope. Peter’s two epistles describe this gift of hope in four ways:I. A Living Hope (1 Pet. 1:3)
A. Peter opens his letter by establishing the basis of our hope on “the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.” B. Because He lives, our future is guaranteed.
II. A Focused Hope (1 Pet. 1:13)A. The Christian’s hope is fixed on “the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.”B. We look forward with certainty to His return and reign.
III. A Secure Hope (1 Pet. 1:21)A. God “raised Him up from the dead and gave Him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God.” B. God the Father has shown His complete satisfaction with Christ’s work of atonement by receiving Him back into His presence and crowning Him with glory. Every believer is now “accepted in the beloved” (Eph. 1:6).
IV. A Challenging Hope (1 Pet. 3:15)A. “Be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you.” B. The challenge is two-fold.
1. Our daily lives should be attractive enough to cause those about us to notice a difference.
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2. When asked about our hope in Christ, we will be prepared to give a clear and convincing response.
Conc.: The great gap between “hopeless” and “hopeful” has been bridged by the saving grace of Jesus Christ, whose promise is our “blessed hope” (Titus 2:13). Little wonder that the shepherds rejoiced over the message of the angels for it was a message of hope!
Anonymous
IllustrationsThe Christmas Gift Is Too Much
The story is told that Julius Caesar had a friend to whom he once gave a munificent present. But when he offered it, the friend said: “This is too much for me to receive.”
To this, the emperor replied: “But it is not too much for me to give.”
After all our sinfulness and rebellion, God’s gift of pardon through Christ does seem too much for us to receive; but the riches of divine mercy are so great that it is not too much for Him to give.
When God forgives, there is not one sin left unforgiven. Christmas was indeed too great a gift for man, but it was not so for God.
Anonymous
Keep Christ Central in ChristmasIt is a principle of art that in the composition of a
picture, all the parts shall be so arranged as to lead the eye inevitably to the central figure or feature. Whatever prevents this is a capital defect. Accessories are only important as they help this end.
When Varelst, the Dutch painter, made his tulips so glorious that they drew attention away from the face of James II, in whose portrait he had placed them, he violated this canon. So did Haydon when, in his picture of Christ’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem, he made the figure of the
beast on which the Master rode more attractive than the person of Christ.
So does the theologian or the metaphysician or the logician, who fascinates by his argument and rhetoric, or the preacher and liturgist, who stresses his forms of worship and symbols of religion.
It is not the swaddling-clothes of ceremonialism, but the Christ of the simple gospel story consistently lived, that shall span the continents with love and make Christmas perpetual in the heart of man.
Anonymous
Bulletin InsertsOn ChristmasIf we could condense all the truths of Christmas into only three words, these would be the words: “God with us.”
John MacArthur
Jesus Christ became Incarnate for one purpose, to make a way back to God that man might stand before Him as He was created to do, the friend and lover of God Himself.
Oswald Chambers
You can never truly enjoy Christmas until you can look up into the Father’s face and tell him you have received his Christmas gift.
John W. Rice
The cry of this world for meaning and hope and life, was met one morning far away in the cry of a tiny babe. And with that cry time stopped and started again. And it was new.
The hinge of history is on the door of a Bethlehem stable. These two Anonymous
_____________________________________________________________________________Puzzles and ‘Toons
Church ’Toons by Joe McKeever
Page 17Disciple Magazine, Vol. 4, # 23, 12/10/2012—Printer-Friendly Version
Answers to last issue’s puzzles:
Father Abraham and Hidden WisdomBy Mark Oshman
Originally published in Pulpit Helps, November 1996 Hidden Wisdom on next page
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