Category: Uncategorized

Was Uzzah’s Death Unfair?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Neal Pollard
If you Google the phrase “Uzzah Death Unfair,” you will find at least 1380 hits most of which addresses that idea. In case you are having a momentary brain cramp over exactly who Uzzah was, he was the man who died when he tried to steady the Ark of the Covenant as David arranged for it to return to Jerusalem. Since the last day of Eli’s life, the Philistines had assumed possession of the Ark (1 Sam. 5:1). That idolatrous nation, given the trouble they received from God for keeping it, returned it to Israel, to Kiriath-Jearim, where Eleazer was consecrated to keep it at Abinadab’s house on the hill (1 Sam. 7:1). Then, following Saul’s reign, David wanted to bring the ark back to Jerusalem (2 Sam. 6:1ff). Abinadab’s sons, Uzzah and Ahio, set the ark on a new cart and began the journey toward Jerusalem. At Nachon’s threshing floor, the oxen stumbled and Uzzah took hold of the ark (2 Sam. 6:6). Then, “God struck him down there for his irreverence; and he died there by the ark of God” (2 Sam. 6:7). David became angry because of the Lord’s outburst against Uzzah, even calling the site of Nashon’s threshing floor that name (Perez-Uzzah).

One might ask why God reacted in what the modern mind sees as a harsh way “simply” for steadying the ark after the oxen stumbled. In 1 Chronicles 15, several inspired answers are given. First, David said it was “because we did not consult Him (God) about the proper order” (13). In other words, Israel took it on themselves to move the ark-which they knew as the residing place of the glory of the Lord (1 Sam. 4:22; cf. 2 Sam. 6:2)-without regard to how God commanded it to be done. Jeremiah says that it is not in man to direct his own steps (10:23). Second, they had gotten away from their spiritual roots. In this case, their spiritual roots were what “Moses commanded according to the word of the Lord” (1 Chron. 15:15). God had an established, authorized way to carry the ark which the writer reviews in this verse. On this occasion, they did as Moses revealed. “The Levites bore the ark of God on their shoulders, by its poles” (15a). Finally, they tried to get by on self-reliance (26). Their newly rediscovered reverence following Uzzah’s death led David, the Levites, and all Israel to see that “God helped the Levites who bore the ark of the covenant.” This spirit of dependency apparently did not exist when Uzzah walked behind the oxcart.

Is it unfair for God to want people to consult Him, to be true to their spiritual roots, to properly regard and revere Him, and to rely upon Him? Certainly not. Uzzah certainly shows us the grave spiritual danger we face by trying to go out on our own, without reverence toward, reliance upon, and recognition of God and His power and authority in our lives.

The Listeria Outbreak

Neal Pollard

The CDC reports that 30 people died and one miscarriage was attributed to an outbreak of listeria, a bacteria causing food poisoning, traced to cantaloupe raised and processed at Jensen Farms near Holly, Colorado.  An attorney representing several who died in this outbreak has the count at 34 victims, including a 68-year-old man who succumbed to listeriosis yesterday.  Those who have either become ill or died hail from 19 states, and the FDA traced the outbreak to dirty equipment.  The dead in most, if not all cases, already had compromised immune systems or underlying health issues that allowed the bacteria to be lethal (cf. Denver Post, 2/22/12, Michael Booth).

It is useless to become paranoid about listeria and cantaloupe, but it does point out how “little” or “minor” things can easily become significant.  If the “right” (i.e., “wrong”) person is exposed to something that may not hurt most people, it can be toxic and even deadly.  If one is “careless” about how they handle even the seemingly routine things, he or she can have a devastating impact.  Even without evil intentions, harm is done!

Perhaps the most common way we contaminate and poison others is through our words.  On the surface, they are seemingly insignificant.  But they can quickly injure or contribute to the spiritual death of the weak, vulnerable, and otherwise susceptible.  James warns of the volatile potential of the tongue (Js. 3:2ff).  Proverbs 18:21 says, “Death and life are in the power of the tongue.”

We also must watch our example.  Others are watching how we react to life, they see our attitudes, and they examine our choices.  We may brush something off as “no big deal,” but it might be deadly for them.  Jesus warns, “It is inevitable that stumbling blocks come, but woe to him through whom they come! It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea, than that he would cause one of these little ones to stumble” (Lk. 17:1-2).

May our lives bring spiritual health and life to others!  May we disdain what is otherwise!  Eternal lives are at stake.

 

Where Are You From?

Neal Pollard

I’ve been asked that most of my adult life.  Being raised in Georgia and receiving my college education in Alabama and Tennessee, I was asked that from the time my family and I moved to Virginia in 1994 and am constantly asked that since we moved here to Colorado in 2006.  My accent gives away my geographical heritage.  While I was a student at Faulkner University, my parents moved up to a community informally known as Mud Puppy, Georgia–several houses off Gold Mine Road north of Blairsville.  People always got a kick out of my answer when they asked, “Where are you from?”

New Orleans is “the big easy.”  Las Vegas is “sin city.”  New York City is “the big apple.”  Chicago is “the windy city.”  Miami is “vice city.”  Boston is “Beantown.” Tagline Guru has the names of some lesser known towns, too.  Did you know that Cape Hatteras, NC, is known as “the graveyard of the Atlantic”?  Forestville, CA, is “the poison oak capital of the world.”  Nashville, TN, is called “the protestant vatican.”  Gallup, NM, is “the drunk driving capital of America.”  My favorite is Algona, IA–“The world’s largest Chee-to” (www.taglineguru.com/monikerlist.html).

The final paragraph of Ezekiel describes the twelve gates of the new city.  The prophet said the city would no longer be called Jerusalem but rather “Yahweh-shammah.”  “The Lord is there” (48:35).

Would you not love to live in a place whose citizens and characteristics were truly such that the town’s name or nickname would be, “the Lord is there.”  The Hebrews writer describes the church as “the city of the living God, the new Jerusalem” (12:22-23).  We should so conduct ourselves as a congregation that all who come among us and visit with us come to identify us as “Yahweh-shammah.”  The Lord is there!

Chicken Wings


Tony Johnson

At work one day we were having a potluck and one of guys had
brought his special recipe hot wings. His special recipe was to blend
the habanero chili peppers into a paste, mix it into a little Tabasco
sauce, and bake it into the chicken wings.

Before we got ready to eat this guy called one of his buddies over
saying “You’ve got to try my hot wings and tell me what you think!”
So his buddy went over, grabbed a wing. Stuck the whole thing in his
mouth and got about half way through pulling the bone out when the
realization that his mouth was on fire hit him.

Anyway, after lots of water and stuffing anything other than those
chicken wings into his mouth to try and put out the fire, he dried the
tears in his eyes and finally got himself composed. Then you know
what he did? He went looking for someone else to offer a chicken
wing to!

After the first couple of guys were fooled into eating one of these
chicken wings with the same predictable results, enough people had
gathered so that they weren’t going to be able to fool anyone else.
But then the strangest thing happened.

Guys who had seen the results of the first couple of guys went and
tried the wings for themselves! They were a little more cautious, not
sticking the whole thing in their mouths, but kind of nibbling around
the edges, but the results were still pretty much the same. And it
went on until all the chicken wings were gone!

So you might think the moral of this story is “guys are stupid”, and
given the facts, I would have a hard time arguing with you. But as all
this was going on I started thinking how what was happening was just
like the way sin spreads.

► It seemed to me that the one who made the sauce and knew how
hot it was and what would probably happen, but still called out to
his friend “Come on and try my chicken wings!” – He is like the false
prophet seeking to mislead.

Matthew 24:11,12 says “Many false prophets will arise and will
mislead many. Because lawlessness is increased, most people’s
love will grow cold.”

There are many people who will mislead you if you let them.

► The one who tried them, and burned his mouth, but still called
out to his buddy to come and try them to – He is like the one who
has fallen, and rather than pick himself up and put up warning signs
to keep others from the same fate, he calls out to see if he can get
others to join him in his misery.

Proverbs 4:16 says there are some people who … cannot sleep
unless they do evil; and they are robbed of sleep unless they make
someone stumble.

► And what about the ones who saw what was going on, but just
had to try it for themselves? They are the ones who blindly follow the
masses, even when they know they are going to suffer.

Most of the religious word is just following along whatever is
comfortable or convenient! And the result? Matthew 7:13 says that
“… the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction,
and there are many who enter through it.”

On that particular day I was one of the few who didn’t eat the chicken
wings. But in my life, in the things that truly matter, that hasn’t always
been the case. What about you?


GOD’S FEET

Neal Pollard

When the Bible speaks of God in anatomical terms, His eyes, His finger, His hand, His heart, and His feet, it does so accommodatively. We possess those body parts, and we know how they function.  So, to speak of God having them helps us see certain characteristics He possesses.  God is spirit (John 4:24).  A spirit is not associated with flesh and bones (Luke 24:39).  Yet, these are mentioned in Scripture to help paint a mental picture for us.

This is true when it speaks of God’s “feet.”  Consider what the Bible says in this regard:

  • He treads our iniquities under them (Micah 7:19).
  • He puts all things in subjection under them (Ephesians 1:22; Hebrews 2:8).
  • He walks on the wind and the heaven (Job 22:14; Psalm 104:3).
  • He treads on the high places of the earth (Amos 4:13).
  • His steps are safe to follow (1 Peter 2:21).
  • He walks with the righteous (Genesis 5:22; 6:9).
  • He stands at the right hand of the needy (Psalm 109:31).
  • He runs to meet the penitent (cf. Luke 15:20).
  • He sets us in the way of His steps (Psalm 85:13).

Taken together, references like these point to God’s power, His purity, and His position.  He can do whatever He pleases, but He will always do what is right.  He will always stand for what is right and good.  Therefore, we can and must follow in His footsteps.  They lead us to the only place of safety!

THINKING SOULS IN THE ASSEMBLY


Neal Pollard

Towns and Porter deliver a slap to the face of most of us when they write, “Most churches consider themselves a friendly church because church members feel the warmth and friendship of others in the church family. It is not uncommon to see groups of people gathered throughout the church facility before and after services laughing and talking together. But often the warmth of Christian fellowship is turned inward to others in the church family and seldom experienced by outsiders who visit the congregation” (Churches That Multiply, 108).  The painful question for us to ask is, “Does that describe us?”  Where do we direct the bulk of our attention?  How often do we reach out to non-Christians, visitors, new Christians, and Christians who are not “regulars”?  Does it matter to God if we are making the effort?
This is not about what kind of personality I possess, be it introverted or extroverted.  It is not about what I feel to be the most comfortable or easy path.  It is about thinking souls at every assembly.  Every person who comes in through our doors is telling us, “OK, I am here.  I need to know if I matter to you as I try to decide whether or not God, Christ, and the Bible matter to me.  Ignore me and I will not return.  Love me and I may never leave.”  See the power for good or ill this places into our hands?
Church leaders must take the lead here.  If the ministers, their wives, elders, their wives, deacons, their wives, and other, recognized leaders and their wives would seek out and try to connect with our visitors and struggling members, it would make a monumental difference.  Yet, it also points out that not everyone is doing that at present.  Barna, the consummate church researcher, contends, “Theology matters, but in the minds of the unchurched (and, quite frankly, most of the churched), the friendly and caring nature of the people matters more” (Grow Your Church From The Outside In, 91).  We may bristle at the idea that our visitors value friendliness over a “thus saith the Lord,” but Jesus warned us it was so.  “By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:35). “One another” undoubtedly includes fellow Christians, but does it exclude these others that come among us?
How we need to be reaching out, day by day, to friends, family, co-workers, and others that we may bring with us to the assemblies and to study God’s Word.  But, what are we doing with those golden opportunities, those who are walking right through our doors?  Will you rise to the challenge and think about them, and share the love of Jesus with them!  They may be eternally grateful to you!

Don’t Take A Dog By The Ears

Neal Pollard

I was shocked to hear this morning that local NBC morning news anchor, Kyle Dyer, was bitten on the lip by an Argentine Mastiff in a “feel good story” about the dog, who was rescued by a local fireman from a frozen pond in Lakewood.  The segment was a reunion between the dog and its owner and the rescuer.  The dog showed no signs of aggression, but Dyer leaned in way too close as if to kiss or snuggle with “Gladiator Maximus.”  Though certainly showing that she is a dog lover, Dyer would no doubt, in hindsight, have done things differently.  Considering the size, the breed, and even the trauma through which the dog had just undergone, this was not a wise move.  Dyer had reconstructive surgery and may be off the job for as much as a month.

In Proverbs 26:17, the writer says, “Like one who takes a dog by the ears is he who passes by and meddles with strife not belonging to him.”  The inspired writer is referring to one “sticking his nose” in someone else’s “business.”  I have not ever taken a dog by the ears, but when I was four I tried to throw a house cat into a 50 gallon barrel on our carport.  The insides of my forearms did not fare well, as I bore skid marks from biceps to wrists.  That cat was minding its own business when I foolishly made it (the cat) my own.

Maybe you have never been so foolish with a dog or cat, but have you ever made someone else’s business your own?  It could have been unsolicited advice, taking sides in a conflict between two parties, being a busybody, or the like.  Avoid such a habit!  Sooner or later, you will receive a painful lesson that might hurt badly!  Your interference may hurt others, but you may will inevitably injure yourself–your feelings, reputation, or even character.  Maybe, meddlers should get a sign that reminds them, “Beware of the dog.”  Save yourself!  Let others’ business be just that.

Tourette’s, Tics, And Transference

Neal Pollard

Recently, a bizarre incidence due east of Buffalo, New York, in the small town of Le Roy (birthplace of Jell-O, by the way) has caught national attention.  Twelve girls in Le Roy Junior-Senior High have all developed an involuntary tic. It behaves similarly to Tourette’s Syndrome, a disorder that affects the nervous system leading to movements and vocalizations the patient cannot control–most commonly uncontrollable eye-blinking, throat clearing, and humming (cdc.gov).  An environmental agency was brought in to test for chemical, biological, or environmental factors that might be causing this outbreak.  They found nothing.  The girls have all seen a neurologist from the University of Buffalo, and he, Dr. David Lichter, has diagnosed them with “conversion disorder,” also known as “mass hysteria.”  Lichter also says that social media can cause this to spread, and young people with their own stress and anxiety can see a friend or someone they identify with suffering from a tic and develop their own.  “Conversion Disorder” is a physical health problem that is rooted in an emotional or mental crisis.  The students all know one another, and that has led those who have actually sat down with the girls to draw this conclusion.

If this is something these girls have “caught” from one another by observation and influence, how powerfully it illustrates a spiritual truth.  We influence one another!  Paul wrote Corinth, “Do not be deceived. Evil company corrupts good habits” (1 Cor. 15:33).  The word “company” is from a Greek word from which we get our English word “homily.”   While that word means a sermon today, the original idea carried with it the idea of “companionship.”  Yet, we preach a powerful sermon to all those who see, know, and are influenced by us.  We will persuade them to think, speak, and act a certain way, and they will have the same effect on us!  The potential impact of that, be it for evil or good, is tremendous!  It is enough to cause us to be careful of our example, but also to be careful about who is influencing us!  We cannot be subjected to influence without being, well, influenced!

The American Chicken In Chittagong

 

Neal Pollard

Almost five years ago, I was sitting in an unlocked car with Ralph Williams on the streets of Chittagong, Bangladesh.  Our driver and a native preacher had gone into an alley to find some breakfast for us.  It was about 7:00 AM, and all at once hundreds of men in full Muslim attire, white caps and white cloaks or brightly-colored hats and basic-colored cloaks, began streaming past us.  As I saw them, and among them undoubtedly some clerics and an imam or two, I confess to having had an elevated heart rate.  I felt vulnerable and a bit unsafe, knowing I stood out with my comparatively pale skin and American clothes.  My Bangladeshi vocabulary is very sketchy.  I kept thinking that I could not do much to protect myself or my more elderly companion.

Have you ever felt vulnerable, alone, helpless, and afraid?  Perhaps it takes more than a vivid imagination and a throng of Islamic pedestrian commuters to invoke such feelings from you, but most all of us experience feelings of being susceptible, anxious, and even alarm.  David certainly did!

He wrote, “Be gracious to me, O LORD, for I am in distress; My eye is wasted away from grief, my soul and my body also. For my life is spent with sorrow And my years with sighing; My strength has failed because of my iniquity, And my body has wasted away. Because of all my adversaries, I have become a reproach, Especially to my neighbors, And an object of dread to my acquaintances; Those who see me in the street flee from me. I am forgotten as a dead man, out of mind; I am like a broken vessel. For I have heard the slander of many, Terror is on every side; While they took counsel together against me, They schemed to take away my life ” (Psalm 31:9-13).  Distress. Grief. Sorrow. Sighing. Failing strength. Wasted body. Reproach. Dread. Forgotten. Broken. Terror.

Perhaps you relate to that. A job loss. A failed relationship. Financial stress.  A fearful diagnosis. An accident. What do you do in the face of threats, trouble, and trials?  The rest of Psalm 31 answers that.  Trust in God (14), put your “times” in His hand (15), call upon Him (17), trust His provision (19-22), love Him (23), be strong, take courage, and hope in Him (24).  In a word, “God” is the answer.  But we must reach out to Him for that help.  When we do, we see our concerns in the clearer light of His power!

Psalm 15

Neal Pollard

Who may permanently pitch his tent on the holy hill of the Lord?
Who is the one that may stay, content, without harm or hurt or discord?
The one who with godliness walks and works, with truth upon his heart
A trustworthy person who wickedness shirks, who in evil takes no part
His tongue he watches and reins, his friends do not fear he’ll betray
From slanderous, evil speech he refrains, he avoids every disloyal way
His sense of right and wrong is clear, his word is ironclad,
His fear of the Lord his actions steer, he despises all men who are bad.
The innocent he carefully protects, he’s compassionate if he lends.
The hurting he never neglects, the downtrodden are his friends.
What happens to such a man, the one up on God’s holy hill?
Move him? No one can! He is entrenched in God’s  unchanging will!

“Beauty On The Outside Never Makes Up For Ugliness On The Inside”

Neal Pollard

The late Harvey Porter wrote the words that make up the title of this article.  He was commenting on Peter’s words to women in 1 Peter 3:3-4, where the apostle urges them, “Your adornment must not be merely external -braiding the hair, and wearing gold jewelry, or putting on dresses; but let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the imperishable quality of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is precious in the sight of God.”  While there are matters here that would seem to more naturally pertain to women–braids, jewelry, and dresses–there are principles in these verses needed by everyone.

First, your adornment must not be merely external.  Whatever you are doing to fight the “Battle of Time,” you are losing.  Even if you are aging gracefully, you are aging!  Eventually, there is nothing you can do about it.  How foolish to only pay attention to skin, hair, body, and wardrobe.  As the title suggests, we all know some handsome and pretty people who are repulsive beneath that shaky surface.

Second, your must properly adorn your heart.  We are not left to wonder how.  Peter suggests to Christian ladies the “imperishable” (that means it will last) quality of a gentle and quiet spirit.  That precludes boisterous, coarse, gossipy, bitter, hateful, vengeful, arrogant, cutting, and petty.  People of that variety are a dime a dozen, commonplace in a world of the externally-obsessed and internally-negligent.

Third, properly adorning the heart is precious in God’s sight.  I have only been in one beauty contest in my life.  The same is true for most of you.  If you have been in more than one, the one we are all contestants in is the most important of all.  How do you look in the sight of God?  He judges beauty at its deepest, truest level.  He is evaluating that “hidden person of the heart.”  There is no talent, evening wear, or other, similar segment.  He is simply looking at your heart and your spirit.  Adorn that well, and Peter says God deems that “precious.”  How do we look to God?  Isn’t that what matters?  Care about that, and we will win the only beauty contest that will matter in eternity.

The Family That Distributes Cocaine Together…

Neal Pollard

Family togetherness can be a good thing, but, obviously, not always.  The Lerma family in Grand Junction, Colorado, were not playing Scrabble, hiking, or watching Disney Movies together.  They were working together to bring two pounds of cocaine into this “western slope” community about every ten days or so.  They were arrested on Sunday, coming back from Denver.   Federico, wife Dolores, 19-year-old daughter Blanca, and a 16-year-old son were all implicated in the drug ring.  Blanca even took her 7-month-old child along for the car rides to transport the drugs (via Grand Junction Sentinel, 1/31/12).

It is unfathomable, unwholesome, unthinkable.  How parents could not influence, but encourage, sinful behavior is baffling to consider!  What were they thinking?

Extreme as it is, this family’s example should cause us to pause and consider what we do as a family when we are together.  Are we ever encouraging our children to miss worship and other regular assembly times in order to pursue other activities?  Do we watch things with them on TV or at the movies that are spiritually harmful?  What do we find humorous and entertaining?  Is it ever that which is not spiritually lawful?

We would never contemplate taking our young ones on a drug run, but where are we taking them?  Where will where we take them cause them to eventually go?  Fathers, as the spiritual leaders of the family (cf. Eph. 5:22-23; 6:1ff), God makes us accountable for our wives and children.  Let us rally them around only “whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute” (cf. Phil. 4:8).

ORAL HYGIENE (or “VERBAL SNIPERS”)

Neal Pollard

Routine teeth cleaning can be pleasant, but cavities, extractions, and root canals, from what I hear, are less than thrilling.  No matter how well you think you are doing with “home care,” the dentist will always have suggestions for how you can improve your “oral hygiene,” from flossing and regular brushing to avoiding certain types of food (i.e., sugary and staining stuff).

But, how is our spiritual “oral hygiene”?  Sometimes, we equate such with abstaining from profanity and vulgarity.  But, doesn’t God expect more?  Growing up in the church, I have preserved in my mind a “Hall of Fame” of people who have filled their speech and words with encouragement, truth, gentleness, and thoughtfulness.  They brighten the lives they touch, altering them for the better.  However, I have seen too many Christians in every congregation I can remember whose speech is rotten and decayed.  Ironically, they often are those who faithfully attend and are generally morally and ethically upright.  Yet, they have slipped the bridle off their tongue to the harm and detriment of others.

Neither one’s age, perceived position and importance, nor tenure in a congregation entitles him or her to riddle others with verbal bullets.  Insults, discouragement, destructive criticism, loveless rebukes, railings, and the like have proven stumbling blocks to many visitors, new Christians, weak Christians, or others who are spiritually vulnerable.  I cannot count the specific number of times I have tried to help these wounded ones pick up the pieces after razor-sharp comments made by thoughtless brothers and sisters who ought to know better.  The offenders may not have any idea of the havoc they cause, but I am certain that some will be shocked and astonished at the judgment.

Jesus taught that “the mouth speaks out of that which fills the heart” and “that every careless word that people speak, they shall give an accounting for it in the day of judgment. For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned” (Mt. 12:34b, 36-37).  What do we think James means when he says that the tongue “is set on fire by hell” (Js. 3:6)?  The kind of speech referenced above is certainly not ignited by heaven!

Please consider that your speech is a direct reflection of the content of your heart!  Be mortified at the thought of a word of yours causing anyone to stumble and fall!  However important or unimportant you believe yourself to be, realize the potential harm or good you do simply by what you say.  Am I talking about your speech?  Well, ask if your speech is “with grace, seasoned with salt” (Col. 4:6), wholesome, edifying, needful, and gracious (Eph. 4:29)?  If it is not, please keep it to yourself!

Let us remember the words Will Carleton wrote in “The First Settler’s Story”:

Boys flying kites haul in their white-winged birds;
You can’t do that way when you’re flying words.
“Careful with fire,” is good advice we know
“Careful with words,” is ten times doubly so.
Thoughts unexpressed may sometimes fall back dead;
But God Himself can’t kill them when they’re said.

THE SWISS PARAGUAYAN

Neal Pollard

Moises’ Bertoni’s story is fascinating.  Born in Switzerland in 1857, son of a renowned lawyer, Bertoni was an idealist and an adventurer whose scientific passions took him first to Brazil and ultimately to Paraguay, where he and his wife raised their thirteen sons!  They suffered many hardships in the area known as Alto Parana, a department (like a region or state) featuring the Parana River.  When still living on the Brazil side of the river, it overflowed its banks and deluged the Bertoni home, destroying ten years of research on two continents.  Once in Paraguay, they faced pumas, jaguars, tapirs, monkeys, and anacondas.  He wrote, in an 1885 personal letter, “We have passed through all the difficulties that human existence can offer…villainy, the most absolute misery, freaky weather, hunger! We have born up under all of it, amazed at ourselves. We are not willing to give in…We are on the field of battle, and the fight offers only two outcomes: victory or death!”

Not surprisingly, Bertoni became an eminent figure in Paraguayan history renowned for his scientific research, agricultural advancement, publishing, environmentalism, and his work as an expert student the Guarani race of people who were his neighbors.  He suffered many disappointments and failures before succumbing to malaria in 1929, but his approach to the challenges of life proved him a fighter who persevered (some information via Mike Caesar, “Paraguay’s First Man Of Science,” 2002).

Though Bertoni was misguided in some of his pursuits, he exemplifies a principle we should all apply to our lives as Christians today.  Whatever difficulties and challenges we face, we must remember that we, too, are on the field of battle.  As he framed his work, how much more is ours a matter of “victory or death”?  Repeatedly, New Testament writers cast Christianity as a battle fraught with adversity (Rom. 13:12; 2 Cor. 10:4; Eph. 6; 1 Tim. 1:18; 2 Tim. 4:7; etc.).  Yet, this is the promised finale of the fight, that “you are from God, little children, and have overcome them; because greater is he that is in you than he who is in the world” (1 Jn. 4:4).  In the next chapter, John explains that we overcome by faith (1 Jn. 5:4).  Some day, unless Christ’s coming precedes it, physical death will overtake us, but, if we are faithful in Christ, we will experience eternal victory!

What Is God’s View Toward Homosexuality In 2012?

Neal Pollard

In 1998, Lisa Bennett, then a fellow at Harvard University’s Center on Press, Politics, and Public Policy in the John F. Kennedy School of Government, wrote a research paper on perceived prejudice in the press toward homosexuality.  She noted that immediately following World War II, “all the major religions condemned it as a sin against God and nature. Psychiatrists treated it as a serious mental disorder. Almost every state in the nation had a law against it, with many calling for a prison term for convicted homosexuals” (Bennett 2).  She credited Alfred Kinsey’s reports for revealing how much of what the Bible calls sexual immorality was being clandestinely practiced by Americans (though it has been widely noted that Kinsey skewed and manipulated his results to match his own, private agenda; opponents include the American Legislative Exchange Council, Margaret Mead, Karl Menninger, Eric Fromm, and a who’s who of Kinsey’s contemporaries in science and psychology).

Even in the last 30 years, attitudes toward homosexuality have changed dramatically. Gallup indicates that in 1977, Americans were evenly divided over whether or not homosexuality should even be legal (43% for and against).  In 1983, only 34% thought homosexuality should be considered an acceptable alternative lifestyle. In 1996, only 27% favored homosexual marriage (www.gallup.com/poll/108115/Americans-Evenly-Divided-Morality-Homosexuality.aspx).  These and similar findings are radically different in 2012.

Whatever the exact numbers are now, it is safe to say that many, many more Americans accept, if not embrace, homosexuality in our society than in the years immediately following World War II.  This cannot all be laid at the feet of one man, but at a few elite institutions.  One is higher education, where professors in academic isolation surrounded only by like-minded peers can pursue carnal theory and philosophy with seeming earthly impunity (i.e., free from consequences).  Incidentally, many of these professors have taken their places in seminaries and other religious graduate schools, softening and changing the positions of religious teachers and preachers across the religious spectrum.  Another is the media, whose message has long been an influencer and molder of thought rather than a reflection of it.  Its story-lines, role models, and biases continue to push the moral envelope.  Yet another is politics, where legislators, judges, and others pander to activists and special interest groups who pressure with money and power.

All of this is presented, not to argue for changing our positions on homosexuality or any other moral issue, but to help us take a look at the moral slide so many are riding.  No matter what percentage of Americans, academicians, politicians, or media types, call homosexuality or other sin natural, normal, and acceptable, God’s Word stands firm.  It will not change, for it is the expressed will of God.  In short, though God loves every sinner, homosexuality is, and forever will be, a sin (Rom. 1:24-27; 1 Cor. 6:9; 1 Tim. 1:10).

King Solomon’s Deadly Mistake

Neal Pollard

Laura Elliott, first grade Bible class teacher at the Cold Harbor Road congregation, was teaching my son Dale’s class about king Solomon’s three hundred wives and seven hundred concubines, about how not only was it wrong to have so many wives but how difficult it must have been for Solomon to keep up with all of their names. Laura tells me that Dale’s solution was simple: “Couldn’t he just call them all ‘honey’?” If only keeping up with their names was Solomon’s most serious task with regard to these women!

Reading 1 Kings 11, right off the heels of Solomon’s hosting of the Queen of Sheba and the extremely opulent exchange of gifts between them, we are impressed with an incredible flaw in Solomon’s character. Perhaps Ecclesiastes was written later enough in his life after 1 Kings 11 that he realized, with regret, the folly of such a lifestyle. Consider some things about Solomon’s deadly mistake.

First, his mistake was in whom he had such great affection (1 Kings 11:1-2). They were foreign women from nations with whom God explicitly forbad such fraternization! God knew that such worldly yoking would lead men to fall away from Him (cf. 2 Cor. 6:14; 1 Cor. 15:33). Be careful as to who is the object of your affection – choosing wrong is a deadly mistake!

Second, his mistake was in how he held them in affection (1 Kings 11:1-2). These women of the world were apparently beautiful and seductive. The word for “love” in these two verses speaks more to physical attraction and very little, if at all, to pure, spiritual love. It might be said that Solomon pursued these women from lust. From his own pen, he wrote of how dangerous such pursuit is (Prov. 5; 6:24-35; 7:5-27; etc.). To follow his example today is a deadly mistake!

Third, his mistake was in what his affection for them led him to do (1 Kings 11:3-10). It led him to worship the idols revered by these pagan women. It also led him to ignore God’s commands and even outright rebel against them! The natural consequence of following in his footsteps is the same today – a choice must be made. Choosing the path of sensuality prevents one from obeying God. Obeying God makes it impossible to, at the same time, pursue such a sinful path. Choose like he did, and you make a deadly mistake!

Finally, his mistake was in what his affection for them cost him (1 Kings 11:11). His pursuit of these women cost him the kingdom! God took it from him through the rebellion of Jeroboam and the folly of Rehoboam, his son.

Following Solomon’s example is costly! It will often cost one dearly – financially, socially, and physically. Lacking repentance, it will surely cost one eternally! Yet, so many are imitating Solomon’s deadly mistake!

May we take a page from inspiration and learn from Solomon’s deadly mistake.


MAGNILOQUENCE

Neal Pollard

It is a word seemingly requiring an unabridged dictionary. It means “employing impressive words and an exaggeratedly solemn and dignified style or using important- sounding words” (Encarta).  To use the word in a sentence, “The preacher magniloquently threw around words like ‘magniloquence.'”

The Bible places a great premium on the sort of words and speech we use (cf. Mt. 12:36-37; Col. 4:6).  Apparently, “big talkers” are not a novelty of today.  In fact, one finds a surprising number of contexts and discussions centering around such.  Peter warns of certain lawless individuals who speak “out arrogant words of vanity” (2 Pet. 2:18; cf. Jude 16).  Paul, warning of coming difficult times, included in the list of qualities making for such those who were boastful and arrogant (2 Tim. 3:1ff).  The same type characteristics show up in Paul’s condemnation of Gentiles’ sinfulness in Romans 1:30.  Many other texts indicate this same malady of mouth.

Certainly, these inspired writers seem to speak of something that goes much farther than even magniloquence.  Yet, it serves as a good reminder.  Why would we try to talk or act in some way to make us look important, smart, sophisticated, successful, or the like?  It may be a lack of common sense, failing to consider our audience.  It may be insecurity, compensating for other shortcomings.  It may ambition, trying to impress the “right kind” of folks.  It may be great intelligence, but it hinders great communication.

Let us be reminded that being pretentious, i.e., “making claims to some distinction, importance, etc.”–whatever form that takes–means failing to imitate Christ.  He called for humility and the avoidance of selfish ambition (cf. Rom. 2:8; Phil. 1:17; Js. 3:14,16).  We should be intent on lifting up Christ, not magnifying self.  May we make a conscious effort to let that attitude show up in our choices, our deeds, and our speech!

Paul’s Bundle Of Sticks

Neal Pollard

In Acts 28, after Paul and his shipmates survived a shipwreck and landed on Malta, the stranded passengers found themselves cold and wet in a strange place.  The natives, however, were friendly and built a fire for them all (Acts 28:2).  It is interesting that Paul “gathered a bundle of sticks and laid them on the fire” (3).  This was when Paul was bitten by an apparently deadly viper.  Somehow, in reading this part of Paul’s journey to Rome, I overlooked a fundamental fact that helped make Paul great.

Paul did his part.  When the others had built that fire, Paul was not content to let the others do it all.  He did his share.  Not only that, he did his share even at great, personal cost.  He did his share, though he might have rationalized that he had already done so much and been through so much.  Paul noted their unusual kindness and was made to feel very welcome, and he showed his appreciation in a tangible way.

You may be a busy, active servant of God.  You may have done much in the past for the cause of Christ.  Yet, think about how notable it is and inspiring to others, when you gather your own bundle of sticks to help the fire others have started.  It may be noted and remembered long after you are gone.

Blackout Christianity?

Neal Pollard

It is going to be harder today to find a quick answer to such questions as, “How did William Henry Harrison die?” or “What is the history of the easter bunny?”  For both questions, the top search engine result is the Wikipedia website.  Most know that they have chosen today, January 18, 2012, to protest some anti-piracy legislation better known as SOPA and PIPA.  The list of sites participating in what they call the “blackout” is very long, but none have more star power than the familiar, free information Wiki-sites.  Were I better informed about the particulars, I might articulate an educated opinion.  I will defer to others for that service.  My interest is in the way they have chosen to protest.  They are calling it “blackout Wikipedia.”  They have shut down their site and no one can use it for “research.”  As my friend Keith Kasarjian wrote earlier today, “With Wikipedia down, students all over the world are scrambling to figure out how to do real research.”

In John 8:12, Jesus called Himself the light of the world.  Matthew 5:14 says that we, as Christians, are the light of the world. But, Jesus, in Matthew five, says that we black out those lights (cf. 5:15).  Paul demonstrates how important it is for that light to be seen.  He says that in a dark, crooked and perverse world, Christians “appear as lights” (Phil. 2:15).  But, when we black out that light through compromise and conformation, no one will be able to find out the answers to the most important questions of all time and eternity.  We ourselves were called out of darkness into His marvelous light (1 Pet. 2:9). Paul says, “Walk as children of light” (Eph. 5:8).  How can we do that if nobody knows we have the light and are the light?

None of us would arbitrary chose a day to blackout our Christianity, but if we are not careful we can make such a decision our way of life.  God give us strength and courage to “put on the armor of light” (Rom. 13:12)!

 

A Precept, A Principle, And A Practice

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Neal Pollard

Whether we are preaching, teaching, or simply trying to engage in spiritual self-improvement in personal study, our approach to Scripture, to be profitable, should have three basic components for maximum effectiveness.  When we are studying a Bible book and engaging in proper interpretation, we will discover a precept.  A “precept” is simply a rule meant to regulate how to live and behave.   The very word appears 19 times in Psalm 119 alone.  God’s Word is full of precepts, God showing us how He wants us to live.  When our attitude is to see the Bible as God guiding us through earthly life toward a heavenly home with Him, our time in study will be so profitable.  Such an approach will also help us open our mind to see the heart of God.  Thus, from precepts flow principles.  These are the inspired truths of God that form the foundation for how we view the world and how we live in it.  The more we are in that word, the more influenced we are going to be by God’s precepts in determining our principles.  We will look to see how His word applies in our lives.  If all is as it should be, these principles find their way into our practice.  He tells us, we accept and understand it, and then we do it.  How profoundly simple!  The Bible is not an archaic volume best meant as a shelf’s dust collection.  It is a living, breathing book (Heb. 4:12).  It is an exegetical, explanatory, exercise manual.  We grow thereby (cf. 1 Pet. 2:2).